cane_posam
As
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 7,
2021
Registration No. 333-248545
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
Post- Effective Amendment No. 1 to FORM
S-1
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF
1933
Teucrium Commodity Trust
(Registrant)
Delaware
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or
organization)
6799
(Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code
Number)
27-6715887
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
c/o Teucrium Trading, LLC
Three Main Street
Suite 215
Burlington, VT 05401
Phone: (802) 540-0019
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area
code, of Registrant’s principal executive
offices)
Sal Gilbertie
Chief Executive Officer
Teucrium Trading, LLC
Three Main Street
Suite 215
Burlington, VT 05401
Phone: (802) 540-0019
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including
area code, of agent for service)
Copy to:
W. Thomas Conner, Esq.
VedderPrice P.C.
1401 I Street NW
Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20005
Approximate
date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As soon as
practicable after the effective date of this Registration
Statement.
If
any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be
offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under
the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box.
☒
If
this Form is filed to register additional securities for an
offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check
the following box and list the Securities Act registration
statement number of the earlier effective registration statement
for the same offering. ☐
If
this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule
462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list
the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier
effective registration statement for the same offering.
☐
If
this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule
462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list
the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier
effective registration statement for the same offering.
☐
Indicate by
check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an
accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting
company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of
“large accelerated filer,” “accelerated
filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and
“emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange
Act.
Large accelerated filer
☐
|
Accelerated filer
☐
|
|
Non-accelerated filer
☒
|
Smaller reporting company
☒
Emerging growth company
☐
|
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. ☐
The registrant
hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as
may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant
shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this
Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in
accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act or until this
Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the
Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may
determine.
The
information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed.
We may not sell these securities until the registration statement
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective.
This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is
not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction
where the offer or sale is not
permitted.
Subject to Completion
Preliminary Prospectus dated April 7,
2021
Teucrium Sugar
Fund
22,875,000
Shares
Teucrium Sugar Fund (the
“Fund” or “Us” or “We” or
“CANE”) is designed to provide investors with a
cost-effective means to gain price exposure to the sugar market for
future delivery. The Fund issues shares (“Shares”) that
trade on the NYSE Arca stock exchange (“NYSE Arca”)
under the symbol “CANE” and that can be purchased and
sold by investors through their broker-dealer. The Fund’s
investment objective is for changes in the Shares’ NAV to
reflect the daily changes of the price of sugar for future
delivery, as measured by the Fund’s Benchmark (as defined
below). Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests in sugar
futures contracts and cash and cash equivalents. The sponsor to the
Fund is Teucrium Trading, LLC (the “Sponsor”), which
receives a management fee. The principal office address and
telephone number of both the Fund and the Sponsor is Three Main
Street, Suite 215, Burlington, Vermont 05401 and (802) 540-0019.
While most investors will purchase
and sell Shares through their broker-dealer, the Fund continuously
offers creation baskets consisting of 25,000 Shares
(“Creation Baskets”) at their net asset value
(“NAV”) to certain parties who have entered into an
agreement with the Sponsor (“Authorized Purchasers”).
Authorized Purchasers, in turn, may sell such Shares, which are
listed on NYSE Arca, to the public at per-Share offering prices
that are expected to reflect, among other factors, the trading
price of the Shares on the NYSE Arca, the NAV of the Fund at the
time the Authorized Purchaser purchased the Creation Baskets and
the NAV at the time of the offer of the Shares to the public, the
supply of and demand for Shares at the time of sale, and the
liquidity of the markets for sugar futures contracts in which the
Fund invests. A list of the Fund’s Authorized Purchasers as
of the date of this Prospectus can be found under “Plan of
Distribution – Distributor
and Authorized Purchasers,” on page 43. The prices of
Shares offered by Authorized Purchasers are expected to fall
between the Fund’s NAV and the trading price of the Shares on
the NYSE Arca at the time of sale. The Fund’s Shares may
trade in the secondary market on the NYSE Arca at prices that are
lower or higher than their NAV per Share.
This is a best efforts offering;
the distributor, Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the
“Distributor”), is not required to sell any specific
number or dollar amount of Shares but will use its best efforts to
sell Shares. An Authorized Purchaser is under no obligation
to purchase Shares. This is intended to be a continuous
offering that will terminate on October 2, 2023 unless suspended or
terminated at any earlier time for certain reasons specified in
this prospectus or unless extended as permitted under the rules of
the Securities Act of 1933. See “Prospectus
Summary – The Shares” and “Creation and
Redemption of Shares – Rejection of Purchase Orders”
below.
Investing in the
Fund involves significant risks. See “What Are the Risk
Factors Involved with an Investment in the Fund?” beginning
on page 12. The Fund is not a mutual fund registered
under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and is not subject to
regulation under such Act.
NEITHER THE
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION (“SEC”) NOR ANY
STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED OF THE
SECURITIES OFFERED IN THIS PROSPECTUS OR DETERMINED IF THIS
PROSPECTUS IS TRUTHFUL OR COMPLETE. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE
CONTRARY IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE.
Teucrium Sugar Fund is a commodity
pool and Teucrium Trading, LLC is a commodity pool operator subject
to regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the
National Futures Association under the Commodity Exchange Act
(“CEA”).
THE COMMODITY
FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION HAS NOT PASSED UPON THE MERITS OF
PARTICIPATING IN THIS POOL NOR HAS THE COMMISSION PASSED ON THE
ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS DISCLOSURE
DOCUMENT.
This prospectus
is in two parts: a disclosure document and a statement of
additional information. These parts are bound together, and both
contain important information.
Thank you for your interest in the Teucrium Sugar
Fund.
The date of this prospectus is May
1, 2021.
COMMODITY
FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION
RISK DISCLOSURE
STATEMENT
YOU SHOULD
CAREFULLY CONSIDER WHETHER YOUR FINANCIAL CONDITION PERMITS YOU TO
PARTICIPATE IN A COMMODITY POOL. IN SO DOING, YOU SHOULD
BE AWARE THAT COMMODITY INTEREST TRADING CAN QUICKLY LEAD TO LARGE
LOSSES AS WELL AS GAINS. SUCH TRADING LOSSES CAN SHARPLY
REDUCE THE NET ASSET VALUE OF THE POOL AND CONSEQUENTLY THE VALUE
OF YOUR INTEREST IN THE POOL. IN ADDITION, RESTRICTIONS
ON REDEMPTIONS MAY AFFECT YOUR ABILITY TO WITHDRAW YOUR
PARTICIPATION IN THE POOL.
FURTHER,
COMMODITY POOLS MAY BE SUBJECT TO SUBSTANTIAL CHARGES FOR
MANAGEMENT, AND ADVISORY AND BROKERAGE FEES. IT MAY BE
NECESSARY FOR THOSE POOLS THAT ARE SUBJECT TO THESE CHARGES TO MAKE
SUBSTANTIAL TRADING PROFITS TO AVOID DEPLETION OR EXHAUSTION OF
THEIR ASSETS. THIS DISCLOSURE DOCUMENT CONTAINS A
COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF EACH EXPENSE TO BE CHARGED THIS POOL AT
PAGE 38 AND A STATEMENT OF THE PERCENTAGE RETURN NECESSARY TO BREAK
EVEN, THAT IS, TO RECOVER THE AMOUNT OF YOUR INITIAL INVESTMENT, AT
PAGE 9.
THIS BRIEF
STATEMENT CANNOT DISCLOSE ALL THE RISKS AND OTHER FACTORS NECESSARY
TO EVALUATE YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THIS COMMODITY POOL.
THEREFORE, BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS COMMODITY POOL,
YOU SHOULD CAREFULLY STUDY THIS DISCLOSURE DOCUMENT,
INCLUDING A DESCRIPTION OF THE PRINCIPAL RISK FACTORS OF THIS
INVESTMENT, AT PAGE 7.
YOU SHOULD ALSO
BE AWARE THAT THIS COMMODITY POOL MAY TRADE FOREIGN
FUTURES OR OPTIONS CONTRACTS. TRANSACTIONS ON MARKETS LOCATED
OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES, INCLUDING MARKETS FORMALLY LINKED TO A
UNITED STATES MARKET, MAY BE SUBJECT TO REGULATIONS WHICH OFFER
DIFFERENT OR DIMINISHED PROTECTION TO THE POOL AND ITS
PARTICIPANTS. FURTHER, UNITED STATES REGULATORY AUTHORITIES
MAY BE UNABLE TO COMPEL THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE RULES OF REGULATORY
AUTHORITIES OR MARKETS IN NON-UNITED STATES JURISDICTIONS WHERE
TRANSACTIONS FOR THE POOL MAY BE EFFECTED.
SWAPS
TRANSACTIONS, LIKE OTHER FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS, INVOLVE A VARIETY
OF SIGNIFICANT RISKS. THE SPECIFIC RISKS PRESENTED BY A PARTICULAR
SWAP TRANSACTION NECESSARILY DEPEND UPON THE TERMS OF THE
TRANSACTION AND YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES. IN GENERAL, HOWEVER, ALL SWAPS
TRANSACTIONS INVOLVE SOME COMBINATION OF MARKET RISK, CREDIT RISK,
COUNTERPARTY CREDIT RISK, FUNDING RISK, LIQUIDITY RISK, AND
OPERATIONAL RISK.
HIGHLY
CUSTOMIZED SWAPS TRANSACTIONS IN PARTICULAR MAY INCREASE LIQUIDITY
RISK, WHICH MAY RESULT IN A SUSPENSION OF REDEMPTIONS. HIGHLY
LEVERAGED TRANSACTIONS MAY EXPERIENCE SUBSTANTIAL GAINS OR LOSSES
IN VALUE AS A RESULT OF RELATIVELY SMALL CHANGES IN THE VALUE OR
LEVEL OF AN UNDERLYING OR RELATED MARKET
FACTOR.
IN
EVALUATING THE RISKS AND CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH A
PARTICULAR SWAP TRANSACTION, IT IS IMPORTANT TO CONSIDER THAT A
SWAP TRANSACTION MAY BE MODIFIED OR TERMINATED ONLY BY MUTUAL
CONSENT OF THE ORIGINAL PARTIES AND SUBJECT TO AGREEMENT ON
INDIVIDUALLY NEGOTIATED TERMS. THEREFORE, IT MAY NOT BE POSSIBLE
FOR THE COMMODITY POOL OPERATOR TO MODIFY, TERMINATE, OR OFFSET THE
POOL'S OBLIGATIONS OR THE POOL'S EXPOSURE TO THE RISKS ASSOCIATED
WITH A TRANSACTION PRIOR TO ITS SCHEDULED TERMINATION
DATE.
TEUCRIUM SUGAR
FUND
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
|
Page
|
PART ONE
– DISCLOSURE DOCUMENT
|
3
|
PROSPECTUS
SUMMARY
|
6
|
Principal
Offices of the Fund and the Sponsor
|
6
|
Breakeven
Point
|
6
|
Operation of
the Fund
|
6
|
Principal
Investment Risks of an Investment in the Fund
|
7
|
Determination
of NAV
|
8
|
Defined
Terms
|
8
|
Breakeven
Analysis
|
9
|
The
Offering
|
10
|
WHAT ARE THE
RISK FACTORS INVOLVED WITH AN INVESTMENT IN THE
FUND?
|
12
|
Risks
Associated with Investing Directly or Indirectly in
Sugar
|
12
|
The
Fund’s Operating Risks
|
16
|
Risk of
Leverage and Volatility
|
23
|
Over the
counter Contract Risk
|
24
|
Risk of
Trading in International Markets
|
25
|
Tax
Risk
|
25
|
THE
OFFERING
|
27
|
The Fund in
General
|
27
|
The
Sponsor
|
27
|
Prior
Performance of the Fund
|
30
|
The
Trustee
|
31
|
Operation of
the Fund
|
32
|
Futures
Contracts
|
34
|
Over the
counter Derivatives
|
36
|
The
Fund’s Investments in Cash and Cash
Equivalents
|
36
|
Other Trading
Policies of the Fund
|
36
|
Benchmark
Performance
|
37
|
The Sugar
Market
|
38
|
The
Fund’s Service Providers
|
40
|
Form of
Shares
|
42
|
Transfer of
Shares
|
42
|
Inter-Series
Limitation on Liability
|
42
|
Plan of
Distribution
|
43
|
Calculating
NAV
|
44
|
Creation and
Redemption of Shares
|
45
|
Secondary
Market Transactions
|
48
|
Use of
Proceeds
|
48
|
The Trust
Agreement
|
49
|
The Sponsor
Has Conflicts of Interest
|
51
|
Interests of
Named Experts and Counsel
|
52
|
Provisions of
Federal and State Securities Laws
|
52
|
Books and
Records
|
52
|
Statements,
Filings, and Reports to Shareholders
|
52
|
Fiscal
Year
|
52
|
Governing
Law
|
52
|
Security
Ownership of Principal Shareholders and
Management
|
53
|
Legal
Matters
|
53
|
Privacy
Policy
|
54
|
U.S. Federal
Income Tax Considerations
|
55
|
Investment by
ERISA Accounts
|
63
|
INCORPORATION
BY REFERENCE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION
|
66
|
INFORMATION
YOU SHOULD KNOW
|
67
|
WHERE YOU CAN
FIND MORE INFORMATION
|
68
|
STATEMENT
REGUARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
|
69
|
APPENDIX
A - GLOSSARY OF DEFINED TERMS
|
70
|
|
|
PART TWO
– STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
|
82
|
This is only a
summary of the prospectus and, while it contains material
information about the Fund and its Shares, it does not contain or
summarize all of the information about the Fund and the Shares
contained in this prospectus that is material and/or which may be
important to you. You should read this entire prospectus, including
“What Are the Risk Factors Involved with an Investment in the
Fund?” beginning on page 12, before making an investment
decision about the Shares. In addition, this prospectus
includes a statement of additional information that follows and is
bound together with the primary disclosure document. Both the
primary disclosure document and the statement of additional
information contain important information.
Principal Offices of
the Fund and the Sponsor
The Fund is a series of Teucrium
Commodity Trust (the “Trust”). The principal offices of
the Sponsor, the Trust and the Fund are located at Three Main
Street, Suite 215, Burlington, Vermont 05401. The telephone number
is (802) 540-0019.
The amount of trading income
required for the redemption value of a Share at the end of one year
to equal the selling price of the Share, assuming a selling price
of $6.91 (the NAV per Share as of January 31, 2021), is $0.13
or 1.88% of the selling price. For more information, see
“Breakeven Analysis” below.
Operation of the
Fund
The Fund is a commodity pool that
issues Shares that may be purchased and sold on NYSE Arca. The
investment objective of the Fund is to have the daily changes in
the Shares’ NAV reflect the daily changes of the price of
sugar for future delivery, as measured by a benchmark (the
“Benchmark”) as described below. The Benchmark for the
Fund is the Teucrium Sugar Index (“TCANE”). Under
normal market conditions, the Fund invests in sugar futures
contracts and cash and cash equivalents. The Fund is organized as a
series of the Trust, a Delaware statutory trust organized on
September 11, 2009. The Trust and the Fund operate pursuant to the
Trust’s Fifth Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust and
Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”), dated April
26, 2019. The Trust Agreement may be found on the SEC’s EDGAR
filing database at https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1471824/000165495419004852/ex31.htm.
The Fund was formed and is managed and controlled by the Sponsor, a
limited liability company formed in Delaware on July 28, 2009. The
Sponsor is registered as a commodity pool operator
(“CPO”) and a commodity trading adviser
(“CTA”) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(“CFTC”) and is a member of the National Futures
Association (“NFA”).
The
investment objective of the Fund is to have the daily changes in
the NAV of the Fund’s Shares reflect the daily changes in the
sugar market for future delivery as measured by the Benchmark. The
Benchmark is a weighted average of the closing settlement prices
for three futures contracts for No. 11 Sugar (“Sugar Futures
Contracts”) that are traded on the ICE Futures US (“ICE
Futures”). The three Sugar No. 11 Futures Contracts
that at any given time make up the Benchmark are referred to herein
as the “Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts.”
The Fund seeks to achieve its
investment objective by investing in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts. Under normal market conditions, the Fund expects that
100% of the Fund’s assets will be invested in Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts and in cash and cash equivalents. The
Fund reserves the right to invest in swap agreements, forward
contracts and options, a brief description of which may be found in
“Appendix A – “Glossary of Defined Terms.”
Consistent with applicable
provisions of the Trust Agreement and Delaware law, the Fund has
broad authority to make changes to the Fund’s operations.
Consistent with this authority, the Fund, in its sole discretion
and without shareholder approval or advance notice, may change its
investment objective, Benchmark, or investment strategies. The Fund
has no current intention to make any such change, and any change is
subject to applicable regulatory requirements, including, but not
limited to, any requirement to amend applicable listing rules of
the NYSE.
The reasons for and circumstances
that may trigger any such changes may vary widely and cannot be
predicted. However, by way of example, the Fund may change the term
structure or underlying components of the Benchmark in furtherance
of the Fund’s investment objective of tracking the price of
sugar for future delivery if, due to market conditions, a potential
or actual imposition of position limits by the CFTC or futures
exchange rules, or the imposition of risk mitigation measures by a
futures commission merchant restricts the ability of the Fund to
invest in the current Benchmark Futures Contracts. The Fund would
file a current report on Form 8-K and a prospectus supplement to
describe any such change and the effective date of the change.
Shareholders may modify their holdings of the Fund’s shares
in response to any change by purchasing or selling Fund shares
through their broker-dealer.
The Fund invests in Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts to the fullest extent possible without
being leveraged or unable to satisfy its expected current or
potential margin or collateral obligations with respect to its
investments in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts. After fulfilling such margin and collateral
requirements, the Fund invests the remainder of its proceeds from
the sale of baskets in short term financial instruments of the type
commonly known as “cash and cash equivalents.” Cash and
cash equivalents may include short-term Treasury bills, money
market funds, demand deposit accounts, and commercial
paper.
The Sponsor employs a
“neutral” investment strategy intended to track the
changes in the Benchmark regardless of whether the Benchmark goes
up or goes down. The Fund’s “neutral” investment
strategy is designed to permit investors generally to purchase and
sell the Fund’s Shares for the purpose of investing
indirectly in the sugar market in a cost-effective manner. The
Sponsor endeavors to place the Fund’s trades in Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts and otherwise manage the Fund’s
investments so that the Fund’s average daily tracking error
against the Benchmark will be less than 10 percent over any period
of 30 trading days. However, the Fund incurs certain expenses in
connection with its operations, which cause imperfect correlation
between changes in the Fund’s NAV and changes in the
Benchmark because the Benchmark does not reflect expenses or
income. As a result, investors may incur a partial or complete loss
of their investment even when the performance of the Benchmark is
positive.
Investors may purchase and sell
Shares through their broker-dealers. However, the Fund creates and
redeems Shares only in blocks called “Creation Baskets”
and “Redemption Baskets”, respectively, and only
Authorized Purchasers may purchase or redeem Creation Baskets or
Redemption Baskets. An Authorized Purchaser is under no obligation
to create or redeem baskets, and an Authorized Purchaser is under
no obligation to offer to the public Shares of any baskets it does
create. Baskets are generally created when there is a demand for
Shares, including, but not limited to, when the market price per
share is at (or perceived to be at) a premium to the NAV per Share.
Similarly, baskets are generally redeemed when the market price per
share is at (or perceived to be at) a discount to the NAV per
Share. Retail investors seeking to purchase or sell Shares on any
day are expected to effect such transactions in the secondary
market, on the NYSE Arca, at the market price per share, rather
than in connection with the creation or redemption of
baskets.
The Sponsor believes that by
investing in Benchmark Component Futures Contracts, the
Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”) will closely track
the Benchmark. The Sponsor also believes that because of market
arbitrage opportunities, the market price at which investors will
purchase and sell Shares through their broker-dealer will closely
track the Fund’s NAV. The Sponsor believes that the net
effect of these relationships is that the Fund’s market price
on the NYSE Arca at which investors purchase and sell Shares will
closely track the sugar market for future delivery, as measured by
the Benchmark.
The Sponsor maintains a public
website on behalf of the Fund, www.teucrium.com, which
contains information about the Trust, the Fund, and the
Shares.
Note to Secondary Market Investors:
Except when aggregated in
Redemption Baskets, Shares are not individually redeemable. Shares
can be directly purchased from the Fund only in Creation Baskets,
and only by Authorized Purchasers. Each Creation Basket consists of
25,000 Shares and therefore requires a significant financial
commitment to purchase. Accordingly, investors who do not have such
resources or who are not Authorized Purchasers should be aware that
some of the information contained in this prospectus, including
information about purchases and redemptions of Shares directly with
the Fund, is only relevant to Authorized Purchasers. There is no
guarantee that Shares will trade at prices that are at or near the
per-Share NAV. When buying or selling Shares on the secondary
market through a broker, most investors incur customary brokerage
commissions and charges.
As noted, the
Fund invests in Sugar Futures Contracts, including those traded on
the ICE Futures. The Fund expressly disclaims any association
with the ICE Futures or endorsement of the Fund by such exchange
and acknowledges that “ICE Futures” and “ICE
Futures US” are registered trademarks of such
exchanges.
Principal
Investment Risks of an Investment in the Fund
An investment in the Fund involves
a degree of risk and you could incur a partial or total loss of
your investment in the Fund. Some of the risks you may face
are summarized below. A more extensive discussion of these risks
appears beginning on page 12.
●
Unlike mutual funds, commodity
pools and other investment pools that manage their investments so
as to realize income and gains for distribution to their investors,
the Fund generally does not distribute dividends to holders of Fund
Shares (“Shareholders”). You should not invest in the
Fund if you will need cash distributions from the Fund to pay taxes
on your share of income and gains of the Fund, if any, or for other
purposes.
●
Investors may choose to use the
Fund as a means of investing indirectly in sugar, and there are
risks involved in this investment strategy. The risks and hazards
that are inherent in sugar production may cause the price of sugar
to fluctuate widely.
●
Only
an Authorized Purchaser may engage in creation or redemption
transactions with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of
institutions that act as Authorized Purchasers. To the extent that
these institutions exit the business or are unable or unwilling to
proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the
Fund, Fund Shares may, particularly in times of market stress,
trade at a discount to the NAV per Share and possibly face trading
halts and/or delisting.
●
The
price relationship between the near month Sugar Futures Contract to
expire and the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts will vary and
may impact both the Fund’s total return over time and the
degree to which such total return tracks the total return of sugar
price indices. In some cases, the near month contract’s price
is lower than later expiring contracts’ prices (a situation
known as “contango” in the futures markets). In the
event of a prolonged period of contango, and absent the impact of
rising or falling sugar prices, this could have a significant
negative impact on the Fund’s NAV and total return, and you
could incur a partial or total loss of your investment in the
Fund.
●
You
will have no rights to participate in the management of the Fund
and will have to rely on the duties and judgment of the Sponsor to
manage the Fund.
●
The
Fund pays fees and expenses that are incurred regardless of whether
it is profitable.
●
The
Fund seeks to have the changes in its Shares’ NAV track
changes in the Benchmark, rather than profit from speculative
trading of Sugar Futures Contracts or from the use of leverage
(i.e., the Sponsor manages the Fund so that the aggregate value of
the Fund’s exposure to losses from its investments in
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts at any time will not exceed
the value of the Fund’s assets). There is no assurance that
the Sponsor will successfully implement this investment strategy,
and if the Fund becomes leveraged, you could lose all or
substantially all of your investment if the Fund’s trading
positions suddenly turn unprofitable.
●
In
addition to Benchmark Component Futures Contracts, the Fund
reserves the right to invest in other sugar interests. To the
extent that these other sugar interests are contracts individually
negotiated between their parties, they may not be as liquid as
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts and will expose the Fund to
credit risk that its counterparty may not be able to satisfy its
obligations to the Fund.
●
The
regulation of commodity interest transactions in the United States
has historically been comprehensive and is a rapidly changing area
of law and is subject to ongoing modification by governmental and
judicial action. Future U.S. or foreign regulatory changes may
alter the nature of an investment in the Fund, or the ability of
the Fund to continue to implement its investment
strategy.
●
Failures or breaches of the
electronic systems of the Fund, the Sponsor, or third parties or
other events such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic have the ability
to cause disruptions and negatively impact the Fund’s
business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses to
the Fund and its shareholders.
For additional risks, see
“What Are the Risk Factors Involved with an Investment in the
Fund?”
Determination of
NAV
The Fund’s NAV is determined
as of the earlier of the close of the New York Stock Exchange or
4:00 p.m. (EST) on each day that the NYSE Arca is open for
trading.
For a glossary of defined terms,
see Appendix A.
Breakeven
Analysis
The breakeven analysis set forth
below is a hypothetical illustration of the approximate dollar
returns and percentage returns for the redemption value of a single
share to equal the amount invested twelve months after the
investment is made. For purposes of this breakeven analysis, an
initial selling price of $6.91 per share, which equals the NAV per
share at the close of trading January 31, 2021, is assumed. The
breakeven analysis is an approximation only and assumes a constant
month-end Net Asset Value. In order for a hypothetical investment
in shares to breakeven over the next 12 months, assuming a selling
price of $6.91 per share, the investment would have to generate a
1.88% or $0.13 return.
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Assumed initial selling price per
share (1)
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$6.91
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Management Fee (1.00%) (2)
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$0.07
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Estimated Brokerage Commissions
(3)
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$0.01
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Other Fund Fees and Expenses
(4)
(5)
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$0.07
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Interest and Other Income (0.25%)
(6)
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$(0.02)
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Amount of trading income (loss)
required for the redemption value at the end of one year to equal
the selling price of the share
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$0.13
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Percentage of initial selling price
per share (7)
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1.88%
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(1)
In order to show how a hypothetical investment in shares would
break even over the next 12 months, this breakeven analysis uses an
assumed initial selling price of $6.91 per share,
which is based on the NAV per share of CANE at the close of trading
on January 31, 2021. Investors should note that, because
CANE’S NAV changes on a daily basis, the breakeven amount on
any given day could be higher or lower than the amount reflected
here.
(2) The Fund is
obligated to pay the Sponsor a management fee at the annual rate of
1.00% of the Fund’s average daily net assets, payable
monthly. The Sponsor can elect to waive the payment of the fee in
any amount at its sole discretion, at any time and from time to
time, in order to reduce the Fund’s expenses or for any other
purpose.
(3) Reflects estimated
brokerage commissions and fees for Sugar Futures Contract
purchase or sale and reflected on a per trade basis. The estimated
fee is based on the actual brokerage commissions and trading fees
paid for the year ending December 31, 2020.
(4) In connection with
orders to create or redeem baskets, Authorized Purchasers will pay
a transaction fee in the amount of $250 per order. Because these
transaction fees are de minimis in amount, are paid to the
Fund’s custodian, U.S. Bank, N.A. (the
“Custodian”) and charged on a
transaction-by-transaction basis (and not on a Basket by Basket
basis), and are borne by the Authorized Participants, they have not
been included in the Breakeven Table. See “Creation and Redemption Transaction
Fees,” page 47.
(5) Other Fund Fees
and Expenses are an estimate based on an allocation to the Fund of
the total estimated expenses anticipated to be incurred by the
Trust on behalf of the Fund, net of any expenses or management fee
waived by the Sponsor, and include: Professional fees (primarily
legal, auditing and tax-preparation related costs); Custodian and
Administrator fees and expenses, Distribution and Marketing fees
(primarily fees paid to the Distributor, costs related to
regulatory compliance activities and other costs related to the
trading activities of the Fund); Business Permits and Licenses;
General and Administrative expenses (primarily insurance and
printing), and Other Expenses. The expenses presented are based on
estimated expenses for the current fiscal year, and do not
represent the maximum amounts payable under the contracts with
third-party service providers, as discussed below in the section of
this disclosure document entitled “Contractual Fees and
Compensation Arrangements with the Sponsor and Third-Party Service
Providers.” The cost of these fixed or estimated fees has
been calculated assuming that the Fund has $14.1 million in assets,
which was the approximate amount of assets as of January 31, 2021.
The Sponsor can elect to pay (or waive reimbursement for) certain
fees or expenses that would generally be paid by the Fund, although
it has no contractual obligation to do so. Any election to pay or
waive reimbursement for fees and expenses that would generally be
paid by the Fund can be changed at the discretion of the
Sponsor.
(6) The Fund
seeks to earn interest and other income in high credit quality,
short-duration instruments or deposits associated with the
pool’s cash management strategy that may be used to offset
expenses. These investments may include, but are not limited to,
short-term Treasury Securities, demand deposits, money market funds
and investments in commercial paper. Management estimates that the
blended interest rate will be 0.25% based on the current interest
rate environment and outlook as of February 28, 2021. The actual
rate may vary and not all assets of the Fund will earn
interest.
(7)
This represents the estimated
approximate percentage for the redemption value of a hypothetical
initial investment in a single share to equal the amount invested
twelve months after the investment was made. The estimated
approximate percentage of selling price before waived expenses is
2.46% or $0.17 per share, based on the Fund assets, net asset value
per share and shares outstanding as of January 31, 2021. The fees
waived by the Sponsor is an estimate, can be applied to any expense
related to the Fund, and may be terminated at any time at the
discretion of the
Sponsor.
Offering
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The Fund’s Shares are listed
on the NYSE Arca and investors may purchase and sell Shares through
their broker-dealer. The Fund only offers Creation Baskets
consisting of 25,000 Shares through the Distributor to Authorized
Purchasers. Authorized Purchasers may purchase Creation
Baskets consisting of 25,000 Shares at the Fund’s
NAV.
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Use of Proceeds
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The
Sponsor applies substantially all of the Fund’s assets toward
investing in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts, cash, and cash equivalents.
The Sponsor deposits a portion of the Fund’s net assets with
its futures commission merchant (“FCM”) or other
financial institutions to be used to meet its current or potential
margin or collateral requirements in connection with its investment
in Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. The Fund uses only cash and cash equivalents to
satisfy these requirements. The Sponsor expects that all entities
that will hold or trade the Fund’s assets will be based in
the United States and will be subject to United States regulations.
The Sponsor believes that approximately 4-6% of the Fund’s
assets will normally be committed as margin for Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts. However,
from time to time, the percentage of assets committed as
margin/collateral may be substantially more, or less, than such
range. The remaining portion of the Fund’s assets is held in
cash or cash equivalents. All interest or other income earned on
these investments is retained for the Fund’s
benefit.
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Creation and
Redemption
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Authorized Purchasers pay a $250
fee per order to create Creation Baskets, and a $250 fee per order
for Redemption Baskets, which is paid to the
Custodian. Authorized Purchasers are not required to sell any
specific number or dollar amount of Shares. The per share
price of Shares offered in Creation Baskets is the total NAV of the
Fund calculated as of the close of the NYSE Arca on that day
divided by the number of issued and outstanding
Shares.
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Inter-Series Limitation on
Liability
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While the Fund is currently one of
five separate series of the Trust, additional series may be created
in the future. The Trust has been formed and will be operated
with the goal that the Fund and any other series of the Trust will
be liable only for obligations of such series, and a series will
not be responsible for or affected by any liabilities or losses of
or claims against any other series. If any creditor or
shareholder in any particular series (such as the Fund) were to
successfully assert against a series a claim with respect to its
indebtedness or Shares, the creditor or shareholder could recover
only from that particular series and its assets. Accordingly,
the debts and other obligations incurred, contracted for or
otherwise existing solely with respect to a particular series will
be enforceable only against the assets of that series, and not
against any other series or the Trust generally or any of their
respective assets. The assets of the Fund and any other
series will include only those funds and other assets that are paid
to, held by or distributed to the series on account of and for the
benefit of that series, including, without limitation, amounts
delivered to the Trust for the purchase of Shares in a
series.
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Registration Clearance and
Settlement
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Individual certificates are not
issued for the Shares. Instead, Shares will be represented by one
or more global certificates, which are deposited by the transfer
agent with the Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) and
registered in the name of Cede & Co., as nominee for DTC. The
global certificates evidence all of the Shares outstanding at any
time. Beneficial interests in Shares are held through DTC’s
book-entry system, which means that Shareholders are limited to:
(1) participants in DTC such as banks, brokers, dealers and trust
companies (“DTC Participants”), (2) those who maintain,
either directly or indirectly, a custodial relationship with a DTC
Participant (“Indirect Participants”), and (3) those
who hold interests in the Shares through DTC Participants or
Indirect Participants, in each case who satisfy the requirements
for transfers of Shares. DTC Participants acting on behalf of
investors holding Shares through such DTC Participants’
accounts in DTC will follow the delivery practice applicable to
securities eligible for DTC’s Same-Day Funds Settlement
System. Shares are credited to DTC Participants’ securities
accounts following confirmation of receipt of
payment.
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Net Asset Value
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The
NAV is calculated by taking the current market value of the
Fund’s total assets and subtracting any liabilities and
dividing the balance by the number of Shares. Under the
Fund’s current operational procedures, U.S. Bancorp
Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund
Services (“Global Fund Services”), the Fund’s
“Administrator” calculates
the NAV of the Fund’s Shares as of the earlier of 4:00 p.m.
(EST) or the close of the New York Stock Exchange each day. ICE
Data Indices, LLC calculates an approximate net asset value every
15 seconds throughout each day that the Fund’s Shares are
traded on the NYSE Arca for as long as the ICE Futures’ main
pricing mechanism is open.
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Fund Expenses
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The Fund pays the Sponsor a
management fee at an annual rate of 1.00% of the Fund’s
average daily net assets. The Fund is also responsible
for other ongoing fees, costs and expenses of its operations,
including (i) brokerage and other fees and commissions incurred in
connection with the trading activities of the Fund; (ii) expenses
incurred in connection with registering additional Shares of the
Fund or offering Shares of the Fund; (iii) the routine expenses
associated with the preparation and, if required, the printing and
mailing of monthly, quarterly, annual and other reports required by
applicable U.S. federal and state regulatory authorities, Trust
meetings and preparing, printing and mailing proxy statements to
Shareholders; (iv) the payment of any distributions related to
redemption of Shares; (v) payment for routine services of the
Trustee, legal counsel and independent accountants; (vi) payment
for routine accounting, bookkeeping, custody and transfer agency
services, whether performed by an outside service provider or by
Affiliates of the Sponsor; (vii) postage and insurance; (viii)
costs and expenses associated with investor relations and services;
(ix) costs of preparation of all federal, state, local and foreign
tax returns and any taxes payable on the income, assets or
operations of the Fund; (x) payment for marketing services; and
(xi) extraordinary expenses (including, but not limited to, legal
claims and liabilities and litigation costs and any indemnification
related thereto). The estimated amount of fees and expenses that
are anticipated to be incurred in a single Share during the first
twelve (12) months of ownership is $0.13 or 1.88% of the selling
price. The total estimated fees and expenses are expressed as a
percentage of the net asset value as of January 31, 2021. These
fees and expenses are net of any expenses or management fees waived
by the Sponsor. The Sponsor may, in its discretion, pay or
reimburse the Fund for, or waive a portion of its management fee to
offset, expenses that would otherwise be borne by the
Fund.
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General expenses of the Trust will
be allocated among the existing Teucrium Funds and any future
series of the Trust as determined by the Sponsor in its
discretion. The Trust may be required to indemnify the
Sponsor, and the Trust and/or the Sponsor may be required to
indemnify the Trustee, Distributor or Administrator, under certain
circumstances.
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Termination
Events
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The Trust and the Fund shall
continue in existence from the date of their formation in
perpetuity, unless the Trust or the Fund, as the case may be, is
sooner terminated upon the occurrence of certain events specified
in the Trust Agreement, including the following: (1) the filing of
a certificate of dissolution or cancellation of the Sponsor or
revocation of the Sponsor’s charter or the withdrawal of the
Sponsor, unless shareholders holding a majority of the outstanding
shares of the Trust, voting together as a single class, elect
within ninety (90) days after such event to continue the business
of the Trust and appoint a successor Sponsor; (2) the occurrence of
any event which would make the existence of the Trust or the Fund
unlawful; (3) the suspension, revocation, or termination of the
Sponsor’s registration as a CPO with the CFTC or membership
with the NFA; (4) the insolvency or bankruptcy of the Trust or the
Fund; (5) a vote by the shareholders holding at least seventy-five
percent (75%) of the outstanding shares of the Trust, voting
together as a single class, to dissolve the Trust subject to
certain conditions; (6) the determination by the Sponsor to
dissolve the Trust or the Fund, subject to certain conditions.; (7)
the Trust is required to be registered as an investment company
under the Investment Company Act of 1940, and (8) DTC is unable or
unwilling to continue to perform its functions and a comparable
replacement is unavailable. Upon termination of the Fund, the
affairs of the Fund shall be wound up and all of its debts and
liabilities discharged or otherwise provided for in the order of
priority as provided by law. The fair market value of the remaining
assets of the Fund shall then be determined by the Sponsor.
Thereupon, the assets of the Fund shall be distributed pro rata to
the Shareholders in accordance with their
Shares.
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Authorized
Purchasers
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A list of the Fund’s Authorized Purchasers
as of the date of this Prospectus can be found under “Plan of
Distribution – Distributor
and Authorized Purchasers,” on page 43.
Authorized Purchasers must be (1) registered broker-dealers or
other securities market participants, such as banks and other
financial institutions, that are not required to register as
broker-dealers to engage in securities transactions, and (2) DTC
Participants. To become an Authorized Purchaser, a person
must enter into an Authorized Purchaser Agreement with the
Sponsor.
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WHAT
ARE THE RISK FACTORS INVOLVED WITH AN INVESTMENT IN THE
FUND?
You should
consider carefully the risks described below before making an
investment decision. You should also refer to the other information
included in this prospectus, and the Fund’s and the
Trust’s financial statements and the related notes
incorporated by reference herein. See “Incorporation by
Reference of Certain Information.”
Risks
Associated with Investing Directly or Indirectly in
Sugar
Investing in Benchmark Component Futures Contracts subjects the
Fund to the risks of the world sugar market, and this could result
in substantial fluctuations in the price of the Fund’s
Shares.
The Fund is subject to the risks
and hazards of the world sugar market because it invests in
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. The two primary sources for
the production of sugar are sugarcane and sugar beets, both of
which are grown in various countries around the world. The
risks and hazards that are inherent in the world sugar market may
cause the price of sugar and the Fund’s Shares to fluctuate
widely and you could incur a partial or total loss of your
investment in the Fund.
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●
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The global price and availability
of sugar is influenced by economic and industry conditions,
including but not limited to supply and demand factors such as:
crop disease; weed control; water availability; various planting,
growing, or harvesting problems; severe weather conditions such as
drought, floods, or frost that are difficult to anticipate and
which cannot be controlled; uncontrolled fires, including arson;
challenges in doing business with foreign companies; legal and
regulatory restrictions; fluctuation of shipping rates; currency
exchange rate fluctuations; and political and economic
instability. Global demand for sugar to produce ethanol
has also been a significant factor affecting the price of
sugar. Additionally, demand for sugar is affected by changes
in consumer tastes, national, regional and local economic
conditions, and demographic trends. The spread of consumerism
and the rising affluence of emerging nations such as China and
India have created demand for sugar. An influx of people in
developing countries moving from rural to urban areas may create
more disposable income to be spent on sugar products and might also
reduce sugar production in rural areas on account of worker
shortages, all of which would result in upward pressure on sugar
prices. On the other hand, public health concerns regarding
obesity, heart disease and diabetes, particularly in developed
countries, may reduce demand for sugar. In light of the time
it takes to grow sugarcane and sugar beets and the cost of new
facilities for processing these crops, it may not be possible to
increase supply quickly or in a cost-effective manner in response
to an increase in demand for sugar.
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●
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Sugar production is subject to
United States and foreign policies and regulations that materially
affect operations. Governmental policies affecting the
agricultural industry, such as taxes, tariffs, duties, subsidies,
incentives, acreage control, and import and export restrictions on
agricultural commodities and commodity products, can influence the
planting of certain crops, the location and size of crop
production, the volume and types of imports and exports, and
industry profitability. Many foreign countries subsidize
sugar production, resulting in lower prices, but this has led other
countries, including the United States, to impose tariffs and
import restrictions on sugar imports. Sugar producers also
may need to comply with various environmental laws and regulations,
such as those regulating the use of certain
pesticides.
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●
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Seasonal fluctuations in the price
of sugar may cause risk to an investor because of the possibility
that Share prices will be depressed because of the sugar harvest
cycle. In the futures market, contracts expiring during the
harvest season are typically priced lower than contracts expiring
in the winter and spring. While the sugar harvest seasons
varies from country to country, prices of Sugar Futures Contracts
tend to be lowest in the late spring and early summer, reflecting
the harvest season in Brazil, the world’s leading producer of
sugarcane. Thus, seasonal fluctuations could result in an
investor incurring losses upon the sale of Fund Shares,
particularly if the investor needs to sell Shares when the
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts are, in whole or part, Sugar
Futures Contracts expiring in the late spring or early
summer.
|
An investment in the Fund is subject to correlation risk. Your
return on an investment in the Fund may differ from the return of
the Benchmark, changes in the Fund’s NAV and the spot price
of sugar.
There is a risk that changes in the
price of Shares on the NYSE Arca will not correlate with changes in
the Fund’s NAV; that changes in the NAV will not correlate
with changes in the price of the Benchmark; and/or changes in the
price of the Benchmark will not correlate with changes in the spot
price of sugar. Depending on certain factors associated with each
of these correlations which are discussed in more detail below, you
could incur a partial or total loss of your investment in the
Fund.
The Benchmark is not designed to correlate with the spot price of
sugar, and this could cause the changes in the price of the Shares
to substantially vary from the changes in the spot price of
sugar. Therefore, you may not be able to effectively use the
Fund to hedge against sugar related losses or to indirectly invest
in sugar.
The Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts reflect the price of sugar for future delivery, not the
current spot price of sugar, so at best the correlation between
changes in such Sugar Futures Contracts and the spot price of sugar
will be only approximate. Weak correlation between the
Benchmark and the spot price of sugar may result from the typical
seasonal fluctuations in sugar prices discussed above.
Imperfect correlation may also result from speculation in Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts, technical factors in the trading of
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts, and expected inflation in
the economy as a whole. If there is a weak correlation
between the Benchmark and the spot price of sugar, then the price
of Shares may not accurately track the spot price of sugar and you
may not be able to effectively use the Fund as a way to hedge the
risk of losses in your sugar related transactions or as a way to
indirectly invest in sugar.
Changes in the Fund’s NAV may not correlate well with changes
in the price of the Benchmark. If this were to occur, you may
not be able to effectively use the Fund as a way to hedge against
sugar related losses or as a way to indirectly invest in
sugar.
The Sponsor endeavors to invest the
Fund’s assets as fully as possible in Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts so that the changes in the NAV closely correlate
with the changes in the Benchmark. However, changes in the
Fund’s NAV may not correlate with the changes in the
Benchmark for various reasons, including those set forth
below.
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●
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The Fund incurs certain expenses in
connection with its operations and holds most of its assets in
income producing, short-term financial instruments for margin and
other liquidity purposes and to meet redemptions that may be
necessary on an ongoing basis. These expenses and income
cause imperfect correlation between changes in the Fund’s NAV
and changes in the Benchmark.
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●
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The Sponsor may not be able to
invest the Fund’s assets in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts having an aggregate notional amount exactly equal to the
Fund’s NAV. As a standardized contract, a single Sugar
Futures Contract is for a specified amount of sugar, and the
Fund’s NAV and the proceeds from the sale of a Creation
Basket is unlikely to be an exact multiple of that amount. In
such case, the Fund could not invest the entire proceeds from the
purchase of the Creation Basket in such futures contracts.
(For example, assuming the Fund receives $350,000 for the sale of a
Creation Basket and that the value (i.e., the notional amount) of a
Sugar Futures Contract is $17,920, the Fund could only enter into
19 Sugar Futures Contracts with an aggregate value of
$340,480). While the Fund may be better able to achieve the
exact amount of exposure to the sugar market through the use of
over the counter other sugar interests, there is no assurance that
the Sponsor will be able to continually adjust the Fund’s
exposure to such other sugar interests to maintain such exact
exposure. Any amounts not invested in Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts are held in cash and cash
equivalents.
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●
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As Fund assets increase, there may
be more or less correlation. On the one hand, as the Fund
grows it should be able to invest in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts with a notional amount that is closer on a percentage
basis to the Fund’s NAV. For example, if the
Fund’s NAV is equal to 4.9 times the value of a single
futures contract, it can purchase only four futures contracts,
which would cause only 81.6% of the Fund’s assets to be
exposed to the sugar market. On the other hand, if the
Fund’s NAV is equal to 100.9 times the value of a single
Sugar Futures Contract, it can purchase 100 such contracts,
resulting in 99.1% exposure. However, at certain asset levels
the Fund may be limited in its ability to purchase Sugar Futures
Contracts due to position limits or accountability levels imposed
by the CFTC or the relevant exchanges. In these instances, the Fund would
likely invest to a greater extent in sugar interests not subject to
these position limits or accountability levels. To the extent
that the Fund invests in other sugar interests, the correlation
between the Fund’s NAV and the Benchmark may be lower.
In certain circumstances, position limits or accountability levels
could limit the number of Creation Baskets that will be
sold.
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If changes in the Fund’s NAV
do not correlate with changes in the Benchmark, then investing in
the Fund may not be an effective way to hedge against sugar related
losses or indirectly invest in sugar.
Changes in the price of the Fund’s Shares on the NYSE Arca
may not correlate perfectly with changes in the NAV of the
Fund’s Shares. If this variation occurs, then you may
not be able to effectively use the Fund to hedge against sugar
related losses or to indirectly invest in
sugar.
While it is expected that the
trading prices of the Shares will fluctuate in accordance with the
changes in the Fund’s NAV, the prices of Shares may also be
influenced by other factors, including the supply of and demand for
the Shares, whether for the short term or the longer term.
There is no guarantee that the Shares will not trade at appreciable
discounts from, and/or premiums to, the Fund’s NAV.
This could cause the changes in the price of the Shares to
substantially vary from the changes in the spot price of sugar,
even if the Fund’s NAV was closely tracking movements in the
spot price of sugar. If this occurs, you may not be able to
effectively use the Fund to hedge the risk of losses in your sugar
related transactions or to indirectly invest in
sugar.
The Fund may experience a loss if it is required to sell cash
equivalents at a price lower than the price at which they were
acquired.
If the Fund is required to sell its
cash equivalents at a price lower than the price at which they were
acquired, the Fund will experience a loss. This loss may
adversely impact the price of the Shares and may decrease the
correlation between the price of the Shares, the Benchmark, and the
spot price of sugar. The value of cash equivalents held
by the Fund generally moves inversely with movements in interest
rates. The prices of longer maturity securities are
subject to greater market fluctuations as a result of changes in
interest rates. While the short-term nature of the
Fund’s investments in cash equivalents should minimize the
interest rate risk to which the Fund is subject, it is possible
that the cash equivalents held by the Fund will decline in
value.
Certain of the Fund’s
investments could be illiquid, which could cause large losses to
investors at any time or from time to
time.
The Fund may not always be able to
liquidate its positions in its investments at the desired price for
reasons including, among others, insufficient trading volume,
limits imposed by exchanges or other regulatory organizations, or
lack of liquidity. As to futures contracts, it may be difficult to
execute a trade at a specific price when there is a relatively
small volume of buy and sell orders in a market. Limits
imposed by futures exchanges or other regulatory organizations,
such as accountability levels, position limits and price
fluctuation limits, may contribute to a lack of liquidity with
respect to some exchange-traded sugar interests. In addition,
over the counter contracts may be illiquid because they are
contracts between two parties and generally may not be transferred
by one party to a third party without the counterparty’s
consent. Conversely, a counterparty may give its consent, but
the Fund still may not be able to transfer an over the counter
sugar interest to a third party due to concerns regarding the
counterparty’s credit risk.
A market disruption, such as a
foreign government taking political actions that disrupt the market
in its currency, its sugar production or exports, or in another
major export, can also make it difficult to liquidate a
position. Unexpected market illiquidity may cause major
losses to investors at any time or from time to time. In
addition, the Fund does not intend at this time to establish a
credit facility, which would provide an additional source of
liquidity, but instead will rely only on the cash and cash
equivalents that it holds to meet its liquidity needs. The
anticipated value of the positions in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts that the Sponsor will acquire or enter into for the Fund
increases the risk of illiquidity. Because Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts may be illiquid, the Fund’s
holdings may be more difficult to liquidate at favorable prices in
periods of illiquid markets and losses may be incurred during the
period in which positions are being liquidated.
If the nature of the participants in the futures market shifts such
that sugar purchasers are the predominant hedgers in the market,
the Fund might have to reinvest at higher futures prices or choose
other sugar interests.
The changing nature of the
participants in the sugar market will influence whether futures
prices are above or below the expected future spot price.
Sugar producers will typically seek to hedge against falling sugar
prices by selling Sugar Futures Contracts. Therefore, if
sugar producers become the predominant hedgers in the futures
market, prices of Sugar Futures Contracts will typically be below
expected future spot prices. Conversely, if the predominant
hedgers in the futures market are the purchasers of the sugar who
purchase Sugar Futures Contracts to hedge against a rise in prices,
prices of Sugar Futures Contracts will likely be higher than
expected future spot prices. This can have significant
implications for the Fund when it is time to sell a Sugar Futures
Contract that is no longer a Benchmark Component Futures Contract
and purchase a new Sugar Futures Contract or to sell a Sugar
Futures Contract to meet redemption requests.
Storage costs could impact the value of the Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts.
Storage costs associated with
purchasing sugar could result in costs and other liabilities that
could impact the value of Sugar Futures Contracts or certain other
sugar interests. Storage costs include the time value of
money invested in sugar as a physical commodity plus the actual
costs of storing the sugar less any benefits from ownership of
sugar that are not obtained by the holder of a futures
contract. In general, Sugar Futures Contracts have a
one-month delay for contract delivery and the pricing of back month
contracts (the back month is any future delivery month other than
the spot month) include storage costs. To the extent that
these storage costs change for sugar while the Fund holds Sugar
Interests, the value of the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts,
and therefore the Fund’s NAV, may change as
well.
The price relationship between the Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts at any point in time and the Sugar Futures Contracts that
will become Benchmark Component Futures Contracts on the next roll
date will vary and may impact both the Fund’s total return
and the degree to which its total return tracks that of sugar price
indices.
The design of the Fund’s
Benchmark is such that the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts
change four times per year, and the Fund’s investments must
be rolled periodically to reflect the changing composition of the
Benchmark. For example, when the second to expire Sugar
Futures Contract becomes the first to expire contract, such
contract will no longer be a Benchmark Component Futures Contract
and the Fund’s position in it will no longer be consistent
with tracking the Benchmark. In the event of a sugar futures
market where near to expire contracts trade at a higher price than
longer to expire contracts, a situation referred to as
“backwardation,” then absent the impact of the overall
movement in sugar prices the value of the Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts would tend to rise as they approach
expiration. As a result, the Fund may benefit because it
would be selling more expensive contracts and buying less expensive
ones on an ongoing basis. Conversely, in the event of a sugar
futures market where near to expire contracts trade at a lower
price than longer to expire contracts, a situation referred to as
“contango,” then absent the impact of the overall
movement in sugar prices the value of the Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts would tend to decline as they approach
expiration. As a result, the Fund’s total return may be lower
than might otherwise be the case because it would be selling less
expensive contracts and buying more expensive ones. The
impact of backwardation and contango may lead the total return of
the Fund to vary significantly from the total return of other price
references, such as the spot price of sugar. In the event of
a prolonged period of contango, and absent the impact of rising or
falling sugar prices, this could have a significant negative impact
on the Fund’s NAV and total return, and you could incur a
partial or total loss of your investment in the
Fund.
Regulation of the commodity interests and commodity markets is
extensive and constantly changing; future regulatory developments
are impossible to predict but may significantly and adversely
affect the Fund.
The regulation of futures markets,
futures contracts and futures exchanges has historically been
comprehensive. The CFTC and the exchanges are authorized to take
extraordinary actions in the event of a market emergency including,
for example, the retroactive implementation of speculative position
limits, increased margin requirements, the establishment of daily
price limits and the suspension of trading on an exchange or
trading facility.
The regulation of commodity
interest transactions in the United States is a rapidly changing
area of law and is subject to ongoing modification by governmental
and judicial action. Congress enacted the Dodd-Frank Wall Street
Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank
Act”) in 2010. As the Dodd-Frank Act continues to be
implemented by the CFTC and the SEC, there is a possibility of
future regulatory changes within the United States altering,
perhaps to a material extent, the nature of an investment in the
Fund, or the ability for the Fund to continue to implement its
investment strategy. In addition, various national governments
outside of the United States have expressed concern regarding the
disruptive effects of speculative trading in the commodities
markets and the need to regulate the derivatives markets in
general. The effect of any future regulatory change on the Fund is
impossible to predict but could be substantial and
adverse.
If you are investing in the Fund for purposes of hedging, you might
be subject to several risks unique to the Fund, and the Fund may
not be appropriate for hedging purposes. The Fund was not designed
for hedging purposes; those using the Fund as a hedge of any kind
do so exclusively at their own risk.
An investment in the Fund
may provide you little or no diversification benefits. Thus, in a
declining market, the Fund may have no gains to offset your losses
from other investments, and you may suffer losses on your
investment in the Fund at the same time you incur losses with
respect to other asset
classes.
It cannot be predicted to what
extent the performance of Benchmark Component Futures Contracts
will or will not correlate to the performance of other broader
asset classes such as stocks and bonds. If the Fund’s
performance were to move more directly with the financial markets,
you will obtain little or no diversification benefits from an
investment in the Shares. In such a case, the Fund may have
no gains to offset your losses from other investments, and you may
suffer losses on your investment in the Fund at the same time you
incur losses with respect to other investments.
Variables such as drought, floods,
weather, embargoes, market disruptions, tariffs and other political
events may have a larger impact on sugar and sugar interest prices
than on traditional securities and broader financial markets.
These additional variables may create additional investment risks
that subject the Fund’s investments to greater volatility
than investments in traditional securities.
Lower correlation should not be
confused with negative correlation, where the performance of two
asset classes would be opposite of each other. There is no
historic evidence that the spot price of sugar and prices of other
financial assets, such as stocks and bonds, are negatively
correlated. In the absence of negative correlation, the Fund
cannot be expected to be automatically profitable during
unfavorable periods for the stock market, or vice
versa.
The
Fund’s Operating Risks
The Fund may change its investment objective, Benchmark or
investment strategies at any time without shareholder approval or
advance notice.
Consistent with its authority under
the Trust Agreement and Delaware law, the Fund, in its sole
discretion and without shareholder approval or advance notice, may
change the Fund’s investment objective, Benchmark or
investment strategies, subject to applicable regulatory
requirements, including, but not limited to, any requirement to
amend applicable listing rules of the NYSE. The reasons for and
circumstances that may trigger any such changes may vary widely and
cannot be predicted. By way of example, the Fund may change the
term structure or underlying components of the Benchmark in
furtherance of the Fund’s investment objective of tracking
the price of sugar for future delivery if, due to market
conditions, a potential or actual imposition of position limits by
the CFTC or futures exchange rules, or the imposition of risk
mitigation measures by a futures commission merchant restricts the
ability of the Fund to invest in the current Benchmark Futures
Contracts. Shareholders may experience losses on their investments
in the Fund as a result of such changes.
The Fund is not a registered investment company, so you do not have
the protections of the Investment Company Act of
1940.
The Fund is not an investment
company subject to the Investment Company Act of 1940.
Accordingly, you do not have the protections afforded by that
statute, which, for example, requires investment companies to have
a board of directors with a majority of disinterested directors and
regulates the relationship between the investment company and its
investment manager.
The Sponsor is leanly staffed and relies heavily on key personnel
to manage trading activities.
In managing and directing the day
to day activities and affairs of the Fund, the Sponsor relies
almost entirely on a small number of individuals, including Mr. Sal
Gilbertie, Mr. Steve Kahler and Ms. Cory Mullen-Rusin. If Mr.
Gilbertie, Mr. Kahler or Ms. Mullen-Rusin were to leave or be
unable to carry out their present responsibilities, it may have an
adverse effect on the management of the Fund. To the extent
that the Sponsor establishes additional commodity pools, even
greater demands will be placed on these
individuals.
The Sponsor has limited capital and may be unable to continue to
manage the Fund if it sustains continued
losses.
The Sponsor was formed for the
purpose of managing the Trust, including the Fund, the other
Teucrium Funds, and any other series of the Trust that may be
formed in the future, and has been provided with capital primarily
by its principals and a small number of outside investors. If
the Sponsor operates at a loss for an extended period, its capital
will be depleted, and it may be unable to obtain additional
financing necessary to continue its operations. If the
Sponsor were unable to continue to provide services to the Fund,
the Fund would be terminated if a replacement sponsor could not be
found. Any expenses related to the operation of the Fund would need
to be paid by the Fund at the time of
termination.
Position limits, accountability levels and daily price fluctuation
limits set by the CFTC and the exchanges have the potential to
cause tracking error, which could cause the price of Shares to
substantially vary from the Benchmark and prevent you from being
able to effectively use the Fund as a way to hedge against sugar
related losses or as a way to indirectly invest in
sugar.
The CFTC and U.S. designated
contract markets, such as the ICE Futures have established position
limits and accountability levels on the maximum net long or net
short Sugar Futures Contracts that any person or group of persons
under common trading control may hold, own or control. For
example, the current ICE Futures established position limit level
for investments in Sugar No. 11 Futures Contracts for the spot
month, which is defined as on and after the second business day
following the expiration of the regular option contract traded on
the expiring futures contract, is 5,000, the accountability level
for investments in ICE Sugar No. 11 Futures Contracts for any one
month is 10,000, and the accountability level for all combined
months is 15,000. While accountability levels are not fixed
ceilings, they are thresholds above which the exchange may exercise
greater scrutiny and control over an investor, including limiting
an investor to holding no more Sugar No. 11 Futures Contracts than
the amount established by the accountability level. The Fund
does not intend to invest in Sugar Futures Contracts in excess of
any applicable accountability levels.
Accountability levels differ from
position limits in that they do not represent a fixed ceiling, but
rather a threshold above which a futures exchange may exercise
greater scrutiny and control over an investor’s positions. If
a Fund were to exceed an applicable accountability level for
investments in futures contracts, the exchange will monitor the
Fund’s exposure and may ask for further information on its
activities, including the total size of all positions, investment
and trading strategy, and the extent of liquidity resources of the
Fund. If deemed necessary by the exchange, the Fund could be
ordered to reduce its aggregate net
position back to the accountability
level
In addition to position limits and
accountability levels, the exchanges set daily price fluctuation
limits on futures contracts. The daily price fluctuation
limit establishes the maximum amount that the price of futures
contracts may vary either up or down from the previous day’s
settlement price. Once the daily price fluctuation limit has
been reached in a particular futures contract, no trades may be
made at a price beyond that limit. Currently, ICE Futures
has not imposed maximum
daily price fluctuation limits on Sugar Futures
Contracts.
On December 16, 2016, as mandated
by the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFTC adopted a final rule that aggregate
all positions, for purposes of position limits; such positions
include futures contracts, futures-equivalent positions, over the
counter swaps and options (i.e., contracts that are not traded on
exchanges). These aggregation requirements became effective on
February 14, 2017 and could limit the Fund’s ability to
establish positions in commodity over the counter instruments if
the assets of the Fund were to grow
substantially.
As published in the January 14,
2021 Federal Register, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(CFTC) voted to approve a final rule (Final Rule) regarding
position limits for certain futures contracts and economically
equivalent swaps. The Final Rule ends a decade of rulemaking
activity in which the CFTC proposed, amended, and re-proposed its
position limit rules and aggregation standards for speculative
positions due to certain amendments to the Commodity Exchange Act
(CEA) by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection
Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank Act). In the Final Rule, the CFTC confirmed
that federal speculative position limits are necessary for 25 core
referenced futures contracts and for any futures contracts and
options on futures contracts that are linked to those
contracts. The 25 core referenced futures contracts include
the nine “legacy” agricultural contracts that are
currently subject to federal position limits and 16 additional
non-legacy contracts. The Final Rule became effective on March 15,
2021, but a number of the requirements in the Final Rule have a
general compliance date of January 1, 2022, and later compliance
date of January 1, 2023 with respect to swaps-related requirements
and the elimination of previously granted risk management
exemptions. The Final Rule became effective on March 15, 2021, but
a number of the requirements in the Final Rule have a general
compliance date of January 1, 2022, and later compliance date of
January 1, 2023 with respect to swaps-related requirements and the
elimination of previously granted risk management
exemptions.
There are technical and fundamental risks inherent in the trading
system the Sponsor intends to employ.
The Sponsor’s trading system
is quantitative in nature and it is possible that the Sponsor may
make errors. Any errors or imperfections in the Sponsor’s
trading system’s quantitative models, or in the data on which
they are based, could adversely affect the Sponsor’s
effective use of such trading systems. It is not possible or
practicable for the Sponsor’s trading system to factor all
relevant, available data into quantitative systems and/or trading
decision. There is no guarantee that the Sponsor will use any
specific data or type of data in making trading decisions on behalf
of the Fund, nor is there any guarantee that the data actually
utilized in making trading decisions on behalf of the Fund will be
the most accurate data or free from errors. In addition, it is
possible that a computer or software program may malfunction and
cause an error in computation.
The Fund and the Sponsor may have conflicts of interest, which may
cause them to favor their own interests to your
detriment.
The Fund and the Sponsor may have
inherent conflicts to the extent the Sponsor attempts to maintain
the Fund’s asset size in order to preserve its fee income and
this may not always be consistent with the Fund’s objective
of having the value of its Shares’ NAV track changes in the
Benchmark. The Sponsor’s officers and employees do not
devote their time exclusively to the Fund. These persons may
be directors, officers or employees of other entities. They
could have a conflict between their responsibilities to the Fund
and to those other entities.
In addition, the Sponsor’s
principals, officers or employees may trade securities and futures
and related contracts for their own accounts. A conflict of
interest may exist if their trades are in the same markets and
occur at the same time as the Fund trades using the clearing broker
to be used by the Fund. A potential conflict also may occur
if the Sponsor’s principals, officers or employees trade
their accounts more aggressively or take positions in their
accounts that are opposite, or ahead of, the positions taken by the
Fund.
The Sponsor has sole current
authority to manage the investments and operations of the Fund, and
this may allow it to act in a way that furthers its own interests
and in conflict with your best interests, including the authority
of the Sponsor to allocate expenses to and between the Funds.
Shareholders have very limited voting rights, which will limit the
ability to influence matters such as amendment of the Trust
Agreement, changes in the Fund’s basic investment policies,
dissolution of the Fund, or the sale or distribution of the
Fund’s assets.
Shareholders have only very limited voting rights and generally
will not have the power to replace the Sponsor. Shareholders
will not participate in the management of the Fund and do not
control the Sponsor so they will not have influence over basic
matters that affect the Fund.
Shareholders will have very limited
voting rights with respect to the Fund’s affairs.
Shareholders may elect a replacement sponsor only if the current
Sponsor resigns voluntarily or loses its corporate charter.
Shareholders will not be permitted to participate in the management
or control of the Fund or the conduct of its business. Furthermore,
any voting rights on shares held by the Fund will be exercised by
the Sponsor, generally without seeking advice or voting
instructions from Fund Shareholders. Shareholders must therefore
rely upon the duties and judgment of the Sponsor to manage the
Fund’s affairs.
The Sponsor may manage a large amount of assets and this could
affect the Fund’s ability to trade
profitably.
Increases in assets under
management may affect trading decisions. While the
Fund’s assets are currently at manageable levels, the Sponsor
does not intend to limit the amount of Fund assets. The more
assets the Sponsor manages, the more difficult it may be for it to
trade profitably because of the difficulty of trading larger
positions without adversely affecting prices and performance and of
managing risk associated with larger
positions.
The liability of the Sponsor and the Trustee are limited, and the
value of the Shares will be adversely affected if the Fund is
required to indemnify the Trustee or the
Sponsor.
Under the Trust Agreement, the
Trustee and the Sponsor are not liable, and have the right to be
indemnified, for any liability or expense incurred absent gross
negligence or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee or
Sponsor, as the case may be. That means the Sponsor may
require the assets of the Fund to be sold in order to cover losses
or liability suffered by the Sponsor or by the Trustee. Any
sale of that kind would reduce the NAV of the Fund and the value of
its Shares.
Although the Shares of the Fund are limited liability investments,
certain circumstances such as bankruptcy could increase a
Shareholder’s liability.
The Shares of the Fund are limited
liability investments; Shareholders may not lose more than the
amount that they invest plus any profits recognized on their
investment. However, Shareholders could be required, as a
matter of bankruptcy law, to return to the estate of the Fund any
distribution they received at a time when the Fund was in fact
insolvent or that was made in violation of its Trust
Agreement.
You cannot be assured of the Sponsor’s continued services,
and discontinuance may be detrimental to the
Fund.
You cannot be assured that the
Sponsor will be willing or able to continue to service the Fund for
any length of time. The Sponsor was formed for the purpose of
sponsoring the Fund and other commodity pools and has limited
financial resources and no significant source of income apart from
its management fees from such commodity pools to support its
continued service for the Fund. If the Sponsor discontinues
its activities on behalf of the Fund or another series of the
Trust, the Fund may be adversely affected. If the
Sponsor’s registrations with the CFTC or memberships in the
NFA were revoked or suspended, the Sponsor would no longer be able
to provide services to the Fund.
The Fund could terminate at any time and cause the liquidation and
potential loss of your investment and could upset the overall
maturity and timing of your investment
portfolio.
The Fund may terminate at any time,
regardless of whether the Fund has incurred losses, subject to the
terms of the Trust Agreement. For example, the dissolution or
resignation of the Sponsor would cause the Trust to terminate
unless shareholders holding a majority of the outstanding shares of
the Trust, voting together as a single class, elect within 90 days
of the event to continue the Trust and appoint a successor
Sponsor. In addition, the Sponsor may terminate the Fund if
it determines that the Fund’s aggregate net assets in
relation to its operating expenses make the continued operation of
the Fund unreasonable or imprudent. As of the date of this
prospectus, the Fund pays the fees, costs, and expenses of its
operations. If the Sponsor and the Fund are unable to raise
sufficient funds so that the Fund’s expenses are reasonable
in relation to its NAV, the Fund may be forced to terminate, and
investors may lose all or part of their investment. Any expenses
related to the operation of the Fund would need to be paid by the
Fund at the time of termination.
However, no level of losses will
require the Sponsor to terminate the Fund. The Fund’s
termination would result in the liquidation of its investments and
the distribution of its remaining assets to the Shareholders on a
pro rata basis in accordance with their Shares, and the Fund could
incur losses in liquidating its investments in connection with a
termination. Termination could also negatively affect the
overall maturity and timing of your investment
portfolio.
As a Shareholder, you will not have the rights enjoyed by investors
in certain other types of entities.
As interests in separate series of
a Delaware statutory trust, the Shares do not involve the rights
normally associated with the ownership of shares of a corporation
(including, for example, the right to bring shareholder oppression
and derivative actions). In addition, the Shares have limited
voting and distribution rights (for example, Shareholders do not
have the right to elect directors, as the Trust does not have a
board of directors, and generally will not receive regular
distributions of the net income and capital gains earned by the
Fund). The Fund is also not subject to certain investor
protection provisions of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 and the
NYSE Arca governance rules (for example, audit committee
requirements).
A court could potentially conclude that the assets and liabilities
of the Fund are not segregated from those of another series of the
Trust, thereby potentially exposing assets in the Fund to the
liabilities of another series.
The Fund is a series of a Delaware
statutory trust and not itself a legal entity separate from the
other Teucrium Funds. The Delaware Statutory Trust Act
provides that if certain provisions are included in the formation
and governing documents of a statutory trust organized in series
and if separate and distinct records are maintained for any series
and the assets associated with that series are held in separate and
distinct records and are accounted for in such separate and
distinct records separately from the other assets of the statutory
trust, or any series thereof, then the debts, liabilities,
obligations and expenses incurred by a particular series are
enforceable against the assets of such series only, and not against
the assets of the statutory trust generally or any other series
thereof. Conversely, none of the debts, liabilities,
obligations and expenses incurred with respect to any other series
thereof is enforceable against the assets of such series. The
Sponsor is not aware of any court case that has interpreted this
inter-series limitation on liability or provided any guidance as to
what is required for compliance. The Sponsor intends to
maintain separate and distinct records for the Fund and account for
the Fund separately from any other Trust series, but it is possible
a court could conclude that the methods used do not satisfy the
Delaware Statutory Trust Act, which would potentially expose assets
in the Fund to the liabilities of one or more of the Teucrium Funds
and/or any other Trust series created in the
future.
The Sponsor and the Trustee are not obligated to prosecute any
action, suit or other proceeding in respect of any Fund
property.
Neither the Sponsor nor the Trustee
is obligated to, although each may in its respective discretion,
prosecute any action, suit or other proceeding in respect of any
Fund property. The Trust Agreement does not confer upon
Shareholders the right to prosecute any such action, suit or other
proceeding.
The Fund does not expect to make cash
distributions.
The Sponsor intends to re-invest
any income and realized gains of the Fund in additional Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts or cash and cash equivalents rather
than distributing cash to Shareholders. Therefore, unlike
mutual funds, commodity pools or other investment pools that
generally distribute income and gains to their investors, the Fund
generally will not distribute cash to Shareholders. You
should not invest in the Fund if you will need cash distributions
from the Fund to pay taxes on your share of income and gains of the
Fund, if any, or for any other reason. Although the Fund does
not intend to make cash distributions, it reserves the right to do
so in the Sponsor’s sole discretion, in certain situations,
including for example, if the income earned from its investments
held directly or posted as margin may reach levels that merit
distribution, e.g., at levels where such income is not necessary to
support its underlying investments in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts and investors adversely react to being taxed on such
income without receiving distributions that could be used to pay
such tax. Cash distributions may be made in these and similar
instances.
There is a risk that the Fund will not have sufficient total net
assets to compensate for the fees and expenses that it must pay and
as such the expense ratio of the Fund may be higher than that filed
in this document.
The Fund pays management fees at an
annual rate of 1.00% of its average net assets, brokerage
commissions and various other expenses from its ongoing operations
(e.g., fees of the Administrator, Trustee and Distributor),
resulting in a total estimated expense ratio of approximately 2.46%
of net assets. These fees and expenses must be paid in all events,
regardless of the Fund’s total net
assets.
The Fund may incur higher fees and expenses upon renewing existing
or entering into new contractual relationships.
The arrangements between clearing
brokers and counterparties on the one hand and the Fund on the
other generally are terminable by the clearing brokers or
counterparty upon notice to the Fund. In addition, the
agreements between the Fund and its third-party service providers,
such as the Distributor and the Custodian, are generally terminable
at specified intervals. Upon termination, the Sponsor may be
required to renegotiate or make other arrangements for obtaining
similar services if the Fund intends to continue to operate.
Comparable services from another party may not be available, or
even if available, these services may not be available on the terms
as favorable as those of the expired or terminated
arrangements.
The Fund may experience a higher breakeven if interest rates
decline.
The Fund seeks to earn interest on
cash balances available for investment. If actual interest rates
earned were to continue to fall and if the Sponsor were not able to
waive expenses sufficient to cover the deficit, the breakeven
estimated by the Fund in this prospectus could be
higher.
The Fund is not actively managed.
The Fund is not actively managed
and is designed to track a benchmark, regardless of whether the
price of the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts is flat,
declining or rising. As a result, the Fund may sustain losses that
may have been avoidable if the Fund was actively
managed.
The Net Asset Value calculation of the Fund may be overstated or
understated due to the valuation method employed when a settlement
price is not available on the date of net asset value
calculation.
The Fund’s NAV includes, in
part, any unrealized profits or losses on open swap agreements,
futures or forward contracts. Under normal circumstances, the
NAV reflects the quoted ICE Futures settlement price of open
futures contracts on the date when the NAV is being
calculated. In instances when the quoted settlement price of
futures contracts traded on an exchange may not be reflective of
fair value based on market condition, generally due to the
operation of daily limits or other rules of the exchange or
otherwise the NAV may not reflect the fair value of open futures
contracts on such date. For purposes of financial statements and
reports, the Sponsor will recalculate the NAV where necessary to
reflect the “fair value” of a Futures Contract when the
Futures Contract closes at its price fluctuation limit for the
day.
An unanticipated number of redemption requests during a short
period of time could have an adverse effect on the NAV of the
Fund.
If a substantial number of requests
for redemption of Redemption Baskets are received by the Fund
during a relatively short period of time, the Fund may not be able
to satisfy the requests from the Fund’s assets not committed
to trading. As a consequence, it could be necessary to liquidate
the Fund’s trading positions before the time that its trading
strategies would otherwise call for liquidation, which may result
in losses.
Fund assets may be depleted if investment performance does not
exceed fees.
In addition to certain fees paid to
the Fund’s service providers, the Fund pays the Sponsor a fee
of 1.00% of asset under management per annum, regardless of Fund
performance. Over time, the Fund’s assets could be depleted
if investment performance does not exceed such
fees.
The liquidity of the Shares may be affected by the withdrawal from
participation of Authorized Purchasers, market makers, or other
significant secondary-market participants which could adversely
affect the market price of the Shares.
Only an Authorized Purchaser
may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the
Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that act as
Authorized Purchasers. To the extent that these institutions exit
the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or
redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other Authorized
Purchaser is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation
Units, Fund shares may trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face
trading halts and/or delisting. In addition, a decision by a market
maker, lead market maker, or other large investor to cease
activities for the Fund or a decision by a secondary market
participant to sell a significant number of the Fund’s Shares
could adversely affect liquidity, the spread between the bid and
ask quotes, and potentially the price of the Shares. The Sponsor
can make no guarantees that participation by Authorized Purchasers
or market makers will continue.
If a minimum number of Shares is outstanding, market makers may be
less willing to purchase Shares in the secondary market which may
limit your ability to sell Shares.
There is a minimum number of
baskets and associated Shares specified for the Fund. If the Fund
experienced redemptions that caused the number of Shares
outstanding to decrease to the minimum level of Shares required to
be outstanding, until the minimum number of Shares is again
exceeded through the purchase of a new Creation Basket, there can
be no more redemptions by an Authorized Purchaser. In such case,
market makers may be less willing to purchase Shares from investors
in the secondary market, which may in turn limit the ability of
Shareholders of the Fund to sell their Shares in the secondary
market. These minimum levels for the Fund are 50,000 Shares
representing two baskets. The minimum level of Shares specified for
the Fund is subject to change. As of February 28, 2021, there were
2,050,004 Shares outstanding. (The current number of Shares
outstanding is posted daily on our website, www.teucrium.com.)
The postponement, suspension or rejection of redemption orders
could adversely affect a shareholder redeeming their Shares in the
Fund.
The resulting delay of any
postponement, suspension or rejection may adversely affect the
value of the Shareholders’ redemption proceeds if the NAV of
the Fund declines during the period of
delay.
The failure or bankruptcy of a clearing broker could result in
substantial losses for the Fund; the clearing broker could be
subject to proceedings that impair its ability to execute the
Fund’s trades.
Under CFTC regulations, a clearing
broker with respect to the Fund’s exchange-traded sugar
interests must maintain customers’ assets in a bulk
segregated account. If a clearing broker fails to do so or is
unable to satisfy a substantial deficit in a customer account, its
other customers may be subject to risk of a substantial loss of
their funds in the event of that clearing broker’s
bankruptcy. In that event, the clearing broker’s
customers, such as the Fund, are entitled to recover, even in
respect of property specifically traceable to them, only a
proportional share of all property available for distribution to
all of that clearing broker’s customers. The Fund also
may be subject to the risk of the failure of, or delay in
performance by, any exchanges and markets and their clearing
organizations, if any, on which sugar interests are
traded.
From time to time, the clearing
brokers may be subject to legal or regulatory proceedings in the
ordinary course of their business. A clearing broker’s
involvement in costly or time-consuming legal proceedings may
divert financial resources or personnel away from the clearing
broker’s trading operations, which could impair the clearing
broker’s ability to successfully execute and clear the
Fund’s trades.
The failure or insolvency of the Fund’s Custodian or other
financial institution in which the Fund has deposits could result
in a substantial loss of the Fund’s
assets.
As noted
above, the vast majority of the Fund’s assets are held in
cash and cash equivalents with the Custodian and other financial
institutions, if applicable. The insolvency of the Custodian and
any financial institution in which the Fund holds cash and cash
equivalents could result in a complete loss of the Fund’s
assets.
Third parties may infringe upon or otherwise violate intellectual
property rights or assert that the Sponsor has infringed or
otherwise violated their intellectual property rights, which may
result in significant costs, litigation, and diverted attention of
Sponsor’s management.
Third parties may assert that the
Sponsor has infringed or otherwise violated their intellectual
property rights. Third parties may independently develop
business methods, trademarks or proprietary software and other
technology similar to that of the Sponsor and claim that the
Sponsor has violated their intellectual property rights, including
their copyrights, trademark rights, trade names, trade secrets and
patent rights. As a result, the Sponsor may have to litigate
in the future to determine the validity and scope of other
parties’ proprietary rights or defend itself against claims
that it has infringed or otherwise violated other parties’
rights. Any litigation of this type, even if the Sponsor is
successful and regardless of the merits, may result in significant
costs, divert resources from the Fund, or require the Sponsor to
change its proprietary software and other technology or enter into
royalty or licensing agreements.
On December 17, 2013, the Sponsor
was issued a patent on certain business methods and procedures used
with respect to the Fund. The patent protects the valuation engine
which calculates asset values of futures contracts corresponding to
the Fund benchmark in a locked position. A U.S. government
maintenance fee is paid every three and one-half years from the
issue date. The Sponsor will pay the maintenance fee in 2021. The
Sponsor utilizes certain proprietary software. Any unauthorized use
of such proprietary software, business methods and/or procedures
could adversely affect the competitive advantage of the Sponsor or
the Fund and/or require the Sponsor to take legal action to protect
its rights.
The Fund may experience substantial losses on transactions if the
computer or communications system fails.
The Fund’s trading activities
depend on the integrity and performance of the computer and
communications systems supporting them. Extraordinary
transaction volume, hardware or software failure, power or
telecommunications failure, a natural disaster, cyber-attack or
other catastrophe could cause the computer systems to operate at an
unacceptably slow speed or even fail. Any significant
degradation or failure of the systems that the Sponsor uses to
gather and analyze information, enter orders, process data, monitor
risk levels and otherwise engage in trading activities may result
in substantial losses on transactions, liability to other parties,
lost profit opportunities, damages to the Sponsor’s and
Fund’s reputations, increased operational expenses and
diversion of technical resources.
If the computer and communications systems are not upgraded when
necessary, the Fund’s financial condition could be
harmed.
The development of complex computer
and communications systems and new technologies may render the
existing computer and communications systems supporting the
Fund’s trading activities obsolete. In addition, these
computer and communications systems must be compatible with those
of third parties, such as the systems of exchanges, clearing
brokers and the executing brokers. As a result, if these
third parties upgrade their systems, the Sponsor will need to make
corresponding upgrades to effectively continue its trading
activities. The Sponsor may have limited financial resources for
these upgrades or other technological changes. The Fund’s
future success may depend on the Sponsor’s ability to respond
to changing technologies on a timely and cost-effective
basis.
The Fund depends on the reliable performance of the computer and
communications systems of third parties, such as brokers and
futures exchanges, and may experience substantial losses on
transactions if they fail.
The Fund depends on the proper and
timely function of complex computer and communications systems
maintained and operated by the futures exchanges, brokers and other
data providers that the Sponsor uses to conduct trading
activities. Failure or inadequate performance of any of these
systems could adversely affect the Sponsor’s ability to
complete transactions, including its ability to close out
positions, and result in lost profit opportunities and significant
losses on commodity interest transactions. This could have a
material adverse effect on revenues and materially reduce the
Fund’s available capital. For example, unavailability
of price quotations from third parties may make it difficult or
impossible for the Sponsor to conduct trading activities so that
the Fund will closely track the Benchmark. Unavailability of
records from brokerage firms may make it difficult or impossible
for the Sponsor to accurately determine which transactions have
been executed or the details, including price and time, of any
transaction executed. This unavailability of information also
may make it difficult or impossible for the Sponsor to reconcile
its records of transactions with those of another party or to
accomplish settlement of executed transactions.
The occurrence of a severe weather event, natural disaster,
terrorist attack, outbreak or public health emergency as declared
by the World Health Organization, the continuation or expansion of
war or other hostilities, or a prolonged government shutdown may
have significant adverse effects on the Fund and its investments
and alter current assumptions and expectations.
The operations of the Fund, the
exchanges, brokers and counterparties with which the Fund does
business, and the markets in which the Fund does business could be
severely disrupted in the event of a severe weather event, natural
disaster, major terrorist attack, cyber-attack, data breach,
outbreak or public health emergency as declared by the World Health
Organization (such as the recent pandemic spread of the novel
coronavirus known as COVID-19), or the continuation or expansion of
war or other hostilities. Global terrorist attacks, anti-terrorism
initiatives, and political unrest, as well as the adverse impact
the COVID-19 pandemic will have on the global and U.S. markets and
economy, continue to fuel this concern. For example, the COVID-19
pandemic may adversely impact the level of services currently
provided by the U.S. government, could weaken the U.S. economy,
interfere with the commodities markets that rely upon data
published by U.S. federal government agencies, and prevent the
Funds from receiving necessary regulatory review or approvals. The
types of events discussed above, including the COVID-19 pandemic,
are highly disruptive to economies and markets and have recently
led, and may continue to lead, to increased market volatility and
significant market losses.
More generally, a climate of
uncertainty and panic, including the contagion of the COVID-19
virus and other infectious viruses or diseases, may adversely
affect global, regional, and local economies and reduce the
availability of potential investment opportunities, and increases
the difficulty of performing due diligence and modeling market
conditions, potentially reducing the accuracy of financial
projections. Under these circumstances, the Fund may have
difficulty achieving its investment objective which may adversely
impact performance. Further, such events can be highly disruptive
to economies and markets, significantly disrupt the operations of
individual companies (including, but not limited to, the
Fund’s Sponsor and third party service providers), sectors,
industries, markets, securities and commodity exchanges,
currencies, interest and inflation rates, credit ratings, investor
sentiment, and other factors affecting the value of the
Fund’s investments. These factors could cause substantial
market volatility, exchange trading suspensions and closures that
could impact the ability of the Fund to complete redemptions and
otherwise affect Fund performance and Fund trading in the secondary
market. A widespread crisis may also affect the global economy in
ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen at the current time. How
long such events will last and whether they will continue or recur
cannot be predicted. Impacts from these events could have
significant impact on the Fund’s performance, resulting in
losses to your investment. The past, current and future global
economic impact may cause the underlying assumptions and
expectations of the Fund to become outdated quickly or inaccurate,
resulting in significant losses.
Failures or breaches of electronic systems could disrupt the
Fund’s trading activity and materially affect the
Fund’s profitability.
Failures or breaches of the
electronic systems of the Fund, the Sponsor, the Custodian or other
financial institutions in which the Fund invests, or the
Fund’s other service providers, market makers, Authorized
Purchasers, NYSE Arca, exchanges on which Sugar Futures Contracts
or other sugar interests are traded or cleared, or counterparties
have the ability to cause disruptions and negatively impact the
Fund’s business operations, potentially resulting in
financial losses to the Fund and its shareholders. Such failures or
breaches may include intentional cyber-attacks that may result in
an unauthorized party gaining access to electronic systems in order
to misappropriate the Fund’s assets or sensitive information.
While the Fund has established business continuity plans and risk
management systems seeking to address system breaches or failures,
there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems.
Furthermore, the Fund cannot control the cyber security plans and
systems of the Custodian or other financial institutions in which
the Fund invests, or the Fund’s other service providers,
market makers, Authorized Purchasers, NYSE Arca, exchanges on which
Sugar Futures Contracts or other sugar interests are traded or
cleared, or counterparties.
An investment in a Fund faces numerous risks from its shares being
traded in the secondary market, any of which may lead to the
Fund’s shares trading at a premium or discount to
NAV.
Although the Fund’s shares are
listed for trading on the NYSE Arca, there can be no assurance that
an active trading market for such shares will develop or be
maintained. Trading in the Fund’s shares may be halted due to
market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the NYSE
Arca, make trading in shares inadvisable. There can be no assurance
that the requirements of the NYSE Arca necessary to maintain the
listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain
unchanged or that the shares will trade with any volume, or at all.
The NAV of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate with
changes in the market value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings.
The market prices of shares will generally fluctuate in accordance
with changes in the Fund’s NAV and supply and demand of
shares on the NYSE Arca. It cannot be predicted whether the
Fund’s shares will trade below, at or above their NAV.
Investors buying or selling Fund shares in the secondary market
will pay brokerage commissions or other charges imposed by brokers
as determined by that broker. Brokerage commissions are often a
fixed amount and may be a significant proportional cost for
investors seeking to buy or sell relatively small amounts of
shares.
The NYSE Arca may halt trading in the Shares which would adversely
impact your ability to sell Shares.
Trading in
Shares of the Fund may be halted due to market conditions or, in
light of NYSE Arca rules and procedures, for reasons that, in view
of the NYSE Arca, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition,
trading is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market
volatility pursuant to “circuit breaker” rules that
require trading to be halted for a specified period based on a
specified market decline. There can be no assurance that the
requirements necessary to maintain the listing of the Shares will
continue to be met or will remain unchanged. The Fund will be
terminated if its Shares are delisted.
The lack of active trading markets for the Shares of the Fund may
result in losses on your investment in the Fund at the time of
disposition of your Shares.
Although the Shares of the Fund
will be listed and traded on the NYSE Arca, there can be no
guarantee that an active trading market for the Shares of the Fund
will be maintained. If you need to sell your Shares at a time when
no active market for them exists, the price you receive for your
Shares, assuming that you are able to sell them, likely will be
lower than what you would receive if an active market did
exist.
Risk of Leverage
and Volatility
The Fund may become leveraged and may result in losses on all or
substantially all of your investment if the Fund’s trading
positions suddenly turn unprofitable.
Commodity pools’ trading
positions in futures contracts or other commodity interests are
typically required to be secured by the deposit of margin funds
that represent only a small percentage of a futures
contract’s (or other commodity interest’s) entire
market value. This feature permits commodity pools to
“leverage” their assets by purchasing or selling
futures contracts (or other commodity interests) with an aggregate
notional amount in excess of the commodity pool’s assets.
While this leverage can increase a pool’s profits, relatively
small adverse movements in the price of the pool’s commodity
interests can cause significant losses to the pool. While the
Sponsor does not intend to leverage the Fund’s assets, it is
not prohibited from doing so under the Trust Agreement. If the
Sponsor was to cause or permit the Fund to become leveraged, you
could lose all or substantially all of your investment if the
Fund’s trading positions suddenly turn
unprofitable.
The price of sugar can be volatile which could cause large
fluctuations in the price of Shares.
As discussed in more detail above,
price movements for sugar are influenced by, among other things,
weather conditions, crop disease, crop failure, transportation and
storage difficulties, production decisions, various planting,
growing and harvesting problems, governmental policies, various
economic and monetary events, changing demand, and seasonal
fluctuations in supply. More generally, commodity prices may
be influenced by economic and monetary events such as changes in
interest rates, changes in balances of payments and trade, U.S. and
international inflation rates, currency valuations and
devaluations, U.S. and international economic events, and changes
in the philosophies and emotions of market participants.
Because the Fund invests primarily in interests in a single
commodity, it is not a diversified investment vehicle, and
therefore may be subject to greater volatility than a diversified
portfolio of stocks or bonds or a more diversified commodity
pool.
Over the counter
Contract Risk
Over the counter transactions are subject to changing
regulation.
A portion of the Fund’s
assets may be used to trade over the counter sugar interests, such
as forward contracts or swaps. The markets for over the counter
contracts will continue to rely upon the integrity of market
participants in lieu of the additional regulation imposed by the
CFTC on participants in the futures markets. To date, the forward
markets have been largely unregulated, except for anti-manipulation
and anti-fraud provisions, forward contracts have been executed
bi-laterally and, in general historically, forward contracts have
not been cleared or guaranteed by a third party. While increased
regulation of over the counter commodity interests is likely to
result from changes that are required to be effectuated by the
Dodd-Frank Act, there is no guarantee that such increased
regulation will be effective to reduce these
risks.
The Fund will be subject to credit risk with respect to
counterparties to over the counter contracts entered into by the
Fund.
The Fund faces the risk of
non-performance by the counterparties to the over the counter
contracts. Unlike in futures contracts, the counterparty to
these contracts is generally a single bank or other financial
institution, rather than a clearing organization backed by a group
of financial institutions. As a result, there will be greater
counterparty credit risk in these transactions. A
counterparty may not be able to meet its obligations to the Fund,
in which case the Fund could suffer significant losses on these
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 a bankruptcy or other reorganization
proceeding. During any such period, the Fund may have
difficulty in determining the value of its contracts with the
counterparty, which in turn could result in the overstatement or
understatement of the Fund’s NAV. The Fund may
eventually obtain only limited recovery or no recovery in such
circumstances.
The Fund may be subject to liquidity risk with respect to over the
counter contracts.
Over the counter contracts may have
terms that make them less marketable than Sugar Futures Contracts.
Over the counter contracts are less marketable because they are not
traded on an exchange, do not have uniform terms and conditions,
and are entered into based upon the creditworthiness of the parties
and the availability of credit support, such as collateral, and in
general, they are not transferable without the consent of the
counterparty. These conditions make such contracts less liquid than
standardized futures contracts traded on a commodities exchange and
diminish the ability to realize the full value of such contracts.
In addition, even if collateral is used to reduce counterparty
credit risk, sudden changes in the value of over the counter
transactions may leave a party open to financial risk due to a
counterparty default since the collateral held may not cover a
party’s exposure on the transaction in such
situations.
In general, valuing OTC derivatives
is less certain than valuing actively traded financial instruments
such as exchange traded futures contracts and securities because
the price and terms on which such OTC derivatives are entered into
or can be terminated are individually negotiated, and those prices
and terms may not reflect the best price or terms available from
other sources. In addition, while market makers and dealers
generally quote indicative prices or terms for entering into or
terminating OTC contracts, they typically are not contractually
obligated to do so, particularly if they are not a party to the
transaction. As a result, it may be difficult to obtain an
independent value for an outstanding OTC derivatives
transaction.
The foregoing liquidity risks could
impact adversely affect the Fund’s ability to meet its
investment objective.
In addition, regulations adopted by
global prudential regulators that are now in effect require certain
prudentially regulated entities and certain of their affiliates and
subsidiaries (including swap dealers) to include in their
derivatives contracts and certain other financial contracts, terms
that delay or restrict the rights of counterparties (such as the
Funds) to terminate such contracts, foreclose upon collateral,
exercise other default rights or restrict transfers of credit
support in the event that the prudentially regulated entity and/or
its affiliates are subject to certain types of resolution or
insolvency proceedings. Similar regulations and laws have been
adopted in non-US jurisdictions that may apply to a Fund’s
counterparties located in those jurisdictions. It is possible that
these new requirements, as well as potential additional related
government regulation, could adversely affect a Fund’s
ability to terminate existing derivatives contracts, exercise
default rights or satisfy obligations owed to it with collateral
received under such contracts.
Risk of Trading in
International Markets
Trading in international markets would expose the Fund to credit
and regulatory risk.
A significant portion of the Sugar
Futures Contracts entered into by the Fund are traded on United
States exchanges including ICE Futures. However, a portion of
the Fund’s trades may take place on markets or exchanges
outside the United States. Some non-U.S. markets present
risks because they are not subject to the same degree of regulation
as their U.S. counterparts. None of the CFTC, NFA, or any
domestic exchange regulates activities of any foreign boards of
trade or exchanges, including the execution, delivery and clearing
of transactions, has the power to compel enforcement of the rules
of a foreign board of trade or exchange or of any applicable
non-U.S. laws. Similarly, the rights of market participants,
such as the Fund, in the event of the insolvency or bankruptcy of a
non-U.S. market or broker are also likely to be more limited than
in the case of U.S. markets or brokers. As a result, in these
markets, the Fund has less legal and regulatory protection than it
does when it trades domestically. Currently the Fund does not place
trades on any markets or exchanges outside of the United States and
does not anticipate doing so in the foreseeable
future.
In some of these non-U.S. markets,
the performance on a futures contract is the responsibility of the
counterparty and is not backed by an exchange or clearing
corporation and therefore exposes the Fund to credit risk.
Additionally, trading on non-U.S. exchanges is subject to the risks
presented by exchange controls, expropriation, increased tax
burdens and exposure to local economic declines and political
instability. An adverse development with respect to any of
these variables could reduce the profit or increase the loss earned
on trades in the affected international
markets.
International trading activities subject the Fund to foreign
exchange risk.
The price of any non-U.S. sugar
interest and, therefore, the potential profit and loss on such
investment, may be affected by any variance in the foreign exchange
rate between the time the order is placed and the time it is
liquidated, offset or exercised. However, a portion of the trades
for the Fund may take place in markets and on exchanges outside of
the U.S. Some non-U.S. markets present risks because they are not
subject to the same degree of regulation as their U.S.
counterparts. As a result, changes in the value of the local
currency relative to the U.S. dollar may cause losses to the Fund
even if the contract is profitable.
The CFTC’s implementation of
its regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act may further affect the
Fund’s ability to enter into foreign exchange contracts and
to hedge its exposure to foreign exchange
losses.
The Fund’s international trading could expose it to losses
resulting from non-U.S. exchanges that are less developed or less
reliable than United States exchanges.
Some non-U.S. exchanges also may be
in a more developmental stage so that prior price histories may not
be indicative of current price dynamics. In addition, the
Fund may not have the same access to certain positions on foreign
trading exchanges as do local traders, and the historical market
data on which the Sponsor bases its strategies may not be as
reliable or accessible as it is for U.S.
exchanges.
Please refer to “U.S. Federal
Income Tax Considerations” for information regarding the U.S.
federal income tax consequences of the purchase, ownership and
disposition of Shares.
Your tax liability from holding Shares may exceed the amount of
distributions, if any, on your Shares.
Cash or property will be
distributed by the Fund at the sole discretion of the Sponsor, and
the Sponsor currently does not intend to make cash or other
distributions with respect to Shares. You will be required to
pay U.S. federal income tax and, in some cases, state, local, or
foreign income tax, on your allocable share of the Fund’s
taxable income, without regard to whether you receive distributions
or the amount of any distributions. Therefore, the tax
liability resulting from your ownership of Shares may exceed the
amount of cash or value of property (if any)
distributed.
Your allocable share of income or loss for U.S. federal income tax
purposes may differ from your economic income or loss on your
Shares.
Due to the application of the
assumptions and conventions applied by the Fund in making
allocations for U.S. federal income tax purposes and other factors,
your allocable share of the Fund’s income, gain, deduction or
loss may be different than your economic profit or loss from your
Shares for a taxable year. This difference could be temporary
or permanent and, if permanent, could result in your being taxed on
amounts in excess of your economic income.
Items of income, gain, deduction, loss and credit with respect to
Shares could be reallocated (or for taxable years beginning after
December 31, 2017, the Fund itself could be liable for U.S. federal
income tax along with any interest or penalties) if the IRS does
not accept the assumptions and conventions applied by the Fund in
allocating those items, with potential adverse tax consequences for
you.
The Fund is treated as a
partnership for United States federal income tax purposes. The U.S.
tax rules pertaining to entities taxed as partnerships are complex
and their application to publicly traded partnerships such as the
Fund, is in many respects uncertain. The Fund applies certain
assumptions and conventions in an attempt to comply with the intent
of the applicable rules and to report taxable income, gains,
deductions, losses and credits in a manner that properly reflects
Shareholders’ economic gains and losses. These assumptions
and conventions may not fully comply with all aspects of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”),
and applicable Treasury Regulations, however, and it is possible
that the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) will
successfully challenge our allocation methods and require us to
reallocate items of income, gain, deduction, loss or credit in a
manner that adversely affects you. If this occurs, you may be
required to file an amended tax return and to pay additional taxes
plus deficiency interest.
In addition, for taxable years
beginning after December 31, 2017, the Fund may be liable for U.S.
federal income tax on any “imputed underpayment” of tax
resulting from an adjustment as a result of an IRS audit. The
amount of the imputed underpayment generally includes increases in
allocations of items of income or gains to any investor and
decreases in allocations of items of deduction, loss, or credit to
any investor without any offset for any corresponding reductions in
allocations of items of income or gain to any investor or increases
in allocations of items of deduction, loss, or credit to any
investor. If the Fund is required to pay any U.S. federal income
tax on any imputed underpayment, the resulting tax liability would
reduce the net assets of the Fund and would likely have an adverse
impact on the value of the Shares. In such a case, the tax
liability would in effect be borne by Shareholders that own Shares
at the time of such assessment, which may be different persons, or
persons with different ownership percentages, than persons owning
Shares for the tax year under audit. Under certain circumstances,
the Fund may be eligible to make an election to cause Shareholders
to take into account the amount of any imputed underpayment,
including any interest and penalties. The ability of a publicly
traded partnership such as the Fund to make this election is
uncertain. If the election is made, the Fund would be required to
provide Shareholders who owned beneficial interests in the Shares
in the year to which the adjusted allocations relate with a
statement setting forth their proportionate shares of the
adjustment (“Adjusted K-1s”). The investors would be
required to take the adjustment into account in the taxable year in
which the Adjusted K-1s are issued. For an additional discussion
please see “U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations –
Other Tax Matters.”
If the Fund is required to withhold tax with respect to any
Non-U.S. Shareholders, the cost of such withholding may be borne by
all Shareholders.
Under certain circumstances, the
Fund may be required to pay withholding tax with respect to
allocations to Non-U.S. Shareholders. Although the Trust Agreement
provides that any such withholding will be treated as being
distributed to the Non-U.S. Shareholder, the Fund may not be able
to cause the economic cost of such withholding to be borne by the
Non-U.S. Shareholder on whose behalf such amounts were withheld
since the Fund does not intend to make any distributions. Under
such circumstances, the economic cost of the withholding may be
borne by all Shareholders, not just the Shareholders on whose
behalf such amounts were withheld. This could have a material
impact on the value of your Shares.
The Fund could be treated as a corporation for federal income tax
purposes, which may substantially reduce the value of your
Shares.
The Trust has received an opinion
of counsel that, under current U.S. federal income tax laws, the
Fund will be treated as a partnership that is not taxable as a
corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, provided that,
among other things, (i) at least 90 percent of the Fund’s
annual gross income consists of “qualifying income” as
defined in the Code, (ii) the Fund is organized and operated in
accordance with its governing agreements and applicable law, and
(iii) the Fund does not elect to be taxed as a corporation for U.S.
federal income tax purposes. Although the Sponsor anticipates that
the Fund has satisfied and will continue to satisfy the
“qualifying income” requirement for all of its taxable
years, that result cannot be assured. The Fund has not requested
and will not request any ruling from the IRS with respect to its
classification as a partnership not taxable as a corporation for
U.S. federal income tax purposes. If the IRS were to successfully
assert that the Fund is taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal
income tax purposes in any taxable year, rather than passing
through its income, gains, losses and deductions proportionately to
Shareholders, the Fund would be subject to tax on its net income
for the year at corporate tax rates. In addition, although the
Sponsor does not currently intend to make distributions with
respect to Shares, any distributions would be taxable to
Shareholders as dividend income to the extent of the Fund’s
current and accumulated earnings and profits, then treated as a
tax-free return of capital to the extent of the Shareholder’s
basis in the Shares (and will reduce the basis), and, to the extent
it exceeds a Shareholder’s basis in such Shares, as capital
gain for Shareholders who hold their Shares as capital assets.
Taxation of the Fund as a corporation could materially reduce the
after-tax return on an investment in Shares and could substantially
reduce the value of your Shares.
Tax legislation that has been or could be enacted may affect you
with respect to your investment in the Fund.
Legislative, regulatory or
administrative changes could be enacted or promulgated at any time,
either prospectively or with retroactive effect, and may adversely
affect the Fund and its Shareholders. Please consult a tax advisor
regarding the implications of an investment in Shares of the
Teucrium Funds, including without limitation the federal, state,
local and foreign tax consequences.
PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS ARE
STRONGLY URGED TO CONSULT THEIR OWN TAX ADVISORS WITH RESPECT TO
THE POSSIBLE TAX CONSEQUENCES TO THEM OF AN INVESTMENT IN SHARES;
SUCH TAX CONSEQUENCES MAY DIFFER IN RESPECT OF DIFFERENT
INVESTORS.
THE
OFFERING
The Fund’s investment
objective is to provide investors with a cost-efficient way to gain
price exposure to the sugar market for future delivery. The Sponsor
developed the Benchmark as a representation of the sugar market for
future delivery.
Under normal market conditions, the
Fund will invest in the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts and
cash and cash equivalents. The Sponsor believes that by investing
in Benchmark Component Futures Contracts, the Fund’s net
asset value (“NAV”) will closely track the Benchmark.
The Sponsor also believes that because of market arbitrage
opportunities, the market price at which investors will purchase
and sell Shares through their broker-dealer will closely track the
Fund’s NAV. The Sponsor believes that the net effect of these
relationships is that the Fund’s market price on the NYSE
Arca at which investors purchase and sell Shares will closely track
the sugar market for future delivery, as measured by the
Benchmark.
Consistent with applicable
provisions of the Trust Agreement and Delaware law, the Fund has
broad authority to make changes to the Fund’s operations.
Consistent with this authority, the Fund, in its sole discretion
and without shareholder approval or advance notice, may change its
investment objective, Benchmark, or investment strategies. The Fund
has no current intention to make any such change, and any change is
subject to applicable regulatory requirements, including, but not
limited to, any requirement to amend applicable listing rules of
the NYSE.
The reasons for and circumstances
that may trigger any such changes may vary widely and cannot be
predicted. However, by way of example, the Fund may change the term
structure or underlying components of the Benchmark in furtherance
of the Fund’s investment objective of tracking the price of
sugar for future delivery if, due to market conditions, a potential
or actual imposition of position limits by the CFTC or futures
exchange rules, or the imposition of risk mitigation measures by a
futures commission merchant restricts the ability of the Fund to
invest in the current Benchmark Futures Contracts. The Fund would
file a current report on Form 8-K and a prospectus supplement to
describe any such change and the effective date of the change.
Shareholders may modify their holdings of the Fund’s shares
in response to any change by purchasing or selling Fund shares
through their broker-dealer.
The Fund is organized as a series
of the Teucrium Commodity Trust, a statutory trust organized under
the laws of the State of Delaware on September 11, 2009. Currently,
the Trust has five series that are separate operating commodity
pools: the Teucrium Corn Fund, the Teucrium Wheat Fund, the
Teucrium Soybean Fund, the Teucrium Sugar Fund, and the Teucrium
Agricultural Fund. Additional series of the Trust may be created in
the future at the Sponsor’s discretion. The Fund maintains
its main business office at Three Main Street, Suite 215,
Burlington Vermont 05401. The Fund is a commodity pool. It operates
pursuant to the terms of the Trust Agreement, which is dated as of
April 26, 2019 and grants full management control to the
Sponsor.
See “Prior Performance of the
Fund” on page 30 for more
information about prior performance of the
Fund.
The Sponsor of the Trust is
Teucrium Trading, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company. The
principal office of the Sponsor and the Trust are located at Three
Main Street, Suite 215, Burlington, Vermont 05401. The Sponsor
registered as a CPO with the CFTC and became a member of the NFA on
November 10, 2009. The Sponsor registered as a Commodity Trading
Advisor (“CTA”) with the CFTC effective September 8,
2017.
Aside from establishing the series
of the Trust, operating those series that have commenced offering
their shares, and obtaining capital from a small number of outside
investors in order to engage in these activities, the Sponsor has
not engaged in any other business activity prior to the date of
this prospectus. Under the Trust Agreement, the Sponsor is solely
responsible for management and conducts or directs the conduct of
the business of the Trust, the Fund, and any series of the Trust
that may from time to time be established and designated by the
Sponsor. The Sponsor is required to oversee the purchase and sale
of Shares by Authorized Purchasers and to manage the Fund’s
investments, including to evaluate the credit risk of FCMs and swap
counterparties and to review daily positions and margin/collateral
requirements. The Sponsor has the power to enter into agreements as
may be necessary or appropriate for the offer and sale of the
Fund’s Shares and the conduct of the Trust’s
activities. Accordingly, the Sponsor is responsible for selecting
the Trustee, Administrator, Distributor, the independent registered
public accounting firm of the Trust, and any legal counsel employed
by the Trust. The Sponsor is also responsible for preparing and
filing periodic reports on behalf of the Trust with the SEC and
will provide any required certification for such reports. No person
other than the Sponsor and its principals was involved in the
organization of the Trust or the Fund.
The Sponsor may determine to engage
marketing agents who will assist the Sponsor in marketing the
Shares. See “Plan of Distribution” for more
information.
The Sponsor maintains a public
website on behalf of the Fund, www.teucrium.com ,
which contains information about the Trust, the Fund, and the
Shares, and oversees certain services for the benefit of
Shareholders.
The Sponsor has discretion to
appoint one or more of its affiliates as additional Sponsors.
The Sponsor receives a fee as
compensation for services performed under the Trust
Agreement. The Sponsor’s fee accrues daily and is
paid monthly at an annual rate of 1.00% of the average daily net
assets of the Fund. For the period from January 1, 2020
through December 31, 2020, the Fund recognized $104,170 in
management fees to the Sponsor. The Fund is also responsible for
other ongoing fees, costs and expenses of its operations, including
brokerage fees, and legal, printing, accounting, custodial,
administration and transfer agency costs, although the Sponsor bore the costs and
expenses related to the registration of the Shares. None
of the costs and expenses related to the initial registration,
offer and sale of Shares, which totaled approximately $450,000,
were or are chargeable to the Fund, and the Sponsor did not and may
not recover any of these costs and expenses from the
Fund.
Shareholders have no right to elect
the Sponsor on an annual or any other continuing basis or to remove
the Sponsor. If the Sponsor voluntarily withdraws, the
holders of a majority of the Trust’s outstanding Shares
(excluding for purposes of such determination Shares owned by the
withdrawing Sponsor and its affiliates) may elect its
successor. Prior to withdrawing, the Sponsor must give ninety
days’ written notice to the Shareholders and the
Trustee.
Ownership or
“membership” interests in the Sponsor are owned by
persons referred to as “members.” The
Sponsor currently has three voting or “Class A” members
– Mr. Sal Gilbertie, Mr. Dale Riker and Mr. Carl N. Miller
III – and a small number of non-voting or “Class
B” members who have provided working capital to the
Sponsor. Messrs. Gilbertie and Riker each currently own 45.7%
of the Sponsor’s Class A membership interests while Mr.
Miller holds the remainder, which is 8.52%.
The Sponsor has an information
security program and policy in place. The program takes reasonable
care to look beyond the security and controls developed and
implemented for the Trust and the Funds directly to the platforms
and controls in place for the key service providers. Such review of
cybersecurity and information technology plans of key service
providers are part of the Sponsor’s disaster recovery and
business continuity
planning. The Sponsor provides
regular training to all employees of the Sponsor regarding
cybersecurity topics, in addition to real-time dissemination of
information regarding cybersecurity matters as needed. The
information security plan is reviewed and updated as needed, but at
a minimum on an annual basis.
Management of the Sponsor
In general, under the
Sponsor’s Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company
Operating Agreement, as amended from time to time, the Sponsor (and
as a result the Trust and each Fund) is managed by the officers of
the Sponsor. The Chief Executive Officer of the Sponsor
is responsible for the overall strategic direction of the Sponsor
and has general control of its business. The Chief Investment
Officer and President of the Sponsor is primarily responsible for
new investment product development with respect to the Funds. The
Chief Operating Officer has primary responsibility for trade
operations, trade execution, and portfolio activities with respect
to the Fund. The Chief Financial Officer, Chief Accounting Officer
and Chief Compliance Officer acts as the Sponsor’s principal
financial and accounting officer. Furthermore, certain fundamental
actions regarding the Sponsor, such as the removal of officers, the
addition or substitution of members, or the incurrence of
liabilities other than those incurred in the ordinary course of
business and de minimis
liabilities, may not be taken without the affirmative vote of a
majority of the Class A members (which is generally defined as the
affirmative vote of Mr. Gilbertie and one of the other two Class A
members). The Sponsor has no board of directors, and the
Trust has no board of directors or officers. The three Class A
members of the Sponsor are Sal Gilbertie, Dale Riker and Carl N.
Miller III.
The Officers of the Sponsor, one of
whom is a Class A Member of the Sponsor, are the
following:
Sal Gilbertie has
been the President of the Sponsor since its inception, its Chief
Investment Officer since September 2011, and its Chief Executive
Officer and Secretary since September 17, 2018, and was approved by
the NFA as a principal of the Sponsor on September 23, 2009 and
registered as an associated person of the Sponsor on November 10,
2009. He maintains his main business office at 65 Adams Road,
Easton, Connecticut 06612. Effective July 16, 2012, Mr.
Gilbertie was registered with the NFA as the Branch Manager for
this location. Since October 18, 2010, Mr. Gilbertie has been
an associated person of the Distributor under the terms of the
Securities Activities and Services Agreement (“SASA”)
between the Sponsor and the Distributor. Additional
information regarding the SASA can be found in the section of this
disclosure document entitled “Plan of
Distribution.” From October 2005 until December 2009,
Mr. Gilbertie was employed by Newedge USA, LLC, an FCM and
broker-dealer registered with the CFTC and the SEC, where he headed
the Renewable Fuels/Energy Derivatives OTC Execution Desk and was
an active futures contract and over the counter derivatives trader
and market maker in multiple classes of commodities. (Between
January 2008 and October 2008, he also held a comparable position
with Newedge Financial, Inc., an FCM and an affiliate of Newedge
USA, LLC.) From October 1998 until October 2005, Mr.
Gilbertie was principal and co-founder of Cambial Asset Management,
LLC, an adviser to two private funds that focused on equity
options, and Cambial Financing Dynamics, a private boutique
investment bank. While at Cambial Asset Management, LLC and
Cambial Financing Dynamics, Mr. Gilbertie served as principal and
managed the day to day activities of the business and the portfolio
of both companies. Mr. Gilbertie is 60 years
old.
Cory Mullen-Rusin,
has been the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Accounting Officer and
Chief Compliance Officer of the Sponsor since September 17, 2018
and Ms. Mullen-Rusin has primary responsibility for the financial
management, compliance and reporting of the Sponsor and is in
charge of its books of account and accounting records, and its
accounting procedures. She maintains her main business office at
Three Main Street, Suite 215, Burlington, Vermont 05401. Ms.
Mullen-Rusin was approved by the NFA as a Principal of the Sponsor
on October 8, 2018. Ms. Mullen-Rusin began working for the Sponsor
in September 2011 and worked directly with the former CFO at
Teucrium for seven years. Her responsibilities included aspects of
financial planning, financial operations, and financial reporting
for the Trust and the Sponsor. Additionally, Ms. Mullen-Rusin
assisted in developing, instituting, and monitoring the
effectiveness of processes and procedures to comply with all
regulatory agency requirements. Ms. Mullen-Rusin graduated from
Boston College with a Bachelor of Arts and Science in
Communications in 2009, where she was a four-year scholarship
player on the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball team.
In 2017, she earned a Master of Business Administration from
Nichols College. Ms. Mullen-Rusin is 33 years
old.
Steve Kahler, Chief
Operating Officer, began working for the Sponsor in November 2011
as Managing Director in the trading division. He became the Chief
Operating Officer on May 24, 2012 and served in that capacity
through September 6, 2018, at which time he resigned. Mr. Kahler
was unemployed from September 7, 2018 until October 10, 2018, when
he was reappointed as Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Kahler has
primary responsibility for the Trade Operations for the Funds. He
maintains his main business office at 13520 Excelsior Blvd.,
Minnetonka, MN 55345. Mr. Kahler was registered as an
Associated Person of the Sponsor on November 25, 2011, approved as
a Branch Manager of the Sponsor on March 16, 2012 and approved by
the NFA as a Principal of the Sponsor on May 16, 2012. These NFA
registrations were withdrawn on September 7, 2018 and then he
re-registered as an Associated Person and Branch Office Manager of
the Sponsor on October 5, 2018 and as a Principal of the Sponsor on
October 16, 2018. Since January 18, 2012, Mr. Kahler has been an
associated person of the Distributor under the terms of the SASA
between the Sponsor and the Distributor. Additional
information regarding the SASA can be found in the section of this
disclosure document entitled “Plan of Distribution.”
Prior to his employment with the Sponsor, Mr. Kahler worked for
Cargill Inc., an international producer and marketer of food,
agricultural, financial and industrial products and services, from
April 2006 until November 2011 in the Energy Division as Senior
Petroleum Trader. In October 2006 and while employed at Cargill
Inc., Mr. Kahler was approved as an Associated Person of Cargill
Commodity Services Inc., a commodity trading affiliate of Cargill
Inc. from September 13, 2006 to November 9, 2011. Mr. Kahler
graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Bachelors of
Agricultural Business Administration and is 53 years old. Mr.
Kahler is primarily responsible for making trading and investment
decisions for the Fund and other Teucrium Funds, and for directing
Fund and other Teucrium Fund trades for
execution.
Messrs. Gilbertie, Riker, and
Kahler and Ms. Mullen-Rusin are individual
“principals,” as that term is defined in CFTC Rule 3.1,
of the Sponsor. These individuals are principals due to their
positions and/or due to their ownership interests in the Sponsor.
Beneficial ownership interests of the principals, if any, are shown
under the section entitled “Security Ownership of Principal
Shareholders and Management” below and any of the principals
may acquire beneficial interests in the Fund in the future. GFI
Group LLC is a principal for the Sponsor under CFTC Rules due to
its ownership of certain non-voting securities of the Sponsor.
NMSIC Classic LLC is a principal of the Sponsor under CFTC Rules
due to its greater than 10% capital contribution to the
Sponsor.
Market Price of Shares
The
Fund’s Shares have traded on the NYSE Arca under the symbol
“CANE” since September 19, 2011. The following table
sets forth the range of reported high and low sales prices of the
Shares as reported on NYSE Arca for the periods indicated
below.
Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2020:
|
|
|
Quarter
Ended
|
|
|
March 31, 2020
|
$7.59
|
$5.45
|
June 30, 2020
|
$5.95
|
$4.92
|
September 30,
2020
|
$6.20
|
$5.56
|
December 31,
2020
|
$6.75
|
$6.11
|
Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2019:
|
|
|
Quarter
Ended
|
|
|
March 31, 2019
|
$7.81
|
$6.90
|
June 30, 2019
|
$7.49
|
$6.79
|
September 30,
2019
|
$7.07
|
$6.30
|
December 31,
2019
|
$7.08
|
$6.44
|
As of December
31, 2020, the Fund had approximately 2,526
Shareholders.
Prior Performance of the Fund
PAST PERFORMANCE
IS NOT NECESSARILY INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS
The Teucrium Sugar Fund commenced
trading and investment operations on September 19, 2011. The
Teucrium Sugar Fund is listed on NYSE Arca and is neither: (i) a
privately offered pool pursuant to Section 4(a)(2) of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended; (ii) a multi-advisor pool as
defined in CFTC Regulation 4.10(d)(2); or (iii) a
principal-protected pool as defined in CFTC Regulation
4.10(d)(3).
Units of
beneficial interest issued (from inception until February 28,
2021)
|
7,000,000
|
Aggregate
gross sale price for units issued
|
$
60,826,508
|
NAV per Share
as of February 28, 2021
|
$
7.46
|
Pool NAV as of
February 28, 2021
|
$
15,283,886
|
Worst monthly
percentage drawdown*
|
-23.51% /
March 2020
|
Worst peak to
valley drawdown**
|
-78.60% / Sep
2011 – Apr 2020
|
* A drawdown is a loss experienced
by the fund over a specified period. Drawdowns are measured on the
basis of monthly returns only and do not reflect intra-month
figures. The worst monthly percentage drawdown reflects the largest
single month loss sustained over the most recent five calendar
years and the current year to date.
** The worst peak to valley
drawdown is the largest percentage decline in the NAV per unit over
the most recent five calendar years and the current year to date.
This need not be a continuous decline but can be a series of
positive and negative returns. Worst peak to valley drawdown
represents the greatest percentage decline from any month end NAV
per unit that occurs without such month end NAV per unit being
equaled or exceeded as of a subsequent month end. For example, if
the NAV per unit declined by $1 in each of January and February,
increased by $1 in March and declined again by $2 in April, a
“peak to valley drawdown” analysis conducted as of the
end of April would consider that “drawdown” to be
continuing and to be $3 in amount, whereas if the NAV per unit had
increased by $2 in March, the drawdown would have ended as of the
end of February at the $2 level.
PAST PERFORMANCE
IS NOT NECESSARILY INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS
|
Rates of Return*
|
Month
|
2016
|
|
2017
|
|
2018
|
|
2019
|
|
2020
|
|
2021
|
|
|
January
|
(10.68)
|
%
|
6.62
|
%
|
(8.58)
|
%
|
6.36
|
%
|
3.83
|
%
|
2.81
|
%
|
|
February
|
8.27
|
%
|
(5.34)
|
%
|
(1.56)
|
%
|
0.13
|
%
|
(1.68)
|
%
|
7.93
|
%
|
|
March
|
8.67
|
%
|
(10.14)
|
%
|
(5.90)
|
%
|
(3.05)
|
%
|
(23.51)
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
April
|
4.94
|
%
|
(5.17)
|
%
|
(7.48)
|
%
|
(1.78)
|
%
|
(2.76)
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
May
|
4.98
|
%
|
(6.89)
|
%
|
4.95
|
%
|
(1.95)
|
%
|
1.25
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
June
|
11.38
|
%
|
(7.40)
|
%
|
(5.34)
|
%
|
1.00
|
%
|
5.83
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
July
|
(2.17)
|
%
|
7.57
|
%
|
(9.84)
|
%
|
(1.70)
|
%
|
4.77
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
August
|
5.78
|
%
|
(3.09)
|
%
|
(1.89)
|
%
|
(7.08)
|
%
|
0.89
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
September
|
9.57
|
%
|
(6.17)
|
%
|
(1.63)
|
%
|
2.58
|
%
|
0.90
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
October
|
(3.55)
|
%
|
3.08
|
%
|
15.99
|
%
|
(0.87)
|
%
|
0.16
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
November
|
(8.92)
|
%
|
0.82
|
%
|
(2.34)
|
%
|
2.09
|
%
|
4.00
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
December
|
0.78
|
%
|
(0.10)
|
%
|
(5.86)
|
%
|
4.56
|
%
|
5.64
|
%
|
|
%
|
|
Annual Rate of
Return
|
29.44
|
%
|
(24.52)
|
%
|
(27.78)
|
%
|
(0.48)
|
%
|
(4.51)
|
%
|
10.96
|
%**
|
|
*The monthly rate of return is
calculated by dividing the ending NAV for a given month by the
ending NAV for the previous month, subtracting 1 and multiplying
this number by 100 to arrive at a percentage increase or
decrease.
**Not
annualized.
The sole Trustee of the Trust is
Wilmington Trust Company, a Delaware banking corporation. The
Trustee’s principal offices are located at 1100 North Market
Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19890-0001. The Trustee is
unaffiliated with the Sponsor. The Trustee’s duties and
liabilities with respect to the offering of Shares and the
management of the Trust and the Fund are limited to its express
obligations under the Trust Agreement.
The Trustee will accept service of
legal process on the Trust in the State of Delaware and will make
certain filings under the Delaware Statutory Trust Act. The
Trustee does not owe any other duties to the Trust, the Sponsor or
the Shareholders. The Trustee is permitted to resign upon at
least sixty (60) days’ notice to the Sponsor. If no
successor trustee has been appointed by the Sponsor within such
sixty-day period, the Trustee may, at the expense of the Trust,
petition a court to appoint a successor. The Trust Agreement
provides that the Trustee is entitled to reasonable compensation
for its services from the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor
(including the Trust), and is indemnified by the Sponsor against
any expenses it incurs relating to or arising out of the formation,
operation or termination of the Trust, or any action or inaction of
the Trustee under the Trust Agreement, except to the extent that
such expenses result from the gross negligence or willful
misconduct of the Trustee. The Sponsor has the discretion to
replace the Trustee.
The Trustee has not signed the
registration statement of which this prospectus is a part and is
not subject to issuer liability under the federal securities laws
for the information contained in this prospectus and under federal
securities laws with respect to the issuance and sale of the
Shares. Under such laws, neither the Trustee, either in its
capacity as Trustee or in its individual capacity, nor any
director, officer or controlling person of the Trustee is, or has
any liability as, the issuer or a director, officer or controlling
person of the issuer of the Shares.
Under the Trust Agreement, the
Trustee has delegated to the Sponsor the exclusive management and
control of all aspects of the business of the Trust and the
Fund. The Trustee has no duty or liability to supervise or
monitor the performance of the Sponsor, nor does the Trustee have
any liability for the acts or omissions of the
Sponsor.
Because the Trustee has delegated
substantially all of its authority over the operation of the Trust
to the Sponsor, the Trustee itself is not registered in any
capacity with the CFTC.
The investment
objective of the Fund is to have the daily changes in the
Shares’ NAV reflect the daily changes in the sugar market for
future delivery, as measured by the Fund’s Benchmark. The
Benchmark is a weighted average of the closing settlement prices
for the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts:
CANE Benchmark
ICE Sugar Futures Contract
|
Weighting
|
Second to
expire
|
35%
|
Third to
expire
|
30%
|
Expiring in
the March following the expiration of the third to expire
contract
|
35%
|
The Fund seeks to achieve its
investment objective by investing under normal market conditions in
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. Under normal market
conditions, the Fund expects that 100% of the Fund’s assets
will be used to trade Sugar Futures Contracts and invest in cash
and cash equivalents. The Fund reserves the right to invest in swap
agreements, forward contracts and options, a brief description of
which may be found in “Appendix A – Glossary of Defined
Terms.”
The Fund invests in Benchmark
Component Futures Contracts to the fullest extent possible without
being leveraged or unable to satisfy its current or potential
margin or collateral obligations with respect to its investments in
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. After fulfilling such
margin and collateral requirements, the Fund invests the remainder
of its proceeds from the sale of baskets in cash and cash
equivalents, including money-market funds, investment grade
commercial paper, and/or merely holds such assets in cash in
interest-bearing accounts. The Fund seeks to earn interest and
other income from the cash equivalents that it purchases, and on
the cash it holds at financial institutions.
The Fund seeks to achieve its
investment objective primarily by investing in Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts such that the changes in its NAV are expected to
closely track the changes in the Benchmark. The Fund’s
positions in Benchmark Component Futures Contracts are changed or
“rolled” on a regular basis in order to track the
changing nature of the Benchmark. For example, four times a
year (on the date on which a Sugar No. 11 Futures Contract
expires), the second to expire Sugar No. 11 Futures Contract will
become the next to expire Sugar No. 11 Futures Contract and will no
longer be a Benchmark Component Futures Contract, and the
Fund’s investments will have to be changed accordingly.
In order that the Fund’s trading does not cause unwanted
market movements and to make it more difficult for third parties to
profit by trading based on such expected market movements, the
Fund’s investments may not be rolled entirely on that day,
but rather may be rolled over a period of
days.
The Fund’s total portfolio
composition is disclosed each business day that the NYSE Arca is
open for trading on the Fund’s website at www.teucrium.com . The website
disclosure of portfolio holdings is made daily and includes, as
applicable, the name and value of each commodity futures contract
held and those that are pending, and the value of cash and cash
equivalents held in the Fund. The Fund’s website also
includes the NAV, the 4 p.m. Bid/Ask Midpoint as reported by the
NYSE Arca, the last trade price as reported by the NYSE Arca, the
shares outstanding, the shares available for issuance, and the
shares created or redeemed on that day. The prospectus, Monthly
Statements of Account, Quarterly Performance of the Midpoint versus
the NAV (as required by the CFTC), and the Roll Dates, as well as
Forms 10-Q, Forms 10-K, and other SEC filings for the Fund, are
also posted on the website. The Fund’s website is publicly
accessible at no charge.
In seeking to achieve the
Fund’s investment objective of tracking the Benchmark, the
Sponsor reserves the right to enter into or hold Sugar Futures
Contracts other than the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts
and/or other sugar interests on behalf of the Fund. Over the
counter sugar interests can generally be structured as the parties
to the contract desire. Therefore, the Fund might enter into
multiple over the counter sugar interests intended to exactly
replicate the performance of each of the three Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts, or a single over the counter sugar interest
designed to replicate the performance of the Benchmark as a whole.
Assuming that there is no default by a counterparty to an over the
counter sugar interest, the performance of the sugar interest will
necessarily correlate exactly with the performance of the Benchmark
or the applicable Benchmark Component Futures Contract. The Fund
might also enter into or hold sugar interests other than the
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts to facilitate effective
trading, consistent with the discussion of the Fund’s
“roll” strategy discussed in the preceding paragraph.
In addition, the Fund might enter into or hold sugar interests that
would be expected to alleviate overall deviation between the
Fund’s performance and that of the Benchmark that may result
from certain market and trading inefficiencies or other
reasons.
The Sponsor endeavors to place the
Fund’s trades in Benchmark Component Futures Contracts and
otherwise manage the Fund’s investments so that the
Fund’s average daily tracking error against the Benchmark is
less than 10 percent over any period of 30 trading
days.
The Fund’s investment
objective is to provide investors with a cost-efficient way to gain
exposure to the sugar market for future delivery. The Sponsor
developed the Benchmark as a representation of the sugar market for
future delivery. Under normal market conditions, the Fund will
invest in the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. The Sponsor
believes that by investing in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts, the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”)
will closely track the Benchmark. The Sponsor also believes that
because of market arbitrage opportunities, the market price at
which investors will purchase and sell Shares through their
broker-dealer will closely track the Fund’s NAV. The Sponsor
believes that the net effect of these relationships is that the
Fund’s market price on the NYSE Arca at which investors
purchase and sell Shares will closely track the sugar market for
future delivery, as measured by the Benchmark.
An investment in the Shares
provides a means for diversifying an investor’s portfolio or
hedging exposure to changes in sugar prices. An investment in the
Shares allows both retail and institutional investors to easily
gain this exposure to the sugar market in a transparent,
cost-effective manner.
The Sponsor employs a
“neutral” investment strategy intended to track changes
in the Benchmark regardless of whether the Benchmark goes up or
goes down. The Fund’s “neutral” investment
strategy is designed to permit investors generally to purchase and
sell the Fund’s Shares for the purpose of investing
indirectly in the sugar market in a cost-effective manner. Such
investors may include participants in the sugar industry and other
industries seeking to hedge the risk of losses in their sugar
related transactions, as well as investors seeking exposure to the
sugar market. Accordingly, depending on the investment objective of
an individual investor, the risks generally associated with
investing in the sugar market and/or the risks involved in hedging
may exist. In addition, the Fund does not expect there to be any
meaningful correlation between the performance of the Fund’s
investments in cash and cash equivalents and the changes in the
price of sugar or Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. While the
level of interest earned on, or the market price of, these
investments may in some respects correlate to changes in the price
of sugar, this correlation is not anticipated as part of the
Fund’s efforts to meet its objective. This and certain risk
factors discussed in this prospectus may cause a lack of
correlation between changes in the Fund’s NAV and changes in
the price of sugar.
The Shares issued by the Fund may
only be purchased by Authorized Purchasers and only in blocks of
25,000 Shares called Creation Baskets. The amount of the purchase
payment for a Creation Basket is equal to the aggregate NAV of
Shares in the Creation Basket. Similarly, only Authorized
Purchasers may redeem Shares and only in blocks of 25,000 Shares
called Redemption Baskets. The amount of the redemption proceeds
for a Redemption Basket is equal to the aggregate NAV of Shares in
the Redemption Basket. The purchase price for Creation Baskets and
the redemption price for Redemption Baskets are the actual NAV
calculated at the end of the business day when a request for a
purchase or redemption is received by the Fund. The NYSE Arca
publishes an approximate NAV intra-day based on the prior
day’s NAV and the current price of the Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts, but the price of Creation Baskets and Redemption
Baskets is determined based on the actual NAV calculated at the end
of each trading day.
While the Fund issues Shares only
in Creation Baskets, Shares may also be purchased and sold in much
smaller increments on the NYSE Arca. These transactions, however,
are effected at the bid and ask prices established by the
specialist firm(s). Like any listed security, Shares can be
purchased and sold at any time a secondary market is
open.
The Fund’s Investment Strategy
In managing the Fund’s
assets, the Sponsor does not use a technical trading system that
automatically issues buy and sell orders. Instead, each time
one or more baskets are purchased or redeemed, the Sponsor
purchases or sells Benchmark Component Futures Contracts with an
aggregate market value that approximates the amount of cash
received or paid upon the purchase or redemption of the
basket(s).
As an example, assume that a
Creation Basket is sold by the Fund, and that the Fund’s
closing NAV per Share is $14.00. In that case, the Fund would
receive $350,000 in proceeds from the sale of the Creation Basket
($14.00 NAV per Share multiplied by 25,000 Shares and ignoring the
Creation Basket fee of $250). If one were to assume further
that the Sponsor wants to invest the entire proceeds from the
Creation Basket in the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts and
that the market value of each such Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts is $17,920 (or otherwise not a round number), the Fund
would be unable to buy an exact number of Sugar Futures Contracts
with an aggregate market value equal to $350,000. Instead,
the Fund would be able to purchase 19 Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts with an aggregate market value of approximately
$340,480. Assuming a margin requirement equal to 10% of the
value of the Sugar Futures Contracts (although the actual
percentage is approximately 6%), the Fund would be required to
deposit $34,048 in cash with the FCM through which the Sugar
Futures Contracts were purchased. The remainder of the
proceeds from the sale of the Creation Basket,
$315,952, would remain
invested in cash and/or cash equivalents, as determined by the
Sponsor from time to time based on factors such as potential calls
for margin or anticipated redemptions.
The specific sugar interests
purchased depend on various factors, including a judgment by the
Sponsor as to the appropriate diversification of the Fund’s
investments. While the Sponsor anticipates that, under normal
market conditions, a substantial majority of the Fund’s
assets will be invested in ICE Sugar Futures Contracts and cash and
cash equivalents, the Sponsor reserves the right to enter into
other sugar interests on behalf of the Fund, including swaps in the
over the counter market.
The Sponsor does not anticipate
letting its Benchmark Component Futures Contracts expire and taking
delivery of sugar. Instead, the Sponsor will close out
existing positions, e.g., in response to ongoing changes in the
Benchmark or if it otherwise determines it would be appropriate to
do so and reinvest the proceeds in new Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts. Positions may also be closed out to meet orders
for Redemption Baskets, in which case the proceeds from closing the
positions will not be reinvested.
Futures contracts are agreements
between two parties that are executed on a designated contract
market (“DCM”), i.e., a commodity futures exchange, and
that are cleared and margined through a derivatives clearing
organization (“DCO”), i.e., a clearing house. One
party agrees to buy a commodity such as sugar from the other party
at a later date at a price and quantity agreed upon when the
contract is made. In market terminology, a party who
purchases a futures contract is long in the market and a party who
sells a futures contract is short in the market. The
contractual obligations of a buyer or seller may generally be
satisfied by taking or making physical delivery of the underlying
commodity or by making an offsetting sale or purchase of an
identical futures contract on the same or linked exchange before
the designated date of delivery. The difference between the
price at which the futures contract is purchased or sold and the
price paid for the offsetting sale or purchase, after allowance for
brokerage commissions, constitutes the profit or loss to the
trader.
If the price of the commodity
increases after the original futures contract is entered into, the
buyer of the futures contract will generally be able to sell a
futures contract to close out its original long position at a price
higher than that at which the original contract was purchased,
generally resulting in a profit to the buyer. Conversely, the
seller of a futures contract will generally profit if the price of
the underlying commodity decreases, as it will generally be able to
buy a futures contract to close out its original short position at
a price lower than that at which the original contract was
sold. Because the Fund seeks to track the Benchmark directly
and profit when the price of sugar increases and, as a likely
result of an increase in the price of sugar, the price of Sugar
Futures Contracts increases, the Fund will generally be long in the
market for sugar and will generally sell Sugar Futures Contracts
only to close out existing long positions.
Futures contracts are typically
traded on futures exchanges (i.e., DCMs) such as the ICE Futures,
which provide centralized market facilities in which multiple
persons may trade contracts. Members of a particular futures
exchange and the trades executed on such exchange are subject to
the rules of that exchange. Futures exchanges and their
related clearing organizations (i.e., DCOs) are given reasonable
latitude in promulgating rules and regulations to control and
regulate their members.
Trades on a futures exchange are
generally cleared by the DCO, which provides services designed to
mutualize or transfer the credit risk arising from the trading of
contracts on an exchange. The clearing organization
effectively becomes the other party to the trade, and each clearing
member party to the trade looks only to the clearing organization
for performance.
The Sugar No. 11 Futures Contract
is the world benchmark contract for raw sugar trading. This
contract prices the physical delivery of raw cane sugar, delivered
to the receiver’s vessel at a specified port within the
country of origin of the sugar. Sugar No. 11 Futures
Contracts trade on the ICE Futures and in units of 112,000
pounds. The Sugar No. 16 Futures Contract prices physical
delivery of U.S.-grown (or foreign origin with duty paid by
deliverer) raw cane sugar at one of five U.S. refinery ports as
selected by the receiver. Sugar No. 16 futures contracts
trade on the ICE Futures in units of 112,000 pounds. Because
of the higher price of sugar in the U.S. market, Sugar No. 16
Futures Contracts tend to be priced higher than Sugar No. 11
Futures Contracts, but each Sugar Futures Contract tends to
experience similar proportionate fluctuations in price. There
is no difference between Sugar No. 11 and Sugar No. 16 Futures
Contracts in terms of the quality or type of sugar to be
delivered. Because the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts
are Sugar No. 11 Futures Contracts, the Sugar Futures Contracts
entered into by the Fund will typically be Sugar No. 11 Futures
Contracts, although Sugar No. 16. Futures Contract may be entered
into to a limited extent.
Generally, futures contracts traded
on the ICE Futures are priced by floor brokers and other exchange
members through an electronic, screen-based system that
electronically determines the price by matching offers to purchase
and sell. Futures contracts may also be based on commodity
indices, in that they call for a cash payment based on the change
in the value of the specified index during a specified
period. No futures contracts based on an index of sugar
prices are currently available, although the Fund could enter into
such contracts should they become available in the
future.
Certain typical and significant
characteristics of Sugar Futures Contracts are discussed
below. Additional risks of investing in Sugar Futures
Contracts are included in “What are the Risk Factors Involved
with an Investment in the Fund?”
Impact of Position Limits, Accountability Levels, and Price
Fluctuation Limits.
Position Limits, Accountability
Levels, and Price Fluctuation Limits may potentially cause a
tracking error between the price of the Shares and the Benchmark.
This may in turn prevent you from being able to effectively use the
Fund as a way to hedge against sugar related losses or as a way to
indirectly invest in sugar.
The Fund does not intend to limit
the size of the offering and will attempt to expose substantially
all of its proceeds to Benchmark Component Futures Contracts and
cash and cash equivalents. If the Fund encounters position limits,
accountability levels, or price fluctuation limits for Sugar
Futures Contracts on ICE Futures, it may then, if permitted under
applicable regulatory requirements, purchase other sugar interests
and/or Sugar Futures Contracts listed on the New York Mercantile
Exchange (“NYMEX”) or foreign exchanges. However, the
Sugar Futures Contracts available on such foreign exchanges may
have different underlying sizes, deliveries, and prices. In
addition, the Sugar Futures Contracts available on these exchanges
may be subject to their own position limits and accountability
levels. In any case, notwithstanding the potential availability of
these instruments in certain circumstances, position limits could
force the Fund to limit the number of Creation Baskets that it
sells.
Price Volatility
Despite daily price limits, the
price volatility of futures contracts generally has been
historically greater than that for traditional securities such as
stocks and bonds. Price volatility often is greater day to
day as opposed to intra-day. Economic factors that may cause
volatility in Sugar Futures Contracts include changes in interest
rates; governmental, agricultural, trade, fiscal, monetary and
exchange control programs and policies; weather and climate
conditions; changing supply and demand relationships; changes in
balances of payments and trade; U.S. and international rates of
inflation; currency devaluations and revaluations; U.S. and
international political and economic events; global trade
disruption due to outbreaks or public health emergency as declared
by the World Health Organization; and changes in philosophies and
emotions of market participants. Because the Fund invests a
significant portion of its assets in futures contracts, the assets
of the Fund, and therefore the price of the Fund’s Shares,
may be subject to greater volatility than traditional
securities.
Term Structure of Futures Contracts and the Impact on Total
Return
Over time, the price of sugar
fluctuates based on a number of market factors, including demand
for sugar relative to its supply. The value of Sugar Futures
Contracts likewise fluctuates in reaction to a number of market
factors. Because the Fund seeks to maintain its holdings in
Sugar Futures Contracts with a roughly constant expiration profile
and not take delivery of the sugar, the Fund must periodically
“roll” futures contract positions, closing out soon to
expire contracts that are no longer part of the Benchmark and
entering into subsequent to expire contracts. One factor
determining the total return from investing in futures contracts is
the price relationship between soon to expire contracts and later
to expire contracts.
If the futures market is in a state
of backwardation (i.e., when the price of sugar in the future is
expected to be less than the current price), the Fund will buy
later to expire contracts for a lower price than the sooner to
expire contracts that it sells. Hypothetically, and assuming no
changes to either prevailing sugar prices or the price relationship
between the immediate delivery, soon to expire contracts and later
to expire contracts, the value of a contract will rise as it
approaches expiration. Over time, if backwardation remained
constant, the differences would continue to
increase.
If the futures market is in
contango, the Fund will buy later to expire contracts for a higher
price than the sooner to expire contracts that it sells.
Hypothetically, and assuming no other changes to either prevailing
sugar prices or the price relationship between the spot price, soon
to expire contracts and later to expire contracts, the value of a
contract will fall as it approaches expiration. Over time, if
contango remained constant, the difference would continue to
increase. Historically, the sugar futures markets have experienced
periods of both contango and backwardation. Frequently, whether
contango or backwardation exists is a function, among other
factors, of the seasonality of the sugar market and the sugar
harvest cycle. All other things being equal, a situation involving
prolonged periods of contango may adversely impact the returns of
the Fund; conversely a situation involving prolonged periods of
backwardation may positively impact the returns of the
Fund.
Margin Requirements and Marking to Market Futures
Positions
“Initial margin” is an
amount of funds that must be deposited by a commodity interest
trader with the trader’s broker to initiate an open position
in futures contracts. A margin deposit is like a cash
performance bond. It helps assure the trader’s
performance of the futures contracts that he or she purchases or
sells. Futures contracts are customarily bought and sold on
initial margin that represents a small percentage of the aggregate
purchase or sales price of the contract. The amount of margin
required in connection with a particular futures contract is set by
the exchange on which the contract is traded. Brokerage
firms, such as the Fund’s clearing broker, carrying accounts
for traders in commodity interest contracts may require higher
amounts of margin as a matter of policy to further protect
themselves.
Futures contracts are marked to
market at the end of each trading day and the margin required with
respect to such contracts is adjusted accordingly. This
process of marking to market is designed to prevent losses from
accumulating in any futures account. Therefore, if the
Fund’s futures positions have declined in value, the Fund may
be required to post “variation margin” to cover this
decline. Alternatively, if the Fund’s futures positions
have increased in value, this increase will be credited to the
Fund’s account.
Over the counter
Derivatives
Under normal market conditions, the
Fund expects that 100% of the Fund’s assets will be used to
trade futures and invest in cash and cash equivalents; however, the
Fund has the ability to trade over the counter contracts and swaps.
A description of such over the counter derivatives is included the
statement of additional information that is part of this prospectus
under the heading “Over the counter
Derivatives.”
The Fund’s
Investments in Cash and Cash Equivalents
The Fund seeks to have the
aggregate “notional” amount of the Benchmark Component
Futures Contracts it holds approximate at all times the
Fund’s aggregate NAV. At any given time, however, most of the
Fund’s investments are in cash and cash equivalents that
support the Fund’s positions in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts. For example, the purchase of a Sugar Futures Contract
with a stated or notional amount of $10 million would not require
the Fund to pay $10 million upon entering into the contract;
rather, only a margin deposit, approximately 4-6% of the notional
amount, would be required. To secure its Sugar Futures Contract
obligations, the Fund would deposit the required margin with the
FCM and would separately hold its remaining assets through its
Custodian or other financial institution in cash and cash
equivalents, specifically in demand deposits, in short-term
Treasury Securities held by the FCM, in money-market funds or in
commercial paper. Such remaining assets may be used to meet future
margin payments that the Fund is required to make on its Sugar
Futures Contracts. Other sugar interests typically also involve
collateral requirements that represent a small fraction of their
notional amounts, so most of the Fund’s assets dedicated to
these sugar interests are also held in cash, and cash
equivalents.
The Fund earns interest and other
income from the cash equivalents that it purchases, and on the
cash, it holds through the Custodian or other financial
institutions. The earned interest and other income increase the
Fund’s NAV. The Fund applies the earned interest and other
income to the acquisition of additional investments or uses it to
pay its expenses. When the Fund reinvests the earned interest and
other income, it makes investments that are consistent with its
investment objectives.
Any cash equivalent invested in by
the Fund will have a remaining maturity of less than 3 months at
the time of investment or will be subject to a demand feature that
enables that Fund to sell the security within that time period at
approximately the security’s face value (plus accrued
interest). Any cash equivalents invested in by the Fund will be or
will be deemed by the Sponsor to be of investment grade credit
quality.
Other Trading Policies of the
Fund
Exchange for Related Position
An “exchange for related
position” (“EFRP”) can be used by the Fund as a
technique to facilitate the exchanging of a futures hedge position
against a creation or redemption order, and thus the Fund may use
an EFRP transaction in connection with the creation and redemption
of shares. The market specialist/market maker that is the ultimate
purchaser or seller of shares in connection with the creation or
redemption basket, respectively, agrees to sell or purchase a
corresponding offsetting shares or futures position which is then
settled on the same business day as a cleared futures transaction
by the FCMs. The Fund will become subject to the credit risk of the
market specialist/market maker until the EFRP is settled within the
business day, which is typically 7 hours or less. The Fund reports
all activity related to EFRP transactions under the procedures and
guidelines of the CFTC and the exchanges on which the futures are
traded.
EFRPs are subject to specific rules
of the CME and CFTC guidance. It is likely that EFRP mechanisms
will significantly change in the future which may make it
uneconomical or impossible from a regulatory perspective for the
Fund to utilize these mechanisms.
Options on Futures Contracts
An option on a futures contract
gives the buyer of the option the right, but not the obligation, to
buy or sell a futures contract at a specified price on or before a
specified date. The option buyer deposits the purchase price
or “premium” for the option with his broker, and the
money goes to the option seller. Regardless of how much the
market swings, the most an option buyer can lose is the option
premium and the commissions and fees associated with the
transaction. However, the buyer will typically lose the
premium if the exercise price of the option is above (in the case
of an option to buy or “call” option) or below (in the
case of an option to sell or “put” option) the market
value at the time of exercise. Option sellers, on the other
hand, face risks similar to participants in the futures
markets. For example, since the seller of a call option is
assigned a short futures position if the option is exercised, his
risk is the same as someone who initially sold a futures
contract. Because no one can predict exactly how the market
will move, the option seller posts margin to demonstrate his
ability to meet any potential contractual
obligations.
In addition to Sugar Futures
Contracts, there are also a number of options on Sugar Futures
Contracts listed on the ICE Futures. These contracts offer
investors and hedgers another set of financial vehicles to use in
managing exposure to the commodities market. The Fund may
purchase and sell (write) options on Sugar Futures Contracts in
pursuing its investment objective, except that it will not sell
call options when it does not own the underlying Sugar Futures
Contract. The Fund would make use of options on Sugar Futures
Contracts if, in the opinion of the Sponsor, such an approach would
cause the Fund to more closely track its Benchmark or if it would
lead to an overall lower cost of trading to achieve a given level
of economic exposure to movements in sugar
prices.
Liquidity
The Fund invests only in Sugar
Futures Contracts that, in the opinion of the Sponsor, are traded
in sufficient volume to permit the ready taking and liquidation of
positions in these financial interests and in over the counter
commodity interests that, in the opinion of the Sponsor, may be
readily liquidated with the original counterparty or through a
third party assuming the Fund’s position.
Spot Commodities
While most futures contracts can be
physically settled, the Fund does not intend to take or make
physical delivery. However, the Fund may from time to time
trade in other sugar interests based on the spot price of
sugar.
Leverage
The Sponsor endeavors to have the
value of the Fund’s cash and cash equivalents, whether held
by the Fund or posted as margin or collateral, at all times
approximate the aggregate market value of its obligations under the
Fund’s Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. Commodity
pools’ trading positions in futures contracts are typically
required to be secured by the deposit of margin funds that
represent only a small percentage of a futures contract’s (or
other commodity interest’s) entire market
value.
Borrowings
The Fund does not intend to nor
foresee the need to borrow money or establish credit lines. The
Fund maintains cash and cash equivalents, either held by the Fund
or posted as margin or collateral, with a value that at all times
approximates the aggregate market value of its obligations under
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts. The Fund meets its liquidity
needs in the normal course of business from the proceeds of the
sale of its investments or from the cash and cash equivalents that
it intends to hold at all times.
Benchmark
Performance
The chart below shows the percent
change in the NAV per share for the Fund, the market price of the
Fund shares, represented by the closing price of the Fund on the
NYSE Arca, and the Benchmark for five specific periods. The
Benchmark does not reflect any impact of expenses, which would
generally reduce the Fund’s NAV, or interest income, which
would generally increase the NAV. The actual results for the NAV
include the impacts of both expenses and interest
income.
Teucrium Sugar ETF Performance
as of
12/31/2020
|
|
|
|
|
|
NAV
|
10.05%
|
-4.51%
|
-11.79%
|
-7.67%
|
-13.19%
|
Price
|
10.84%
|
-3.85%
|
-11.63%
|
-7.67%
|
-13.15%
|
Benchmark
(TCANE)
|
10.40%
|
-2.20%
|
-10.15%
|
-6.00%
|
-10.79%
|
The Sugar
Market
Sugarcane accounts for about 79% of
the world’s sugar production, while sugar beets account for
the remainder of the world’s sugar production. Sugar
manufacturers use sugar beets and sugarcane as the raw material
from which refined sugar (sucrose) for industrial and consumer use
is produced. The United States Department of Agriculture
(“USDA”) publishes two major reports annually on U.S.
domestic and worldwide sugar production and consumption. These are
usually released in November and May. In addition, the USDA
publishes periodic, but not as comprehensive, reports on sugar
monthly. These reports are available on the USDA’s website,
www.usda.gov, at no charge. For more information about the Sugar
Market, please see the statement of additional information that is
part of this prospectus under the heading “The Sugar
Market.”
The Fund’s
Service Providers
Contractual Arrangements with the Sponsor and Third-Party Service
Providers
Sponsor
The Sponsor is responsible for
investing the assets of the Fund in accordance with the objectives
and policies of the Fund. In addition, the Sponsor arranges for one
or more third parties to provide administrative, custodial,
accounting, transfer agency and other necessary services to the
Fund. For these third-party services, the Fund pays the fees set
forth in the table below entitled “Contractual Fees and
Compensation Arrangements with the Sponsor and Third-Party Service
Providers.” For the Sponsor’s services, the Fund is
contractually obligated to pay a monthly management fee to the
Sponsor, based on average daily net assets, at a rate equal to
1.00% per annum. The Sponsor can elect to waive the payment of this
fee in any amount at its sole discretion, at any time and from time
to time, in order to reduce the Fund’s expenses or for any
other purpose.
Custodian, Registrar, Transfer Agent, Fund Accountant, and Fund
Administrator
In its capacity as the Fund’s
custodian, the Custodian, currently U.S. Bank, N.A., holds the
Fund’s securities, cash and/or cash equivalents pursuant to a
custodial agreement. U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing
business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (“Global Fund
Services”), an entity affiliated with U.S. Bank, N.A., is the
registrar and transfer agent for the Fund’s Shares. In
addition, Global Fund Services also serves as Administrator for the
Fund, performing certain administrative and accounting services and
preparing certain SEC and CFTC reports on behalf of the Fund. The
Custodian is located at 1555 North Rivercenter Drive, Suite 302,
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212. U.S. Bank N.A. is a nationally
chartered bank, regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency, Department of the Treasury, and is subject to regulation
by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The
principal address for Global Fund Services is 615 East Michigan
Street, Milwaukee, WI, 53202.
Distributor
The Fund employs Foreside Fund
Services, LLC as the Distributor for the Fund. Pursuant to a
Consulting Services Agreement, Foreside Consulting Services, LLC,
performs certain consulting support services for the Trust’s
Sponsor, Teucrium Trading, LLC. Additionally, Foreside
Distributors, LLC performs certain distribution consulting services
pursuant to a Distribution Consulting Agreement with the
Trust’s Sponsor, Teucrium Trading, LLC.
The Distribution Services Agreement
among the Distributor, the Sponsor, and the Trust calls for the
Distributor to work with the Custodian in connection with the
receipt and processing of orders for Creation Baskets and
Redemption Baskets and the review and approval of all Fund sales
literature and advertising materials. The Distributor and the
Sponsor have also entered into a Securities Activities and Service
Agreement (the “SASA”) under which certain employees
and officers of the Sponsor are licensed as registered
representatives or registered principals of the Distributor, under
“FINRA” rules (“Registered
Representatives”). As Registered Representatives of the
Distributor, these persons are permitted to engage in certain
marketing activities for the Fund that they would otherwise not be
permitted to engage in. Under the SASA, the Sponsor is obligated to
ensure that such marketing activities comply with applicable law
and are permitted by the SASA and the Distributor’s internal
procedures.
The Distributor’s principal
business address is Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100, Portland, Maine
04101. The Distributor is a broker-dealer registered with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and a member
of FINRA.
Clearing Broker
E D & F Man Capital Markets,
Inc. (“E D & F Man”) serves as the Fund’s
clearing broker to execute and clear the Fund’s futures and
provide other brokerage-related services. E D & F Man is
registered as an FCM with the CFTC, is a member of the National
Futures Association (“NFA”) and is a clearing member of
all major U.S. futures exchanges. E D & F Man’s
Designated Self-Regulatory Organization is the Chicago Mercantile
Exchange Inc. (www.cmegroup.com).
E D & F Man is also registered as a broker-dealer
(“BD”) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
(“SEC”) and is a member of the Financial Industry
Regulatory Authority, Inc.
(“FINRA”).
Except as indicated below, there
have been no material civil, administrative, or criminal
proceedings pending, on appeal, or concluded against E D & F
Man Capital Markets Inc. or its principals in the past five (5)
years.
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York,
Civil Action No. 19-CV-8217
In a private litigation, plaintiffs
allege, among other things, that E D & F Man made certain
fraudulent misrepresentations to them that they relied upon in
connection with a futures account carried by E D & F Man in its
capacity as a futures commission merchant. The plaintiffs allege
claims of common law fraud, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty,
breach of contract, breach of the duty of good faith and fair
dealing and misrepresentation/omission. E D & F Man filed an
Amended Answer and a Counterclaim in which E D & F Man denies
the substantive allegations against it and asserted a counterclaim
for breach of contract, indemnification and legal
fees.
For a list of concluded
actions, please go to http://www.nfa.futures.org/basicnet/welcome.aspx.
This link will take you to the Welcome Page of the NFA’s
Background Affiliation Status Information Center
(“BASIC”). At this page, there is a box where you can
enter the NFA ID of E D & F Man Capital Markets Inc. (0002613)
and then click “Go”. You will be transferred to the
NFA’s information specific to E D & F Man Capital Markets
Inc. Under the heading “Regulatory Actions”, click
“details” and you will be directed to the full list of
regulatory actions brought by the CFTC and
exchanges.
E D & F Man, in its capacity as
a registered FCM, will serve as the Fund's clearing broker and, as
such, will arrange for the execution and clearing of the Fund's
futures and options on futures transactions. E D & F Man acts
as clearing broker for many other funds and
individuals.
The investor should be advised that
E D & F Man is not affiliated with and does not act as a
supervisor of the Fund or the Fund's Sponsor, investment managers,
members, officers, administrators, transfer agents, registrars or
organizers. Additionally, E D & F Man is not acting as an
underwriter or sponsor of the offering of any shares or interests
in the Fund and has not passed upon the adequacy of this
prospectus, the merits of participating in this offering or on the
accuracy of the information contained herein.
Additionally, E D & F Man does
not provide any commodity trading advice regarding the Fund's
trading activities. Investors should not rely upon E D & F Man
in deciding whether to invest in the Fund or retain their interests
in the Fund. Investors should also note that the Fund may select
additional clearing brokers or replace E D & F Man as the
Fund's clearing broker.
Payments to Certain Third Parties
The Sponsor employs Thales Capital
Partners LLC (Thales) for distribution and solicitation-related
services. Thales is registered as a Broker-Dealer with the SEC and
a member of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and
SIPC. Thales receives an annual fee of $90,000 and an additional
0.0015% of average daily net assets in
referred accounts for distribution and solicitation-related
services. This additional fee is determined by an agreed
upon level of assets at the time of signing the
contract.
Commodity Trading Advisor
Currently, the Sponsor does not
employ commodity trading advisors. If, in the future, the Sponsor
does employ commodity trading advisors, it will choose each advisor
based on arm’s length negotiations and will consider the
advisor’s experience, fees, and
reputation.
Contractual Fees and Compensation Arrangements with the Sponsor and
Third-Party Service Providers
Service
Provider
|
Compensation
Paid by the Fund
|
Teucrium Trading, LLC,
Sponsor
|
1.00% of average net assets
annually
|
U.S. Bank N.A.,
Custodian
U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC,
doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services, Transfer Agent,
Fund Accountant and Fund Administrator
|
For custody services: 0.0075% of
average gross assets up to $1 billion, and .0050% of average gross
assets over $1 billion, annually, plus certain per-transaction
charges
For Transfer Agency, Fund
Accounting and Fund Administration services, based on the total
assets for all the Teucrium Funds in the Trust: 0.05% of average
gross assets on the first $500 million, 0.04% on the next $500
million, 0.03% on the next $2 billion and 0.02% on the balance over
$3 billion annually
A combined minimum annual fee of
$47,000 for custody, transfer agency, accounting and administrative
services is assessed per Fund.
|
Foreside Fund Services, LLC,
Distributor
|
The Distributor receives a fee of
0.01% of the Fund’s average daily net assets and an aggregate
annual fee of $100,000 for all Teucrium Funds, along with certain
expense reimbursements. Expense reimbursements consist of costs for
sales and advertising review fees and will not exceed $6,000 for
the two-year period of May 1, 2021 to May 1, 2023 (the “two
year offering period”). The asset-based fees which will be
paid to the Distributor by the Fund for distribution services will
not exceed $43,500 for the two-year offering
period.
Under the Securities Activities and
Service Agreement (the “SASA”), the Distributor
receives compensation from the fund for its activities on behalf of
all the Teucrium Funds. The fees paid to the Distributor pursuant
to the SASA for this offering will not exceed $2,500 for the
two-year offering period. The total expenses payable to the
Distributor relating to the registration, continuing education and
other administrative expenses of the Registered Representatives for
this offering will not exceed $2,000 for the two-year offering
period.
In sum, the total fees the
Distributor will receive over the two-year offering period for all
of its services will not exceed $51,500. The total expenses that
will be reimbursed to the Distributor over the two-year offering
period for all of its services will not exceed $8,000, $6,000 of
which are issuer costs for sales and advertising
materials.
|
E D & F Man Capital Markets,
Inc., Futures Commission Merchant and Clearing
Broker
|
$4.50 per Sugar Futures Contract
half-turn
|
Wilmington Trust Company,
Trustee
Employees of the Sponsor
Registered
with the Distributor (the
“Registered Representatives”)
|
$3,300 annually for the
Trust
For non-marketing services to the
Fund, 72,000 and, for marketing and wholesaling purposes, $70,000.
These amounts include expenses that will be reimbursed to the
Registered Representatives for travel and other expenses related to
their activities for the Fund. Of the total amount, approximately
$14,200 will be paid by the Sponsor, the rest by the Fund.
Registered Representatives will also receive continuing education
valued at a maximum of $300 for the two-year offering
period.
|
Other Non-Contractual Payments by the Fund
The Fund pays for all
brokerage fees, taxes and other expenses, including licensing fees
for the use of intellectual property, registration or other fees
paid to the SEC, FINRA, or any other regulatory agency in
connection with the offer and sale of subsequent Shares after its
initial registration and all legal, accounting, printing and other
expenses associated therewith. The Fund also pays its portion of
the fees and expenses for services directly attributable to the
Fund such as accounting, financial reporting, regulatory compliance
and trading activities, which the Sponsor elected not to outsource.
Certain aggregate expenses common to all Teucrium Funds within the
Trust are allocated by the Sponsor to the respective funds based on
activity drivers deemed most appropriate by the Sponsor for such
expenses, including but not limited to relative assets under
management and creation order activity. These aggregate common
expenses include, but are not limited to, legal, auditing,
accounting and financial reporting, tax-preparation, regulatory
compliance, trading activities, and insurance costs, as well as
fees paid to the Distributor. A portion of these aggregate common
expenses are related to the Sponsor or related parties of
principals of the Sponsor; these are necessary services to the
Teucrium Funds, which are primarily the cost of performing certain
accounting and financial reporting, regulatory compliance, and
trading activities that are directly attributable to the Fund and
are included, primarily, in distribution and marketing
fees.
|
Year
Ended
December 31,
2020
|
Year
Ended
December 31,
2019
|
Year
Ended
December 31,
2018
|
Recognized
Related Party Transactions
|
$
126,960
|
$
183,750
|
$
242,126
|
Waived Related
Party Transactions
|
$ 50,547
|
$ 77,532
|
$ 93,112
|
The Sponsor can elect to pay (or
waive reimbursement for) certain fees or expenses that would
generally be paid for by the Fund, although it has no contractual
obligation to do so. Any election to pay or waive reimbursement for
fees that would generally be paid by the Fund, can be changed at
the discretion of the Sponsor. All asset-based fees and expenses
are calculated on the prior day's net assets.
The contractual and non-contractual
fees and expenses paid by the Fund as described above (exclusive of
the Sponsor’s management fee and estimated brokerage fees)
are as follows, net of any expenses waived by the Sponsor. These
are also the “Other Fund Fees and Expenses” included in
the section entitled “Breakeven Analysis” in this
prospectus on page 9.
|
|
Professional Fees1
|
$0.02
|
Distribution and Marketing Fees2
|
0.04
|
Custodian Fees and Expenses3
|
0.01
|
General and Administrative Fees4
|
-
|
Business
Permits and Licenses
|
-
|
Other
Expenses
|
-
|
Total
Other Fund Fees and Expenses
|
$0.07
|
(1) Professional fees consist of
primarily, but not entirely, legal, auditing and tax-preparation
related costs.
(2) Distribution and marketing fees
consist of primarily, but not entirely, fees paid to the
Distributor (Foreside Fund Services, LLC), costs related to
regulatory compliance activities, costs related to marketing and
solicitation services, and other costs related to the trading
activities of the Fund.
(3) Custodian and Administrator
fees consist of fees to the Administrator and the Custodian for
accounting, transfer agent and custodian
activities.
(4) General and Administrative fees
consist of primarily, but not entirely, insurance and printing
costs.
Asset-based fees are calculated on
a daily basis (accrued at 1/365 of the applicable percentage of NAV
on that day) and paid on a monthly basis. NAV is calculated by
taking the current market value of the Fund’s total assets
and subtracting any liabilities.
Registered Form
Shares are issued in registered
form in accordance with the Trust Agreement. Global Fund
Services has been appointed registrar and transfer agent for the
purpose of transferring Shares in certificated
form. Global Fund Services keeps a record of all
Shareholders and holders of the Shares in certificated form in the
registry (“Register”). The Sponsor
recognizes transfers of Shares in certificated form only if done in
accordance with the Trust Agreement. The beneficial
interests in such Shares are held in book-entry form through
participants and/or accountholders in DTC.
Book Entry
Individual certificates are not
issued for the Shares. Instead, Shares are represented
by one or more global certificates, which are deposited by the
Administrator with DTC and registered in the name of Cede &
Co., as nominee for DTC. The global certificates
evidence all of the Shares outstanding at any
time. Shareholders are limited to (1) participants in
DTC such as banks, brokers, dealers and trust companies (“DTC
Participants”), (2) those who maintain, either directly or
indirectly, a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant
(“Indirect Participants”), and (3) those who hold
interests in the Shares through DTC Participants or Indirect
Participants, in each case who satisfy the requirements for
transfers of Shares. DTC Participants acting on behalf
of investors holding Shares through such participants’
accounts in DTC will follow the delivery practice applicable to
securities eligible for DTC’s Same Day Funds Settlement
System. Shares are credited to DTC Participants’
securities accounts following confirmation of receipt of
payment.
DTC
DTC is a limited purpose trust
company organized under the laws of the State of New York and is a
member of the Federal Reserve System, a “clearing
corporation” within the meaning of the New York Uniform
Commercial Code and a “clearing agency” registered
pursuant to the provisions of Section 17A of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (“the Exchange
Act”). DTC holds securities for DTC Participants
and facilitates the clearance and settlement of transactions
between DTC Participants through electronic book-entry changes in
accounts of DTC Participants.
The Shares are only transferable
through the book-entry system of DTC. Shareholders who
are not DTC Participants may transfer their Shares through DTC by
instructing the DTC Participant holding their Shares (or by
instructing the Indirect Participant or other entity through which
their Shares are held) to transfer the Shares. Transfers
are made in accordance with standard securities industry
practice.
Transfers of interests in Shares
with DTC are made in accordance with the usual rules and operating
procedures of DTC and the nature of the transfer. DTC
has established procedures to facilitate transfers among the
participants and/or accountholders of DTC. Because DTC
can only act on behalf of DTC Participants, who in turn act on
behalf of Indirect Participants, the ability of a person or entity
having an interest in a global certificate to pledge such interest
to persons or entities that do not participate in DTC, or otherwise
take actions in respect of such interest, may be affected by the
lack of a certificate or other definitive document representing
such interest.
DTC has advised us that it will
take any action permitted to be taken by a Shareholder (including,
without limitation, the presentation of a global certificate for
exchange) only at the direction of one or more DTC Participants in
whose account with DTC interests in global certificates are
credited and only in respect of such portion of the aggregate
principal amount of the global certificate as to which such DTC
Participant or Participants has or have given such
direction.
Inter-Series
Limitation on Liability
Because the Trust was established
as a Delaware statutory trust, each Teucrium Fund and each other
series that may be established under the Trust in the future will
be operated so that it will be liable only for obligations
attributable to such series and will not be liable for obligations
of any other series or affected by losses of any other
series. If any creditor or shareholder of any particular
series (such as the Fund) asserts against the series a valid claim
with respect to its indebtedness or shares, the creditor or
shareholder will only be able to obtain recovery from the assets of
that series and not from the assets of any other series or the
Trust generally. The assets of the Fund and any other
series will include only those funds and other assets that are paid
to, held by or distributed to the series on account of and for the
benefit of that series, including, without limitation, amounts
delivered to the Trust for the purchase of shares in a
series. This limitation on liability is referred to as
the Inter-Series Limitation on Liability. The
Inter-Series Limitation on Liability is expressly provided for
under the Delaware Statutory Trust Act, which provides that if
certain conditions (as set forth in Section 3804(a)) are met, then
the debts of any particular series will be enforceable only against
the assets of such series and not against the assets of any other
series or the Trust generally. In furtherance of the
Inter-Series Limitation on Liability, every party providing
services to the Trust, the Fund or the Sponsor on behalf of the
Trust or the Fund, will acknowledge and consent in writing to the
Inter-Series Limitation on Liability with respect to such
party’s claims.
The existence of a Trustee should
not be taken as an indication of any additional level of management
or supervision over the Fund. Consistent with Delaware
law, the Trustee acts in an entirely passive role, delegating all
authority for the management and operation of the Fund and the
Trust to the Sponsor. The Trustee does not provide
custodial services with respect to the assets of the
Fund.
Buying and Selling Shares
Most investors buy and sell Shares
of the Fund in secondary market transactions through
brokers. Shares trade on the NYSE Arca under the ticker
symbol “CANE.” Shares are bought and sold
throughout the trading day like other publicly traded
securities. When buying or selling Shares through a
broker, most investors incur customary brokerage commissions and
charges. Investors are encouraged to review the terms of
their brokerage account for details on applicable charges and, as
discussed below under “U.S. Federal Income Tax
Considerations,” any provisions authorizing the broker to
borrow Shares held on your behalf.
Distributor and Authorized Purchasers
The offering of the Fund’s
Shares is a best efforts offering. The Fund continuously offers
Creation Baskets consisting of 25,000 Shares at their NAV through
the Distributor, to Authorized Purchasers. Deutsche Bank
Securities, Inc. was the initial Authorized Purchaser. The initial
Authorized Purchaser purchased two Creation Baskets of 50,000
Shares each at a per Share price of $25.00 on September 18, 2011.
All Authorized Purchasers pay a $250 fee for each Creation Basket
order.
The following entities have entered
into Authorized Purchaser Agreements with respect to the Fund:
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC;
Merrill Lynch Professional Clearing Corp.; Goldman Sachs & Co.;
Citadel Securities LLC; and Virtu Americas LLC. Effective October
16, 2020, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. terminated their agreement
as an Authorized Purchaser for the Fund.
Because new Shares can be created
and issued on an ongoing basis, at any point during the life of the
Fund, a “distribution,” as such term is used in the
1933 Act, will be occurring. Authorized Purchasers, other
broker-dealers and other persons are cautioned that some of their
activities may result in their being deemed participants in a
distribution in a manner that would render them statutory
underwriters and subject them to the prospectus delivery and
liability provisions of the 1933 Act. For example, an Authorized
Purchaser, other broker-dealer firm or its client will be deemed a
statutory underwriter if it purchases a basket from the Fund,
breaks the basket down into the constituent Shares and sells the
Shares to its customers; or if it chooses to couple the creation of
a supply of new Shares with an active selling effort involving
solicitation of secondary market demand for the Shares. In
contrast, Authorized Purchasers may engage in secondary market or
other transactions in Shares that would not be deemed
“underwriting.” For example, an Authorized Purchaser
may act in the capacity of a broker or dealer with respect to
Shares that were previously distributed by other Authorized
Purchasers. A determination of whether a particular market
participant is an underwriter must take into account all the facts
and circumstances pertaining to the activities of the broker-dealer
or its client in the particular case, and the examples mentioned
above should not be considered a complete description of all the
activities that would lead to designation as an underwriter and
subject them to the prospectus delivery and liability provisions of
the 1933 Act.
Dealers who are neither Authorized
Purchasers nor “underwriters” but are nonetheless
participating in a distribution (as contrasted to ordinary
secondary trading transactions), and thus dealing with Shares that
are part of an “unsold allotment” within the meaning of
Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the 1933 Act, would be unable to take
advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section
4(a)(3) of the 1933 Act.
The Sponsor expects that any
broker-dealers selling Shares will be members of FINRA. Investors
intending to create or redeem baskets through Authorized Purchasers
in transactions not involving a broker-dealer registered in such
investor’s state of domicile or residence should consult
their legal advisor regarding applicable broker-dealer regulatory
requirements under the state securities laws prior to such creation
or redemption.
While the Authorized Purchasers may
be indemnified by the Sponsor, they will not be entitled to receive
a discount or commission from the Trust or the Sponsor for their
purchases of Creation Baskets.
The Fund’s NAV per Share is
calculated by:
|
●
|
taking the current market value of
its total assets, and
|
|
●
|
subtracting any liabilities and
dividing the balance by the number of Shares.
|
Global Fund Services, in its
capacity as the Administrator calculates the NAV of the Fund once
each trading day. It calculates NAV as of the earlier of
the close of the New York Stock Exchange or 4:00 p.m.
(EST). The NAV for a particular trading day is released
after 4:15 p.m. (EST).
For purposes of determining the
value of Sugar Futures Contracts, the Administrator uses the ICE
Futures settlement price, except that the “fair value”
of Sugar Futures Contracts (as described in more detail below) may
be used when Sugar Futures Contracts close at their price
fluctuation limit for the day. The Administrator
determines the value of all other Fund investments as of the
earlier of the close of the New York Stock Exchange or 4:00 p.m.
(EST), in accordance with the current Services Agreement between
the Administrator and the Trust. The value of over the
counter Sugar Interests is determined based on the value of the
commodity or Futures Contract underlying such sugar interest,
except that a fair value may be determined if the Sponsor believes
that the Fund is subject to significant credit risk relating to the
counterparty to such sugar interest. NAV includes any
unrealized profit or loss on open sugar interests and any other
credit or debit accruing to the Fund but unpaid or not received by
the Fund.
The fair value of a sugar interest
is determined by the Sponsor in good faith and in a manner that
assesses the sugar interest’s value based on a consideration
of all available facts and all available information on the
valuation date. When a Sugar Futures Contract has closed
at its price fluctuation limit, the fair value determination
attempts to estimate the price at which such Sugar Futures Contract
would be trading in the absence of the price fluctuation limit
(either above such limit when an upward limit has been reached or
below such limit when a downward limit has been
reached). Typically, this estimate will be made
primarily by reference to the price of comparable sugar interests
trading in the over the counter market. The fair value
of a sugar interest may not reflect such security’s market
value or the amount that the Fund might reasonably expect to
receive for the sugar interest upon its current
sale.
In addition, in order to provide
updated information relating to the Fund for use by investors and
market professionals, ICE Data Indices, LLC calculates and
disseminates throughout the trading day an updated
“indicative fund value.” The indicative fund
value is calculated by using the prior day’s closing NAV per
Share of the Fund as a base and updating that value throughout the
trading day to reflect changes in the value of the Fund’s
sugar interests during the trading day. Changes in the
value of cash and cash equivalents are not included in the
calculation of indicative value. For this and other
reasons, the indicative fund value disseminated during NYSE Arca
trading hours should not be viewed as an actual real time update of
the NAV. NAV is calculated only once at the end of each
trading day.
The indicative fund value is
disseminated on a per Share basis every 15 seconds during regular
NYSE Arca trading hours of 9:30 a.m. (EST) to 4:00 p.m. (EST).
The normal trading
hours for Sugar Futures Contracts on ICE Futures are generally
shorter than those of the NYSE Arca. This means that there is a gap
in time at the beginning and the end of each day during which the
Fund’s Shares are traded on the NYSE Arca, but real-time ICE
trading prices for Sugar Futures Contracts traded on such exchange
are not available. As a result, during those gaps there is no
update to the indicative fund value. The trading hours for the ICE
can be found at: http://www.theice.com/productguide/Search.shtml?tradingHours=.
ICE Data Indices, LLC disseminates
the indicative fund value through the facilities of CTA/CQ High
Speed Lines. In addition, the indicative fund value is
available through on-line information services such as Bloomberg
and Reuters.
Dissemination of the indicative
fund value provides additional information that is not otherwise
available to the public and is useful to investors and market
professionals in connection with the trading of Fund Shares on the
NYSE Arca. Investors and market professionals are able
throughout the trading day to compare the market price of the Fund
and the indicative fund value. If the market price of
Fund Shares diverges significantly from the indicative fund value,
market professionals may have an incentive to execute arbitrage
trades. For example, if the Fund appears to be trading
at a discount compared to the indicative fund value, a market
professional could buy Fund Shares on the NYSE Arca, aggregate them
into Redemption Baskets, and receive the NAV of such Shares by
redeeming them to the Trust, provided that there is not a minimum
number of shares outstanding for the Fund. Such
arbitrage trades can tighten the tracking between the market price
of the Fund and the indicative fund value.
Creation and
Redemption of Shares
The Fund creates and redeems Shares
from time to time, but only in one or more Creation Baskets or
Redemption Baskets. The creation and redemption of
baskets are only made in exchange for delivery to the Fund or the
distribution by the Fund of the amount of cash, cash equivalents
and/or commodity futures equal to the combined NAV of the number of
Shares included in the baskets being created or redeemed determined
as of 4:00 p.m. (EST) on the day the order to create or redeem
baskets is properly received.
Authorized Purchasers are the only
persons that may place orders to create and redeem
baskets. Authorized Purchasers must be (1) either
registered broker-dealers or other securities market participants,
such as banks and other financial institutions, that are not
required to register as broker-dealers to engage in securities
transactions as described below, and (2) DTC
Participants. To become an Authorized Purchaser, a
person must enter into an Authorized Purchaser Agreement with the
Sponsor. The Authorized Purchaser Agreement provides the
procedures for the creation and redemption of baskets and for the
delivery of the cash, cash equivalents and/or commodity futures
required for such creations and redemptions. The
Authorized Purchaser Agreement and the related procedures attached
thereto may be amended by the Sponsor, without the consent of any
Shareholder, and the related procedures may generally be amended by
the Sponsor without the consent of the Authorized
Purchaser. Authorized Purchasers pay a transaction fee
of $250 to the Custodian for each creation order they place and a
fee of $250 per order for redemptions. Authorized
Purchasers who make deposits with the Fund in exchange for baskets
receive no fees, commissions or other form of compensation or
inducement of any kind from either the Trust or the Sponsor, and no
such person will have any obligation or responsibility to the Trust
or the Sponsor to effect any sale or resale of
Shares.
Certain Authorized Purchasers are
expected to be capable of participating directly in the physical
sugar and the sugar interest markets. Some Authorized
Purchasers or their affiliates may from time to time buy or sell
sugar or sugar interests and may profit in these
instances.
Each Authorized Purchaser
will be required to be registered as a broker-dealer under the
Exchange Act and a member in good standing with FINRA or be exempt
from being or otherwise not required to be registered as a
broker-dealer or a member of FINRA and will be qualified to act as
a broker or dealer in the states or other jurisdictions where the
nature of its business so requires. Certain Authorized
Purchasers may also be regulated under federal and state banking
laws and regulations. Each Authorized Purchaser has its
own set of rules and procedures, internal controls and information
barriers it deems appropriate in light of its own regulatory
regime.
Under the Authorized Purchaser
Agreement, the Sponsor has agreed to indemnify the Authorized
Purchasers against certain liabilities, including liabilities under
the 1933 Act, and to contribute to the payments the Authorized
Purchasers may be required to make in respect of those
liabilities.
The following description of the
procedures for the creation and redemption of baskets is only a
summary and an investor should refer to the relevant provisions of
the Trust Agreement and the form of Authorized Purchaser Agreement
for more detail, each of which has been incorporated by reference
as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this
prospectus is a part. See “Where You Can Find More
Information” for information about where you can obtain the
registration statement.
Creation Procedures
On any business day, an Authorized
Purchaser may place an order with Global Fund Services in their
capacity as the transfer agent to create one or more
baskets. For purposes of processing purchase and
redemption orders, a “business day” means any day other
than a day when any of the NYSE Arca, ICE Futures, or the New York
Stock Exchange is closed for regular trading. Purchase
orders must be placed by 12:00 p.m. (EST) or the close of regular
trading on the New York Stock Exchange, whichever is
earlier. The day on which the Distributor receives a
valid purchase order is referred to as the purchase order
date.
By placing a purchase order, an
Authorized Purchaser agrees to deposit cash, cash equivalents,
commodity futures and/or a combination thereof with the Fund, as
described below. Prior to the delivery of baskets for a
purchase order, the Authorized Purchaser must also have wired to
the Sponsor the non-refundable transaction fee due for the purchase
order. Authorized Purchasers may not withdraw a purchase
order without the prior consent of the Sponsor in its
discretion.
Determination of Required Deposits
The total deposit required to
create each basket (“Creation Basket Deposit”) is the
amount of cash, cash equivalents and/or commodity futures that is
in the same proportion to the total assets of the Fund (net of
estimated accrued but unpaid fees, expenses and other liabilities)
on the purchase order date as the number of Shares to be created
under the purchase order is in proportion to the total number of
Shares outstanding on the purchase order date. The
Sponsor determines, directly in its sole discretion or in
consultation with the Custodian and the Administrator, the
requirements for cash, cash equivalents and/or commodity futures,
including the remaining maturities of the cash equivalents, that
may be included in deposits to create baskets. If cash
equivalents are to be included in a Creation Basket Deposit for
orders placed on a given business day, the Administrator will
publish an estimate of the Creation Basket Deposit requirements at
the beginning of such day.
Delivery of Required Deposits
An Authorized Purchaser who places
a purchase order is responsible for transferring to the
Fund’s account with the Custodian the required amount of
cash, cash equivalents and/or commodity futures by the end of the
next business day following the purchase order date or by the end
of such later business day, not to exceed three business days after
the purchase order date, as agreed to between the Authorized
Purchaser and the Custodian when the purchase order is placed (the
“Purchase Settlement Date”). Upon receipt of
the deposit amount, the Custodian directs DTC to credit the number
of baskets ordered to the Authorized Purchaser’s DTC account
on the Purchase Settlement Date.
Because orders to purchase baskets
must be placed by 12:00 p.m., (EST), but the total payment required
to create a basket during the continuous offering period will not
be determined until 4:00 p.m., (EST), on the date the purchase
order is received, Authorized Purchasers will not know the total
amount of the payment required to create a basket at the time they
submit an irrevocable purchase order for the basket. The
Fund’s NAV and the total amount of the payment required to
create a basket could rise or fall substantially between the time
an irrevocable purchase order is submitted and the time the amount
of the purchase price in respect thereof is
determined.
Rejection of Purchase Orders
The Sponsor acting by itself or
through the Distributor or transfer agent may reject a purchase
order or a Creation Basket Deposit if:
|
●
|
it determines that, due to position
limits or otherwise, investment alternatives that will enable the
Fund to meet its investment objective are not available or
practicable at that time;
|
|
●
|
it determines that the purchase
order or the Creation Basket Deposit is not in proper
form;
|
|
●
|
it believes that acceptance of the
purchase order or the Creation Basket Deposit would have adverse
tax consequences to the Fund or its
Shareholders;
|
|
●
|
the acceptance or receipt of the
Creation Basket Deposit would, in the opinion of counsel to the
Sponsor, be unlawful;
|
|
●
|
circumstances outside the control
of the Sponsor, Distributor or transfer agent make it, for all
practical purposes, not feasible to process creations of
baskets;
|
|
●
|
there is a possibility that any or
all of the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts of the Fund on the
ICE Futures from which the NAV of the Fund is calculated will be
priced at a daily price limit restriction; or
|
|
●
|
if, in the sole discretion of the
Sponsor, the execution of such an order would not be in the best
interest of the Fund or its Shareholders.
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None of the Sponsor, Distributor or
transfer agent will be liable for the rejection of any purchase
order or Creation Basket Deposit.
Redemption Procedures
The procedures by which an
Authorized Purchaser can redeem one or more baskets mirror the
procedures for the creation of baskets. On any business
day, an Authorized Purchaser may place an order with the transfer
agent to redeem one or more baskets. Redemption orders
must be placed by 12:00 p.m. (EST) or the close of regular trading
on the New York Stock Exchange, whichever is earlier. A
redemption order so received will be effective on the date it is
received in satisfactory form by the Distributor. The
redemption procedures allow Authorized Purchasers to redeem baskets
and do not entitle an individual Shareholder to redeem any Shares
in an amount less than a Redemption Basket, or to redeem baskets
other than through an Authorized Purchaser. By placing a
redemption order, an Authorized Purchaser agrees to deliver the
baskets to be redeemed through DTC’s book-entry system to the
Fund by the end of the next business day following the effective
date of the redemption order or by the end of such later business
day. Prior to the delivery of the redemption distribution for a
redemption order, the Authorized Purchaser must also have wired to
the Sponsor’s account at the Custodian the non-refundable
transaction fee due for the redemption order. An
Authorized Purchaser may not withdraw a redemption order without
the prior consent of the Sponsor in its
discretion.
Determination of Redemption Distribution
The redemption distribution from
the Fund consists of a transfer to the redeeming Authorized
Purchaser of an amount of cash, cash equivalents and/or commodity
futures that is in the same proportion to the total assets of the
Fund (net of estimated accrued but unpaid fees, expenses and other
liabilities) on the date the order to redeem is properly received
as the number of Shares to be redeemed under the redemption order
is in proportion to the total number of Shares outstanding on the
date the order is received. The Sponsor, directly or in
consultation with the Custodian and the Administrator, determines
the requirements for cash, cash equivalents and/or commodity
futures, including the remaining maturities of the cash equivalents
and cash, that may be included in distributions to redeem baskets.
If cash equivalents are to be included in a redemption distribution
for orders placed on a given business day, the Custodian and
Administrator will publish an estimate of the redemption
distribution composition as of the beginning of such
day.
Delivery of Redemption Distribution
The redemption distribution due
from a Fund will be delivered to the Authorized Purchaser on the
Redemption Settlement Date if the Fund’s DTC account has been
credited with the baskets to be redeemed. If the
Fund’s DTC account has not been credited with all of the
baskets to be redeemed by the end of such date, the redemption
distribution will be delivered to the extent of whole baskets
received. Any remainder of the redemption distribution
will be delivered on the next business day after the Redemption
Settlement Date to the extent of remaining whole baskets
received. Pursuant to information from the Sponsor, the
Custodian will also be authorized to deliver the redemption
distribution notwithstanding that the baskets to be redeemed are
not credited to the Fund’s DTC account by noon (EST) on the
Redemption Settlement Date if the Authorized Purchaser has
collateralized its obligation to deliver the baskets through
DTC’s book-entry system on such terms as the Sponsor may from
time to time determine.
Suspension or Rejection of Redemption Orders
The Sponsor may, in its discretion,
suspend the right of redemption, or postpone the redemption
settlement date, (1) for any period during which the NYSE Arca or
ICE Futures is closed other than customary weekend or holiday
closings, or trading on the NYSE Arca or ICE Futures is suspended
or restricted, (2) for any period during which an emergency exists
as a result of which delivery, disposal or evaluation of cash
equivalents is not reasonably practicable, (3) for such other
period as the Sponsor determines to be necessary for the protection
of the Shareholders, (4) if there is a possibility that any or all
of the Benchmark Component Futures Contracts of the Fund on the ICE
Futures from which the NAV of the Fund is calculated will be priced
at a daily price limit restriction, or (5) if, in the sole
discretion of the Sponsor, the execution of such an order would not
be in the best interest of the Fund or its
Shareholders. For example, the Sponsor may determine
that it is necessary to suspend redemptions to allow for the
orderly liquidation of the Fund’s assets at an appropriate
value to fund a redemption. If the Sponsor has
difficulty liquidating the Fund’s positions, e.g., because of
a market disruption event in the futures markets or an
unanticipated delay in the liquidation of a position in an over the
counter contract, it may be appropriate to suspend redemptions
until such time as such circumstances are
rectified. None of the Sponsor, the Distributor, or the
transfer agent will be liable to any person or in any way for any
loss or damages that may result from any such suspension or
postponement.
Redemption orders must be made in
whole baskets. The Sponsor will reject a redemption order if the
order is not in proper form as described in the Authorized
Purchaser Agreement or if the fulfillment of the order, in the
opinion of its counsel, might be unlawful. The Sponsor
may also reject a redemption order if the number of Shares being
redeemed would reduce the remaining outstanding Shares to 50,000
Shares (i.e., two baskets of 25,000 Shares each) or less, unless
the Sponsor has reason to believe that the placer of the redemption
order does in fact possess all the outstanding Shares of the Fund
and can deliver them.
Creation and Redemption Transaction Fees
To compensate for expenses in
connection with the creation and redemption of baskets, an
Authorized Purchaser is required to pay a transaction fee of $250
per order to the Custodian. The transaction fees may be
reduced, increased or otherwise changed by the
Sponsor.
Tax Responsibility
Authorized Purchasers are
responsible for any transfer tax, sales or use tax, stamp tax,
recording tax, value added tax or similar tax or governmental
charge applicable to the creation or redemption of baskets,
regardless of whether or not such tax or charge is imposed directly
on the Authorized Purchaser, and agree to indemnify the Sponsor and
the Fund if they are required by law to pay any such tax, together
with any applicable penalties, additions to tax and interest
thereon.
Secondary Market
Transactions
As noted, the Fund will create and
redeem Shares from time to time, but only in one or more Creation
Baskets or Redemption Baskets. The creation and
redemption of baskets are only made in exchange for delivery to the
Fund or the distribution by the Fund of the amount of cash, cash
equivalents, and/or commodity futures equal to the aggregate NAV of
the number of Shares included in the baskets being created or
redeemed determined on the day the order to create or redeem
baskets is properly received.
As discussed above, Authorized
Purchasers are the only persons that may place orders to create and
redeem baskets. Authorized Purchasers must be registered
broker-dealers or other securities market participants, such as
banks and other financial institutions that are not required to
register as broker-dealers to engage in securities
transactions. An Authorized Purchaser is under no
obligation to create or redeem baskets, and an Authorized Purchaser
is under no obligation to offer to the public Shares of any baskets
it does create. Authorized Purchasers that do offer to
the public Shares from the baskets they create will do so at per
Share offering prices that are expected to reflect, among other
factors, the trading price of the Shares on the NYSE Arca, the NAV
of the Shares at the time the Authorized Purchaser purchased the
Creation Baskets, the NAV of the Shares at the time of the offer of
the Shares to the public, the supply of and demand for Shares at
the time of sale, and the liquidity of the sugar interest
markets. The prices of Shares offered by Authorized
Purchasers are expected to fall between the Fund’s NAV and
the trading price of the Shares on the NYSE Arca at the time of
sale. Shares initially comprising the same basket but
offered by Authorized Purchasers to the public at different times
may have different offering prices. An order for one or
more baskets may be placed by an Authorized Purchaser on behalf of
multiple clients. Shares are expected to trade in the
secondary market on the NYSE Arca. Shares may trade in
the secondary market at prices that are lower or higher relative to
their NAV per Share. The amount of the discount or
premium in the trading price relative to the NAV per Share may be
influenced by various factors, including the number of investors
who seek to purchase or sell Shares in the secondary market and the
liquidity of the sugar interest markets. While the
Shares trade on the NYSE Arca until 4:00 p.m. (EST), liquidity in
the markets for sugar interests may be reduced after the close of
the ICE Futures. As a result, during this time, trading
spreads, and the resulting premium or discount, on the Shares may
widen.
The Sponsor causes the Fund to
transfer the proceeds of the sale of Creation Baskets to the
Custodian or another financial institution for use in trading
activities and/or investment in Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts and cash and cash equivalents. Under normal market
conditions, the Sponsor invests the Fund’s assets in
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts and cash and cash
equivalents. When the Fund purchases Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts, the Fund is required to deposit with the FCM on behalf
of the exchange a portion of the value of the contract or other
interest as security to ensure payment for the obligation under the
Benchmark Component Futures Contracts at maturity. This deposit is
known as initial margin. Counterparties in transactions in over the
counter sugar interests will generally impose similar collateral
requirements on the Fund. The Sponsor invests the Fund’s
assets that remain after margin and collateral is posted in cash
and cash equivalents. Subject to these margin and collateral
requirements, the Sponsor has sole authority to determine the
percentage of assets that will be:
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held as margin or collateral with
FCMs or other custodian;
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used for other investments;
and
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held in bank accounts to pay
current obligations and as reserves.
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In general, the Fund expects that
it will be required to post approximately 4-6% of the notional
amount of a Benchmark Component Futures Contracts as initial margin
when entering into such Benchmark Component Futures Contracts.
Ongoing margin and collateral payments will generally be required
for both exchange-traded and over the counter sugar interests based
on changes in the value of the sugar interests. Furthermore,
ongoing collateral requirements with respect to over the counter
sugar interests are negotiated by the parties, and may be affected
by overall market volatility, volatility of the underlying
commodity or index, the ability of the counterparty to hedge its
exposure under the sugar interest, and each party’s
creditworthiness. In light of the differing requirements for
initial payments under exchange-traded and over the counter sugar
interests and the fluctuating nature of ongoing margin and
collateral payments, it is not possible to estimate what portion of
the Fund’s assets will be posted as margin or collateral at
any given time. Cash and cash equivalents held by the Fund
constitute reserves that are available to meet ongoing margin and
collateral requirements. All interest or other income is used for
the Fund’s benefit.
An FCM, counterparty, government
agency or commodity exchange could increase margin or collateral
requirements applicable to the Fund to hold trading positions at
any time. Moreover, margin is merely a security deposit
and has no bearing on the profit or loss potential for any
positions held. Further, under recently adopted CFTC rules, the
Fund may be obligated to post both initial and variation margin
with respect to swaps (and options that qualify as swaps) and
traded over-the -counter, and, where applicable, on
SEFs.
The approximate 4-6% of the
Fund’s assets held by the FCM are held in segregation
pursuant to the CEA and CFTC regulations.
The following paragraphs are a
summary of certain provisions of the Trust Agreement. The following
discussion is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Trust
Agreement.
Authority of the Sponsor
The Sponsor is generally authorized
to perform all acts deemed necessary to carry out the purposes of
the Trust and to conduct the business of the Trust. The Trust and
the Fund will continue to exist until terminated in accordance with
the Trust Agreement.
The Sponsor’s Obligations
In addition to the duties imposed
by the Delaware Trust Statute, under the Trust Agreement the
Sponsor has obligations as a Sponsor of the Trust, which include,
among others, responsibility for certain organizational and
operational requirements of the Trust, as well as fiduciary
responsibility for the safekeeping and use of the Trust’s
assets, whether or not in the Sponsor’s immediate possession
or control.
To the extent that, at law (common
or statutory) or in equity, the Sponsor has duties (including
fiduciary duties) and liabilities relating thereto to the Trust,
the Fund, the Shareholders or to any other person, the Sponsor will
not be liable to the Trust, the Fund, the Shareholders or to any
other person for its good faith reliance on the provisions of the
Trust Agreement or this prospectus unless such reliance constitutes
gross negligence or willful misconduct on the part of the Sponsor.
The provisions of the Trust Agreement, to the extent they restrict
or eliminate the duties and liabilities of the Sponsor otherwise
existing at law or in equity, replace such other duties and
liabilities of the Sponsor.
Liability and Indemnification
Under the Trust Agreement, the
Sponsor, the Trustee and their respective Affiliates (collectively,
“Covered Persons”) shall have no liability to the
Trust, the Fund, or to any Shareholder for any loss suffered by the
Trust or the Fund which arises out of any action or inaction of
such Covered Person if such Covered Person, in good faith,
determined that such course of conduct was in the best interest of
the Trust or the Fund and such course of conduct did not constitute
gross negligence or willful misconduct of such Covered Person.
Subject to the foregoing, neither the Sponsor nor any other Covered
Person shall be personally liable for the return or repayment of
all or any portion of the capital or profits of any Shareholder or
assignee thereof, it being expressly agreed that any such return of
capital or profits made pursuant to the Trust Agreement shall be
made solely from the assets of the applicable Teucrium Fund without
any rights of contribution from the Sponsor or any other Covered
Person. A Covered Person shall not be liable for the conduct or
willful misconduct of any administrator or other delegate selected
by the Sponsor with reasonable care, provided, however, that the
Trustee and its Affiliates shall not, under any circumstances be
liable for the conduct or willful misconduct of any administrator
or other delegate or any other person selected by the Sponsor to
provide services to the Trust.
The Trust Agreement also provides
that the Sponsor shall be indemnified by the Trust (or by a series
separately to the extent the matter in question relates to a single
series or disproportionately affects a specific series in relation
to other series) against any losses, judgments, liabilities,
expenses and amounts paid in settlement of any claims sustained by
it in connection with its activities for the Trust, provided that
(i) the Sponsor was acting on behalf of or performing services for
the Trust and has determined, in good faith, that such course of
conduct was in the best interests of the Trust and such liability
or loss was not the result of gross negligence, willful misconduct, or
a breach of the Trust Agreement on the part of the Sponsor and (ii)
any such indemnification will only be recoverable from the assets
of the applicable series. The Sponsor’s rights to
indemnification permitted under the Trust Agreement shall not be
affected by the dissolution or other cessation to exist of the
Sponsor, or the withdrawal, adjudication of bankruptcy or
insolvency of the Sponsor, or the filing of a voluntary or
involuntary petition in bankruptcy under Title 11 of the Bankruptcy
Code by or against the Sponsor.
Notwithstanding the above, the
Sponsor shall not be indemnified for any losses, liabilities or
expenses arising from or out of an alleged violation of U.S.
federal or state securities laws unless (i) there has been a
successful adjudication on the merits of each count involving
alleged securities law violations as to the particular indemnitee
and the court approves the indemnification of such expenses
(including, without limitation, litigation costs), (ii) such claims
have been dismissed with prejudice on the merits by a court of
competent jurisdiction as to the particular indemnitee and the
court approves the indemnification of such expenses (including,
without limitation, litigation costs), or (iii) a court of
competent jurisdiction approves a settlement of the claims against
a particular indemnitee and finds that indemnification of the
settlement and related costs should be made.
The payment of any indemnification
shall be allocated, as appropriate, among the Trust’s series.
The Trust and its series shall not incur the cost of that portion
of any insurance which insures any party against any liability, the
indemnification of which is prohibited under the Trust
Agreement.
Expenses incurred in defending a
threatened or pending action, suit or proceeding against the
Sponsor shall be paid by the Trust in advance of the final
disposition of such action, suit or proceeding, if (i) the legal
action relates to the performance of duties or services by the
Sponsor on behalf of the Trust; (ii) the legal action is initiated
by a party other than the Trust; and (iii) the Sponsor undertakes
to repay the advanced funds with interest to the Trust in cases in
which it is not entitled to indemnification.
The Trust Agreement provides that
the Sponsor and the Trust shall indemnify the Trustee and its
successors, assigns, legal representatives, officers, directors,
shareholders, employees, agents and servants (the “Trustee
Indemnified Parties”) against any liabilities, obligations,
losses, damages, penalties, taxes (excluding any taxes on the
compensation received for services as Trustee or on indemnity
payments received), claims, actions, suits, costs, expenses or
disbursements which may be imposed on a Trustee Indemnified Party
relating to or arising out of the formation, operation or
termination of the Trust, the execution, delivery and performance
of any other agreements to which the Trust is a party, or the
action or inaction of the Trustee under the Trust Agreement or any
other agreement, except for expenses resulting from the gross
negligence or willful misconduct of a Trustee Indemnified Party.
Further, certain officers of the Sponsor are insured against
liability for certain errors or omissions which an officer may
incur or that may arise out of his or her capacity as
such.
In the event the Trust is made a
party to any claim, dispute, demand or litigation or otherwise
incurs any liability or expense as a result of or in connection
with any Shareholder’s (or assignee’s) obligations or
liabilities unrelated to the Trust business, such Shareholder (or
assignees cumulatively) is required under the Trust Agreement to
indemnify the Trust for all such liability and expense incurred,
including attorneys’ and accountants’
fees.
Withdrawal of the Sponsor
The Sponsor may withdraw
voluntarily as the Sponsor of the Trust only upon ninety (90)
days’ prior written notice to the holders of the
Trust’s outstanding shares and the Trustee. If the
withdrawing Sponsor is the last remaining Sponsor, shareholders
holding a majority (over 50%) of the outstanding shares of the
Teucrium Funds, voting together as a single class (not including
shares acquired by the Sponsor through its initial capital
contribution) may vote to elect a successor Sponsor. The
successor Sponsor will continue the business of the
Trust. Shareholders have no right to remove the
Sponsor.
In the event of withdrawal, the
Sponsor is entitled to a redemption of the shares it acquired
through its initial capital contribution to any of the series of
the Trust at their NAV per Share. If the Sponsor
withdraws and a successor Sponsor is named, the withdrawing Sponsor
shall pay all expenses as a result of its
withdrawal.
Meetings
Meetings of the Trust’s
shareholders may be called by the Sponsor and will be called by it
upon the written request of Shareholders holding at least 25% of
the outstanding Shares of the Trust or the Fund, as applicable (not
including Shares acquired by the Sponsor through its initial
capital contribution). The Sponsor shall deposit in the United
States mail or electronically transmit written notice to all
Shareholders of the Fund of the meeting and the purpose of the
meeting, which shall be held on a date not less than 30 nor more
than 60 days after the date of mailing of such notice, at a
reasonable time and place. Where the meeting is called upon the
written request of the shareholders of the Fund, or any other
Teucrium Fund, as applicable, such written notice shall be mailed
or transmitted not more than 45 days after such written request for
a meeting was received by the Sponsor.
Voting Rights
Shareholders have no voting rights
with respect to the Trust or the Fund except as expressly provided
in the Trust Agreement. The Trust Agreement provides that
shareholders representing at least a majority (over 50%) of the
outstanding shares of the Teucrium Funds voting together as a
single class (excluding shares acquired by the Sponsor in
connection with its initial capital contribution to any Trust
series) may vote to (i) continue the Trust by electing a successor
Sponsor as described above, and (ii) approve amendments to the
Trust Agreement that impair the right to surrender Redemption
Baskets for redemption. (Trustee consent to any amendment to the
Trust Agreement is required if the Trustee reasonably believes that
such amendment adversely affects any of its rights, duties or
liabilities.) In addition, shareholders holding shares representing
seventy-five percent (75%) of the outstanding shares of the
Teucrium Funds, voting together as a single class (excluding shares
acquired by the Sponsor in connection with its initial capital
contribution to any Trust series) may vote to dissolve the Trust
upon not less than ninety (90) days’ notice to the Sponsor.
Limited Liability of Shareholders
Shareholders shall be entitled to
the same limitation of personal liability extended to stockholders
of private corporations for profit organized under the general
corporation law of Delaware, and no Shareholder shall be liable for
claims against, or debts of the Trust or the Fund in excess of his
share of the Fund’s assets. The Trust or the Fund shall not
make a claim against a Shareholder with respect to amounts
distributed to such Shareholder or amounts received by such
Shareholder upon redemption unless, under Delaware law, such
Shareholder is liable to repay such amount.
The Trust or the Fund shall
indemnify to the full extent permitted by law and the Trust
Agreement each Shareholder (excluding the Sponsor to the extent of
its ownership of any Shares acquired through its initial capital
contribution) against any claims of liability asserted against such
Shareholder solely because of its ownership of Shares (other than
for taxes on income from Shares for which such Shareholder is
liable).
The Trust Agreement provides that
every written note, bond, contract, instrument, certificate or
undertaking made or issued by or on behalf of the Fund shall give
notice to the effect that the obligations of such instrument are
not binding upon the Shareholders individually but are binding only
upon the assets and property of the Fund.
The Sponsor Has
Conflicts of Interest
There are present and potential
future conflicts of interest in the Trust’s structure and
operation you should consider before you purchase Shares. The
Sponsor may use this notice of conflicts as a defense against any
claim or other proceeding made.
The Sponsor’s principals,
officers and employees, do not devote their time exclusively to the
Funds. Notwithstanding obligations and expectations related to the
management of the Sponsor, the Sponsor’s principals, officers
and employees may be directors, officers or employees of other
entities, and may manage assets of other entities, including the
other Teucrium Funds, through the Sponsor or otherwise. As a
result, the principals could have a conflict between
responsibilities to the Fund on the one hand and to those other
entities on the other.
The Sponsor and its principals,
officers and employees may trade securities, futures and related
contracts for their own accounts, creating the potential for
preferential treatment of their own accounts. Shareholders will not
be permitted to inspect the trading records of such persons or any
written policies of the Sponsor related to such trading. A conflict
of interest may exist if their trades are in the same markets and
at approximately the same times as the trades for the Fund. A
potential conflict also may occur when the Sponsor’s
principals trade their accounts more aggressively or take positions
in their accounts which are opposite, or ahead of, the positions
taken by the Fund.
The Sponsor has sole current
authority to manage the investments and operations of the Fund, and
this may allow it to act in a way that furthers its own interests
which may create a conflict with your best interests, including the
authority of the Sponsor to allocate expenses to and between the
Teucrium Funds. Shareholders have very limited voting rights with
respect to the Fund, which will limit the ability to influence
matters such as amendment of the Trust Agreement, change in the
Fund’s basic investment policies, or dissolution of the Fund
or the Trust.
The Sponsor serves as the Sponsor
to the Teucrium Funds and may in the future serve as the Sponsor or
investment adviser to commodity pools other than the Teucrium
Funds. The Sponsor may have a conflict to the extent that its
trading decisions for the Fund may be influenced by the effect they
would have on the other pools it manages. In addition, the Sponsor
may be required to indemnify the officers and directors of the
other pools, if the need for indemnification arises. This potential
indemnification will cause the Sponsor’s assets to decrease.
If the Sponsor’s other sources of income are not sufficient
to compensate for the indemnification, it could cease operations,
which could in turn result in Fund losses and/or termination of the
Fund.
In addition, the Sponsor may be
required to indemnify the officers and directors of the other
pools, if the need for indemnification arises. This potential
indemnification will cause the Sponsor’s assets to decrease.
If the Sponsor’s other sources of income are not sufficient
to compensate for the indemnification, it could cease operations,
which could in turn result in Fund losses and/or termination of the
Fund.
If the Sponsor acquires knowledge
of a potential transaction or arrangement that may be an
opportunity for the Fund, it shall have no duty to offer such
opportunity to the Fund. The Sponsor will not be liable to the Fund
or the Shareholders for breach of any fiduciary or other duty if
the Sponsor pursues such opportunity or directs it to another
person or does not communicate such opportunity to the Fund, and is
not required to share income or profits derived from such business
ventures with the Fund.
Resolution of Conflicts Procedures
The Trust Agreement provides that
whenever a conflict of interest exists between the Sponsor or any
of its Affiliates, on the one hand, and the Trust, any shareholder
of a Trust series, or any other person, on the other hand, the
Sponsor shall resolve such conflict of interest, take such action
or provide such terms, considering in each case the relative
interest of each party (including its own interest) to such
conflict, agreement, transaction or situation and the benefits and
burdens relating to such interests, any customary or accepted
industry practices, and any applicable generally accepted
accounting practices or principles. In the absence of bad faith by
the Sponsor, the resolution, action or terms so made, taken or
provided by the Sponsor shall not constitute a breach of the Trust
Agreement or any other agreement contemplated therein or of any
duty or obligation of the Sponsor at law or in equity or
otherwise.
Interests of
Named Experts and Counsel
No expert hired by the Fund to give
advice on the preparation of this offering document has been hired
on a contingent fee basis, nor do any of them have any present
or future expectation of interest in the Sponsor, Distributor,
Authorized Purchasers, Custodian/Administrator or other service
providers to the Fund.
Provisions
of Federal and State Securities Laws
This offering is made pursuant to
federal and state securities laws. The SEC and state
securities agencies take the position that indemnification of the
Sponsor that arises out of an alleged violation of such laws is
prohibited unless certain conditions are met. Those
conditions require that no indemnification of the Sponsor or any
underwriter for the Fund may be made in respect of any losses,
liabilities or expenses arising from or out of an alleged violation
of federal or state securities laws unless: (i) there
has been a successful adjudication on the merits of each count
involving alleged securities law violations as to the party seeking
indemnification and the court approves the indemnification; (ii)
such claim has been dismissed with prejudice on the merits by a
court of competent jurisdiction as to the party seeking
indemnification; or (iii) a court of competent jurisdiction
approves a settlement of the claims against the party seeking
indemnification and finds that indemnification of the settlement
and related costs should be made, provided that, before seeking
such approval, the Sponsor or other indemnitee must apprise the
court of the position held by regulatory agencies against such
indemnification.
The Trust keeps its books of record
and account at its office located at Three Main Street, Suite 215,
Burlington, VT 05401, or at the offices of the Administrator, U.S.
Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund
Services located at 777 E. Wisconsin Ave, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
53202, or such office, including of an administrative agent, as it
may subsequently designate upon notice. The books of account
of the Fund are open to inspection by any Shareholder (or any duly
constituted designee of a Shareholder) at all times during the
usual business hours of the Fund upon reasonable advance notice to
the extent such access is required under CFTC rules and
regulations. In addition, the Trust keeps a copy of the Trust
Agreement on file in its office which will be available for
inspection by any Shareholder at all times during its usual
business hours upon reasonable advance notice.
Statements, Filings,
and Reports to Shareholders
The Trust will furnish to DTC
Participants for distribution to Shareholders annual reports (as of
the end of each fiscal year) for the Fund as are required to be
provided to Shareholders by the CFTC and the NFA. These
annual reports will contain financial statements prepared by the
Sponsor and audited by an independent registered public accounting
firm designated by the Sponsor. The Trust will also post
monthly reports to the Fund’s website (www.teucrium.com). These
monthly reports will contain certain unaudited financial
information regarding the Fund, including the Fund’s
NAV. The Sponsor will furnish to the Shareholders other
reports or information which the Sponsor, in its discretion,
determines to be necessary or appropriate. In addition,
under SEC rules the Trust will be required to file quarterly and
annual reports for the Fund with the SEC, which need not be sent to
Shareholders but will be publicly available through the
SEC. The Trust will post the same information that would
otherwise be provided in the Trust’s CFTC, NFA and SEC
reports on the Fund’s website: www.teucrium.com.
The accountants’ report on
its audit of the Fund’s financial statements will be
furnished by the Trust to Shareholders upon request. The Trust will
file such tax returns, and prepare, disseminate and file such tax
reports for the Fund as it is advised by its counsel or accountants
are from time to time required by any applicable statute, rule or
regulation and will make such tax elections for the Fund as it
deems advisable.
PricewaterhouseCoopers
(“PwC”), 2001 Ross Avenue, Suite 1800, Dallas, Texas
75201-2997, will provide tax information in accordance with the
Code and applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations. Persons treated as
middlemen for purposes of these regulations may obtain tax
information regarding the Fund from PwC or from the Fund’s
website, www.teucrium.com.
Fiscal
Year
The fiscal year of the Fund is the
calendar year.
Governing
Law
The rights of the Sponsor, the
Trust, the Fund, DTC (as registered owner of the Fund’s
global certificate for Shares) and the Shareholders are governed by
the laws of the State of Delaware, except with respect to causes of
action for violations of U.S. federal or state securities laws. The
Trust Agreement and the effect of every provision thereof shall
control over any contrary or limiting statutory or common law of
the State of Delaware, other than the Delaware Trust
Statute.
Security
Ownership of Principal Shareholders and
Management
The following
table sets forth information with respect to each person or entity
known to own beneficially more than 5% of the outstanding shares of
CANE as of December 31, 2020, based on information known to the
Sponsor.
(1)
Title of Class
|
(2)
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner
|
(3)
Amount and Nature of Beneficial Ownership
|
(4)
Percent of Class
|
CANE
|
Jane Street Capital
LLC
New York, NY
|
115,527 common units
(1)
|
6.08%
|
CANE
|
Korean Securities
Depository
Seoul, Korea
|
114,809 common units
(1)
|
6.04%
|
CANE
|
Gelber
Securities
Chicago, IL
|
102,746 common units
(1)
|
5.41%
|
(1) These
individuals and entities have not filed any public reports with the
SEC.
The following table sets forth
information regarding the beneficial ownership of shares of CANE by
the executive officers of the Sponsor as of February 28,
2021. Except as listed, no other executive officer of the
Sponsor is a beneficial owner of shares of the
Fund.
(1)
Title of
Class
|
(2)
Name of
Beneficial Owner
|
(3)
Amount and
nature of Beneficial Ownership
|
(4)
Percent of
Class
|
CANE
|
Sal Gilbertie
|
500 common
units
|
*
|
*Less than 1%.
Legal
Matters
Litigation and Claims
On
November 24, 2020, the Sponsor was notified by Dale Riker, the
Sponsor’s former Chief Executive Officer, of his intent to
file several claims individually and derivatively on behalf of the
Sponsor.
On November 30, 2020, the Sponsor
and certain of its officers and members filed suit in the Court of
Chancery of the State of Delaware, in which, among other things,
they bring several claims including a request that the Delaware
Court enforce its pre-existing judgment. The case is captioned
Gilbertie v. Riker, C.A. No. 2020-1018-AGB (Del. Ch.). The
following claims have been made in this case:
Count One – Declaration that
the Final Order and Judgement Controls Dale Riker’s
Entitlement to Financial Documents Belonging to
Teucrium;
Count Two – Declaration that
Oral Contract for Sale of Dale Riker’s Equity to Gilbertie is
Barred by Judicial Estoppel or Otherwise Non-Existent or
Unenforceable;
Count Three – Order
Compelling the Return of Property;
Count Four – Declaration
Concerning Removal and Purported Disclosure
Violations;
Count Five – Breach of
Separation Agreement by Barbara Riker;
Count Six – Tortious
Interference with Separation Agreement by Dale
Riker;
Count Seven – Declaration
Concerning Releases of Barbara Riker;
Count Eight – Breach of LLC
Agreement by Dale Riker; and
Count Nine – Breach of
Fiduciary Duty by Dale Riker.
On December 7, 2020, Dale Riker,
individually and derivatively on behalf of the Sponsor, filed suit
in the Supreme Court for the State of New York, New York County
against the Sponsor, the Sponsor’s officers and the
Sponsor’s Class A Members. The case is captioned Riker v.
Gilbertie, No. 656794-2020 (N.Y. Sup. Ct.). The following claims
have been made in this case:
Count One – Breach of
Fiduciary Duty against Executives;
Count Two – Breach of
Fiduciary Duty against Members;
Count Three –
Defamation;
Count Four – Declaratory
Judgement;
Count Five – Breach of
Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair
Dealing;
Count Six – Specific
Performance for Breach of Oral Contract;
Count Seven – Unjust
Enrichment; and
Count Eight – Equitable
Accounting.
The Sponsor intends to pursue its
claims in Delaware and defend vigorously against Mr. Riker’s
claims in New York.
Except as described above, within the past 10
years of the date of this prospectus, there have been no material
administrative, civil or criminal actions against the Sponsor, the
Trust or the Fund, or any principal or affiliate of any of them.
This includes any actions pending, on appeal, concluded,
threatened, or otherwise known to them.
Legal Opinion
Vedder Price P.C. (“Vedder
Price”) has been retained to advise the Trust and the Sponsor
with respect to the Shares being offered hereby and has passed upon
the validity of the Shares being issued
hereunder. Vedder Price P.C. has also provided the
Sponsor with its opinion with respect to federal income tax matters
addressed below in “U.S. Federal Income Tax
Considerations.”
Experts
The financial statements of the
Trust and the Fund, and management’s assessment of the
effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting of the
Trust and the Fund incorporated by reference in this prospectus and
elsewhere in the registration statement have been so incorporated
by reference in reliance upon the reports of Grant Thornton LLP
(“Grant Thornton”), independent registered public
accountants, upon the authority of said firm as experts in
accounting and auditing.
Privacy
Policy
The following discussion is
qualified in its entirety by reference to the privacy policy. A
copy of the privacy policy is available at www.teucrium.com.
The Sponsor, the Trust, and the
Teucrium Funds have adopted a privacy policy relating to the
collection, maintenance, and use of nonpublic personal information
about the Teucrium Funds’ current and former investors, as
required under federal law. Federal
law gives investors the right to limit some but not all sharing of
their nonpublic personal information. Federal law also requires the
Sponsor to tell investors how it collects, shares, and protects
such nonpublic personal information.
Collection of Nonpublic Personal Information
The Sponsor may collect or have
access to nonpublic personal information about current and former
Fund investors for certain purposes relating to the operation of
the Funds. This information may include information received from
investors, such as their name, social security number, telephone
number, and address, and information about investors’
holdings and transactions in shares of the Teucrium
Funds.
Use and Disclosure of Nonpublic Personal
Information
The Sponsor does not sell nonpublic
personal information to any third parties. The Sponsor primarily
uses investors’ nonpublic personal information to complete
financial transactions that may be requested. The Sponsor may
disclose investors’ nonpublic personal information to third
parties under specific circumstances described in the privacy
policy. These circumstances include, among others, information
needed to complete financial transactions, information released at
the direction of an investor, and certain information requested by
courts, regulators, law enforcement, or tax authorities. Investors
may not opt out of these disclosures.
Investors’ nonpublic personal
information, particularly information about investors’
holdings and transactions in shares of the Teucrium Funds, may be
shared between and amongst the Sponsor and the Teucrium Funds.
An investor cannot opt-out of the
sharing of nonpublic personal information between and amongst the
Sponsor and the Teucrium Funds. However, the Sponsor and the
Teucrium Funds will not use this information for any
cross-marketing purposes. In other
words, all investors will be treated as having “opted
out” of receiving marketing solicitations from Teucrium Funds
other than the Teucrium Fund(s) in which it
invests.
Protection of Nonpublic Personal Information
As described in the privacy policy,
the Sponsor takes safeguards to protect investors’ nonpublic
personal information, which include, among others, restricting
access to such information, requiring third parties to follow
appropriate standards of security and confidentiality, and
maintaining physical, technical, administrative, and procedural
safeguards.
Teucrium’s Website is hosted
in the United States and any data provided to Teucrium is stored in
the United States. If you choose to provide Personal Data from
regions outside of the United States, then by your submission of
such data, you acknowledge and agree that: (a) you are transferring
your personal information outside of those regions to the United
States voluntarily and with consent; (b) the laws and regulations
of the United States shall govern your use of the provision of your
information, which laws and regulations may differ from those of
your country of residence; and (c) you permit your personal
information to be used for the purposes herein and in the Privacy
Policy above.
U.S. Federal
Income Tax Considerations
The following discussion summarizes
the material U.S. federal income tax consequences of the purchase,
ownership and disposition of Shares of the Fund and the U.S.
federal income tax treatment of the Fund. Except where noted
otherwise, it deals only with the tax consequences relating to
Shares held as capital assets by U.S. Shareholders (as defined
below) who are not subject to special tax treatment. For example,
in general it does not address the tax consequences, such as, but
not limited to dealers in securities or currencies or commodities,
traders in securities or dealers or traders in commodities that
elect to use a mark to market method of accounting, financial
institutions, tax-exempt entities (except as discussed below),
insurance companies, persons holding Shares as a part of a position
in a “straddle” or as part of a “hedging,”
“conversion” or other integrated transaction for
federal income tax purposes, persons with “applicable
financial statements” within the meaning of Section 451(b) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the
“Code”), or holders of Shares whose “functional
currency” is not the U.S. dollar. Furthermore, the discussion
below is based on the provisions of the Code, and regulations
(“Treasury Regulations”), rulings and judicial
decisions thereunder as of the date hereof, and such authorities
may be repealed, revoked or modified (possibly with retroactive
effect) so as to result in U.S. federal income tax consequences
different from those discussed below.
The Sponsor has received the
opinion of Vedder Price, counsel to the Trust, that the material
U.S. federal income tax consequences to the Fund and to U.S.
Shareholders and Non-U.S. Shareholders (as defined below) will be
as described in the following paragraphs. In rendering its opinion,
Vedder Price has relied on the facts and assumptions described in
this prospectus as well as certain factual representations made by
the Trust, the Fund, and the Sponsor. This opinion is not binding
on the Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS") and is not a guarantee
of the results. No ruling has been requested from the IRS with
respect to any matter affecting the Fund or prospective investors.
The IRS may disagree with the tax positions taken by the Trust, and
if the IRS were to challenge the Trust’s tax positions in
litigation, they might not be sustained by the
courts.
As used herein, the term
“U.S. Shareholder” means a Shareholder that is, for
U.S. federal income tax purposes, (i) a citizen or resident of the
United States, (ii) a corporation created or organized in or under
the laws of the United States or any political subdivision thereof,
(iii) an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal
income taxation regardless of its source or (iv) a trust that (a)
is subject to the supervision of a court within the United States
and the control of one or more United States persons as described
in section 7701(a)(30) of the Code, or (b) has a valid election in
effect under applicable Treasury Regulations to be treated as a
United States person. A “Non-U.S. Shareholder” is a
holder that is not a U.S. Shareholder. If a partnership or other
entity or arrangement treated as a partnership holds our Shares,
the tax treatment of a partner will generally depend upon the
status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. If you
are a partner of a partnership holding our Shares, the discussion
below may not be applicable to you and you should consult your own
tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of acquiring, owning and
disposing of Shares.
EACH PROSPECTIVE INVESTOR IS
ADVISED TO CONSULT ITS OWN TAX ADVISOR REGARDING THE U.S. FEDERAL
INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES OF AN INVESTMENT IN SHARES, AS WELL AS ANY
APPLICABLE STATE, LOCAL OR FOREIGN TAX CONSEQUENCES, IN LIGHT OF
ITS PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCES.
Tax Classification of the Trust and the Fund
The Trust is organized and will be
operated as a statutory trust in accordance with the provisions of
the Trust Agreement and applicable Delaware law. Notwithstanding
the Trust’s status as a statutory trust and the Fund’s
status as a series of the Trust, due to the nature of its
activities the Fund will be treated as a partnership rather than a
trust for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In addition, the
trading of Shares on the NYSE Arca will cause the Fund to be
classified as a “publicly traded partnership” for
federal income tax purposes. Under the Code, a publicly traded
partnership is generally taxable as a corporation. In the case of
an entity (such as the Fund) not registered under the Investment
Company Act of 1940 as amended, and not meeting certain other
conditions, however, an exception to this general rule applies if
at least 90% of the entity’s gross income is
“qualifying income” for each taxable year of its
existence (the “qualifying income exception”). For this
purpose, qualifying income is defined as including, in pertinent
part, interest (other than from a financial business), dividends,
and gains from the sale or disposition of capital assets held for
the production of interest or dividends. In the case of a
partnership of which a principal activity is the buying and selling
of commodities other than as inventory or of futures, forwards and
options with respect to commodities, “qualifying
income” also includes income and gains from commodities and
from such futures, forwards, options, and provided the partnership
is a trader or investor with respect to such assets, swaps and
other notional principal contracts with respect to commodities. The
Trust and the Sponsor have represented the following to Vedder
Price:
|
●
|
at least 90% of the Fund’s
gross income for each taxable year will constitute
“qualifying income” within the meaning of Code section
7704 (as described above);
|
|
●
|
the Fund is organized and will be
operated in accordance with its governing documents and applicable
law; and
|
|
●
|
the Fund has not elected, and will
not elect, to be classified as a corporation for U.S. federal
income tax purposes.
|
Based in part on these
representations, Vedder Price is of the opinion that the Fund will
be treated as a partnership that it is not taxable as a corporation
for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Fund’s taxation as
a partnership rather than a corporation will require the Sponsor to
conduct the Fund’s business activities in such a manner that
it satisfies the requirements of the qualifying income exception on
a continuing basis. No assurances can be given that the
Fund’s operations for any given year will produce income that
satisfies these requirements. Vedder Price will not review the
Fund’s ongoing compliance with these requirements and will
have no obligation to advise the Trust, the Fund or the
Fund’s Shareholders in the event of any subsequent change in
the facts, representations or applicable law relied upon in
reaching its opinion.
If the Fund failed to satisfy the
qualifying income exception in any year, other than a failure that
is determined by the IRS to be inadvertent and that is cured within
a reasonable time after discovery (in which case, as a condition of
relief, the Fund could be required to pay the government amounts
determined by the IRS), the Fund would be taxable as a corporation
for federal income tax purposes and would pay federal income tax on
its income at regular corporate rates. In that event, Shareholders
would not report their share of the Fund’s income or loss on
their tax returns. Distributions by the Fund (if any) would be
treated as dividend income to the Shareholders to the extent of the
Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, then
treated as a tax-free return of capital to the extent of the
Shareholder’s basis in the Shares (and will reduce the
basis), and, to the extent it exceeds a Shareholder’s basis
in such Shares, as capital gain for Shareholders who hold their
Shares as capital assets. Accordingly, if the Fund were to be
taxable as a corporation, it would likely have a material adverse
effect on the economic return from an investment in the Fund and on
the value of the Shares.
The remainder of this summary
assumes that the Fund is classified for federal income tax purposes
as a partnership that it is not taxable as a
corporation.
U.S. Shareholders
Tax Consequences of Ownership of Shares
Taxation of the Fund’s Income. No
U.S. federal income tax is paid by the Fund on its income. Instead,
the Fund files annual partnership returns, and each U.S.
Shareholder is required to report on its U.S. federal income tax
return its allocable share of the income, gain, loss, deductions
and credits reflected on such partnership returns. If the Fund
recognizes income, including interest on cash equivalents and net
capital gains from cash settlement of Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts for a taxable year, Shareholders must report their share
of these items even though the Fund makes no distributions of cash
or property during the taxable year. Consequently, a Shareholder
may be taxable on income or gain recognized by the Fund but receive
no cash distribution with which to pay the resulting tax liability
or may receive a distribution that is insufficient to pay such
liability. Because the Sponsor currently does not intend to make
distributions, it is likely that a U.S. Shareholder that realizes
net income or gain with respect to Shares for a taxable year will
be required to pay any resulting tax from sources other than Fund
distributions. Additionally, individuals with modified adjusted
gross income in excess of $200,000 ($250,000 in the case of married
individuals filing jointly) and certain estates and trusts are
subject to an additional 3.8% tax on their “net investment
income,” which generally includes net income from interest,
dividends, annuities, royalties, and rents, and net capital gains
(other than certain amounts earned from trades or businesses). Also
included as income subject to the additional 3.8% tax is income
from businesses involved in the trading of financial instruments or
commodities. Shareholders subject to this provision may be required
to pay this 3.8% surtax on interest income and capital gains
allocated to them by the Fund.
Monthly Conventions for Allocations of the
Fund’s Profit and Loss and Capital Account
Restatements. Under Code section 704, the determination of a
partner’s distributive share of any item of income, gain,
loss, deduction or credit is governed by the applicable
organizational document unless the allocation provided by such
document lacks “substantial economic effect.” An
allocation that lacks substantial economic effect nonetheless will
be respected if it is in accordance with the partners’
interests in the partnership, determined by considering all facts
and circumstances relating to the economic arrangements among the
partners. Subject to the possible exception for certain conventions
to be used by the Fund as discussed below, allocations pursuant to
the Trust Agreement should be considered as having substantial
economic effect or being in accordance with Shareholders’
interests in the Fund.
In situations where a
partner’s interest in a partnership is redeemed or sold
during a taxable year, the Code generally requires that partnership
tax items for the year be allocated to the partner using either an
interim closing of the books or a daily proration method. The Fund
intends to allocate tax items using an interim closing of the
book’s method under which income, gains, losses and
deductions will be determined on a monthly basis, taking into
account the Fund’s accrued income and deductions and gains
and losses (both realized and unrealized) for the month. The tax
items for each month during a taxable year will then be allocated
among the holders of Shares in proportion to the number of Shares
owned by them as of the close of trading on the last trading day of
the preceding month (the “monthly allocation
convention”).
Under the monthly allocation
convention, an investor who disposes of a Share during the current
month will be treated as disposing of the Share as of the end of
the last day of the calendar month. For example, an investor who
buys a Share on April 10 of a year and sells it on May 20 of the
same year will be allocated all of the tax items attributable to
May (because it is deemed to hold the Share through the last day of
May) but none of those attributable to April. The tax items
attributable to that Share for April will be allocated to the
person who held the Share as of the close of trading on the last
trading day of March. Under the monthly allocation convention, an
investor who purchases and sells a Share during the same month, and
therefore does not hold (and is not deemed to hold) the Share at
the close of the last trading day of either that month or the
previous month, will receive no allocations with respect to that
Share for any period. Accordingly, investors may receive no
allocations with respect to Shares that they actually held or may
receive allocations with respect to Shares attributable to periods
that they did not actually hold the Shares.
By investing in Shares, a U.S.
Shareholder agrees that, in the absence of new legislation,
regulatory or administrative guidance, or judicial rulings to the
contrary, it will file its U.S. income tax returns in a manner that
is consistent with the monthly allocation convention as described
above and with the IRS Schedule K-1 or any successor form provided
to Shareholders by the Fund or the Trust.
For any month in which a Creation
Basket is issued or a Redemption Basket is redeemed, the Fund will
credit or debit the “book” capital accounts of existing
Shareholders with the amount of any unrealized gain or loss,
respectively, on Fund assets. For this purpose, the Fund will use a
convention whereby unrealized gain or loss will be computed based
on the lowest NAV of the Fund’s assets during the month in
which Shares are issued or redeemed, which may be different than
the value of the assets on the date of an issuance or redemption.
The capital accounts as adjusted in this manner will be used in
making tax allocations intended to account for differences between
the tax basis and fair market value of property owned by the Fund
at the time new Shares are issued or outstanding Shares are
redeemed (so-called “reverse Code section 704(c)
allocations”). The intended effect of these adjustments is to
equitably allocate among Shareholders any unrealized appreciation
or depreciation in the Fund’s assets existing at the time of
a contribution or redemption for book and tax
purposes.
The conventions used by the Fund,
as noted above, in making tax allocations may cause a Shareholder
to be allocated more or less income or loss for U.S. federal income
tax purposes than its proportionate share of the economic income or
loss realized by the Fund during the period it held its Shares.
This mismatch between taxable and economic income or loss in some
cases may be temporary, reversing itself in a later year when the
Shares are sold, but could be permanent. As one example, a
Shareholder could be allocated income accruing after it sold its
Shares, resulting in an increase in the basis of the Shares (see
“Tax Basis of
Shares” below). In connection with the disposition of
the Shares, the additional basis might produce a capital loss the
deduction of which may be limited (see “Limitations on Deductibility of Losses and
Certain Expenses”, below).
Section 754 election. The Fund has made
the election permitted by Code section 754 (a “section 754
election”) which election is irrevocable without the consent
of the IRS. The effect of this election is that when a secondary
market sale of Shares occurs, the Fund adjusts the
purchaser’s proportionate share of the tax basis of the
Fund’s assets to fair market value, as reflected in the price
paid for the Shares, as if the purchaser had made a direct
acquisition of an interest in the Fund’s assets. The section
754 election is intended to eliminate disparities between a
partner’s basis in its partnership interest and its share of
the tax basis of the partnership’s assets, so that the
partner’s allocable share of taxable gain or loss on a
disposition of an asset will correspond to the partner’s
share of the appreciation or depreciation in the value of the asset
since the partner acquired its interest. Depending on the price
paid for Shares and the tax basis of the Fund’s assets at the
time of the purchase, the effect of the section 754 election on a
purchaser of Shares may be favorable or unfavorable. In order to
make the appropriate basis adjustments in a cost-effective manner,
the Fund will use certain simplifying conventions and assumptions.
In particular, the Fund will obtain information regarding secondary
market transactions in its Shares and use this information to
adjust the Shareholders’ indirect basis in the Fund’s
assets. It is possible the IRS could be successful in asserting
that the conventions and assumptions applied are improper and
require different basis adjustments to be made, which could
adversely affect some Shareholders.
Section 1256 Contracts. Under the Code,
special rules apply to instruments constituting “section 1256
contracts.” Section 1256 requires that such instruments held
at the end of a taxable year be treated as if they were sold for
their fair market value on the last business day of the taxable
year (i.e., “marked
to market”). Moreover, any gain or loss realized from a
disposition, termination or marking-to-market of section 1256
contracts is treated as long-term capital gain or loss to the
extent of 60% thereof, and as short-term capital gain or loss to
the extent of 40% thereof, without regard to the actual holding
period (“60-40 Treatment”). The term
“section 1256 contract” generally includes, in relevant
part: (1) a ”regulated futures contract,”
defined as a contract (a) that is traded on or subject to the rules
of a national securities exchange that is registered with the SEC,
a domestic board of trade designated as a contract market by the
CFTC, or any other board of trade or exchange designated by the
Secretary of the Treasury (a “qualified board or
exchange”), and (b) with respect to which the amount required
to be deposited and the amount that may be withdrawn depends on a
system of “marking to market”; and (2) a non-equity
option traded on or subject to the rules of a qualified board or
exchange.
Many of the Fund’s Sugar
Futures Contracts will qualify as “section 1256
contracts” under the Code, as will some other sugar interests
that are cleared through a qualified board or exchange. Any gain or
loss recognized with respect to section 1256 contracts will be
subject to the 60-40 treatment and will be allocated to
Shareholders in accordance with the monthly allocation convention.
Commodity swaps will most likely not qualify as section 1256
contracts. If a commodity swap is not taxable as a section 1256
contract, any gain or loss on the swap will be recognized at the
time of disposition or termination as long-term or short-term
capital gain or loss depending on the holding period of the swap in
the Fund’s hands.
Foreign exchange gains and losses
realized by the Fund in connection with certain transactions
involving foreign currency-denominated debt securities, certain
futures contracts, forward contracts, options and similar
investments denominated in a foreign currency, and payables or
receivables denominated in a foreign currency are subject to
section 988 of the Code, which generally causes such gain and loss
to be treated as ordinary income or loss. To the extent the Fund
hold foreign investments, it may be subject to withholding and
other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Tax treaties between
certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate
such taxes. Because the amount of the Fund’s investments in
various countries will change from time to time, it is not possible
to determine the effective rate of such taxes in
advance.
Limitations on Deductibility of Losses and
Certain Expenses. A number of different provisions of the
Code may defer or disallow the deduction of losses or expenses
allocated to Shareholders by the Fund, including but not limited to
those described below.
A Shareholder’s deduction of
its allocable share of any loss of the Fund is limited to the
lesser of (1) the tax basis in its Shares or (2) in the case of a
Shareholder that is an individual or a closely held corporation,
the amount which the Shareholder is considered to have “at
risk” with respect to the Fund’s activities. In
general, the amount at risk initially will be a Shareholder’s
invested capital. Losses in excess of the amount at risk must be
deferred until years in which the Fund generates additional taxable
income against which to offset such carryover losses or until
additional capital is placed at risk.
Individuals and other non-corporate
taxpayers are permitted to deduct capital losses only to the extent
of their capital gains for the taxable year plus $3,000 of other
income. Unused capital losses can be carried forward and used in
future years, subject to these same limitations. In addition, an
individual taxpayer may elect to carry back net losses on section
1256 contracts to each of the three preceding years and use them to
offset section 1256 contract gains in those years, subject to
certain limitations. Corporate taxpayers generally may deduct
capital losses only to the extent of capital gains, subject to
special carryback and carryforward rules.
The deduction for expenses incurred
by non-corporate taxpayers constituting “miscellaneous
itemized deductions,” generally including investment-related
expenses (other than interest and certain other specified
expenses), is suspended for taxable years beginning after December
31, 2017 and before January 1, 2026. During these taxable years,
non-corporate taxpayers will not be able to deduct miscellaneous
itemized deductions. Provided the suspension is not extended, for
taxable years ending on or after January 1, 2026, miscellaneous
itemized deductions are deductible only to the extent they exceed
2% of the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income for the year.
Although the matter is not free from doubt, we believe management
fees the Fund pays to the Sponsor and other expenses of the Fund
constitute investment-related expenses subject to this
miscellaneous itemized deduction limitation, rather than expenses
incurred in connection with a trade or business and will report
these expenses consistent with that interpretation. For taxable
years beginning on or after January 1, 2026, the Code imposes
additional limitations on the amount of certain itemized deductions
allowable to individuals with adjusted gross income in excess of
certain amounts by reducing the otherwise allowable portion of such
deductions by an amount equal to the lesser of:
● 3% of the
individual’s adjusted gross income in excess of certain
threshold amounts; or
● 80% of the amount of
certain itemized deductions otherwise allowable for the taxable
year.
Non-corporate Shareholders
generally may deduct “investment interest expense” only
to the extent of their “net investment income.”
Investment interest expense of a Shareholder will generally include
any interest expense accrued by the Fund and any interest paid or
accrued on direct borrowings by a Shareholder to purchase or carry
its Shares, such as interest with respect to a margin account. Net
investment income generally includes gross income from property
held for investment (including “portfolio income” under
the passive loss rules but not, absent an election, long-term
capital gains or certain qualifying dividend income) less
deductible expenses other than interest directly connected with the
production of investment income.
If the Fund
incurs indebtedness that is treated as allocable to a trade or
business, the Fund’s ability to deduct interest on such
indebtedness is limited to an amount equal to the sum of (1) the
Fund’s business interest income during the year and (2) 30%
of the Fund’s adjusted taxable income for such taxable year.
If the Fund is not entitled to fully deduct its business interest
in any taxable year, such excess business interest expense will be
allocated to each Shareholder as excess business interest and can
be carried forward by the Shareholder to successive taxable years
and used to offset any excess taxable income allocated by the Fund
to such Shareholder. Any excess business interest expense allocated
to a Shareholder will reduce such Shareholder’s basis in its
Shares in the year of the allocation even if the expense does not
give rise to a deduction to the Shareholder in that year.
Immediately prior to a Shareholder’s disposition of its
Shares, the Shareholder’s basis will be increased by the
amount by which such basis reduction exceeds the excess interest
expense that has been deducted by such
Shareholder.
To the extent that the Fund
allocates losses or expenses to a Shareholder that must be deferred
or are disallowed as a result of these or other limitations in the
Code, the Shareholder may be taxed on income in excess of your
economic income or distributions (if any) on its Shares. As one
example, a Shareholder could be allocated and required to pay tax
on its share of interest income accrued by the Fund for a
particular taxable year, and in the same year be allocated a share
of a capital loss that the Shareholder cannot deduct currently
because it has insufficient capital gains against which to offset
the loss. As another example, a Shareholder could be allocated and
required to pay tax on its share of interest income and capital
gains for a year but be unable to deduct some or all of its share
of Fund expenses and/or margin account interest incurred by the
Shareholder with respect to its Shares. Each Shareholder is urged
to consult its own tax advisor regarding the effect of limitations
under the Code on the ability to deduct their allocable share of
the Fund’s losses and expenses.
Tax Basis of Shares
A Shareholder’s tax basis in
its Shares is important in determining (1) the amount of taxable
gain or loss it will realize on the sale or other disposition of
its Shares, (2) the amount of non-taxable distributions that it may
receive from the Fund, and (3) its ability to utilize its
distributive share of any losses of the Fund on its federal income
tax return. A Shareholder’s initial tax basis of its Shares
will equal its cost for the Shares plus its share of the
Fund’s liabilities (if any) at the time of purchase. In
general, a Shareholder’s “share” of those
liabilities will equal the sum of (i) the entire amount of any
otherwise nonrecourse liability of the Fund as to which the
Shareholder or certain affiliates of the Shareholder is the
creditor (a “partner nonrecourse liability”) and (ii) a
pro rata share of any nonrecourse liabilities of the Fund that are
not partner nonrecourse liabilities as to any
Shareholder.
A
Shareholder’s tax basis in its Shares generally will be (1)
increased by (a) its allocable share of the Fund’s taxable
income and gain and (b) any additional contributions by the
Shareholder to the Fund and (2) decreased (but not below zero) by
(a) its allocable share of the Fund’s tax deductions and
losses and (b) any distributions by the Fund to the Shareholder.
For this purpose, an increase in a Shareholder’s share of the
Fund’s liabilities will be treated as a contribution of cash
by the Shareholder to the Fund and a decrease in that share will be
treated as a distribution of cash by the Fund to the Shareholder.
Pursuant to certain IRS rulings, a Shareholder will be required to
maintain a single, “unified” basis in all Shares that
it owns. As a result, when a Shareholder that acquired its Shares
at different prices sells less than all of its Shares, such
Shareholder will not be entitled to specify particular Shares
(e.g., those with a higher
basis) as having been sold. Rather, it must determine its gain or
loss on the sale by using an “equitable apportionment”
method to allocate a portion of its unified basis in its Shares to
the Shares sold.
Treatment of Fund Distributions. If the
Fund makes non-liquidating distributions to Shareholders, such
distributions generally will not be taxable to the Shareholders for
federal income tax purposes except to the extent that the amount of
money distributed exceeds the Shareholder’s adjusted basis of
its interest in the Fund immediately before the distribution. Any
money distributed that is in excess of a Shareholder’s tax
basis generally will be treated as gain from the sale or exchange
of Shares. For purposes of determining the gain recognized on a
distribution from a partnership, a marketable security distributed
to a partner is generally treated as money. This treatment,
however, does not apply to distributions to “eligible
partners” of an “investment partnership,” as
those terms are defined in the Code.
Tax Consequences of
Disposition of Shares
If a
Shareholder sells its Shares, it will recognize gain or loss equal
to the difference between the amount realized and its adjusted tax
basis for the Shares sold. A Shareholder’s amount realized
will be the sum of the cash or the fair market value of other
property received plus its share of the Fund's
liabilities.
Gain or loss
recognized by a Shareholder on the sale or exchange of Shares held
for more than one year will generally be taxable as long-term
capital gain or loss; otherwise, such gain or loss will generally
be taxable as short-term capital gain or loss. A special election
is available under the Treasury Regulations that allows
Shareholders to identify and use the actual holding periods for the
Shares sold for purposes of determining whether the gain or loss
recognized on a sale of Shares will give rise to long-term or
short-term capital gain or loss. It is expected that most
Shareholders will be eligible to elect, and generally will elect,
to identify and use the actual holding periods for Shares sold. If
a Shareholder who has differing holding periods for its Shares
fails to make the election or is not able to identify the holding
periods of the Shares sold, the Shareholder will have a split
holding period in the Shares sold. Under such circumstances, a
Shareholder will be required to determine its holding period in the
Shares sold by first determining the portion of its entire interest
in the Fund that would give rise to long-term capital gain or loss
if its entire interest were sold and the portion that would give
rise to short-term capital gain or loss if the entire interest were
sold. The Shareholder would then treat each Share sold as giving
rise to long-term capital gain or loss and short-term capital gain
or loss in the same proportions as if it had sold its entire
interest in the Fund.
Under Code
section 751, a portion of a Shareholder’s gain or loss from
the sale of Shares (regardless of the holding period for such
Shares), will be computed separately and taxed as ordinary income
or loss to the extent attributable to “unrealized
receivables” or “inventory” owned by the Fund.
The term “unrealized receivables” includes, among other
things, market discount bonds and short-term debt instruments to
the extent that such items would give rise to ordinary income if
sold by the Fund. However, the short-term capital gain on section
1256 contracts resulting from 60-40 Treatment, described above,
should not be subject to this rule.
If some or all
of a Shareholder’s Shares are lent by its broker or other
agent to a third party — for example, for use by the third
party in covering a short sale — the Shareholder may be
considered as having made a taxable disposition of the loaned
Shares, in which case —
|
●
|
the Shareholder may recognize
taxable gain or loss to the same extent as if it had sold the
Shares for cash;
|
|
●
|
any of the income, gain, loss or
deduction allocable to those Shares during the period of the loan
is not reportable by the Shareholder for tax purposes;
and
|
|
●
|
any distributions the Shareholder
receives with respect to the Shares under the loan agreement will
be fully taxable to the Shareholder, most likely as ordinary
income.
|
Shareholders desiring to avoid
these and other possible consequences of a deemed disposition of
their Shares should consider modifying any applicable brokerage
account agreements to prohibit the lending of their
Shares.
Other
U.S. Federal Income Tax Matters
Information Reporting. The Fund
provides tax information to the Shareholders and to the IRS, as
required. Shareholders are treated as partners for U.S. federal
income tax purposes. Accordingly, the Fund will furnish
Shareholders each year, with tax information on IRS Schedule K-1
(Form 1065), which will be used by the Shareholders in completing
their tax returns. The IRS has ruled that assignees of partnership
interests who have not been admitted to a partnership as partners
but who have the capacity to exercise substantial dominion and
control over the assigned partnership interests will be considered
partners for U.S. federal income tax purposes. On the basis of this
ruling, except as otherwise provided herein, we will treat as a
Shareholder any person whose shares are held on their behalf by a
broker or other nominee if that person has the right to direct the
nominee in the exercise of all substantive rights attendant to the
ownership of the Shares.
Persons who hold an interest in the
Fund as a nominee for another person are required to furnish to us
the following information: (1) the name, address and taxpayer
identification number of the beneficial owner and the nominee; (2)
whether the beneficial owner is (a) a person that is not a U.S.
person, (b) a foreign government, an international organization or
any wholly-owned agency or instrumentality of either of the
foregoing, or (c) a tax-exempt entity; (3) the number and a
description of Shares acquired or transferred for the beneficial
owner; and (4) certain information including the dates of
acquisitions and transfers, means of acquisitions and transfers,
and acquisition cost for purchases, as well as the amount of net
proceeds from sales. Brokers and financial institutions are
required to furnish additional information, including whether they
are U.S. persons and certain information on Shares they acquire,
hold or transfer for their own account. A penalty of $250 per
failure (as adjusted for inflation), up to a maximum of $3,000,000
per calendar year (as adjusted for inflation), is imposed by the
Code for failure to report such information correctly to the Fund.
If the failure to furnish such information correctly is determined
to be willful, the per failure penalty increases to $500 (as
adjusted for inflation) or, if greater, 10% of the aggregate amount
of items required to be reported, and the $3,000,000 maximum does
not apply. The nominee is required to supply the beneficial owner
of the Shares with the federal income tax information furnished by
the Fund.
Partnership Audit Procedures. The
IRS may audit the U.S. federal income tax returns filed by the
Fund. Adjustments resulting from any such audit may require a
Shareholder to adjust a prior year’s tax liability and could
result in an audit of the Shareholder’s own return. Any audit
of a Shareholder’s return could result in adjustments of
non-partnership items as well as Fund items. Partnerships are
generally treated as separate entities for purposes of U.S. federal
income tax audits, judicial review of administrative adjustments by
the IRS, and tax settlement proceedings. The tax treatment of
partnership items of income, gain, loss and deduction are
determined at the partnership level in a unified partnership
proceeding rather than in separate proceedings with the partners.
The Code provides for one partner to be designated as the
“tax matters partner” and to represent the partnership
for purposes of these proceedings. The Trust Agreement appoints the
Sponsor as the tax matters partner of the Fund.
The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015
adopted a new partnership-level audit and assessment procedure for
all entities treated as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax
purposes. These new rules generally apply to partnership taxable
years beginning after December 31, 2017. Under these rules, tax
deficiencies (including interest and penalties) that arise from an
adjustment to partnership items generally would be assessed and
collected from the partnership (rather than from the partners), and
generally would be calculated using maximum applicable tax rates
(although such partnership level tax may be reduced or eliminated
under limited circumstances). A narrow category of partnerships
(generally, partnerships having no more than 100 partners that
consist exclusively of individuals, C corporations, S corporations
and estates) are permitted to elect out of the new
partnership-level audit rules. As an alternative to
partnership-level tax liability, a partnership may elect to furnish
adjusted Schedule K-1s to the IRS and to each person who was a
partner in the audit year, stating such partner’s share of
any partnership adjustments, and each such partner would then take
the adjustments into account on its tax returns in the year in
which it receives its adjusted Schedule K-1 (rather than by
amending their tax returns for the audited year). If the Fund were
subject to a partnership level tax as a result of these new rules,
the economic return of all Shareholders (including Shareholders
that did not own Shares in the Fund during the taxable year to
which the audit relates) may be affected.
To address
these new rules, the Sponsor amended the Trust Agreement so that if
the Fund becomes subject to any tax as a result of any adjustment
to taxable income, gain, loss, deduction or credit for any taxable
year of the Fund (pursuant to a tax audit or otherwise), such
Shareholder (and each former Shareholder) is obligated to indemnify
the Fund and the Sponsor against any such taxes (including any
interest and penalties) to the extent such tax (or portion thereof)
is properly attributable to such Shareholder (or former
Shareholder). In addition, the Sponsor, on behalf of the Fund, will
be authorized to take any action permitted under applicable law to
avoid the assessment of any such taxes against the Fund (including
an election to issue adjusted Schedule K-1s to the Shareholders
(and/or former Shareholders) which takes such adjustments to
taxable income, gain, loss, deduction or credit into
account.
Reportable Transaction Rules. In
certain circumstances the Code and Treasury Regulations require
that the IRS be notified of transactions through a disclosure
statement attached to a taxpayer’s U.S. federal income tax
return. These disclosure rules may apply to transactions
irrespective of whether they are structured to achieve particular
tax benefits and they could require disclosure by the Trust or
Shareholders if a Shareholder incurs a loss in excess of a
specified threshold from a sale or redemption of its Shares and
possibly in other circumstances. While these rules generally do not
require disclosure of a loss recognized on the disposition of an
asset in which the taxpayer has a “qualifying basis”
(generally a basis equal to the amount of cash paid by the taxpayer
for such asset), they apply to a loss recognized with respect to
interests in a pass-through entity, such as the Shares, even if the
taxpayer’s basis in such interests is equal to the amount of
cash it paid for such interests. In addition, significant monetary
penalties may be imposed in connection with a failure to comply
with these reporting requirements. Investors should consult their
own tax advisor concerning the application of these reporting
requirements to their specific situation.
Tax-Exempt
Organizations. Subject to numerous exceptions, qualified retirement
plans and individual retirement accounts, charitable organizations
and certain other organizations that otherwise are exempt from U.S.
federal income tax (collectively, “exempt
organizations”) nonetheless are subject to the tax on
unrelated business taxable income (“UBTI”). Generally,
UBTI means the gross income derived by an exempt organization from
a trade or business that it regularly carries on, the conduct of
which is not substantially related to the exercise or performance
of its exempt purpose or function, less allowable deductions
directly connected with that trade or business. If the Fund were to
regularly carry on (directly or indirectly) a trade or business
that is unrelated with respect to an exempt organization
Shareholder, then in computing its UBTI, the Shareholder must
include its share of (1) the Fund’s gross income from the
unrelated trade or business, whether or not distributed, and (2)
the Fund’s allowable deductions directly connected with that
gross income. An exempt organization that has more than one
unrelated trade or business must compute its UBTI separately for
each such trade or business.
UBTI generally does not include
dividends, interest, or payments with respect to securities loans
and gains from the sale of property (other than property held for
sale to customers in the ordinary course of a trade or business).
Nonetheless, income on, and gain from the disposition of,
“debt-financed property” is UBTI. Debt-financed
property generally is income-producing property (including
securities), the use of which is not substantially related to the
exempt organization’s tax-exempt purposes, and with respect
to which there is “acquisition indebtedness” at any
time during the taxable year (or, if the property was disposed of
during the taxable year, the 12-month period ending with the
disposition). Acquisition indebtedness includes debt incurred to
acquire property, debt incurred before the acquisition of property
if the debt would not have been incurred but for the acquisition,
and debt incurred subsequent to the acquisition of property if the
debt would not have been incurred but for the acquisition and at
the time of acquisition the incurrence of debt was foreseeable. The
portion of the income from debt-financed property attributable to
acquisition indebtedness is equal to the ratio of the average
outstanding principal amount of acquisition indebtedness over the
average adjusted basis of the property for the year. The Fund
currently does not anticipate that it will borrow money to acquire
investments; however, the Fund cannot be certain that it will not
borrow for such purpose in the future, which could result in an
exempt organization Shareholder having UBTI. In addition, an exempt
organization Shareholder that incurs acquisition indebtedness to
purchase its Shares in the Fund may have UBTI.
The U.S. federal income tax rate
applicable to an exempt organization Shareholder on its UBTI
generally will be either the corporate or trust tax rate, depending
upon the Shareholder’s form of organization. The Fund may
report to each such Shareholder information as to the portion, if
any, of the Shareholder’s income and gains from the Fund for
any year that will be treated as UBTI; the calculation of that
amount is complex, and there can be no assurance that the
Fund’s calculation of UBTI will be accepted by the IRS. An
exempt organization Shareholder will be required to make payments
of estimated U.S. federal income tax with respect to its
UBTI.
Regulated
Investment Companies. Interests in and income from “qualified
publicly traded partnerships” satisfying certain gross income
tests are treated as qualifying assets and income, respectively,
for purposes of determining eligibility under the Code for
regulated investment company (“RIC”) status. A RIC may
invest up to 25% of its assets in interests in qualified publicly
traded partnerships. The determination of whether a publicly traded
partnership such as the Fund is a qualified publicly traded
partnership is made on an annual basis. The Fund expects to be a
qualified publicly traded partnership in each of its taxable years.
However, such qualification is not assured.
Non-U.S.
Shareholders
Generally,
non-U.S. persons who derive U.S. source income or gain from
investing or engaging in a U.S. business are taxable on two
categories of income. The first category consists of amounts that
are fixed or determinable, annual or periodic income, such as
interest, dividends and rent that are not connected with the
operation of a U.S. trade or business (“FDAP”). The
second category is income that is effectively connected with the
conduct of a U.S. trade or business (“ECI”). FDAP
income (other than interest that is considered “portfolio
interest;” as discussed below) is generally subject to a 30%
withholding tax, which may be reduced for certain categories of
income by a treaty between the U.S. and the recipient’s
country of residence. In contrast, ECI is generally subject to U.S.
tax on a net basis at graduated rates upon the filing of a U.S. tax
return. Where a non-U.S. person has ECI as a result of an
investment in a partnership, the ECI is currently subject to a
withholding tax at a rate of 37% for individual Shareholders and a
rate of 21% for corporate Shareholders. The tax withholding on ECI,
which is the highest tax rate under Code section 1 for
non-corporate Non-U.S. Shareholders and Code section 11(b) for
corporate Non-U.S. Shareholders, may increase in future tax years
if tax rates increase from their current
levels.
Withholding on Allocations and
Distributions. The Code provides that a non-U.S. person who
is a partner in a partnership that is engaged in a U.S. trade or
business during a taxable year will also be considered to be
engaged in a U.S. trade or business during that year. Classifying
an activity by a partnership as an investment or an operating
business is a factual determination. Under certain safe harbors in
the Code, an investment fund whose activities consist of trading in
stocks, securities, or commodities for its own account generally
will not be considered to be engaged in a U.S. trade or business
unless it is a dealer is such stocks, securities, or commodities.
This safe harbor applies to investments in commodities only if the
commodities are of a kind customarily dealt in on an organized
commodity exchange and if the transaction is of a kind customarily
consummated at such place. Although the matter is not free from
doubt, the Fund believes that the activities directly conducted by
the Fund do not result in the Fund being engaged in a trade or
business within the United States. However, there can be no
assurance that the IRS would not successfully assert that the
Fund’s activities constitute a U.S. trade or
business.
In the event
that the Fund is considered to be engaged in a U.S. trade or
business, the Fund would be required to withhold at the highest
rate specified in Code section 1 (currently 37%) on allocations of
its ECI to non-corporate Non-U.S. Shareholders and the highest rate
specified in Code section 11(b) (currently 21%) on allocations of
its ECI to corporate Non-U.S. Shareholders, when such income is
distributed. Non-U.S. Shareholders would also be subject to a 10%
withholding tax on the consideration payable upon a sale or
exchange of such Non-U.S. Shareholder’s Shares, although the
IRS has temporarily suspended this withholding for interests in
publicly traded partnerships until regulations implementing such
withholding are issued. If recently promulgated regulations are
finalized as proposed, such regulations would provide, with respect
to transfers of publicly traded interests in publicly traded
partnerships effected through a broker, that the obligation to
withhold is imposed on the transferor’s broker. However, it
is not clear when such regulations will be finalized and if they
will be finalized in their current form. A Non-U.S. Shareholder
with ECI generally will be required to file a U.S. federal income
tax return, and the return will provide the Non-U.S. Shareholder
with the mechanism to seek a refund of any withholding in excess of
such Shareholder’s actual U.S. federal income tax
liability.
Even if the Fund did not realize
ECI, a Non-U.S. Shareholder nevertheless may be treated as having
FDAP income, which would be subject to a 30% U.S. withholding tax
(possibly subject to reduction by treaty), with respect to some or
all of its distributions from the Fund or its allocable share of
Fund income.
Amounts withheld by the Fund on
behalf of a Non-U.S. Shareholder will be treated as being
distributed to such Shareholder to the extent possible. In
some cases, the Fund may not be able to match the economic cost of
satisfying its withholding obligations to a particular Non-U.S.
Shareholder, which may result in that cost being borne by the Fund,
generally, and accordingly, by all Shareholders
proportionately.
To the extent any interest income
allocated to a Non-U.S. Shareholder that otherwise constitutes FDAP
is considered “portfolio interest,” neither the
allocation of such interest income to the Non-U.S. Shareholder nor
a subsequent distribution of such interest income to the Non-U.S.
Shareholder will be subject to withholding, provided that the
Non-U.S. Shareholder is not otherwise engaged in a trade or
business in the U.S. and provides the Fund with a timely and
properly completed and executed IRS Form W-8BEN or other applicable
form. In general, portfolio interest is interest paid on debt
obligations issued in registered form, unless the recipient owns
10% or more of the voting power of the issuer. A Non-U.S.
Shareholder’s allocable share of interest on U.S. bank
deposits, certificates of deposit and discount obligations with
maturities from original issue of 183 days or less should also not
be subject to withholding. Generally, other interest from U.S.
sources paid to the Fund and allocable to Non-U.S. Shareholders
will be subject to withholding.
In order for the Fund to avoid
withholding on any interest income allocable to Non-U.S.
Shareholders that would qualify as portfolio interest, it will be
necessary for all Non-U.S. Shareholders to provide the Fund with a
timely and properly completed and executed Form W-8BEN (or other
applicable form).
Gain from Sale of Shares. Gain from the
sale or exchange of Shares may be taxable to a Non-U.S. Shareholder
if the Non-U.S. Shareholder is a nonresident alien individual who
is present in the U.S. for 183 days or more during the taxable
year. In such case, the nonresident alien individual may be subject
to a 30% withholding tax on the amount of such individual’s
gain.
Branch Profits Tax on Corporate Non-U.S.
Shareholders. In addition to the taxes noted above, any
Non-U.S. Shareholders that are corporations may also be subject to
an additional tax, the branch profits tax, at a rate of 30%. The
branch profits tax is imposed on a non-U.S. corporation’s
dividend equivalent amount, which generally consists of the
corporation’s after-tax earnings and profits that are
effectively connected with the corporation’s U.S. trade or
business but are not reinvested in a U.S. business. This tax may be
reduced or eliminated by an income tax treaty between the United
States and the country in which the Non-U.S. Shareholder is a
“qualified resident.”
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.
Legislation commonly referred to as the Foreign Account Tax
Compliance Act or "FATCA", generally imposes a 30% U.S. withholding
tax on payments of certain types of income to foreign financial
institutions that fail to enter into an agreement with the United
States Treasury to report certain required information with respect
to accounts held by U.S. persons (or held by foreign entities that
have U.S. persons as substantial owners). The types of income
subject to the withholding tax include U.S.-source interest and
dividends and the gross proceeds from the sale of any property that
could produce U.S.-source interest or dividends. Proposed Treasury
Regulations, however, generally eliminate withholding under FATCA
on gross proceeds. Taxpayers generally may rely on these proposed
Treasury Regulations until final Treasury Regulations are issued.
The information required to be reported includes the identity and
taxpayer identification number of each account holder that is a
U.S. person and transaction activity within the holder’s
account. In addition, subject to certain exceptions, this
legislation also imposes a 30% U.S. withholding tax on payments to
foreign entities that are not financial institutions unless the
foreign entity certifies that it does not have a greater than 10%
U.S. owner or provides the withholding agent with identifying
information on each greater than 10% U.S. owner. Depending on the
status of a Non-U.S. Shareholder and the status of the
intermediaries through which it holds Shares, a Non-U.S.
Shareholder could be subject to this 30% U.S. withholding tax with
respect to distributions on its Shares. Under certain
circumstances, a Non-U.S. Shareholder may be eligible for a refund
or credit of such taxes.
Prospective
Non-U.S. Shareholders should consult their own tax advisor
regarding these and other tax issues unique to Non-U.S.
Shareholders.
Backup Withholding
The Fund may be required to
withhold U.S. federal income tax (“backup withholding”)
from payments to: (1) any Shareholder who fails to furnish the Fund
with his, her or its correct taxpayer identification number or a
certificate that the Shareholder is exempt from backup withholding,
and (2) any Shareholder with respect to whom the IRS notifies the
Fund that the Shareholder is subject to backup
withholding. Backup withholding is not an additional tax
and may be returned or credited against a taxpayer’s regular
federal income tax liability if appropriate information is provided
to the IRS. The backup withholding rate is the fourth
lowest rate applicable to individuals under Code section 1(c)
(currently 24%) and may increase in future tax
years.
Other Tax Considerations
In addition to U.S. federal income
taxes, Shareholders may be subject to other taxes, such as state
and local income taxes, unincorporated business taxes, business
franchise taxes, and estate, gift, inheritance or intangible taxes
that may be imposed by the various jurisdictions in which the Fund
does business or owns property or where the Shareholder
resides. Although an analysis of those various taxes is
not presented here, each prospective Shareholder should consider
their potential impact on its investment in the Fund. It
is each Shareholder’s responsibility to file the appropriate
U.S. federal, state, local, and foreign tax returns. Vedder
Price has not provided an opinion concerning any aspects of state,
local or foreign tax or U.S. federal tax other than those U.S.
federal income tax issues discussed under the heading “U.S.
Federal Income Tax Considerations.”
Investment by
ERISA Accounts
General
Most employee benefit plans and
individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”) are subject to
the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended
(“ERISA”), or the Code, or both. This
section discusses certain considerations that arise under ERISA and
the Code that a fiduciary of: (i) an employee benefit plan as
defined in ERISA; (ii) a plan as defined in Section 4975 of the
Code; or (iii) any collective investment vehicle, business
trust, investment partnership, pooled separate account or other
entity the assets of which are treated as comprised (at least in
part) of “plan assets” under the ERISA “plan
assets” rules (“plan asset entity”) who has
investment discretion should take into account before deciding to
invest the plan’s assets in the Fund. Employee
benefit plans under ERISA, plans under the Code and plan asset
entities are collectively referred to below as “plans,”
and fiduciaries with investment discretion are referred to below as
“plan fiduciaries.”
This summary is based on the
provisions of ERISA and the Code as of the date
hereof. This summary is not intended to be complete, but
only to address certain questions under ERISA and the Code likely
to be raised by your advisors. The summary does not
include state or local law.
Potential plan
investors are urged to consult with their own advisors concerning
the appropriateness of an investment in the Fund and the manner in
which Shares should be purchased.
Special Investment Considerations
Each plan fiduciary must consider
the facts and circumstances that are relevant to an investment in
the Fund, including the role that an investment in the Fund would
play in the plan’s overall investment
portfolio. Each plan fiduciary, before deciding to
invest in the Fund, must be satisfied that the investment is
prudent for the plan, that the investments of the plan are
diversified so as to minimize the risk of large losses, and that an
investment in the Fund complies with the terms of the plan. The
Sponsor is not undertaking to provide investment advice, or to give
advice in a fiduciary capacity, in connection with a plan’s
investment in the Fund.
The Fund and Plan Assets
A regulation issued under ERISA
contains rules for determining when an investment by a plan in an
equity interest of a statutory trust will result in the underlying
assets of the statutory trust being deemed plan assets for purposes
of ERISA and Section 4975 of the Code. Those rules
provide that assets of a statutory trust will not be plan assets of
a plan that purchases an equity interest in the statutory trust if
the equity interest purchased is a publicly offered
security. If the underlying assets of a statutory trust
are considered to be assets of any plan for purposes of ERISA or
Section 4975 of the Code, the operations of that trust would be
subject to and, in some cases, limited by the provisions of ERISA
and Section 4975 of the Code.
The publicly offered security
exception described above applies if the equity interest is a
security that is:
(1) freely transferable (determined
based on the relevant facts and circumstances);
(2) part of a class of securities
that is widely held (meaning that the class of securities
is owned by 100 or more investors
independent of the issuer and of each other);
and
(3) either (a) part of a class of
securities registered under Section 12(b) or 12(g) of
the Exchange Act or (b) sold to the
plan as part of a public offering pursuant to an effective
registration statement under the 1933 Act and the class of which
such security is a part is registered under the Exchange Act
within 120 days (or such later time as may be allowed by the SEC)
after the end of the fiscal year of the issuer in which the
offering of such security
occurred.
The plan asset regulations under
ERISA state that the determination of whether a security is freely
transferable is to be made based on all the relevant facts and
circumstances. In the case of a security that is part of
an offering in which the minimum investment is $10,000 or less, the
following requirements, alone or in combination, ordinarily will
not affect a finding that the security is freely transferable: (1)
a requirement that no transfer or assignment of the security or
rights relating to the security be made that would violate any
federal or state law; and (2) a requirement that no transfer or
assignment be made without advance written notice given to the
entity that issued the security.
The Sponsor believes that the
conditions described above are satisfied with respect to the
Shares. The Sponsor believes that the Shares therefore
constitute publicly offered securities, and the underlying assets
of the Fund should not be considered to constitute plan assets of
any plan that purchases Shares.
Prohibited Transactions
ERISA and the Code generally
prohibit certain transactions involving a plan and persons who have
certain specified relationships to the plan. In general,
Shares may not be purchased with the assets of a plan if the
Sponsor, the clearing brokers, the trading advisors (if any), or
any of their affiliates, agents or employees
either:
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exercise any discretionary
authority or discretionary control with respect to management of
the plan;
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exercise any authority or control
with respect to management or disposition of the assets of the
plan;
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render investment advice for a fee
or other compensation, direct or indirect, with respect to any
moneys or other property of the plan;
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have any authority or
responsibility to render investment advice with respect to any
monies or other property of the plan; or
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have any discretionary authority or
discretionary responsibility in the administration of the
plan.
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Also, a prohibited transaction may
occur under ERISA or the Code when circumstances indicate that (1)
the investment in Shares is made or retained for the purpose of
avoiding application of the fiduciary standards of ERISA, (2) the
investment in Shares constitutes an arrangement under which the
Fund is expected to engage in transactions that would otherwise be
prohibited if entered into directly by the plan purchasing the
Shares, (3) the investing plan, by itself, has the authority or
influence to cause the Fund to engage in such transactions, or (4)
a person who is prohibited from transacting with the investing plan
may, but only with the aid of certain of its affiliates and the
investing plan, cause the Fund to engage in such transactions with
such person.
Special IRA Rules
IRAs are not subject to
ERISA’s fiduciary standards, but are subject to their own
rules, including the prohibited transaction rules of Section 4975
of the Code, which generally mirror ERISA’s prohibited
transaction rules. For example, IRAs are subject to
special custody rules and must maintain a qualifying IRA custodial
arrangement separate and distinct from the Fund and its custodial
arrangement. If a separate qualifying custodial
arrangement is not maintained, an investment in the Shares will be
treated as a distribution from the IRA. Second, IRAs are
prohibited from investing in certain commingled investments, and
the Sponsor makes no representation regarding whether an investment
in Shares is an inappropriate commingled investment for an
IRA. Third, in applying the prohibited transaction
provisions of Section 4975 of the Code, in addition to the rules
summarized above, the individual for whose benefit the IRA is
maintained is also treated as the creator of the
IRA. For example, if the owner or beneficiary of an IRA
enters into any transaction, arrangement, or agreement involving
the assets of his or her IRA to benefit the IRA owner or
beneficiary (or his or her relatives or business affiliates)
personally, or with the understanding that such benefit will occur,
directly or indirectly, such transaction could give rise to a
prohibited transaction that is not exempted by any available
exemption. Moreover, in the case of an IRA, the
consequences of a non-exempt prohibited transaction are that the
IRA’s assets will be treated as if they were distributed,
causing immediate taxation of the assets (including any early
distribution penalty tax applicable under Section 72 of the Code),
in addition to any other fines or penalties that may
apply.
Exempt Plans
Certain employee benefit plans may
be governmental plans or church plans. Governmental
plans and church plans are generally not subject to ERISA, nor do
the prohibited transaction provisions described above apply to
them. These plans are, however, subject to prohibitions
against certain related-party transactions under Section 503 of the
Code, which are similar to the prohibited transaction rules
described above. In addition, the fiduciary of any
governmental or church plan must consider any applicable state or
local laws and any restrictions and duties of common law imposed
upon the plan.
No view is expressed as to whether
an investment in the Fund (and any continued investment in the
Fund), or the operation and administration of the fund, is
appropriate or permissible for any governmental plan or church plan
under Code Section 503, or under any state, county, local or other
law relating to that type of plan.
Allowing an
investment in the Fund is not to be construed as a representation
by the Trust, the Fund, the Sponsor, any trading advisor, any
clearing broker, the Distributor or legal counsel or other advisors
to such parties or any other party that this investment meets some
or all of the relevant legal requirements with respect to
investments by any particular plan or that this investment is
appropriate for any such particular plan. The person
with investment discretion should consult with the plan’s
attorney and financial advisors as to the propriety of an
investment in the Fund in light of the circumstances of the
particular plan, current tax law and ERISA.
INCORPORATION BY
REFERENCE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION
We are a reporting company and file
annual, quarterly and current reports and other information with
the SEC. The rules of the SEC allow us to “incorporate by
reference” information that we file with them, which means
that we can disclose important information to you by referring you
to those documents. The information incorporated by reference is an
important part of this prospectus. This prospectus incorporates by
reference the documents set forth below that have been previously
filed with the SEC and any future filings that the Trust makes with
the SEC under Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (in each case other than those documents or
portions of those documents not deemed to have been filed in
accordance with SEC rules) between the date of this prospectus and
the termination of the offering of the securities to be issued
under the registration statement:
● our Annual Report on Form 10-K for
the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the SEC on
March 16, 2021; and
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Any statement contained in a
document incorporated by reference in this prospectus shall be
deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this prospectus
to the extent that a statement contained in this prospectus or in
any other subsequently filed document that also is or is deemed to
be incorporated by reference in this prospectus modifies or
supersedes such statement. Any statement so modified or superseded
shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to
constitute a part of this prospectus.
We will provide to each person to
whom a prospectus is delivered, including any beneficial owner, a
copy of any document incorporated by reference in the prospectus
(excluding any exhibits to those documents unless the exhibit is
specifically incorporated by reference as an exhibit in that
document) at no cost, upon written or oral request at the following
address or telephone number:
Teucrium Sugar
Fund
Attention: Cory
Mullen-Rusin
Three Main Street, Suite
215
Burlington, VT
05401
(802) 540-0019
Our Internet website is
www.teucrium.com. We make our electronic filings with the SEC,
including our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on
Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to these
reports available on our website free of charge as soon as
practicable after we file or furnish them with the SEC. The
information contained on our website is not incorporated by
reference in this prospectus and should not be considered a part of
this prospectus.
INFORMATION YOU
SHOULD KNOW
This prospectus contains
information you should consider when making an investment decision
about the Shares. You should rely only on the
information contained in this prospectus or any applicable
prospectus supplement. None of the Trust, the Fund or
the Sponsor has authorized any person to provide you with different
information and, if anyone provides you with different or
inconsistent information, you should not rely on
it. This prospectus is not an offer to sell the Shares
in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale of the Shares is not
permitted.
The information contained in this
prospectus was obtained from us and other sources believed by us to
be reliable.
You should disregard anything we
said in an earlier document that is inconsistent with what is
included in this prospectus or any applicable prospectus
supplement. Where the context requires, when we refer to
this “prospectus,” we are referring to this prospectus
and (if applicable) the relevant prospectus
supplement.
You should not assume that the
information in this prospectus or any applicable prospectus
supplement is current as of any date other than the date on the
front page of this prospectus or the date on the front page of any
applicable prospectus supplement.
We include cross references in this
prospectus to captions in these materials where you can find
further related discussions. The table of contents tells
you where to find these captions.
WHERE YOU CAN
FIND MORE INFORMATION
The Trust has filed on behalf of
the Fund a registration statement on Form S-1 with the SEC under
the 1933 Act. This prospectus does not contain all of
the information set forth in the registration statement (including
the exhibits to the registration statement), parts of which have
been omitted in accordance with the rules and regulations of the
SEC. For further information about the Trust, the Fund
or the Shares, please refer to the registration statement, which
you may inspect online at www.sec.gov.
Information about the Trust, the Fund and the Shares can also be
obtained from the Fund’s website, which is www.teucrium.com. The
Fund’s website address is only provided here as a convenience
to you and the information contained on or connected to the website
is not part of this prospectus or the registration statement of
which this prospectus is part. The Trust is subject to
the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and will file
certain reports and other information with the SEC under the
Exchange Act. The Sponsor will file an updated
prospectus annually for the Fund pursuant to the 1933
Act. The reports and other information can be inspected
online at www.sec.gov, which is the
Internet site maintained by the SEC that contains reports, proxy
and information statements and other information regarding issuers
that file electronically with the SEC.
STATEMENT
REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus includes
“forward-looking statements” which generally relate to
future events or future performance. In some cases, you can
identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as
“may,” “will,” “should,”
“expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,”
“believe,” “estimate,”
“predict,” “potential” or the negative of
these terms or other comparable terminology. All statements (other
than statements of historical fact) included in this prospectus
that address activities, events or developments that will or may
occur in the future, including such matters as movements in the
commodities markets and indexes that track such movements, the
Fund’s operations, the Sponsor’s plans and references
to the Fund’s future success and other similar matters, are
forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions.
Actual events or results may differ materially. These statements
are based upon certain assumptions and analyses the Sponsor has
made based on its perception of historical trends, current
conditions and expected future developments, as well as other
factors appropriate in the circumstances. Whether or not actual
results and developments will conform to the Sponsor’s
expectations and predictions, however, is subject to a number of
risks and uncertainties, including the special considerations
discussed in this prospectus, general economic, market and business
conditions, changes in laws or regulations, including those
concerning taxes, made by governmental authorities or regulatory
bodies, and other world economic and political developments. See
“What Are the Risk Factors Involved with an Investment in the
Fund?” Consequently, all the forward-looking statements made
in this prospectus are qualified by these cautionary statements,
and there can be no assurance that actual results or developments
the Sponsor anticipates will be realized or, even if substantially
realized, that they will result in the expected consequences to, or
have the expected effects on, the Fund’s operations or the
value of its Shares.
APPENDIX
A
Glossary of
Defined Terms
In this prospectus, each of the
following terms have the meanings set forth after such
term:
Administrator:
U.S. Bancorp Fund Services,
LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund
Services
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Authorized
Purchaser: One that
purchases or redeems Creation Baskets or Redemption Baskets,
respectively, from or to the Fund.
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Benchmark: A weighted average of the closing
settlement prices for three Sugar Futures Contracts, specifically
futures contracts on Sugar No. 11, that are traded on ICE Futures:
(1) the second to expire ICE Futures Sugar Futures Contract,
weighted 35%, (2) the third to expire ICE Futures Sugar Futures
Contract, weighted 30%, and (3) the ICE Futures Sugar Futures
Contract expiring in the March following the expiration month of
the third to expire contract, weighted
35%.
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Benchmark Component Futures
Contracts: The three
Sugar Futures Contracts that at any given time make up the
Benchmark.
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Business
Day: Any day other
than a day when any of the NYSE Arca, ICE Futures, or the New York
Stock Exchange is closed for regular
trading.
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CFTC: Commodity
Futures Trading Commission, an independent federal agency with the
mandate to regulate commodity futures and options in the United
States.
Code: Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended.
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Commodity
Pool: An enterprise
in which several individuals contribute funds in order to trade
futures contracts or options on futures contracts
collectively.
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Commodity Pool Operator or
CPO: Any person
engaged in a business which is of the nature of an investment
trust, syndicate, or similar enterprise, and who, in connection
therewith, solicits, accepts, or receives from others, funds,
securities, or property, either directly or through capital
contributions, the sale of stock or other forms of securities, or
otherwise, for the purpose of trading in any swap or commodity for
future delivery or commodity option on or subject to the rules of
any contract market.
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Creation
Basket: A block of
25,000 Shares used by the Fund to issue
Shares.
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Custodian: U.S.
Bank, N.A.
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Distributor:
Foreside Fund Services,
LLC.
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DTC: The
Depository Trust Company. DTC will act as the securities
depository for the Shares.
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DTC
Participant: An
entity that has an account with DTC.
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Exchange
Act: The Securities
Exchange Act of 1934.
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Exchange for Related
Position: A
privately negotiated and simultaneous exchange of a futures
contract position for a swap or other over the counter instrument
on the corresponding commodity.
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FINRA: Financial
Industry Regulatory Authority.
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Forward Contract: an over the counter
bilateral contract for the purchase or sale of a specified quantity
of a commodity at a specified price, on a specified date and at a
specified location. Forwards are almost always settled by delivery
of the underlying commodity. Although not impossible, it is unusual
to settle a Forward financially; therefore, Forwards are generally
illiquid.
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Futures Contract: an exchange-traded
contract traded with standard terms that calls for the delivery of
a specified quantity of a commodity at a specified price, on a
specified date and at a specified location. Typically, a futures
contract is traded out or rolled on an exchange before delivery or
receipt of the underlying commodity is
required.
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ICE
Futures: The primary
exchange on which Sugar Futures Contracts are traded in the
U.S. The Fund expressly disclaims any association with
or endorsement of the Fund by ICE Futures and acknowledges that
“ICE Futures” and “ICE Futures US” are
registered trademarks of such exchange.
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Indirect
Participants: Banks,
brokers, dealers and trust companies that clear through or maintain
a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant, either directly or
indirectly.
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Limited Liability Company
(LLC): A type of
business ownership combining several features of corporation and
partnership structures.
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Margin: The
amount of equity required for an investment in futures
contracts.
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NAV: Net
Asset Value of the Fund.
New York Mercantile Exchange
(NYMEX): An exchange on which
Sugar Futures Contracts are traded in the U.S. The Fund
expressly disclaims any association with or endorsement of the Fund
by the NYMEX and acknowledges that “New York Mercantile
Exchange” and “NYMEX” are registered trademarks
of such exchange.
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NFA: National
Futures Association.
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NSCC: National
Securities Clearing Corporation.
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1933
Act: The Securities
Act of 1933.
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Option: The
right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a futures contract,
swap agreement, forward contract or commodity, as applicable, at a
specified price on or before a specified
date.
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Over the counter
Derivative: A
financial contract, whose value is designed to track the return on
stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities, or some other benchmark,
that is traded over the counter or off organized
exchanges.
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Redemption
Basket: A block of
25,000 Shares used by the Fund to redeem
Shares.
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SEC: Securities
and Exchange Commission.
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Secondary
Market: The stock
exchanges and the over the counter market. Securities are first
issued as a primary offering to the public. When the securities are
traded from that first holder to another, the issues trade in these
secondary markets.
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Shareholders: Holders
of Shares.
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Shares: Common units representing fractional
undivided beneficial interests in the
Fund.
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Sponsor: Teucrium
Trading, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, which is
registered as a Commodity Pool Operator, who controls the
investments and other decisions of the
Fund.
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Spot
Contract: A cash
market transaction in which the buyer and seller agree to the
immediate purchase and sale of a commodity, usually with a two-day
settlement.
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Sugar Futures
Contracts: Futures
contracts for sugar that are traded on ICE Futures, the NYMEX, or
foreign exchanges.
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Sugar No. 11 Futures
Contracts: Futures
contracts that are traded on ICE Futures and NYMEX for the physical
delivery of raw cane sugar, delivered to the receiver’s
vessel at a specified port within the country of origin of the
sugar.
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Swap
Agreement: An over
the counter derivative that generally involves an exchange of a
stream of payments between the contracting parties based on a
notional amount and a specified index.
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Tracking
Error: Possibility
that the daily NAV of the Fund will not track the
Benchmark.
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Trust
Agreement: The Fifth
Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust and Trust Agreement of
the Trust effective as of April 26, 2019.
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Valuation
Day: Any day as of
which the Fund calculates its NAV.
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You: The
owner of Shares
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STATEMENT OF
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
TEUCRIUM SUGAR
FUND
This statement of additional
information is the second part of a two-part
document. The first part is the Fund’s disclosure
document. The disclosure document and this statement of
additional information are bound together, and both parts contain
important information. This statement of additional
information should be read in conjunction with the disclosure
document. To obtain a copy of the disclosure document
without charge, call the Fund at (802) 540-0019. Before you decide
whether to invest, you should read the entire prospectus carefully
and consider the risk factors beginning on
page 12.
This statement of additional
information and accompanying disclosure document are both dated May
1, 2021.
TEUCRIUM SUGAR
FUND
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
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The Sugar
Market
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75
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Over the counter
Derivatives
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76
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Commodity Market
Participants
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77
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Regulation
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77
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Potential Advantages of
Investment
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81
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Fund
Performance
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81
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The Sugar
Market
Sugarcane accounts for nearly 80%
of the world’s sugar production, while sugar beets account
for the remainder of the world’s sugar production. Sugar
manufacturers use sugar beets and sugarcane as the raw material
from which refined sugar (sucrose) for industrial and consumer use
is produced. Sugar is produced in various forms, including
granulated, powdered, liquid, brown, and molasses. The food
industry (in particular, producers of baked goods, beverages,
cereal, confections, and dairy products) uses sugar and sugarcane
molasses to make sugar containing food products. Sugar beet pulp
and molasses products are used as animal feed ingredients. Ethanol
is an important by-product of sugarcane processing. Additionally,
the material that is left over after sugarcane is processed is used
to manufacture paper, cardboard, and “environmentally
friendly” eating utensils.
The Sugar No.
11 Futures Contract is the world benchmark contract for raw sugar
trading. This contract prices the physical delivery of raw cane
sugar, delivered to the receiver’s vessel at a specified port
within the country of origin of the sugar. Sugar No. 11 Futures
Contracts trade on ICE Futures US and the NYMEX in units of 112,000
pounds.
The United
States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) publishes two
major reports annually on U.S. domestic and worldwide sugar
production and consumption. These are usually released in November
and May. In addition, the USDA publishes periodic, but not as
comprehensive, reports on sugar monthly. These reports are
available on the USDA’s website, www.usda.gov, at no charge.
The USDA’s November 2020 report forecasts 2020/21 global
production of 182 Million, up 16 million metric tons raw value with
Brazil expected to account for 75% of the rise. Consumption is
expected to rise due to growth in markets such as India, China,
Indonesia, and Iran and is estimated to draw stocks lower despite a
rebound in output. Exports are expected to be up sharply with
rising supplies, particularly in Brazil. . Global sugar consumption
may fluctuate year over year due to any number of reasons which may
include, but is not limited to, economic conditions, global health
concerns, international trade policy. Sugar is a staple commodity
used pervasively across the globe so that any contractions in
consumption may only be temporary as has historically been the
case.
If the futures market is in a state
of backwardation (i.e., when the price of sugar in the future is
expected to be less than the current price), the Fund will buy
later to expire contracts for a lower price than the sooner to
expire contracts that it sells. Hypothetically, and assuming no
changes to either prevailing sugar prices or the price relationship
between immediate delivery, soon to expire contracts and later to
expire contracts, the value of a contract will rise as it
approaches expiration. If the futures market is in contango, the
Fund will buy later to expire contracts for a higher price than the
sooner to expire contracts that it sells. Hypothetically, and
assuming no other changes to either prevailing sugar prices or the
price relationship between the spot price, soon to expire contracts
and later to expire contracts, the value of a contract will fall as
it approaches expiration. Historically, the sugar futures markets
have experienced periods of both contango and backwardation.
Frequently, whether contango or backwardation exists is a function,
among other factors, of the seasonality of the sugar market and the
sugar harvest cycle. All other things being equal, a situation
involving prolonged periods of contango may adversely impact the
returns of the Funds; conversely a situation involving prolonged
periods of backwardation may positively impact the returns of the
Funds.
Futures contracts may be either
bought or sold long or short. The U.S Commodity Futures Trading
Commission weekly releases the “Commitment of Traders”
(COT) report, which depicts the open interest as well as long and
short positions in the market. Market participants may use this
report to gauge market sentiment.
Over the counter
Derivatives
In addition to futures contracts,
options on futures contracts, derivative contracts that are tied to
various commodities, including sugar, are entered into outside of
public exchanges. These “over the counter” contracts
are entered into between two parties in private contracts, or on a
recently formed swap execution facility (“SEF”) for
standardized swaps. Unlike Sugar Futures Contracts, which are
guaranteed by a clearing organization, each party to an over the
counter derivative contract bears the credit risk of the other
party (unless such over the counter swap is cleared through a DCO),
i.e., the risk that the other party will not be able to perform its
obligations under its contract.
Some over the
counter derivatives contracts contain relatively standardized terms
and conditions and are available from a wide range of participants.
Others have highly customized terms and conditions and are not as
widely available. While the Fund may enter into these more
customized contracts, the Fund will only enter into over the
counter contracts containing certain terms and conditions, as
discussed further below, that are designed to minimize the credit
risk to which the Fund will be subject and only if the terms and
conditions of the contract are consistent with achieving the
Fund’s investment objective of tracking the Benchmark. The
over the counter contracts that the Fund may enter into will take
the form of either forward contracts, swaps or
options.
A forward
contract is a contractual obligation to purchase or sell a
specified quantity of a commodity at or before a specified date in
the future at a specified price and, therefore, is economically
similar to a futures contract except that, unlike a futures
contract it cannot be financially settled (i.e., one must intend to
make or take delivery of a commodity under a forward contract).
Unlike futures contracts, however, forward contracts are typically
privately negotiated or are traded in the over the counter markets.
Forward contracts for a given commodity are generally available for
various amounts and maturities and are subject to individual
negotiation between the parties involved. Moreover, generally there
is no direct means of offsetting or closing out a forward contract
by taking an offsetting position as one would a futures contract on
a U.S. exchange. If a trader desires to close out a forward
contract position, he generally will establish an opposite position
in the contract but will settle and recognize the profit or loss on
both positions simultaneously on the delivery date. Thus, unlike in
the futures contract market where a trader who has offset positions
will recognize profit or loss immediately, in the forward market a
trader with a position that has been offset at a profit will
generally not receive such profit until the delivery date, and
likewise a trader with a position that has been offset at a loss
will generally not have to pay money until the delivery date.
However, in some very limited instances such contracts may provide
a right of look out that will allow for the receipt of profit and
payment for losses prior to the delivery date.
An over the counter swap agreement
is a bilateral contract to exchange a periodic stream of payments
determined by reference to a notional amount, with payment
typically made between the parties on a net basis. For instance, in
the case of a sugar swap, the Fund may be obligated to pay a fixed
price per bushel of sugar multiplied by a notional number of
bushels and be entitled to receive an amount per bushel equal to
the current value of an index of sugar prices, the price of a
specified Sugar Futures Contract, or the average price of a group
of Sugar Futures Contracts such as the Benchmark (times the same
notional number of bushels. Each party to the swap is subject to
the credit risk of the other party. The Fund only enters into over
the counter swaps on a net basis, where the two payment streams are
netted out on a daily basis, with the parties receiving or paying,
as the case may be, only the net amount of the two payments. Swaps
do not generally involve the delivery of underlying assets or
principal and are therefore financially settled. Accordingly, the
Fund’s risk of loss with respect to an over the counter swap
generally is limited to the net amount of payments that the
counterparty is contractually obligated to make less any collateral
deposits the Fund is holding.
To reduce the
credit risk that arises in connection with over the counter
contracts, the Fund generally enters into an agreement with each
counterparty based on the Master Agreement published by the
International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. that provides
for the netting of the Fund’s overall exposure to its
counterparty and for daily payments based on the marked to market
value of the contract.
The
creditworthiness of each potential counterparty will be assessed by
the Sponsor. The Sponsor assesses or reviews, as appropriate, the
creditworthiness of each potential or existing counterparty to an
over the counter contract pursuant to guidelines approved by the
Sponsor. The creditworthiness of existing counterparties will be
reviewed periodically by the Sponsor. The Sponsor’s
President, Chief Investment Officer, and Chief Executive Officer
has over 25 years of experience in over the counter derivatives
trading, including the counterparty creditworthiness analysis
inherent therein. There is no guarantee that the Sponsor’s
creditworthiness analysis will be successful and that
counterparties selected for Fund transactions will not default on
their contractual obligations.
The Fund also
may require that a counterparty be highly rated and/or provide
collateral or other credit support. The Sponsor on behalf of the
Fund may enter into over the counter contracts with various types
of counterparties, including: (a) entities registered as swap
dealers (“SD”) or major swap participants
(“MSP”), or (b) any other entities that qualify as
eligible contract participants
(“ECP”).
After the enactment of the
Dodd-Frank Act, swaps (and options that are regulated as swaps) are
subject to the CFTC’s exclusive jurisdiction and are
regulated as rigorously as futures. Generally, however, if a swap
is entered into with an SD or MSP, such counterparty will conduct
all necessary compliance with respect to swaps and options under
the Dodd-Frank Act.
Commodity Market
Participants
The two broad classes of persons
who trade commodities are hedgers and
speculators. Hedgers include financial institutions that
manage or deal in interest rate-sensitive instruments, foreign
currencies or stock portfolios, and commercial market participants,
such as farmers and manufacturers, that market or process
commodities. Hedging is a protective procedure designed
to effectively lock in prices that would otherwise change due to an
adverse movement in the price of the underlying commodity, such as
the adverse price movement between the time a merchandiser or
processor enters into a contract to buy or sell a raw or processed
commodity at a certain price and the time he must perform the
contract. For example, if a hedger contracts to
physically sell the commodity at a future date, he may
simultaneously buy a futures or forward contract for the necessary
equivalent quantity of the commodity. At the time for
performance of the physical contract, the hedger may accept
delivery under his futures contract and sell the commodity quantity
as required by the physical contract or he may buy the actual
commodity, sell it under the physical contract and close out his
futures contract position by making an offsetting
sale.
The Commodity Interest markets
enable the hedger to shift the risk of price
fluctuations. The usual objective of the hedger is to
protect the profit that he expects to earn from farming,
merchandising, or processing operations rather than to profit from
his trading. However, at times the impetus for a hedge
transaction may result in part from speculative objectives and
hedgers can end up paying higher prices than they would have if
they did not enter into a Commodity Interest transaction if current
market prices are lower than the locked-in
price.
Unlike the hedger, the speculator
generally expects neither to make nor take delivery of the
underlying commodity. Instead, the speculator risks his
capital with the hope of making profits from price fluctuations in
the commodities. The speculator is, in effect, the risk
bearer who assumes the risks that the hedger seeks to
avoid. Speculators rarely make or take delivery of the
underlying commodity; rather they attempt to close out their
positions prior to the delivery date. A speculator who
takes a long position generally will make a profit if the price of
the underlying commodity goes up and incur a loss if the price of
the underlying commodity goes down, while a speculator who takes a
short position generally will make a profit if the price of the
underlying commodity goes down and incur a loss if the price of the
underlying commodity goes up.
Regulation
The regulation of futures markets,
futures contracts, and futures exchanges has historically been
comprehensive. The CFTC and the exchanges are authorized to take
extraordinary actions in the event of a market emergency including,
for example, the retroactive implementation of speculative position
limits, increased margin requirements, the establishment of daily
price limits and the suspension of trading on an exchange or
trading facility.
Pursuant to authority in the CEA,
the NFA has been formed and registered with the CFTC as a
registered futures association. At the present time, the NFA
is the only SRO for commodity interest professionals, other than
futures exchanges. The CFTC has delegated to the NFA
responsibility for the registration of CPOs and FCMs and their
respective associated persons. The Sponsor and the
Fund’s clearing broker are members of the NFA. As such,
they will be subject to NFA standards relating to fair trade
practices, financial condition and consumer
protection. The NFA also arbitrates disputes
between members and their customers and conducts registration and
fitness screening of applicants for membership and audits of its
existing members. Neither the Trust nor the Teucrium Funds
are required to become a member of the NFA. The regulation of
commodity interest transactions in the United States is a rapidly
changing area of law and is subject to ongoing modification by
governmental and judicial action. Considerable regulatory attention
has been focused on non-traditional investment pools that are
publicly distributed in the United States. There is a possibility
of future regulatory changes within the United States altering,
perhaps to a material extent, the nature of an investment in the
Fund, or the ability of a Fund to continue to implement its
investment strategy. In addition, various national governments
outside of the United States have expressed concern regarding the
disruptive effects of speculative trading in the commodities
markets and the need to regulate the derivatives markets in
general. The effect of any future regulatory change on the Teucrium
Funds is impossible to predict but could be substantial and
adverse.
The CFTC possesses exclusive
jurisdiction to regulate the activities of commodity pool operators
and commodity trading advisors with respect to "commodity
interests," such as futures and swaps and options, and has adopted
regulations with respect to the activities of those persons and/or
entities. Under the Commodity Exchange Act
(“CEA”), a registered commodity pool operator, such as
the Sponsor, is required to make annual filings with the CFTC and
the NFA describing its organization, capital structure, management
and controlling persons. In addition, the CEA authorizes the
CFTC to require and review books and records of, and documents
prepared by, registered commodity pool operators. Pursuant to
this authority, the CFTC requires commodity pool operators to keep
accurate, current and orderly records for each pool that they
operate. The CFTC may suspend the registration of a commodity
pool operator (1) if the CFTC finds that the operator’s
trading practices tend to disrupt orderly market conditions, (2) if
any controlling person of the operator is subject to an order of
the CFTC denying such person trading privileges on any exchange,
and (3) in certain other circumstances. Suspension,
restriction or termination of the Sponsor’s registration as a
commodity pool operator would prevent it, until that registration
were to be reinstated, from managing the Fund, and might result in
the termination of the Fund if a successor sponsor is not elected
pursuant to the Trust Agreement. Neither the Trust nor the
Fund is required to be registered with the CFTC in any
capacity.
The Fund’s investors are
afforded prescribed rights for reparations under the CEA.
Investors may also be able to maintain a private right of action
for violations of the CEA. The CFTC has adopted rules
implementing the reparation provisions of the CEA, which provide
that any person may file a complaint for a reparations award with
the CFTC for violation of the CEA against a floor broker or an FCM,
introducing broker, commodity trading advisor, CPO, and their
respective associated persons.
The regulations of the CFTC and the
NFA prohibit any representation by a person registered with the
CFTC or by any member of the NFA, that registration with the CFTC,
or membership in the NFA, in any respect indicates that the CFTC or
the NFA has approved or endorsed that person or that person’s
trading program or objectives. The registrations and
memberships of the parties described in this summary must not be
considered as constituting any such approval or endorsement.
Likewise, no futures exchange has given or will give any similar
approval or endorsement.
Trading venues in the United States
are subject to varying degrees of regulation under the CEA
depending on whether such exchange is a designated contract market
(i.e. a futures exchange) or a swap execution facility. Clearing
organizations are also subject to the CEA and the rules and
regulations adopted thereunder as administered by the CFTC. The
CFTC’s function is to implement the CEA’s objectives of
preventing price manipulation and excessive speculation and
promoting orderly and efficient commodity interest markets. In
addition, the various exchanges and clearing organizations
themselves as SROs exercise regulatory and supervisory authority
over their member firms.
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform
and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) was
enacted in response to the economic crisis of 2008 and 2009 and it
significantly altered the regulatory regime to which the securities
and commodities markets are subject. To date, the CFTC has issued
proposed or final versions of almost all of the rules it is
required to promulgate under the Dodd-Frank Act, and it continues
to issue proposed versions of additional rules that it has
authority to promulgate. Provisions of the new law include the
requirement that position limits be established on a wide range of
commodity interests, including agricultural, energy, and
metal-based commodity futures contracts, options on such futures
contracts and uncleared swaps that are economically equivalent to
such futures contracts and options (“Reference
Contracts”); new registration and recordkeeping requirements
for swap market participants; capital and margin requirements for
“swap dealers” and “major swap
participants,” as determined by the new law and applicable
regulations; reporting of all swap transactions to swap data
repositories; and the mandatory use of clearinghouse mechanisms for
sufficiently standardized swap transactions that were historically
entered into in the over the counter market, but are now designated
as subject to the clearing requirement; and margin requirements for
over the counter swaps that are not subject to the clearing
requirements.
In addition, considerable
regulatory attention has recently been focused on non-traditional
publicly distributed investment pools such as the Fund.
Furthermore, various national governments have expressed concern
regarding the disruptive effects of speculative trading in certain
commodity markets and the need to regulate the derivatives markets
in general. The effect of any future regulatory change on the
Teucrium Funds is impossible to predict but could be substantial
and adverse.
The Dodd-Frank Act was intended to
reduce systemic risks that may have contributed to the 2008/2009
financial crisis. Since the first draft of what became the
Dodd-Frank Act, supporters and opponents have debated the scope of
the legislation. As the Administrations of the U.S. change, the
interpretation and implementation will change along with them.
Nevertheless, regulatory reform of any kind may have a significant
impact on U.S. regulated entities.
Position
Limits, Aggregation Limits, Price Fluctuation
Limits
The CFTC and US futures 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 US futures exchanges. For
example, the CFTC currently imposes speculative position limits on
a number of agricultural commodities (e.g., corn, oats, wheat,
soybeans and cotton) and US futures exchanges currently impose
speculative position limits on many other commodities. A 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 a
Fund.
The Dodd-Frank Act significantly
expanded the CFTC’s authority to impose position limits with
respect to futures contracts and options on futures contracts,
swaps that are economically equivalent to futures or options on
futures, and swaps that are traded on a regulated exchange and
certain swaps that perform a significant price discovery function.
On December 16, 2016, the CFTC issued a final rule to amend part
150 of the CFTC’s regulations with respect to the policy for
aggregation under the CFTC’s position limits regime for
futures and option contracts on nine agricultural commodities
(“the Aggregation Requirements”). This final rule
addressed the circumstances under which market participants would
be required to aggregate all their positions, for purposes of the
position limits, of all positions in Reference Contracts of the 9
agricultural commodities held by a single entity and its
affiliates, regardless of whether such positions exist on US
futures exchanges, non-US futures exchanges, or in over the counter
swaps. An affiliate of a market participant is defined as two or
more persons acting pursuant to an express or implied agreement or
understanding. The Aggregation Requirements became effective on
February 14, 2017. On August 10, 2017, the CFTC issued a No-Action
Relief Letter No. 17-37 to clarify several provisions under
Regulation 150.4, regarding position aggregation filing
requirements of market participants. The Sponsor does not
anticipate that this order will have an impact on the ability of a
Fund to meet its respective investment
objectives.
As published in the January 14,
2021 Federal Register, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(CFTC) voted to approve a final rule (Final Rule) regarding
position limits for certain futures contracts and economically
equivalent swaps. The Final Rule ends a decade of rulemaking
activity in which the CFTC proposed, amended, and re-proposed its
position limit rules and aggregation standards for speculative
positions due to certain amendments to the Commodity Exchange Act
(CEA) by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection
Act of 2010 (Dodd-Frank Act). In the Final Rule, the CFTC confirmed
that federal speculative position limits are necessary for 25 core
referenced futures contracts and for any futures contracts and
options on futures contracts that are linked to those
contracts. The 25 core referenced futures contracts include
the nine “legacy” agricultural contracts that are
currently subject to federal position limits and 16 additional
non-legacy contracts.
The aggregate position limits
currently in place under the current position limits and the
Aggregation Requirements are as follows for each of the commodities
traded by the Fund:
Commodity
Future
|
Spot Month Position
Limit
|
All Month Aggregate Position
Limit
|
sugar
|
5,000 contracts
|
Only Accountability
Limits
|
The nine legacy contracts are
subject to two types of position limits: (1) a position limit that
applies in the spot month only and (2) a position limit that
applies in any single non-spot month as well as all months
combined. Both types of position limits have been updated by the
Final Rule. Significantly, the new spot month position limit is
higher than or equal to current federal and exchange-set spot month
position limits. The new single non-spot month and
all-months-combined position limits are also higher than or equal
to the respective current federal and exchange-set limits. For a
discussion generally regarding the risks that position limits may
pose for the Fund, see the risk factor in “WHAT ARE THE RISK
FACTORS INVOLVED WITH AN INVESTMENT IN THE FUND” regarding
position limits, accountability levels and daily price fluctuation
limits.
The CFTC also adopted federal
position limits on cash-settled futures and options on futures that
are directly or indirectly linked to physically settled contracts
in order to further the statutory objective in Section
4a(a)(3)(B)(iv) of the CEA—the deterrence and prevention of
market manipulation. In taking this step, the CFTC stated
that, in the absence of position limits, an entity with positions
in both the physically delivered and cash-settled contracts may
have an increased ability and an increased incentive to manipulate
one of these contracts to benefit positions in the other
contract.
To prevent evasion through the
creation of economically equivalent futures contracts that do not
directly reference the price of the core referenced futures
contracts, the CFTC determined that futures contracts and options
on futures contracts that are indirectly linked to the core
referenced futures contracts will be subject to the position limits
in the same manner as the referenced futures contracts. Futures
that settle to the price of a referenced contract but not to the
price of a core referenced futures contract would be indirectly
linked to the core referenced futures contract as
“economically equivalent swaps.”
The Final Rule clarifies the
applicable standard for market participants seeking a bona fide
hedging exemption from position limits. A bona fide hedging
transaction may exceed the federal position limits only if the
transaction satisfies each of the following
elements:
1.
the
position represents a substitute for transactions or positions made
or to be made at a later time in a physical marketing channel
(temporary substitute test);
2.
the
position is economically appropriate to the reduction of price
risks in the conduct and management of a commercial enterprise
(economically appropriate test); and
3.
the
position arises from the potential change in value of actual or
anticipated assets, liabilities, or services (change in value
requirement).
Notably, this definition tightens
the “temporary substitute test” such that a bona fide
hedge must be connected to the production, sale, or use of a
physical cash-market commodity in all cases, rather than
“normally” connected to such activities. As noted
above, this adjustment is intended to restrict market participants
from treating “risk management” positions as bona fide
hedges, except for pass-through or offset positions related to
another transaction that is itself a bona fide hedge. The Final
Rule also expands the list of enumerated bona fide hedges, which
means that any market participant utilizing such a hedge need not
notify the CFTC because the enumerated bona fide hedges are
self-effectuating. However, a market participant would still
need to notify the relevant exchange if executing a bona fide hedge
would exceed an exchange set position limit.
In addition, the Final Rule
elaborates on how and when a market participant may measure risk on
a gross basis rather than on a net basis. Currently, market
participants generally may only hedge positions on a net basis.
However, the Final Rule permits hedge positions on a gross basis so
long as the risk calculations are done consistently over time and
not with the intent of evading federal position
limits.
The Final Rule became effective on
March 15, 2021, but a number of the requirements in the Final Rule
have a general compliance date of January 1, 2022, and later
compliance date of January 1, 2023 with respect to swaps-related
requirements and the elimination of previously granted risk
management exemptions. In particular, January 1, 2022 is the
implementation date of federal speculative position limits for 16
non-legacy core referenced futures contracts and any referenced
futures contracts (other than economically equivalent swaps)
relating to those 16 core referenced futures contracts and for
exchanges to establish limits and exemptions, including collecting
cash market information from market participants in connection with
bona fide hedge exemptions. January 1, 2023 is the implementation
date of federal speculative position limits for economically
equivalent swaps and for the elimination of previously granted risk
management exemptions. The CFTC also will reevaluate the ability of
the exchanges to establish and implement appropriate surveillance
mechanisms with respect to economically equivalent
swaps.
It is unknown at this time the
effect that such passage, adoption or modification will have,
positively or negatively, on our industry or on a Fund. The size or
duration of positions available to a Fund may be severely limited.
Pursuant to the CFTC’s and the exchanges’ aggregation
requirements, all accounts owned or managed by the Sponsor are
likely to be combined for speculative position limits purposes. The
Funds could be required to liquidate positions it holds in order to
comply with such limits or may not be able to fully implement
trading instructions generated by its trading models, in order to
comply with such limits. Any such liquidation or limited
implementation could result in substantial costs to a
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 a Fund’s
returns.
Accountability levels differ from
position limits in that they do not represent a fixed ceiling, but
rather a threshold above which a futures exchange may exercise
greater scrutiny and control over an investor’s positions. If
a Fund were to exceed an applicable accountability level for
investments in futures contracts, the exchange will monitor the
Fund’s exposure and may ask for further information on its
activities, including the total size of all positions, investment
and trading strategy, and the extent of liquidity resources of the
Fund. If deemed necessary by the exchange, the Fund could be
ordered to reduce its aggregate net position back to the
accountability level.
In addition to position limits and
accountability levels, the exchanges set daily price fluctuation
limits on futures contracts. The daily price fluctuation limit
establishes the maximum amount that the price of futures contracts
may vary either up or down from the previous day’s settlement
price. Once the daily price fluctuation limit has been reached in a
particular futures contract, no trades may be made at a price
beyond that limit.
Margin for OTC
Uncleared Swaps
During 2015 and 2016, the CFTC and
the US bank prudential regulators completed their rulemakings under
the Dodd-Frank Act on margin for uncleared over the counter swaps
(and option agreements that qualify as swaps). Margin requirements
went into effect for the largest swap entities in September 2016
and went into effect for financial end users in March 2017. Under
these regulations, swap dealers (such as sell-side counterparties
to swaps), major swap participants, and financial end users (such
as buy-side counterparties to swaps who are not physical traders)
are required in most instances, to post and collect initial and
variation margin, depending on the regulatory classification of
their counterparty. European and Asian regulators are also
implementing similar regulations, which were scheduled to become
effective on the same dates as the US-promulgated rules. As a
result of these requirements, additional capital will be required
to be committed to the margin accounts to support transactions
involving uncleared over the counter swaps and, consequently, these
transactions may become more expensive. While the Fund currently
does not generally engage in uncleared over the counter swaps, to
the extent they do so in the future, the additional margin required
to be posted could adversely impact the profitability (if any) to
the Fund from entering into these transactions.
FCMs
The CEA requires all FCMs, such as
the Teucrium Funds’ clearing brokers, to meet and maintain
specified fitness and financial requirements, to segregate customer
funds from proprietary funds and account separately for all
customers’ funds and positions, and to maintain specified
books and records open to inspection by the staff of the CFTC. The
CFTC has similar authority over introducing brokers, or persons who
solicit or accept orders for commodity interest trades but who do
not accept margin deposits for the execution of trades. The CEA
authorizes the CFTC to regulate trading by FCMs and by their
officers and directors, permits the CFTC to require action by
exchanges in the event of market emergencies, and establishes an
administrative procedure under which customers may institute
complaints for damages arising from alleged violations of the CEA.
The CEA also gives the states powers to enforce its provisions and
the regulations of the CFTC.
On November 14, 2013, the CFTC
published final regulations that require enhanced customer
protections, risk management programs, internal monitoring and
controls, capital and liquidity standards, customer disclosures and
auditing and examination programs for FCMs. The rules are intended
to afford greater assurances to market participants that customer
segregated funds and secured amounts are protected, customers are
provided with appropriate notice of the risks of futures trading
and of the FCMs with which they may choose to do business, FCMs are
monitoring and managing risks in a robust manner, the capital and
liquidity of FCMs are strengthened to safeguard the continued
operations and the auditing and examination programs of the CFTC
and the SROs are monitoring the activities of FCMs in a thorough
manner.
Potential
Advantages of Investment
Interest Income and Expense
Unlike some alternative investment
funds, the Fund does not borrow money in order to obtain leverage,
so the Fund does not incur any interest expense. Rather,
the Fund’s margin deposits, and cash reserves are maintained
in cash and cash equivalents and interest is generally earned on
available assets, which include unrealized profits credited to the
Fund’s accounts
Fund
Performance
The following graph sets forth the
historical performance of the Fund from commencement of operations
on September 19, 2011 until February 28, 2021.
PAST PERFORMANCE
IS NOT NECESSARILY INDICATIVE OF FUTURE
RESULTS.
Information
Not Required in the Prospectus
Item
13.
|
Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution.
|
Set forth below is an estimate (except as indicated) of the amount
of fees and expenses (other than underwriting commissions and
discounts) payable by the registrant in connection with the
issuance and distribution of the units pursuant to the prospectus
contained in this registration statement.
|
|
SEC registration fee
(actual)
|
$11,701
|
NYSE Arca Listing Fee
(actual)
|
n/a
|
FINRA filing fees
(actual)
|
n/a
|
Blue Sky
expenses
|
n/a
|
Auditor’s fees and
expenses
|
$5,000
|
Legal fees and
expenses
|
$3,000
|
Printing
expenses
|
$3,000
|
Miscellaneous
expenses
|
n/a
|
Total
|
$22,701
|
Item
14.
|
Indemnification of Directors and Officers.
|
The Trust’s Fifth Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust
and Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”) provides
that the Sponsor shall be indemnified by the Trust (or, by a series
of the Trust separately to the extent the matter in question
relates to a single series or disproportionately affects a series
in relation to other series) against any losses, judgments,
liabilities, expenses and amounts paid in settlement of any claims
sustained by it in connection with its activities for the
Trust,provided that (i) the Sponsor was acting on behalf of or
performing services for the Trust and has determined, in good
faith, that such course of conduct was in the best interests of the
Trust and such liability or loss was not the result of gross
negligence, willful misconduct, or a breach of the Trust Agreement
on the part of the Sponsor and (ii) any such indemnification will
only be recoverable from the applicable trust estate or trust
estates. All rights to indemnification permitted by the Trust
Agreement and payment of associated expenses shall not be affected
by the dissolution or other cessation to exist of the Sponsor, or
the withdrawal, adjudication of bankruptcy or insolvency of the
Sponsor, or the filing of a voluntary or involuntary petition in
bankruptcy under Title 11 of the Bankruptcy Code by or against the
Sponsor.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Sponsor shall not be indemnified
for any losses, liabilities or expenses arising from or out of an
alleged violation of U.S. federal or state securities laws unless
(i) there has been a successful adjudication on the merits of each
count involving alleged securities law violations as to the
particular indemnitee and the court approves the indemnification of
such expenses (including, without limitation, litigation costs),
(ii) such claims have been dismissed with prejudice on the merits
by a court of competent jurisdiction as to the particular
indemnitee and the court approves the indemnification of such
expenses (including, without limitation, litigation costs) or (iii)
a court of competent jurisdiction approves a settlement of the
claims against a particular indemnitee and finds that
indemnification of the settlement and related costs should be
made.
The Trust and its series shall not incur the cost of that portion
of any insurance which insures any party against any liability, the
indemnification of which is prohibited by the Trust
Agreement.
Expenses incurred in defending a threatened or pending civil,
administrative or criminal action, suit or proceeding against the
Sponsor shall be paid by the Trust or the applicable series of the
Trust in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or
proceeding, if (i) the legal action relates to the performance of
duties or services by theSponsor on behalf of the Trust or a series
of the Trust; (ii) the legal action is initiated by a party other
than the Trust; and (iii) the Sponsor undertakes to repay the
advanced funds with interest to the Trust or the applicable series
of the Trust in cases in which it is not entitled to
indemnification under the Trust
Agreement.
For purposes of the indemnification provisions of the Trust
Agreement, the term “Sponsor” includes, in addition to
the Sponsor, any other covered person performing services on behalf
of the Trust and acting within the scope of the Sponsor’s
authority as set forth in the Trust Agreement.
In the event the Trust or a series of the Trust is made a party to
any claim, dispute, demand or litigation or otherwise incurs any
loss, liability, damage, cost or expense as a result of or in
connection with any Shareholder’s (or assignee’s)
obligations or liabilities unrelated to Trust business, such
Shareholder (or assignees cumulatively) shall indemnify, defend,
hold harmless, and reimburse the Trust or the applicable series of
the Trust for all such loss, liability, damage, cost and expense
incurred, including attorneys’ and accountants’
fees.
The payment of any amount pursuant to the Trust Agreement shall
take into account the allocation of liabilities and other amounts,
as appropriate, among the series of the Trust.
Item
15
|
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities.
|
Not applicable.
Item
16
|
Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules.
|
(a) Exhibits
|
|
Fifth Amended and Restated
Declaration of Trust and Trust Agreement. (1)
|
|
|
Certificate of Trust of the
Registrant. (2)
|
|
5.1
|
Opinion of Vedder Price P.C.
relating to the legality of the Shares.(15)
|
|
8.1
|
Opinion of Vedder Price P.C. with
respect to federal income tax consequences.(15)
|
|
|
Form of Authorized Purchaser
Agreement (included as Exhibit B to the Fifth Amended and Restated
Declaration of Trust and Trust Agreement). (1)
|
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Amended and Restated Distribution
Services Agreement. (3)
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Amendment to Amended and Restated
Distribution Services Agreement. (4)
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Second Amendment to Amended and
Restated Distribution Services Agreement. (5)
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Third Amendment to Amended and
Restated Distribution Services Agreement. (6)
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Fourth Amendment to Amended and
Restated Distribution Services Agreement. (7)
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Fifth
Amendment to Amended and Restated Distribution Services Agreement.
(13)
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Custody Agreement.
(8)
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First Amendment to the Custody Agreement.
(14)
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Fund Accounting Servicing
Agreement. (9)
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First Amendment to the Fund
Accounting Servicing Agreement. (14)
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Transfer Agent Servicing Agreement.
(10)
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First Amendment to the Transfer Agent Servicing Agreement.
(14)
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Fund Administration Servicing
Agreement. (11)
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First Amendment to the Fund
Administration Servicing Agreement. (14)
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Distribution Consulting and
Marketing Services Agreement (12)
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23.1
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Consents of of Vedder Price P.C.
(including in Exhibits 5.1 and 8.1).(15)
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23.2
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Consent of Grant Thornton LLP,
Independent Registered Public Accounting
Firm.*
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24.1
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Power of Attorney (included on
signature page to this Registration Statement as filed
herein).
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* To be filed by amendment.
(1) Previously filed as Exhibit 3.1 to Pre-Effective Amendment No.
2 to Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1
(333-230626), filed on April 26, 2019 and incorporated by reference
herein.
(2) Previously filed as Exhibit 3.2 to Registrant’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 (333-162033), filed on September
21, 2009 and incorporated by reference herein.
(3) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.2(1) to the Registrant’s
Current Report on Form 8-K for the Teucrium Corn Fund (File No.
001-34765), filed on November 1, 2011 and incorporated by reference
herein.
(4) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.2(2) to the Registrant’s
Current Report on Form 8-K for the Teucrium Corn Fund (File No.
001-34765), filed on November 1, 2011 and incorporated by reference
herein.
(5) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.2(3) to the Registrant’s
Current Report on Form 8-K for the Teucrium Corn Fund (File No.
001-34756), filed on November 1, 2011 and incorporated by reference
herein.
(6) Previously filed as like-numbered exhibit to Pre-Effective
Amendment No. 1 to Registrant’s Registration Statement on
Form S-1 (333-187463), filed on April 26, 2013 and incorporated by
reference herein.
(7) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.9 to Registrant’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-201953) filed on
February 9, 2015 and incorporated by reference
herein.
(8) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.8 to the Registrant’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015,
filed on March 15, 2016, and incorporated by reference
herein.
(9) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.9 to the Registrant’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015,
filed on March 15, 2016, and incorporated by reference
herein.
(10) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.10 to the Registrant’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015,
filed on March 15, 2016, and incorporated by reference
herein.
(11) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.11 to the Registrant’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015,
filed on March 15, 2016, and incorporated by reference
herein.
(12) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.6 to Post-Effective Amendment
No. 1 to Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1
(333-162033) filed on October 22, 2010 and incorporated by
reference herein.
(13) Previously filed as Exhibit 10.7 to Pre-Effective Amendment
No. 2 to Registrant's Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No.
333-248948) filed on December 10, 2020 and incorporated by
reference herein.
(14) Previously filed as like-numbered exhibit to Registrant's
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Decemer 31, 2020,
filed on March 16, 2021.
(15) Previously
filed as like-numbered exhibit to Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to
Form S-1 (333-248545) filed on September 29, 2020 and incorporated
by reference herein.
(b) Financial Statement
Schedules
The financial statement schedules are either not applicable or the
required information is included in the financial statements and
footnotes related thereto.
(a) The undersigned registrant hereby
undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being
made, a post-effective amendment to this registration
statement:
(i) To include any prospectus required by section 10(a)(3) of the
Securities Act of 1933;
(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising 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 Securities and Exchange
Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the
changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent
change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the
“Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the
effective registration statement.
(iii) 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.
Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i), (ii), and (iii) of
this section do not apply if the registration statement is on Form
S-1, Form S-3, Form SF-3 or Form F-3 and the information required
to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is
contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by
the registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference
in the registration statement, or, as to a registration statement
on Form S-3, is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to
§ 230.424(b) that is part of the registration
statement.
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the
Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be
deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the
securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at
that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering
thereof.
(3) 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.
(4) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the
Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser:
(i) If the registrant is subject to Rule 430C, each prospectus
filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) 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.
(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability of the
registrant under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser in the
initial distribution of the 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 such
purchaser:
(i) Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned
registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant
to Rule 424;
(ii) Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared
by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant or used or referred
to by the undersigned registrant;
(iii) The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to
the offering containing material information about the undersigned
registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the
undersigned registrant; and
(iv) Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made
by the undersigned registrant to the purchaser.
(6)
That, for purposes of determining any liability under the
Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant's annual
report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an
employee benefit plan's annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by
reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new
registration statement relating to the securities offered therein,
and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to
be the initial bona fide offering
thereof.
(7) 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.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the
Registrant has duly caused this Registration Statement on Form S-1
to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly
authorized, in the city of Burlington, State of Vermont, on April
7, 2021.
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Teucrium
Commodity Trust
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By: Teucrium Trading, LLC,
Sponsor
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By:
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/s/ Sal
Gilbertie
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Date: April 7,
2021
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Sal Gilbertie
Principal Executive Officer,
Secretary and Member
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Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this
registration statement has been signed by the following persons in
the capacities and on the dates as indicated. The document may be
executed by signatories hereto on any number of counterparts, all
of which shall constitute one and the same instrument. The
undersigned members and officers of Teucrium Trading, LLC, the
sponsor of Teucrium Commodity Trust, hereby constitute and appoint
Sal Gilbertie, Cory Mullen Rusin and Steve Kahler and eachof them
with full power to act with full power of substitution and
resubstitution, our true and lawful attorneys-in-fact with full
power to execute in our name and behalf in the capacities indicated
below this Registration Statement on Form S-1 and any and all
amendments thereto, including post-effective amendments to this
Registration Statement and to sign any and all additional
registration statements relating to the same offering of securities
as this Registration Statement that are filed pursuant to Rule
462(b) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and to file the
same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection
therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission and thereby
ratify and confirm that such attorneys-in-fact, or any of them, or
their substitutes shall lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue
hereof.
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Signature
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Title
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Date
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/s/ Sal
Gilbertie
Sal Gilbertie
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President/Chief Executive
Officer/Chief Investment Officer/Member of the
Sponsor
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April 7,
2021
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/s/ Cory
Mullen-Rusin
Cory
Mullen-Rusin
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Chief Financial Officer/Chief
Accounting Officer/Chief Compliance Officer/Principal Financial
Officer
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April 7,
2021
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/s/ Steve
Kahler
Steve Kahler
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Chief Operating
Officer
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April 7,
2021
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* The registrant is a trust and the persons are signing in their
capacities as officers of Teucrium Trading, LLC, the Sponsor of the
registrant.
24.1
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Power
of Attorney (included on signature page to this Registration
Statement as filed herein).
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