497K 1 d616750d497k.htm BLACKROCK SHORT TERM MUNICIPAL FUND BlackRock Short Term Municipal Fund
OCTOBER 26, 2018
Summary Prospectus
BlackRock Municipal Bond Fund, Inc.  |  Class K Shares
► BlackRock Short-Term Municipal Fund
  Class K: MPLMX
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s prospectus (including amendments and supplements) and other information about the Fund, including the Fund’s statement of additional information and shareholder report, online at http://www.blackrock.com/prospectus. You can also get this information at no cost by calling (800) 537-4942 or by sending an e-mail request to prospectus.request@blackrock.com, or from your financial professional. The Fund’s prospectus and statement of additional information, both dated October 26, 2018, as amended and supplemented from time to time, are incorporated by reference into (legally made a part of) this Summary Prospectus.
This Summary Prospectus contains information you should know before investing, including information about risks. Please read it before you invest and keep it for future reference.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this Summary Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
Not FDIC Insured • May Lose Value • No Bank Guarantee

 

Summary Prospectus
Key Facts About BlackRock Short-Term Municipal Fund
Investment Objective
The investment objective of BlackRock Short-Term Municipal Fund (the “Short-Term Fund” or the “Fund”) is to provide shareholders with as high a level of income exempt from Federal income taxes as is consistent with the investment policies of the Fund.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold Class K Shares of the Fund.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a
percentage of the value of your investment) 		Class K
Shares
Management Fee1 0.29%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees None
Other Expenses 0.09%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 0.38%
Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements1,2 (0.07)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements1,2 0.31%
  
1 As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 41, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through October 31, 2019. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Municipal Bond Fund, Inc. (the “Corporation”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
2 As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 41, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 0.31% of average daily net assets through October 31, 2019. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Corporation or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
Example:
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
  1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
Class K Shares $32 $115 $206 $474
  
Portfolio Turnover:
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 153% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies of the Fund
Under normal circumstances, the Short-Term Fund seeks to achieve its objective by investing at least 80% of its assets in municipal bonds. Municipal bonds include debt obligations issued by or on behalf of a governmental entity or other qualifying issuer that pay interest that is, in the opinion of bond counsel to the issuer, generally excludable from gross income for Federal income tax purposes (except that the interest may be includable in taxable income for
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purposes of the Federal alternative minimum tax). Municipal bonds may be obligations of a variety of issuers, including governmental entities or other qualifying issuers. Issuers may be states, territories and possessions of the United States and the District of Columbia and their political subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities. Municipal bonds also include short-term tax-exempt obligations like municipal notes and variable rate demand obligations.
The Short-Term Fund invests primarily in investment grade municipal bonds or municipal notes, including variable rate demand obligations. Investment grade bonds are securities which are rated in the four highest categories by at least one of the major rating agencies or determined by the management team to be of similar quality. Generally, the higher the rating of a bond, the higher the likelihood that interest and principal payments will be made on time. Municipal notes are shorter-term municipal debt obligations that pay interest that is, in the opinion of bond counsel to the issuer, generally excludable from gross income for Federal income tax purposes (except that the interest may be includable in taxable income for purposes of the Federal alternative minimum tax) and that have a maturity that is generally one year or less.
The Fund will maintain a dollar weighted maturity of no more than two years. Because of their shorter maturities, the Fund’s investments will not usually be as sensitive to changes in prevailing interest rates as are long-term municipal bonds. Fluctuations in interest rates on short-term municipal bonds may, however, vary more widely from time to time than those on long-term municipal bonds.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The following is a summary description of principal risks of investing in the Fund.
■ Debt Securities Risk — Debt securities, such as bonds, involve interest rate risk, credit risk, extension risk, and prepayment risk, among other things.
  Interest Rate Risk — The market value of bonds and other fixed-income securities changes in response to interest rate changes and other factors. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise.
  The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the current period of historically low rates. For example, if interest rates increase by 1%, assuming a current portfolio duration of ten years, and all other factors being equal, the value of the Fund’s investments would be expected to decrease by 10%. The magnitude of these fluctuations in the market price of bonds and other fixed-income securities is generally greater for those securities with longer maturities. Fluctuations in the market price of the Fund’s investments will not affect interest income derived from instruments already owned by the Fund, but will be reflected in the Fund’s net asset value. The Fund may lose money if short-term or long-term interest rates rise sharply in a manner not anticipated by Fund management.
  To the extent the Fund invests in debt securities that may be prepaid at the option of the obligor (such as mortgage-backed securities), the sensitivity of such securities to changes in interest rates may increase (to the detriment of the Fund) when interest rates rise. Moreover, because rates on certain floating rate debt securities typically reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the net asset value of the Fund to the extent that it invests in floating rate debt securities.
  These basic principles of bond prices also apply to U.S. Government securities. A security backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government is guaranteed only as to its stated interest rate and face value at maturity, not its current market price. Just like other fixed-income securities, government-guaranteed securities will fluctuate in value when interest rates change.
  A general rise in interest rates has the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed-income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from funds that hold large amounts of fixed-income securities. Heavy redemptions could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value and could hurt the Fund’s performance.
  Credit Risk — Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a debt security (i.e., the borrower) will not be able to make payments of interest and principal when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on both the financial condition of the issuer and the terms of the obligation.
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  Extension Risk — When interest rates rise, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more slowly than anticipated, causing the value of these obligations to fall.
  Prepayment Risk — When interest rates fall, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more quickly than originally anticipated, and the Fund may have to invest the proceeds in securities with lower yields.
■ Leverage Risk — Some transactions may give rise to a form of economic leverage. These transactions may include, among others, derivatives, and may expose the Fund to greater risk and increase its costs. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet any required asset segregation requirements. Increases and decreases in the value of the Fund’s portfolio will be magnified when the Fund uses leverage.
■ Liquidity Risk — Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. The Fund’s investments in illiquid securities may reduce the returns of the Fund because it may be difficult to sell the illiquid securities at an advantageous time or price. To the extent that the Fund’s principal investment strategies involve derivatives or securities with substantial market and/or credit risk, the Fund will tend to have the greatest exposure to liquidity risk. Liquidity risk may be the result of, among other things, the reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed-income securities or the lack of an active market. Liquid investments may become illiquid or less liquid after purchase by the Fund, particularly during periods of market turmoil. Illiquid and relatively less liquid investments may be harder to value, especially in changing markets, and if the Fund is forced to sell these investments to meet redemption requests or for other cash needs, the Fund may suffer a loss. This may be magnified in a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed-income mutual funds may be higher than normal. In addition, when there is illiquidity in the market for certain securities, the Fund, due to limitations on illiquid investments, may be subject to purchase and sale restrictions.
■ Market Risk and Selection Risk — Market risk is the risk that one or more markets in which the Fund invests will go down in value, including the possibility that the markets will go down sharply and unpredictably. Selection risk is the risk that the securities selected by Fund management will underperform the markets, the relevant indices or the securities selected by other funds with similar investment objectives and investment strategies. This means you may lose money.
■ Municipal Securities Risks — Municipal securities risks include the ability of the issuer to repay the obligation, the relative lack of information about certain issuers of municipal securities, and the possibility of future legislative changes which could affect the market for and value of municipal securities. These risks include:
  General Obligation Bonds Risks — Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base.
  Revenue Bonds Risks — These payments depend on the money earned by the particular facility or class of facilities, or the amount of revenues derived from another source.
  Private Activity Bonds Risks — Municipalities and other public authorities issue private activity bonds to finance development of industrial facilities for use by a private enterprise. The private enterprise pays the principal and interest on the bond, and the issuer does not pledge its faith, credit and taxing power for repayment.
  Moral Obligation Bonds Risks — Moral obligation bonds are generally issued by special purpose public authorities of a state or municipality. If the issuer is unable to meet its obligations, repayment of these bonds becomes a moral commitment, but not a legal obligation, of the state or municipality.
  Municipal Notes Risks — Municipal notes are shorter term municipal debt obligations. If there is a shortfall in the anticipated proceeds, the notes may not be fully repaid and the Fund may lose money.
  Municipal Lease Obligations Risks — In a municipal lease obligation, the issuer agrees to make payments when due on the lease obligation. Although the issuer does not pledge its unlimited taxing power for payment of the lease obligation, the lease obligation is secured by the leased property.
  Tax-Exempt Status Risk — The Fund and its investment manager will rely on the opinion of issuers’ bond counsel and, in the case of derivative securities, sponsors’ counsel, on the tax-exempt status of interest on municipal bonds and payments under derivative securities. Neither the Fund nor its investment manager will independently review the bases for those tax opinions, which may ultimately be determined to be incorrect and subject the Fund and its shareholders to substantial tax liabilities.
■ Variable Rate Demand Obligations Risks — Variable rate demand obligations are floating rate securities that combine an interest in a long term municipal bond with a right to demand payment before maturity from a bank or other financial institution. If the bank or financial institution is unable to pay, the Fund may lose money.
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Performance Information
The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The table compares the Fund’s performance to that of the S&P® Municipal Bond Index and the S&P® Limited Maturity Municipal Bond Index, which are relevant to the Fund because they have characteristics similar to the Fund’s investment strategies. Effective September 1, 2015, the Board of Directors of the Fund approved the reclassification of BlackRock Shares of the Fund as Class K Shares. The returns for Class K Shares prior to September 1, 2015 reflects the performance of the share class when it was classified as BlackRock Shares. To the extent that dividends and distributions have been paid by the Fund, the performance information for the Fund in the chart and table assumes reinvestment of the dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. The table includes all applicable fees. If the Fund’s investment manager and its affiliates had not waived or reimbursed certain Fund expenses during these periods, the Fund’s returns would have been lower. Updated information on the Fund’s performance, including its current net asset value, can be obtained by visiting http://www.blackrock.com or can be obtained by phone at (800) 882-0052.
Class K Shares
ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
BlackRock Short-Term Municipal Fund
As of 12/31
During the ten-year period shown in the bar chart, the highest return for a quarter was 1.65% (quarter ended December 31, 2008) and the lowest return for a quarter was -0.60% (quarter ended December 31, 2016). The year-to-date return as of September 30, 2018 was 0.93%.
As of 12/31/17
Average Annual Total Returns 		1 Year 5 Years 10 Years
BlackRock Short-Term Municipal Fund — Class K Shares      
Return Before Taxes 1.01% 0.40% 1.23%
Return After Taxes on Distributions 1.01% 0.39% 1.23%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares 0.97% 0.44% 1.21%
S&P ® Municipal Bond Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) 		4.95% 3.07% 4.42%
S&P ® Limited Maturity Municipal Bond Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) 		1.11% 0.85% 1.86%
  
After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and the after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Investment Manager
The Fund’s investment manager is BlackRock Advisors, LLC (previously defined as “BlackRock”).
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Portfolio Managers
Name Portfolio Manager
of the Fund Since 		Title
William Henderson 2016 Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc.
Kevin A. Schiatta, CFA 2016 Director of BlackRock, Inc.
Marie Sheehan 2007 Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc.
  
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Class K Shares of the Fund are available only to (i) certain employee benefit plans, such as health savings accounts, and certain employer-sponsored retirement plans (not including SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs and SARSEPs) (collectively, “Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans”), (ii) collective trust funds, investment companies and other pooled investment vehicles, each of which may purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary (as defined below) that has entered into an agreement with the Fund’s distributor to purchase such shares, (iii) “Institutional Investors,” which include, but are not limited to, endowments, foundations, family offices, banks and bank trusts, local, city, and state governmental institutions, corporations and insurance company separate accounts, each of which may purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the Fund’s distributor to purchase such shares, (iv) fee-based advisory platforms of a Financial Intermediary that (a) has specifically acknowledged in a written agreement with the Fund’s distributor and/or its affiliate(s) that the Financial Intermediary shall offer such shares to fee-based advisory clients through an omnibus account held at the Fund or (b) transacts in the Fund’s shares through another intermediary that has executed such an agreement and (v) any other investors who met the eligibility criteria for BlackRock Shares or Class K Shares prior to August 15, 2016 and have continually held Class K Shares of the Fund in the same account since August 15, 2016.
You may purchase or redeem shares of the Fund each day the New York Stock Exchange is open. Purchase orders may also be placed by calling (800) 537-4942, by mail (c/o BlackRock, P.O. Box 9819, Providence, Rhode Island 02940-8019), or online at www.blackrock.com. Institutional Investors are subject to a $5 million minimum initial investment requirement. Other investors, including Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans, have no minimum initial investment requirement. There is no minimum investment amount for additional purchases.
Tax Information
Different income tax rules apply depending on whether you are invested through a qualified tax-exempt plan described in section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. If you are invested through such a plan (and Fund shares are not “debt-financed property” to the plan), then the dividends paid by the Fund and the gain realized from a redemption or exchange of Fund shares will generally not be subject to U.S. federal income taxes until you withdraw or receive distributions from the plan. If you are not invested through such a plan, then the Fund’s dividends and gain from a redemption or exchange may be subject to U.S. federal income taxes and may be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are a tax-exempt investor. The Fund intends to make distributions most of which will be excludable from gross income for federal income tax purposes.
Payments to Broker/Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund through a financial professional or selected securities dealer, broker, investment adviser, service provider or industry professional (including BlackRock, The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. and their respective affiliates) (each a “Financial Intermediary”), the Fund and BlackRock Investments, LLC, the Fund’s distributor, or its affiliates may pay the Financial Intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Financial Intermediary and your individual financial professional to recommend the Fund over another investment.
Class K Shares are only available through a Financial Intermediary if the Financial Intermediary will not receive from Fund assets, or the Fund’s distributor’s or an affiliate’s resources, any commission payments, shareholder servicing fees (including sub-transfer agent and networking fees), or distribution fees (including Rule 12b-1 fees) with respect to assets invested in Class K Shares. Ask your individual financial professional or visit your Financial Intermediary’s website for more information.
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INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT FILE # 811-02688
SPRO-MBFST-K-1018