DREYFUS STOCK INDEX FUND, INC.
INITIAL SHARES AND SERVICE SHARES
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
MAY 1, 2011
This Statement of Additional Information, which is not a prospectus, supplements and should be read in conjunction with the current Prospectus of Dreyfus Stock Index Fund, Inc. (the "Fund"), dated May 1, 2011, as the Prospectus may be revised from time to time. To obtain a copy of the Fund's Prospectus, please call your financial adviser, write to the Fund at 144 Glenn Curtiss Boulevard, Uniondale, New York 11556‑0144, visit www.dreyfus.com, or call 1-800-554-4611 or 516-338-3300.
Fund shares are offered only to variable annuity and variable life insurance separate accounts established by insurance companies ("Participating Insurance Companies") to fund variable annuity contracts ("VA contracts") and variable life insurance policies ("VLI policies," and together with VA contracts, the "Policies"). Individuals may not purchase shares directly from the Fund. The Policies are described in the separate prospectuses issued by the Participating Insurance Companies.
The Fund currently offers two classes of shares: Initial shares and Service shares. VA contract holders and VLI policyholders (collectively, "Policyowners") should consult the applicable prospectus of the separate account of the Participating Insurance Company to determine which class of Fund shares may be purchased by the separate account.
The Fund's most recent Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report to Shareholders are separate documents supplied with this Statement of Additional Information, and the financial statements, accompanying notes and report of the independent registered public accounting firm appearing in the Annual Report are incorporated by reference into this Statement of Additional Information.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Description of the Fund Management of the Fund Management Arrangements How to Buy Shares Distribution Plan (Service Shares Only) Shareholder Services Plan (Initial Shares Only) How to Redeem Shares Exchange Privilege Determination of Net Asset Value Taxation Portfolio Transactions Summary of the Proxy Voting Policy, Procedures and Guidelines of the Dreyfus Family of Funds Information about the Fund Counsel and Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm |
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DESCRIPTION OF THE FUND
The Fund is a Maryland corporation formed on January 24, 1989 that commenced operations on September 29, 1989 under the name Dreyfus Life and Annuity Index Fund, Inc. On April 23, 2002, the Fund's name was changed to Dreyfus Stock Index Fund, Inc.
The Dreyfus Corporation ("Dreyfus" or the "Manager") serves as the Fund's manager. Dreyfus has engaged its affiliate, Mellon Capital Management Corporation ("Mellon Capital"), to serve as the Fund's index fund manager and provide day-to-day management of the Fund's investments. Dreyfus and Mellon Capital are referred to collectively as the "Advisers."
MBSC Securities Corporation (the "Distributor") serves as the distributor of the Fund's shares.
Certain Portfolio Securities
The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the Fund's Prospectus. When the Fund has cash reserves or as otherwise described below, it may invest in the following securities.
U.S. Government Securities. Securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies or instrumentalities include U.S. Treasury securities that differ in their interest rates, maturities and times of issuance. Some obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. Government agencies and instrumentalities are supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury; others by the right of the issuer to borrow from the Treasury; others by discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase certain obligations from the agency or instrumentality; and others only by the credit of the agency or instrumentality. These securities bear fixed, floating or variable rates of interest. While the U.S. Government provides financial support for such U.S. Government-sponsored agencies and instrumentalities, no assurance can be given that it will always do so since it is not so obligated by law.
Repurchase Agreements. In a repurchase agreement, the Fund buys, and the seller agrees to repurchase, a security at a mutually agreed upon time and price. The repurchase agreement thereby determines the yield during the purchaser's holding period, while the seller's obligation to repurchase is secured by the value of the underlying security. The Fund's custodian or sub-custodian will have custody of, and will hold in a segregated account, securities acquired by the Fund under a repurchase agreement. Repurchase agreements are considered by the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") to be loans by the Fund. Repurchase agreements could involve risks in the event of a default or insolvency of the other party to the agreement, including possible delays or restrictions upon the Fund's ability to dispose of the underlying securities. In an attempt to reduce the risk of incurring a loss on a repurchase agreement, the Fund will require that additional securities be deposited with it if the value of the securities purchased should decrease below resale price.
Bank Obligations. The Fund may purchase certificates of deposit, time deposits, bankers' acceptances and other short-term obligations issued by domestic banks, foreign subsidiaries or foreign branches of domestic banks, domestic and foreign branches of foreign banks, domestic savings and loan associations and other banking institutions. With respect to such securities issued by foreign subsidiaries or foreign branches of domestic banks, and domestic and foreign branches of foreign banks, the Fund may be subject to additional investment risks that are different in some respects from those incurred by a fund which invests only in debt obligations of U.S. domestic issuers.
Certificates of deposit are negotiable certificates evidencing the obligation of a bank to repay funds deposited with it for a specified period of time.
Time deposits are non-negotiable deposits maintained in a banking institution for a specified period of time (in no event longer than seven days) at a stated interest rate.
Bankers' acceptances are credit instruments evidencing the obligation of a bank to pay a draft drawn on it by a customer. These instruments reflect the obligation both of the bank and the drawer to pay the face amount of the instruments upon maturity. The other short-term obligations may include uninsured, direct obligations bearing fixed, floating or variable interest rates.
Commercial Paper. Commercial paper consists of short‑term, unsecured promissory notes issued to finance short‑term credit needs. The commercial paper purchased by the Fund will consist only of direct obligations which, at the time of their purchase, are (a) rated at least Prime‑1 by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's") or A‑1 by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services ("S&P"), (b) issued by companies having an outstanding unsecured debt issue currently rated at least Aa by Moody's or at least AA‑ by S&P, or (c) if unrated, determined by the Advisers to be of comparable quality to those rated obligations which may be purchased by the Fund.
Investment Companies. The Fund may invest in securities issued by other investment companies. Under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act"), the Fund's investment in such securities, subject to certain exceptions, currently is limited to (i) 3% of the total voting stock of any one investment company, (ii) 5% of the Fund's total assets with respect to any one investment company and (iii) 10% of the Fund's total assets in the aggregate. As a shareholder of another investment company, the Fund would bear, along with other shareholders, its pro rata portion of the other investment company's expenses, including advisory fees. These expenses would be in addition to the advisory fees and other expenses that the Fund bears directly in connection with its own operations. The Fund also may invest its uninvested cash reserves or cash it receives as collateral from borrowers of its portfolio securities in connection with the Fund's securities lending program in shares of one or more money market funds advised by Dreyfus. Such investments will not be subject to the limitations described above. See "Lending Portfolio Securities."
Investment Techniques
The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the Fund's Prospectus.
General. The Fund seeks to match the total return of the Standard & Poor's 500 Composite Stock Price Index (the "Index"). The Index is composed of 500 common stocks, most of which are traded on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE"), chosen by S&P to best capture the price performance of a large cross-section of the U.S. publicly traded stock market. The Index is structured to approximate the general distribution of industries in the U.S. economy. The 500 securities represent approximately 75% of the market value of all U.S. common stocks. Component stocks included in the Index are chosen with the aim of achieving a distribution at the index level representative of the various components of the U.S. economy and therefore do not represent the 500 largest companies. Aggregate market value and trading activity are also considered in the selection process. A limited percentage of the Index may include foreign securities and real estate investment trusts ("REITs").
The Fund will attempt to achieve a correlation between the performance of its portfolio and that of the Index of at least 0.95, without taking into account expenses. A correlation of 1.00 would indicate perfect correlation, which would be achieved when the Fund's net asset value, including the value of its dividends and capital gains distributions, increases or decreases in exact proportion to changes in the Index. The Fund's ability to correlate its performance with the Index, however, may be affected by, among other things, changes in securities markets, the manner in which the Index is calculated by S&P and the timing of purchases and redemptions. In the future, the Fund's Board, subject to the approval of shareholders, may select another index if such a standard of comparison is deemed to be more representative of the performance of common stocks.
The Fund's ability to duplicate the performance of the Index also depends to some extent on the size of the Fund's portfolio and the size of cash flows into and out of the Fund. Investment changes to accommodate these cash flows are made to maintain the similarity of the Fund's portfolio to the Index to the maximum practicable extent.
Borrowing Money. The Fund is permitted to borrow money only for temporary or emergency (not leveraging) purposes, in an amount up to 5% of the value of its total assets (including the amount borrowed) valued at the lesser of cost or market, less liabilities (not including the amount borrowed) at the time the borrowing is made.
Lending Portfolio Securities. The Fund may lend securities from its portfolio to brokers, dealers and other financial institutions needing to borrow securities to complete certain transactions. In connection with such loans, the Fund remains the owner of the loaned securities and continues to be entitled to payments in amounts equal to the interest, dividends or other distributions payable on the loaned securities. The Fund also has the right to terminate a loan at any time. The Fund may call the loan to vote proxies if a material issue affecting the Fund's investment is to be voted upon. Loans of portfolio securities may not exceed 33-1/3% of the value of the Fund's total assets (including the value of all assets received as collateral for the loan). The Fund will receive collateral consisting of cash, U.S. Government securities or irrevocable letters of credit which will be maintained at all times in an amount equal to at least 100% of the current market value of the loaned securities. If the collateral consists of a letter of credit or securities, the borrower will pay the Fund a loan premium fee. If the collateral consists of cash, the Fund will reinvest the cash and pay the borrower a pre-negotiated fee or "rebate" from any return earned on the investment. The Fund may participate in a securities lending program operated by The Bank of New York Mellon, an affiliate of Dreyfus, as lending agent (the "Lending Agent"). The Lending Agent will receive a percentage of the total earnings of the Fund derived from lending its portfolio securities. Should the borrower of the securities fail financially, the Fund may experience delays in recovering the loaned securities or exercising its rights in the collateral. Loans are made only to borrowers that are deemed by Dreyfus to be of good financial standing. In a loan transaction, the Fund will also bear the risk of any decline in value of securities acquired with cash collateral. The Fund will minimize this risk by limiting the investment of cash collateral to money market funds advised by Dreyfus, repurchase agreements or other high quality instruments with short maturities.
Derivatives. The Fund may invest in, or enter into, derivatives, such as stock index futures, in anticipation of taking a market position when, in the opinion of the Advisers, available cash balances do not permit an economically efficient trade in the cash market, to hedge dividend accruals or to meet liquidity needs. Derivatives may provide a cheaper, quicker or more specifically focused way for the Fund to invest than "traditional" securities would.
Derivatives can be volatile and involve various types and degrees of risk, depending upon the characteristics of the particular derivative and the portfolio as a whole. Derivatives permit the Fund to increase or decrease the level of risk, or change the character of the risk, to which its portfolio is exposed in much the same way as the Fund can increase or decrease the level of risk, or change the character of the risk, of its portfolio by making investments in specific securities. However, derivatives may entail investment exposures that are greater than their cost would suggest, meaning that a small investment in derivatives could have a large potential impact on the Fund's performance.
If the Fund invests in derivatives at inopportune times or judges market conditions incorrectly, such investments may lower the Fund's return or result in a loss. The Fund also could experience losses if its derivatives were poorly correlated with the underlying instruments or the Fund's other investments, or if the Fund were unable to liquidate its position because of an illiquid secondary market. The market for many derivatives is, or suddenly can become, illiquid. Changes in liquidity may result in significant, rapid and unpredictable changes in the prices for derivatives.
Derivatives may be purchased on established exchanges or through privately negotiated transactions referred to as over-the-counter derivatives. Exchange-traded derivatives generally are guaranteed by the clearing agency that is the issuer or counterparty to such derivatives. This guarantee usually is supported by a variation margin payment system operated by the clearing agency in order to reduce overall credit risk. As a result, unless the clearing agency defaults, there is relatively little counterparty credit risk associated with derivatives purchased on an exchange. In contrast, no clearing agency guarantees over-the-counter derivatives. Therefore, each party to an over-the-counter derivative bears the risk that the counterparty will default. Accordingly, the Advisers will consider the creditworthiness of counterparties to over-the-counter derivatives in the same manner as it would review the credit quality of a security to be purchased by the Fund. Over-the-counter derivatives are less liquid than exchange-traded derivatives since the other party to the transaction may be the only investor with sufficient understanding of the derivative to be interested in bidding for it.
Pursuant to regulations and/or published positions of the SEC, the Fund may be required to segregate permissible liquid assets, or engage in other measure approved by the SEC or its staff, to "cover" the Fund's obligations relating to its transactions in derivatives. For example, in the case of futures contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle, the Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such contracts' full notional value (generally, the total numerical value of the asset underlying a futures contract at the time of valuation) while the positions are open. With respect to futures contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, the Fund is permitted to set aside liquid assets in an amount equal to the Fund's daily marked to market net obligations (i.e., the Fund's daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts' full notional value. By setting aside assets equal to only its net obligations under cash-settled futures contracts, the Fund may employ leverage to greater extent than if the Fund were required to segregate assets equal to the full notional value of such contracts.
The Fund will not be a commodity pool. The Fund has filed notice with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and National Futures Association of its eligibility as a registered investment company for an exclusion from the definition of commodity pool operator and that the Fund is not subject to registration or regulation as a commodity pool operator under the Commodity Exchange Act.
Futures Transactions--In General. A futures contract is an agreement between two parties to buy and sell a security for a set price on a future date. These contracts are traded on exchanges, so that, in most cases, either party can close out its position on the exchange for cash, without delivering the security. The Fund may enter into futures contracts in U.S. domestic markets.
Although some futures contracts call for making or taking delivery of the underlying securities, generally these obligations are closed out before delivery by offsetting purchases or sales of matching futures contracts (same exchange, underlying security or index, and delivery month). Closing out a futures contract sale is effected by purchasing a futures contract for the same aggregate amount of the specific type of financial instrument with the same delivery date. If an offsetting purchase price is less than the original sale price, the Fund realizes a capital gain, or if it is more, the Fund realizes a capital loss. Conversely, if an offsetting sale price is more than the original purchase price, the Fund realizes a capital gain, or if it is less, the Fund realizes a capital loss. Transaction costs also are included in these calculations.
Engaging in these transactions involves risk of loss to the Fund which could adversely affect the value of the Fund's net assets. Although the Fund intends to purchase or sell futures contracts only if there is an active market for such contracts, no assurance can be given that a liquid market will exist for any particular contract at any particular time. Many futures exchanges and boards of trade limit the amount of fluctuation permitted in futures contract prices during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached in a particular contract, no trades may be made that day at a price beyond that limit or trading may be suspended for specified periods during the trading day. Futures contract prices could move to the limit for several consecutive trading days with little or no trading, thereby preventing prompt liquidation of futures positions and potentially subjecting the Fund to substantial losses.
Specific Futures Transactions. The Fund may purchase and sell stock index futures contracts. A stock index future obligates the Fund to pay or receive an amount of cash equal to a fixed dollar amount specified in the futures contract multiplied by the difference between the settlement price of the contract on the contract's last trading day and the value of the index based on the prices of the securities that comprise the index at the opening of trading in such securities on the next business day.
State Insurance Regulation. The Fund is intended to be a funding vehicle for VA contracts and VLI policies to be offered by Participating Insurance Companies and will seek to be offered in as many jurisdictions as possible. Certain states have regulations concerning concentration of investments, purchase and sale of future contracts and short sales of securities, among other techniques. If applied to the Fund, the Fund may be limited in its ability to engage in such techniques and to manage its portfolio with the flexibility provided herein. It is the Fund's intention that the Fund operate in material compliance with current insurance laws and regulations, as applied, in each jurisdiction in which the Fund is offered.
Investment Restrictions
The Fund's investment objective is a fundamental policy, which cannot be changed without approval by the holders of a majority (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund's outstanding voting shares. In addition, the Fund has adopted investment restrictions numbered 1 through 9 as fundamental policies. The Fund may not:
1. Purchase securities of any company having less than three years' continuous operations (including operations of any predecessors) if such purchase would cause the value of the Fund's investments in all such companies to exceed 5% of the value of its total assets.
2. Invest in commodities, except that the Fund may invest in futures contracts as described in the Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information.
3. Purchase, hold or deal in real estate, or oil and gas interests, but the Fund may purchase and sell securities that are secured by real estate or issued by companies that invest or deal in real estate.
4. Borrow money or pledge, mortgage or hypothecate its assets, except as described in the Fund's Prospectus and the Statement of Additional Information and in connection with entering into futures contracts. Collateral arrangements with respect to initial or variation margin for futures contracts will not be deemed to be pledges of the Fund's assets.
6. Act as an underwriter of securities of other issuers or purchase securities subject to restrictions on disposition under the Securities Act of 1933 (so‑called "restricted securities"). The Fund may not enter into repurchase agreements providing for settlement in more than seven days after notice or purchase securities which are not readily marketable, if, in the aggregate, more than 10% of the value of the Fund's net assets would be so invested. The Fund will not enter into time deposits maturing in more than seven days and time deposits maturing from two business days through seven calendar days will not exceed 10% of the Fund's total assets.
7. Invest in the securities of a company for the purpose of exercising management or control, but the Fund will vote the securities it owns in its portfolio as a shareholder in accordance with its views.
8. Purchase, sell or write puts, calls or combinations thereof.
9. Invest more than 25% of its assets in investments in any particular industry or industries (including banking), except to the extent the Index also is so concentrated, provided that, when the Fund has adopted a temporary defensive posture, there shall be no limitation on the purchase of obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities.
In addition to the investment restrictions adopted as set forth above, the Fund has adopted certain additional non-fundamental policies which may be changed by vote of a majority of the Board members at any time. The Fund may not: (i) engage in arbitrage transactions, (ii) purchase warrants (other than those acquired by the Fund in units or attached to securities), (iii) sell securities short, but reserves the right to sell securities short against the box, (iv) invest more than 10% of its total assets in the securities of any single issuer or hold more than 10% of the voting securities of any single issuer, or (iv) purchase securities of other investment companies, except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act. In addition, the Fund intends to: (i) comply with the diversification requirements under Section 817(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"), and (ii) comply in all material respects with relevant insurance laws and regulations applicable to investments of separate accounts of Participating Insurance Companies.
If a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of investment, a later change in percentage resulting from changes in values or assets will not constitute a violation of such restriction.
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND
Board of the Fund
Board's Oversight Role in Management. The Board's role in management of the Fund is oversight. As is the case with virtually all investment companies (as distinguished from operating companies), service providers to the Fund, primarily the Manager and its affiliates, have responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Fund, which includes responsibility for risk management (including management of investment performance and investment risk, valuation risk, issuer and counterparty credit risk, compliance risk and operational risk). As part of its oversight, the Board, acting at its scheduled meetings, or the Chairman, acting between Board meetings, regularly interacts with and receives reports from senior personnel of service providers, including the Manager's Chief Investment Officer (or a senior representative of his office), the Fund's and the Manager's Chief Compliance Officer and portfolio management personnel. The Board's audit committee (which consists of all Board members) meets during its scheduled meetings, and between meetings the audit committee chair maintains contact, with the Fund's independent registered public accounting firm and the Fund's Chief Financial Officer. The Board also receives periodic presentations from senior personnel of the Manager or its affiliates regarding risk management generally, as well as periodic presentations regarding specific operational, compliance or investment areas, such as business continuity, anti-money laundering, personal trading, valuation, credit, investment research and securities lending. The Board also receives reports from counsel to the Company or counsel to the Manager and the Board's own independent legal counsel regarding regulatory compliance and governance matters. The Board has adopted policies and procedures designed to address certain risks to the Fund. In addition, the Manager and other service providers to the Fund have adopted a variety of policies, procedures and controls designed to address particular risks to the Fund. Different processes, procedures and controls are employed with respect to different types of risks. However, it is not possible to eliminate all of the risks applicable to the Fund, and the Board's risk management oversight is subject to inherent limitations.
Board Composition and Leadership Structure. The 1940 Act requires that at least 40% of the Fund's Board members not be "interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund and as such are not affiliated with the Manager ("Independent Board members"). To rely on certain exemptive rules under the 1940 Act, a majority of the Fund's Board members must be Independent Board members, and for certain important matters, such as the approval of investment advisory agreements or transactions with affiliates, the 1940 Act or the rules thereunder require the approval of a majority of the Independent Board members. Currently, all of the Fund's Board members, including the Chairman of the Board, are Independent Board members, although the Board could in the future determine to add Board members who are not Independent Board members. The Board has determined that its leadership structure, in which the Chairman of the Board is not affiliated with the Manager, is appropriate in light of the services that the Manager and its affiliates provide to the Fund and potential conflicts of interest that could arise from these relationships.
Information About Each Board Member's Experience, Qualifications, Attributes or Skills. Board members of the Fund, together with information as to their positions with the Fund, principal occupations and other board memberships for the past five years, are shown below.
Name |
Principal Occupation During Past 5 Years |
Other Public Company Board Memberships During Past 5 Years |
|
|
|
Joseph S. DiMartino |
Corporate Director and Trustee |
CBIZ (formerly, Century Business Services, Inc.), a provider of outsourcing functions for small and medium size companies, Director (1997 - present) The Newark Group, a provider of a national market of paper recovery facilities, paperboard mills and paperboard converting plants, Director (2000 - 2010) Sunair Services Corporation, a provider of certain outdoor-related services to homes and businesses, Director (2005 - 2009) |
Peggy C. Davis |
Shad Professor of Law, New York University School of Law |
N/A |
David P. Feldman |
Corporate Director and Trustee |
BBH Mutual Funds Group (4 registered mutual funds), Director (1992 - present) QMed, Inc., a healthcare company, Director (1999 - 2007) |
Ehud Houminer |
Executive-in-Residence at the Columbia Business School, Columbia University |
Avnet, Inc., an electronics distributor, Director (1993 - present) |
Dr. Martin Peretz |
Editor-in-Chief Emeritus of The New Republic Magazine (2010 – present) (previously, Editor-in-Chief, 1974 – 2010) Director of TheStreet.com, a financial information service on the web |
N/A |
Each Board member has been a Board member of other Dreyfus mutual funds for over ten years. Additional information about each Board member follows (supplementing the information provided in the table above) that describes some of the specific experiences, qualifications, attributes or skills that each Board member possesses which the Board believes has prepared them to be effective Board members. The Board believes that the significance of each Board member's experience, qualifications, attributes or skills is an individual matter (meaning that experience that is important for one Board member may not have the same value for another) and that these factors are best evaluated at the board level, with no single Board member, or particular factor, being indicative of board effectiveness. However, the Board believes that Board members need to have the ability to critically review, evaluate, question and discuss information provided to them, and to interact effectively with Fund management, service providers and counsel, in order to exercise effective business judgment in the performance of their duties; the Board believes that its members satisfy this standard. Experience relevant to having this ability may be achieved through a Board member's educational background; business, professional training or practice (e.g., medicine, accounting or law), public service or academic positions; experience from service as a board member (including the Board of the Fund) or as an executive of investment funds, public companies or significant private or not-for-profit entities or other organizations; and/or other life experiences. The charter for the Board's nominating committee contains certain other factors considered by the committee in identifying and evaluating potential Board member nominees. To assist them in evaluating matters under federal and state law, the Board members are counseled by their own independent legal counsel, who participates in Board meetings and interacts with the Manager, and also may benefit from information provided by the Manager's counsel; counsel to the Fund and to the Board have significant experience advising funds and fund board members. The Board and its committees have the ability to engage other experts as appropriate. The Board evaluates its performance on an annual basis.
· Joseph S. DiMartino – Mr. DiMartino has been the Chairman of the Board of the funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds for over 15 years. From 1971 through 1994, Mr. DiMartino served in various roles as an employee of Dreyfus (prior to its acquisition by a predecessor of The Bank of New York Mellon ("BNY Mellon") in August 1994 and related management changes), including portfolio manager, President, Chief Operating Officer and a director. He ceased being an employee or director of Dreyfus by the end of 1994. From July 1995 to November 1997, Mr. DiMartino served as Chairman of the Board of The Noel Group, a public buyout firm; in that capacity, he helped manage, acquire, take public and liquidate a number of operating companies. From 1986 to 2010, Mr. DiMartino served as a director of the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
· Peggy C. Davis – Ms. Davis currently serves as the John S. R. Shad Professor of Lawyering and Ethics at New York University School of Law as a writer and teacher in the fields of evidence, constitutional theory, family law, social sciences and the law, legal process and professional methodology and training. Prior to joining the university's faculty in 1983, Ms. Davis served as a Judge of the Family Court of the State of New York. Before her appointment to the bench, she practiced law for ten years in both the commercial and public interest sectors. Ms. Davis also has served as Chair of the Board of the Russell Sage Foundation.
· David P. Feldman – Mr. Feldman is the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AT&T Investment Management Corp., from which he retired in 1997, where he was responsible for $70 billion in pension assets. Mr. Feldman has served as Chairman of the Financial Executives Institute's Committee on Investment of Employee Benefits Assets. Mr. Feldman currently serves as a member of the Pension Managers Advisory Committee of the NYSE.
· Ehud Houminer – Mr. Houminer currently serves on Columbia Business School's Board of Overseers. Prior to his association with Columbia Business School beginning in 1991, Mr. Houminer held various senior financial, strategic and management positions at Philip Morris Companies Inc., including serving as Senior Corporate Vice President for Corporate Planning, and as President and Chief Executive Officer of Philip Morris USA, Inc. (now part of Altria Group, Inc.). Mr. Houminer is Chairman of the Business School Board and a Trustee of Ben Gurion University.
· Dr. Martin Peretz – Dr. Peretz is Editor-in-Chief Emeritus of The New Republic and was Editor-in-Chief from 1974 until 2010. Dr. Peretz is also the co-founder and a director of TheStreet.com. Previously, Dr. Peretz was a member of the faculty of Harvard University from 1966 through 2002. He currently serves on the boards of a number of significant non-profit organizations.
Additional Information about the Board and its Committees. Board members are elected to serve for an indefinite term. The Fund has standing audit, nominating and compensation committees, each comprised of its Board members who are not "interested persons" of the Fund, as defined in the 1940 Act. The function of the audit committee is to (i) oversee the Fund's accounting and financial reporting processes and the audit of the Fund's financial statements and (ii) to assist in the Board's oversight of the integrity of the Fund's financial statements, the Fund's compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and the independent registered public accounting firm's qualifications, independence and performance. The Fund's nominating committee is responsible for selecting and nominating persons as members of the Board for election or appointment by the Board and for election by shareholders. The nominating committee will consider recommendations for nominees from shareholders submitted to the Secretary of the Fund, c/o The Dreyfus Corporation Legal Department, 200 Park Avenue, 8th Floor East, New York, New York 10166, which includes information regarding the recommended nominee as specified in the nominating committee charter. The function of the compensation committee is to establish the appropriate compensation for serving on the Board. The Fund also has a standing pricing committee comprised of any one Board member. The function of the pricing committee is to assist in valuing the Fund's investments. The audit committee met four times, the nominating committee met one time and the compensation and pricing committees did not meet during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010.
The table below indicates the dollar range of each Board member's ownership of Fund shares and shares of other funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds for which he or she is a Board member, in each case as of December 31, 2010.
Name of Board Member |
Dreyfus Stock Index Fund |
Aggregate Holding of Funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds for which Responsible as a Board Member |
Joseph S. DiMartino |
None |
Over $100,000 |
Peggy C. Davis |
None |
Over $100,000 |
David P. Feldman |
None |
Over $100,000 |
Ehud Houminer |
None |
Over $100,000 |
Dr. Martin Peretz |
None |
$50,001 - $100,000 |
As of December 31, 2010, none of the Board members or their immediate family members owned securities of Dreyfus, Mellon Capital, the Distributor or any person (other than a registered investment company) directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with Dreyfus, Mellon Capital or the Distributor.
The Fund and ten other funds (comprised of 38 portfolios) in the Dreyfus Family of Funds pay each Board member their respective allocated portion of an annual retainer of $85,000, and a fee of $10,000 for each regularly scheduled Board meeting attended, $2,000 for separate in-person committee meetings attended which are not held in conjunction with a regularly scheduled Board meeting and $1,000 for Board meetings and separate committee meetings attended that are conducted by telephone. The Chairman of the Board receives an additional 25% of such compensation and the audit committee chairman receives an additional $15,000 per annum. The Fund also reimburses each Board member for travel and out of pocket expenses in connection with attending Board or committee meetings. Each Emeritus Board member is entitled to receive an annual retainer of one-half the amount paid as a retainer at the time the Board member became Emeritus and a per meeting attended fee of one-half the amount paid to Board members. The aggregate amount of compensation paid to each Board member by the Fund for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010, and by all funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds for which such person is a Board member (the number of portfolios of such funds is set forth in parenthesis next to each Board member's total compensation) for the year ended December 31, 2010, was as follows:
Fund |
Joseph S. DiMartino |
Peggy C. Davis |
David P. Feldman |
Ehud Houminer |
Martin Peretz |
|
|
|
|
|
|
DSIF |
$17,312 |
$13,851 |
$15,382 |
$13,851 |
$13,851 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total compensation from the funds and fund complex (**) |
$1,060,250 |
$291,000 |
$225,000 |
$242,000 |
$137,000 |
Fund |
James F. Henry+ |
Paul A. Marks++ |
Gloria Messinger+++ |
|
|
|
|
DSIF |
$13,703 |
$6,407 |
$7,524 |
|
|
|
|
Total compensation from the funds and fund complex (**) |
$134,499 |
$63,500 |
$68,500 |
* Amounts shown do not include the cost of office space, secretarial services and health benefits for the Chairman of the Boards and expenses reimbursed to board members for attending board meetings, which in the aggregate amounted to $2,193.
** Represents the number of separate portfolios comprising the investment companies in the fund complex, including the funds, for which the board member serves.
+ Emeritus board member since December 19, 2010.
++ Emeritus board member since December 31, 2006.
+++ Emeritus board member since November 28, 2009.
Officers of the Fund
Name |
Principal Occupation During Past 5 Years |
Number of Other Investment Companies (Portfolios) for which serves as an Officer |
|
|
|
Bradley J. Skapyak |
Chief Operating Officer and a director of the Manager since June 2009; from April 2003 to June 2009, head of the Investment Accounting and Support Department of the Manager |
76 (171) |
James Windels |
Director – Mutual Fund Accounting of the Manager
|
77 (196) |
Michael A. Rosenberg |
Assistant General Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Kiesha Astwood |
Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
James Bitetto |
Senior Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Joni Lacks Charatan |
Senior Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Joseph M. Chioffi |
Senior Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Kathleen DeNicholas |
Senior Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Janette E. Farragher |
Assistant General Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
John B. Hammalian 1963 |
Managing Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
M. Cristina Meiser |
Senior Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Robert M. Mullery |
Managing Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Jeff Prusnofsky |
Managing Counsel of BNY Mellon |
77 (196) |
Richard S. Cassaro |
Senior Accounting Manager – Money Market and Municipal Bond Funds of the Manager |
77 (196) |
Gavin C. Reilly |
Tax Manager of the Investment Accounting and Support Department of the Manager |
77 (196) |
Robert S. Robol 1964 |
Senior Accounting Manager – Fixed Income Funds of the Manager |
77 (196) |
Robert Salviolo |
Senior Accounting Manager – Equity Funds of the Manager |
77 (196) |
Robert Svagna |
Senior Accounting Manager – Equity Funds of the Manager |
77 (196) |
Natalia Gribas |
Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer of the Distributor |
73 (192) |
Joseph W. Connolly |
Chief Compliance Officer of the Manager and the Dreyfus Family of Funds |
77 (196) |
The address of each Board member and officer of the Fund is 200 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10166.
Board members and officers, as a group, owned less than 1% of the Fund's shares outstanding on April 1, 2011. See "Information About the Fund" for a list of shareholders known by the Fund to own of record 5% or more of the Fund's outstanding voting securities as of April 1, 2011.
MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS
Manager. The Manager is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BNY Mellon, a global financial services company focused on helping clients move and manage their financial assets, operating in 36 countries and serving more than 100 markets. BNY Mellon is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, providing asset and wealth management, asset servicing, issuer services, and treasury services through a worldwide client-focused team.
Dreyfus provides management services pursuant to the Management Agreement (the "Management Agreement") between the Fund and Dreyfus. The Management Agreement is subject to annual approval by (i) the Fund's Board or (ii) vote of a majority (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, provided that in either event the continuance also is approved by a majority of the Board members who are not "interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund or Dreyfus by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Management Agreement is terminable without penalty, on 60 days' notice, by the Fund's Board or by vote of the holders of a majority of the Fund's outstanding voting securities, or, upon not less than 90 days' notice, by Dreyfus. The Management Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act).
The following persons are officers and/or directors of the Manager: Jonathan Baum, Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer; J. Charles Cardona, President and a director; Diane P. Durnin, Vice Chair and a director; Bradley J. Skapyak, Chief Operating Officer and a director; Dwight Jacobsen, Executive Vice President and a director; Jeffrey D. Landau, Executive Vice President and a director; Patrice M. Kozlowski, Senior Vice President-Corporate Communications; Gary E. Abbs, Vice President-Tax; Jill Gill, Vice President-Human Resources; Joanne S. Huber, Vice President-Tax; Anthony Mayo, Vice President-Information Systems; John E. Lane, Vice President; Jeanne M. Login, Vice President; Gary Pierce, Controller; Joseph W. Connolly, Chief Compliance Officer; James Bitetto, Secretary; and Robert G. Capone, Mitchell E. Harris, Cyrus Taraporevala and Scott E. Wennerholm, directors.
Dreyfus maintains office facilities on behalf of the Fund, and furnishes the Fund statistical and research data, clerical help, accounting, data processing, bookkeeping and internal auditing and certain other required services to the Fund. Dreyfus, from time to time, may make payments from its own assets, including past profits but not including the management fees paid by the Fund, to Participating Insurance Companies in connection with the provision of certain administrative services to the Fund or servicing and/or maintaining shareholder accounts. Dreyfus also may make such advertising and promotional expenditures, using its own resources, as it from time to time deems appropriate.
Index Fund Manager. Mellon Capital provides investment advisory assistance and day‑to‑day management of the Fund's investments pursuant to the Index Management Agreement (the "Index Management Agreement") between Mellon Capital and Dreyfus. The Index Management Agreement is subject to annual approval by (i) the Fund's Board or (ii) vote of a majority (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund's outstanding voting securities, provided that in either event the continuance also is approved by a majority of the Fund's Board members who are not "interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund, Dreyfus or Mellon Capital, by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Index Management Agreement is terminable without penalty (i) by Dreyfus on 60 days' notice, (ii) by the Fund's Board or by vote of the holders of a majority of the Fund's outstanding voting securities on 60 days' notice, or (iii) by Mellon Capital on not less than 90 days' notice. The Index Management Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act) or upon the termination of the Management Agreement for any reason.
The following persons are executive officers and/or directors of the Sub-Adviser: Gabriela F. Parcella, Chief Executive Officer; Thomas Loeb, Board of Directors and Chairman Emeritus; William L. Fouse, Board of Directors and Chairman Emeritus; Charles Jacklin, Board of Directors and Chairman; Linda Lillard, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer; Alexander C. Huberts, President, Investments and Finance; Rose A. Huening-Clark, Managing Director; Nichole C. Zimmerman, Managing Director, Human Resources; Jeffrey Zhang, President and Chief Investment Officer; Vikas Oswal, Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Strategist; David T. Jiang, Executive Vice President; David Kwan, Managing Director, Fixed Income Portfolio Management & Trading; Warren Chiang, Managing Director, Active Equity Strategies; Vassilis Dagioglu, Managing Director, Head of Asset Allocation Portfolio Management; Anjun Zhou, Managing Director, Head of Asset Allocation Research; Eric Goodbar, Managing Director, Hedge Fund Strategist; Karen Wong, Managing Director, Equity Index Strategies; Lynn T. Challenger, Managing Director, Head of Global Trading; Lawrence P. Lee, Managing Director, Chief Compliance Officer; David Manuel, Chief Financial Officer; Earl G. Kleckner, Managing Director Client Service-North America; David Dirks, Managing Director, Head of Active Equity Client Service; Andrew J. Pellegrino, Managing Director, Consultant Relations; Michael B, Kotarski, Managing Director, Head of Sales; Lynn B. Spang, Managing Director & Senior Managing Counsel; Nicholas Fohl, Managing Director, Chief Technology Officer, Oliver E. Buckley, Mitchel E. Harris, Scott E. Wennerholm, Thomas Hazuka, and William P. Rydell.
Portfolio Management. Mellon Capital provides day-to-day management of the Fund's investments in accordance with the stated policies of the Fund, subject to the supervision of Dreyfus and approval of the Fund's Board. Mellon Capital provides the Fund with portfolio managers who are authorized by the Fund's Board to execute purchases and sales of securities. Thomas J. Durante, Karen Q. Wong and Richard A. Brown serve as the primary portfolio managers of the Fund. Ms. Wong and Messrs. Durante and Brown are dual employees of Dreyfus and Mellon Capital, an affiliate of Dreyfus, and manage the Fund as employees of Dreyfus. Evelyn Chen, Rebecca Gao, Lynn Hutchison, Todd Rose and Marlene Walker Smith serve as additional portfolio managers of the Fund. Mmes. Chen, Gao, Hutchison and Smith and Mr. Rose are dual employees of Dreyfus and Mellon Capital.
The Company, the Manager, Mellon Capital and the Distributor have each adopted a Code of Ethics that permits its personnel, subject to such code, to invest in securities, including securities that may be purchased or held by the Fund. The Code of Ethics subjects personal securities transactions of the Advisers' employees to various restrictions to ensure that such trading does not disadvantage any fund advised by Dreyfus. In that regard, portfolio managers and other investment personnel must preclear and report their personal securities transactions and holdings, which are reviewed for compliance with the Code of Ethics and are also subject to the oversight of BNY Mellon's Investment Ethics Committee. Portfolio managers and other investment personnel who comply with the Code of Ethics preclearance and disclosure procedures of the Code of Ethics and the requirements of the Committee, may be permitted to purchase, sell or hold securities which also may be or are held in fund(s) they manage or for which they otherwise provide investment advice.
Portfolio Manager Compensation. The primary objectives of the Mellon Capital compensation plans are to:
The investment professionals' cash compensation is comprised primarily of a market-based base salary and (variable) incentives (cash and deferred). An investment professional's base salary is determined by the employee's experience and performance in the role, taking into account the ongoing compensation benchmark analyses. A portfolio manager's base salary is generally a fixed amount that may change as a result of an annual review, upon assumption of new duties, or when a market adjustment of the position occurs. Funding for the Mellon Capital Annual and Long Term Incentive Plan is through a pre-determined fixed percentage of overall Mellon Capital profitability. Therefore, all bonus awards are based initially on Mellon Capital's financial performance. Annual incentive opportunities are pre-established for each individual, expressed as a percentage of base salary ("target awards"). These targets are derived based on a review of competitive market data for each position annually. Annual awards are determined by applying multiples to this target award. Awards are 100% discretionary. Factors considered in awards include individual performance, team performance, investment performance of the associated portfolio(s) (including both short and long term returns) and qualitative behavioral factors. Other factors considered in determining the award are the asset size and revenue growth/retention of the products managed. Awards are paid partially in cash with the balance deferred through the Long Term Incentive Plan.
These positions that participate in the Long Term Incentive Plan have a high level of accountability and a large impact on the success of the business due to the position's scope and overall responsibility. This plan provides for an annual award, payable in cash after a three-year cliff vesting period, as well as a grant of BNY Mellon Restricted Stock for senior level roles.
The same methodology described above is used to determine portfolio manager compensation with respect to the management of mutual funds and other accounts. Mutual fund portfolio managers also are eligible for the standard retirement benefits and health and welfare benefits available to all Mellon Capital employees. Certain portfolio managers may be eligible for additional retirement benefits under several supplemental retirement plans that Mellon Capital provides to restore dollar-for-dollar the benefits of management employees that had been cut back solely as a result of certain limits due to tax laws. These plans are structured to provide the same retirement benefits as the standard retirement benefits. In addition, mutual fund portfolio managers whose compensation exceeds certain limits may elect to defer a portion of their salary and/or bonus under the BNY Mellon Deferred Compensation Plan for Employees.
Additional Information About Portfolio Managers. The following table lists the number and types of other accounts advised by the Fund's primary portfolio managers and assets under management in those accounts as of the end of the Fund's fiscal year, December 31, 2010:
Primary |
Registered Investment Company Accounts |
Total Assets Managed |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles |
Total Assets Managed |
Other Accounts |
Total Assets Managed |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thomas Durante |
93 |
$41,312M |
73 |
$64,676M |
58 |
$33,385M |
Richard Brown |
93 |
$41,312M |
73 |
$64,676M |
58 |
$33,385M |
Karen Wong |
93 |
$41,312M |
73 |
$64,676M |
58 |
$33,385M |
None of the funds or accounts managed are subject to a performance-based advisory fee.
The dollar range of Fund shares beneficially owned by the primary portfolio managers as of the end of the Fund's fiscal year is as follows:
Primary Portfolio Manager |
Dollar Range of Fund Shares Beneficially Owned |
|
|
Thomas Durante |
None |
Richard Brown |
None |
Karen Wong |
None |
Portfolio managers at Dreyfus may manage multiple accounts for a diverse client base, including mutual funds, separate accounts (assets managed on behalf of institutions such as pension funds, insurance companies and foundations), bank common trust accounts and wrap fee programs ("Other Accounts").
Potential conflicts of interest may arise because of the Advisers' management of the Fund and Other Accounts. For example, conflicts of interest may arise with both the aggregation and allocation of securities transactions and allocation of limited investment opportunities, as Dreyfus or Mellon Capital, as the case may be, may be perceived as causing accounts it manages to participate in an offering to increase Dreyfus' or Mellon Capital's overall allocation of securities in that offering, or to increase Dreyfus' or Mellon Capital's ability to participate in future offerings by the same underwriter or issuer. Allocations of bunched trades, particularly trade orders that were only partially filled due to limited availability, and allocation of investment opportunities generally, could raise a potential conflict of interest, as Dreyfus or Mellon Capital may have an incentive to allocate securities that are expected to increase in value to preferred accounts. Initial public offerings, in particular, are frequently of very limited availability. Additionally, portfolio managers may be perceived to have a conflict of interest if there are a large number of Other Accounts, in addition to the Fund, that they are managing on behalf of Dreyfus or Mellon Capital. The Advisers periodically review each portfolio manager's overall responsibilities to ensure that he or she is able to allocate the necessary time and resources to effectively manage the Fund. In addition, Dreyfus or Mellon Capital could be viewed as having a conflict of interest to the extent that Dreyfus or Mellon Capital or their affiliates and/or portfolio managers have a materially larger investment in Other Accounts than their investment in the Fund.
Other Accounts may have investment objectives, strategies and risks that differ from those of the Fund. For these or other reasons, the portfolio managers may purchase different securities for the Fund and the Other Accounts, and the performance of securities purchased for the Fund may vary from the performance of securities purchased for Other Accounts. The portfolio managers may place transactions on behalf of Other Accounts that are directly or indirectly contrary to investment decisions made for the Fund, which could have the potential to adversely impact the Fund, depending on market conditions.
A potential conflict of interest may be perceived to arise if transactions in one account closely follow related transactions in another account, such as when a purchase increases the value of securities previously purchased by the other account, or when a sale in one account lowers the sale price received in a sale by a second account.
Conflicts of interest similar to those described above arise when portfolio managers are employed by a sub-investment adviser or are dual employees of the Manager and an affiliated entity and such portfolio managers also manage Other Accounts.
The goal of each of Dreyfus and Mellon Capital is to provide high quality investment services to all of their respective clients, while meeting their fiduciary obligation to treat all clients fairly. Each of Dreyfus and Mellon Capital has adopted and implemented policies and procedures, including brokerage and trade allocation policies and procedures, that it believes address the conflicts associated with managing multiple accounts for multiple clients. In addition, Dreyfus monitors a variety of areas, including compliance with Fund guidelines, the allocation of initial public offerings ("IPOs"), and compliance with Dreyfus' Code of Ethics. Furthermore, senior investment and business personnel at Dreyfus periodically review the performance of the portfolio managers for Dreyfus-managed funds.
BNY Mellon and its affiliates, including Dreyfus and others involved in the management, sales, investment activities, business operations or distribution of the Fund, are engaged in businesses and have interests other than that of managing the Fund. These activities and interests include potential multiple advisory, transactional, financial and other interests in securities, instruments and companies that may be directly or indirectly purchased or sold by the Fund and the Fund's service providers, which may cause conflicts that could disadvantage the Fund.
BNY Mellon and its affiliates may have deposit, loan and commercial banking or other relationships with the issuers of securities purchased by the Fund. BNY Mellon has no obligation to provide to Dreyfus or the Fund, or effect transactions on behalf of the Fund in accordance with, any market or other information, analysis, or research in its possession. Consequently, BNY Mellon (including, but not limited to, BNY Mellon's central Risk Management Department) may have information that could be material to the management of the Fund and may not share that information with relevant personnel of Dreyfus. Accordingly, Dreyfus has informed management of the Fund that in making investment decisions it does not obtain or use material inside information that BNY Mellon or its affiliates may possess with respect to such issuers.
Dreyfus will make investment decisions for the Fund as it believes is in the best interests of the Fund. Investment decisions made for the Fund may differ from, and may conflict with, investment decisions made for other investment companies and accounts advised by Dreyfus or BNY Mellon and its other affiliates. Actions taken with respect to such other investment companies or accounts may adversely impact the Fund, and actions taken by the Fund may benefit BNY Mellon or other investment companies or accounts (including the Fund) advised by Dreyfus or BNY Mellon and its other affiliates. Regulatory restrictions (including, but not limited to, those related to the aggregation of positions among different other investment companies and accounts) and internal BNY Mellon policies, guidance or limitations (including, but not limited to, those related to the aggregation of positions among all fiduciary accounts managed or advised by BNY Mellon and all its affiliates (including Dreyfus) and the aggregated exposure of such accounts) may restrict investment activities of the Fund. While the allocation of investment opportunities among the Fund and other investment companies and accounts advised by Dreyfus or BNY Mellon and its other affiliates may raise potential conflicts because of financial, investment or other interests of BNY Mellon or its personnel, Dreyfus will make allocation decisions consistent with the interests of the Fund and the other investment companies and accounts and not solely based on such other interests.
Expenses. All expenses incurred in the operation of the Fund are borne by the Fund, except to the extent specifically assumed by Dreyfus and/or Mellon Capital. The expenses borne by the Fund include: taxes, interest, loan commitment fees, interest and distributions paid on securities sold short, brokerage fees and commissions, if any, fees of Board members who are not officers, directors, employees or holders of 5% or more of the outstanding voting securities of Dreyfus or Mellon Capital or any of their affiliates, SEC fees, state Blue Sky qualification fees, advisory fees, transfer and dividend disbursing agents' fees, certain insurance premiums, industry association fees, outside auditing and legal expenses, costs of independent pricing services, costs of maintaining the Fund's existence, costs attributable to investor services (including, without limitation, telephone and personnel expenses), costs of preparing and printing prospectuses and statements of additional information for regulatory purposes and for distribution to existing shareholders, costs of shareholder's reports and meetings, and any extraordinary expenses. In addition, each class of shares bears any class specific expenses allocated to such class, such as expenses related to the distribution and/or shareholder servicing of such class. The Fund's Initial shares are subject to an annual shareholder services fee (see "Shareholder Services Plan (Initial Shares Only)") and the Fund's Service shares are subject to an annual distribution fee (see "Distribution Plan (Service Shares Only)"). All fees and expenses are accrued daily and deducted before declaration of dividends to shareholders.
As compensation for Dreyfus' services, the Fund has agreed to pay Dreyfus a monthly fee at the annual rate of 0.245% of the value of the Fund's average daily net assets. As compensation for Mellon Capital services, Dreyfus has agreed to pay Mellon Capital a monthly fee at the annual rate of 0.07% of the value of the Fund's average daily net assets. For the fiscal years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, the Fund paid Dreyfus management fees of $4,178,465, $3,839,669 and $6,042,917, respectively, and Dreyfus paid Mellon Capital index management fees of $1,013,331, $1,021,314 and $1,709,165, respectively.
The aggregate fee payable to Dreyfus and Mellon Capital is not subject to reduction as the value of the Fund's net assets increases.
Distributor. The Distributor, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dreyfus, located at 200 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10166, serves as the Fund's distributor on a best efforts basis pursuant to an agreement with the Fund which is renewable annually. The Distributor also serves as distributor for the other funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds and BNY Mellon Funds Trust.
The Manager or the Distributor may provide cash payments out of its own resources to Participating Insurance Companies and other financial intermediaries that sell shares of the Fund or provide other services. Such payments are separate from any 12b-1 fees and/or shareholder services fees or other expenses paid by the Fund to the intermediaries. Because those payments are not made by you or the Fund, the Fund's expense ratio will not be affected by any such payments. These additional payments may be made to Participating Insurance Companies and other financial intermediaries, including affiliates, that provide shareholder servicing, sub-administration, recordkeeping and/or sub-transfer agency services, marketing support and/or access to sales meetings, sales representatives and management representatives of the Participating Insurance Companies. Cash compensation also may be paid from the Manager's or the Distributor's own resources to Participating Insurance Companies for inclusion of a Fund on a sales list, including a preferred or select sales list or in other sales programs. These payments sometimes are referred to as "revenue sharing." From time to time, the Manager or the Distributor also may provide cash or non-cash compensation to Participating Insurance Companies in the form of: occasional gifts; occasional meals, tickets, or other entertainment; support for due diligence trips; educational conference sponsorship; support for recognition programs; and other forms of cash or non-cash compensation permissible under broker-dealer regulations. In some cases, these payments or compensation may create an incentive for the Participating Insurance Company to recommend or sell shares of the Fund to you. Please contact your Participating Insurance Company for details about any payments it may receive in connection with the sale of Fund shares or the provision of services to the Fund.
Transfer and Dividend Disbursing Agent and Custodian. Dreyfus Transfer, Inc. (the "Transfer Agent"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dreyfus, located at 200 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10166, is the Fund's transfer and dividend disbursing agent. Under a transfer agency agreement with the Fund, the Transfer Agent arranges for the maintenance of shareholder account records for the Fund, the handling of certain communications between shareholders and the Fund and the payment of dividends and distributions payable by the Fund. For these services, the Transfer Agent receives a monthly fee computed on the basis of the number of shareholder accounts it maintains for the Fund during the month, and is reimbursed for certain out-of-pocket expenses. Dreyfus pays the Fund's transfer agency fees. The Fund also makes payments to certain financial intermediaries, including affiliates, who provide sub-administration, recordkeeping and/or sub-transfer agency services to beneficial owners of Fund shares.
The Bank of New York Mellon (the "Custodian"), an affiliate of the Manager, located at One Wall Street, New York, New York 10286, serves as custodian for the investments of the Fund. The Custodian has no part in determining the investment policies of the Fund or which securities are to be purchased or sold by the Fund. Under a custody agreement with the Fund, the Custodian holds the Fund's securities and keeps all necessary accounts and records. For its custody services, the Custodian receives a monthly fee based on the market value of the Fund's assets held in custody and receives certain securities transaction charges. The Custodian's fees for its services to the Fund are paid by Mellon Capital.
HOW TO BUY SHARES
The Fund offers two classes of shares – Initial shares and Service shares. The classes are identical, except as to the expenses borne by each class which may affect performance. See "Shareholder Services Plan (Initial Shares Only)" and "Distribution Plan (Service Shares Only)." Fund shares currently are offered only to separate accounts of Participating Insurance Companies. Individuals may not place purchase orders directly with the Fund.
As discussed under "Management Arrangements—Distributor," Participating Insurance Companies may receive revenue sharing payments from Dreyfus or the Distributor. The receipt of such payments could create an incentive for a Participating Insurance Company to recommend or sell shares of the Fund instead of other mutual funds where such payments are not received. Please contact your Participating Insurance Company to recommend or sell shares of the Fund instead of other mutual funds where such payments are not received. Please contact your Participating Insurance Company for details about any payments it may receive in connection with the sale of Fund shares or the provision of services to the Fund.
Separate accounts of the Participating Insurance Companies place orders based on, among other things, the amount of premium payments to be invested pursuant to Policies. See the prospectus of the separate account of the applicable Participating Insurance Company for more information on the purchase of Fund shares, including the class of Fund shares available for investment. The Fund does not issue share certificates.
Purchase orders from separate accounts based on premiums and transaction requests received by the Participating Insurance Company on a given business day in accordance with procedures established by the Participating Insurance Company will be effected at the net asset value of the Fund determined on such business day if the orders are received by the Fund in proper form and in accordance with applicable requirements on the next business day and Federal Funds (monies of member banks within the Federal Reserve System which are held on deposit at a Federal Reserve Bank) in the net amount of such orders are received by the Fund on the next business day in accordance with applicable requirements. It is each Participating Insurance Company's responsibility to properly transmit purchase orders and Federal Funds in accordance with applicable requirements. Policyowners should refer to the prospectus for their Policies in this regard.
Fund shares are sold on a continuous basis. Net asset value per share is determined as of the close of trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (usually 4:00 pm, Eastern time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange is open for regular business. For purposes of determining net asset value, certain futures contracts may be valued 15 minutes after the close of trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Net asset value per share of each class of shares is computed by dividing the value of the Fund's net assets represented by such class (i.e., the value of its assets less liabilities) by the total number of shares of such class outstanding. For information regarding the methods employed in valuing the Fund's investments, see "Determination of Net Asset Value."
DISTRIBUTION PLAN
(SERVICE SHARES ONLY)
Rule 12b-1 (the "Rule") adopted by the SEC under the 1940 Act provides, among other things, that an investment company may bear expenses of distributing its shares only pursuant to a plan adopted in accordance with the Rule. The Fund's Board has adopted such a plan (the "Distribution Plan") with respect to the Fund's Service shares pursuant to which the Fund pays the Distributor at an annual rate of 0.25% of the value of the Fund's average daily net assets attributable to Service shares for distributing Service shares, for advertising and marketing related to Service shares and for servicing and/or maintaining accounts of Service class shareholders. Under the Distribution Plan, the Distributor may make payments to Participating Insurance Companies and the broker-dealers acting as principal underwriter for their variable insurance products in respect of these services. The fees payable under the Distribution Plan are payable without regard to actual expenses incurred. The Board believes that there is a reasonable likelihood that the Distribution Plan will benefit the Fund and the holders of its Service shares.
A quarterly report of the amounts expended under the Distribution Plan, and the purposes for which such expenditures were incurred, must be made to the Fund's Board for its review. In addition, the Distribution Plan provides that it may not be amended to increase materially the costs which holders of Service shares may bear pursuant to the Distribution Plan without the approval of the holders of such class of shares and that other material amendments of the Distribution Plan must be approved by the Board, and by the Board members who are not "interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund and have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Distribution Plan or in any agreements entered into in connection with the Distribution Plan, by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of considering such amendments. The Distribution Plan is subject to annual approval by such vote of the Board members cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Distribution Plan. The Distribution Plan may be terminated at any time by vote of a majority of the Board members who are not "interested persons" and have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Distribution Plan or in any agreements entered into in connection with the Distribution Plan or by vote of the holders of a majority of the Fund's Service shares.
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010, the Fund, with respect to its Service shares, paid $380,354 to the Distributor pursuant to the Distribution Plan.
SHAREHOLDER SERVICES PLAN
(INITIAL SHARES ONLY)
The Fund has adopted a Shareholder Services Plan for its Initial shares pursuant to which the Fund reimburses the Distributor an amount not to exceed an annual rate of 0.25% of the value of the average daily net assets attributable to Initial shares for certain allocated expenses with respect to servicing and/or maintaining accounts of Initial class shareholders.
A quarterly report of the amounts expended under the Plan, and the purposes for which such expenditures were incurred, must be made to the Fund's Board for its review. In addition, the Shareholder Services Plan provides that material amendments of the Plan must be approved by the Fund's Board and by the Board members who are not "interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund and have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Shareholder Services Plan, by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of considering such amendments. The Shareholder Services Plan is subject to annual approval by such vote of the Board members cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Shareholder Services Plan. The Plan is terminable at any time by vote of a majority of the Board members who are not "interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund and have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Shareholder Services Plan.
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010, the Fund, with respect to its Initial shares, paid $15,046 to the Distributor pursuant to the Shareholder Services Plan.
HOW TO REDEEM SHARES
General. Fund shares may be redeemed at any time by the separate accounts of the Participating Insurance Companies. Individuals may not place redemption orders directly with the Fund. Redemption requests received by the Participating Insurance Company from separate accounts on a given business day in accordance with procedures established by the Participating Insurance Company will be effected at the net asset value of the Fund determined on such business day if the requests are received by the Fund in proper form and in accordance with applicable requirements on the next business day. It is each Participating Insurance Company's responsibility to properly transmit redemption requests in accordance with applicable requirements. Policyowners should consult their Policy prospectus in this regard. To maximize the Fund's ability to track the Index, shareholders are urged to transmit redemption requests so that they may be received by the Fund or its agent prior to 12:00 noon, Eastern time, on the day upon which separate accounts of Participating Insurance Companies want their redemption requests to be effective. The value of the shares redeemed may be more or less than their original cost, depending on the Fund's then-current net asset value. No charges are imposed by the Fund when shares are redeemed.
The Fund ordinarily will make payment for all shares redeemed within seven days after receipt by the Transfer Agent of a redemption request in proper form, except as provided by the rules of the SEC.
Should any conflict between Policyowners arise which would require that a substantial amount of assets be withdrawn from the Fund, orderly portfolio management could be disrupted to the potential detriment of shareholders.
Redemption Commitment. The Fund has committed to pay in cash all redemption requests by any shareholder of record, limited in amount during any 90‑day period to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the value of the Fund's net assets at the beginning of such period. Such commitment is irrevocable without the prior approval of the SEC. In the case of requests for redemption in excess of such amount, the Fund's Board reserves the right to make payments in whole or part in securities or other assets of the Fund in case of an emergency or any time a cash distribution would impair the liquidity of the Fund to the detriment of the existing shareholders. In such event, the securities would be valued in the same manner as the Fund's portfolio is valued. If the recipient sells such securities, brokerage charges would be incurred.
Suspension of Redemptions. The right of redemption may be suspended or the date of payment postponed (a) during any period when the New York Stock Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings), (b) when trading in the markets the Fund ordinarily utilizes is restricted, or when an emergency exists as determined by the SEC so that disposal of the Fund's investments or determination of its net asset value is not reasonably practicable or (c) for such other periods as the SEC by order may permit to protect the Fund's shareholders.
EXCHANGE PRIVILEGE
Investors can exchange shares of a class for shares of the same class of any other fund or portfolio managed by Dreyfus that is offered only to separate accounts established by Participating Insurance Companies to fund Policies, or into shares of any such money market portfolio, subject to the terms and conditions relating to exchanges set forth in the applicable Participating Insurance Company prospectus. Policyowners should refer to the applicable Participating Insurance Company prospectus for more information on exchanging Fund shares. The Fund reserves the right to modify or discontinue its exchange program at any time upon 60 days' notice to the Participating Insurance Company.
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
Valuation of Portfolio Securities. The Fund's portfolio securities are valued at the last sale price on the securities exchange or national securities market on which such securities are primarily traded. For this purpose, the official closing price on a securities exchange or national securities market shall be the last sale price. Securities not listed on an exchange or national securities market, or securities in which there were no transactions, are valued at the average of the most recent bid and asked prices, except in the case of open short positions where the asked price is used for valuation purposes. Bid price is used when no asked price is available. Market quotations for foreign securities in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars and foreign currency forward contracts are valued at the average of the most recent bid and asked quotations obtained from a pricing service (the "Service") approved by the board. Certain short-term investments may be carried at amortized cost, which approximates value. Any securities or other assets for which recent market quotations are not readily available are valued at fair value as determined in good faith by the Fund's Board. Expenses and fees, including the management fee and any fees pursuant to the Distribution Plan and Shareholder Services Plan, as applicable, are accrued daily and taken into account for the purpose of determining the net asset value of the Fund's shares. Because of differences in operating expenses incurred by each class, the per share net asset value of Initial shares and Service shares will vary.
Generally, over-the-counter option contracts will be valued by the Service at the average of the most recent bid and asked quotations obtained from the Service. Restricted securities, as well as securities or other assets for which recent market quotations or official closing prices are not readily available or are determined by the Dreyfus not to reflect accurately fair value (such as when the value of a security has been materially affected by events occurring after the close of the exchange or market on which the security is principally traded (for example, a foreign exchange or market) but before the Fund calculates its net asset value), are valued at fair value as determined in good faith based on procedures approved by the Board. Fair value of investments may be determined by the Fund's Board, its pricing committee or its valuation committee in good faith using such information as it deems appropriate. The factors that may be considered when fair valuing a security include fundamental analytical data, the nature and duration of restrictions on disposition, an evaluation of the forces that influence the market in which the securities are purchased or sold, and public trading in similar securities of the issuer or comparable issuers. Fair value of foreign equity securities may be determined with the assistance of a pricing service using correlations between the movement of prices of foreign securities and indices of domestic securities and other appropriate indicators, such as closing market prices of relevant ADRs and futures contracts. The valuation of a security based on a fair value procedures may differ from the security's most recent closing price, and from the prices used by other mutual funds to calculate their net asset values. Foreign securities held by the Fund may trade on days that the Fund is not open for business, thus affecting the value of the Fund's assets on days when Fund investors have no access to the Fund.
New York Stock Exchange Closings. The holidays (as observed) on which the New York Stock Exchange is closed currently are: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
TAXATION
See the prospectus and elsewhere in this SAI to determine which sections of the discussion below apply to the Fund.
The following is only a general summary of some of the important federal income tax considerations generally affecting the Fund and an investment in a fund. No attempt is made to present a complete explanation of the federal tax treatment of the Fund's activities or to discuss state and local tax matters affecting the Fund. Investors in the Fund are urged to consult their own tax advisors concerning the tax implications of investments in the Fund.
Since the shareholders of the Fund are the Participating Insurance Companies and their separate accounts, the tax treatment of dividends and distributions will depend on the tax status of the Participating Insurance Company. Accordingly, no discussion is included as to the federal income tax consequences to such shareholders or to the relevant Policyowners. For information regarding the taxation of Policyowners, Policyowners should consult the applicable prospectus of the separate account of the Participating Insurance Company. The discussion below assumes that the shares of the Fund will be respected as owned by the insurance company separate accounts. If this is not true, the person or persons determined to own the shares of the Fund will be currently taxed on fund distributions and upon any redemption of fund shares, pursuant to generally applicable rules of the Code and Treasury regulations.
Taxation of the Fund
The Fund intends to qualify for treatment as a regulated investment company ("RIC") under Subchapter M of the Code and intends to continue to so qualify if such qualification is in the best interests of its shareholders. As a RIC, a fund will pay no federal income tax on its net investment income and net realized capital gains to the extent that such income and gains are distributed to shareholders in accordance with applicable provisions of the Code. To qualify as a RIC, a fund must, among other things: (a) derive in each taxable year (the "gross income test") at least 90% of its gross income from (i) dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans and gains from the sale or other disposition of stocks, securities or foreign currencies or other income (including but not limited to gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such stocks, securities or currencies, and (ii) net income from interests in "qualified publicly traded partnerships" ("QPTPs") (as defined in the Code); (b) diversify its holdings (the "asset diversification test") so that, at the end of each quarter of the taxable year, (i) at least 50% of the market value of the fund's assets is represented by cash and cash items (including receivables), U.S. Government securities, the securities of other RICs and other securities, with such other securities of any one issuer limited for the purposes of this calculation to an amount not greater than 5% of the value of the fund's total assets and not greater than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of its total assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. Government securities or the securities of other RICs) of a single issuer, two or more issuers that the fund controls and that are engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses or one or more QPTPs; and (c) distribute with respect to each taxable year at least 90% of the sum of its investment company taxable income (determined without regard to the dividends paid deduction) and net tax-exempt interest income, if any, for such year.
Pursuant to the Regulated Investment Company Modernization Act of 2010 (the "Modernization Act"), a RIC that fails the gross income test for a taxable year shall nevertheless be considered to have satisfied the test for such year if (i) the RIC satisfies certain procedural requirements, and (ii) the RIC's failure to satisfy the gross income test is due to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect. However, in such case, a tax is imposed on the RIC for the taxable year in which, absent the application of the above cure provision, it would have failed the gross income test equal to the amount by which (x) the RIC's non-qualifying gross income exceeds (y) one-ninth of the RIC's qualifying gross income, each as determined for purposes of applying the gross income test for such year.
Also pursuant to the Modernization Act, a RIC that fails the asset diversification test as of the end of a quarter shall nevertheless be considered to have satisfied the test as of the end of such quarter in the following circumstances. If the RIC's failure to satisfy the asset diversification test at the end of the quarter is due to the ownership of assets the total value of which does not exceed the lesser of (i) one percent of the total value of the RIC's assets at the end of such quarter and (ii) $10,000,000 (a "de minimis failure"), the RIC shall be considered to have satisfied the asset diversification test as of the end of such quarter if, within six months of the last day of the quarter in which the RIC identifies that it failed the asset diversification test (or such other prescribed time period), the RIC either disposes of assets in order to satisfy the asset diversification test, or otherwise satisfies the asset diversification test.
In the case of a failure to satisfy the asset diversification test at the end of a quarter under circumstances that do not constitute a de minimis failure, a RIC shall nevertheless be considered to have satisfied the asset diversification test as of the end of such quarter if (i) the RIC satisfies certain procedural requirements; (ii) the RIC's failure to satisfy the asset diversification test is due to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect; and (iii) within six months of the last day of the quarter in which the RIC identifies that it failed the asset diversification test (or such other prescribed time period), the RIC either disposes of the assets that caused the asset diversification failure, or otherwise satisfies the asset diversification test. However, in such case, a tax is imposed on the RIC, at the current rate of 35 percent, on the net income generated by the assets that caused the RIC to fail the asset diversification test during the period for which the asset diversification test was not met. In all events, however, such tax will not be less than $50,000.
If a fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC in any taxable year, the fund would be subject to tax on its taxable income at corporate rates, and all distributions from current or accumulated earnings and profits, including any distributions of net tax-exempt income and net long-term capital gains, would be taxable to shareholders (or, potentially, Policyowners) as ordinary income. In addition, a fund could be required to recognize unrealized gains, pay substantial taxes and interest and make substantial distributions before requalifying as a RIC that is accorded special tax treatment.
A nondeductible excise tax at a rate of 4% is imposed on the excess, if any, of a RIC's "required distribution" over its actual distributions in any calendar year. Generally, the required distribution is 98% of a fund's ordinary income for the calendar year plus 98% (98.2% for calendar years after 2010) of its capital gain net income, determined under prescribed rules for this purpose, recognized during the one-year period ending on October 31st of such year (or December 31st of that year if the fund is permitted to so elect and so elects) plus undistributed amounts from prior years. This excise tax, however, does not apply to a RIC whose only shareholders are separate accounts of life insurance companies supporting VA contracts and/or VLI policies, and certain other prescribed permissible shareholders. Therefore, the Fund is not expected to be subject to the excise tax.
Although in general the passive loss rules of the Code do not apply to RICs, such rules do apply to a RIC with respect to items attributable to an interest in a QPTP. A fund's investments in partnerships, including in QPTPs, may result in a fund being subject to state, local or foreign income, franchise or withholding tax liabilities.
Diversification Requirements of Section 817(h)
The Fund intends to comply with the diversification requirements of Section 817(h) of the Code and the regulations thereunder. Section 817(h) imposes certain diversification requirements on the assets of insurance company separate accounts used to fund VA contracts and/or VLI policies. Under a special "look-through" provision, if the separate account is a shareholder of a fund that satisfies the Section 817(h) diversification requirements, the separate account will be treated as owning its pro rata portion of each of the assets of the fund for purposes of determining the account's satisfaction of the Section 817(h) diversification requirements. Accordingly, if a separate account's sole investment is shares of a fund, and that fund satisfies the diversification requirements of Section 817(h), the separate account will be treated as having satisfied the diversification requirements of Section 817(h).
The diversification requirements of Section 817(h) are in addition to the diversification requirements imposed on a fund by the 1940 Act and Subchapter M of the Code. Under Section 817(h), a separate account (or underlying fund) will be considered adequately diversified if, as of the end of each calendar quarter or within 30 days thereafter, (i) no more than 55% of the total assets of the separate account (or underlying fund) are represented by any one investment, (ii) no more than 70% of the total assets of the separate account (or underlying fund) are represented by any two investments, (iii) no more than 80% of the total assets of the separate account (or underlying fund) are represented by any three investments, and (iv) no more than 90% of the total assets of the separate account (or underlying fund) are represented by any four investments. Section 817(h) provides, as a safe harbor, that a separate account (or underlying fund) will be treated as being adequately diversified if the asset diversification test under Subchapter M of the Code (discussed above at "Taxation of the Fund") is satisfied and no more than 55% of the value of the separate account's (or underlying fund's) total assets are cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, and securities of other RICs.
For purposes of the diversification requirements of Section 817(h), all securities of the same issuer, all interests in the same real property project, and all interests in the same commodity are treated as a single investment. In addition, each U.S. Government agency or instrumentality is treated as a separate issuer.
Failure by a fund to qualify as a RIC or satisfy the requirements of Section 817(h) could cause the VA contracts and the VLI policies to lose their favorable tax status and require a Policyowner to include in income any income accrued under the Policies for the current and all prior taxable years, thereby losing the benefit of tax deferral. Under certain circumstances described in applicable Treasury regulations, an inadvertent failure to satisfy the applicable diversification requirements of Section 817(h) may be corrected, but such a correction would require a payment to the IRS. Any such failure may also result in adverse tax consequences for the Participating Insurance Company issuing the Policies.
Passive Foreign Investment Companies
Funds that invest in foreign securities may own shares in certain foreign entities that are treated as "passive foreign investment companies" ("PFICs"), which could potentially subject such a fund to U.S. federal income tax (including interest charges) on distributions received from the PFIC or gains from a disposition of shares in the PFIC. To avoid this treatment, each fund owning PFIC shares intends to make an election to mark the gains (and to a limited extent losses) in a PFIC "to the market" as though it had sold and repurchased its holdings in the PFIC on the last day of the fund's taxable year. Such gains and losses are treated as ordinary income and loss. Alternatively, a fund may in certain cases elect to treat a PFIC as a "qualified electing fund" (i.e., make a "QEF election"), in which case that fund will be required to include in its income annually its share of the PFIC's income and net capital gains, regardless of whether the fund receives any distribution from the PFIC.
The mark-to-market and QEF elections may accelerate the recognition of income (without the receipt of cash) and increase the amount required to be distributed by a fund to avoid taxation. Making either of these elections therefore may require a fund to liquidate investments (including when it is not advantageous to do so) to meet its distribution requirements, which also may accelerate the recognition of gain and affect the fund's total return.
Non-U.S. Taxes
Investment income that may be received by a fund from sources within foreign countries may be subject to foreign taxes. Tax treaties between the United States and certain countries may reduce or eliminate such taxes. It is not possible to determine at this time what a fund's effective rate of non-U.S. taxes will be in any given year.
Foreign Currency Transactions
Gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates between the time a fund accrues income or receivables or expenses or other liabilities denominated in a foreign currency and the time that fund actually collects such income or receivables or pays such liabilities are generally treated as ordinary income or loss. Similarly, gains or losses on foreign currency forward contracts and the disposition of debt securities denominated in a foreign currency, to the extent attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates between the acquisition and disposition dates, also are treated as ordinary income or loss. Future Treasury regulations could provide that foreign currency gains that are not directly related to a fund's principal business of investing in stocks or securities (or options and futures with respect to stock or securities) will not constitute qualifying income for purposes of the gross income test described above at "Taxation of the Fund."
Financial Products
A fund's investments in options, futures contracts, forward contracts, swaps and derivatives, as well as any of its other hedging, short sale or similar transactions, may be subject to one or more special tax rules (including notional principal contract, constructive sale, straddle, wash sale, short sale and other rules), the effect of which may be to accelerate income to the fund (including, potentially, without a corresponding receipt of cash with which to make required distributions), defer fund losses, cause adjustments in the holding periods of fund securities, convert capital gains into ordinary income, convert long-term capital gains into short-term capital gains and convert short-term capital losses into long-term capital losses. These rules could therefore affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders of a fund. Because the tax rules applicable to derivative financial instruments are in some cases uncertain under current law, an adverse determination or future guidance by the IRS with respect to these rules (which determination or guidance could be retroactive) may affect whether a fund has made sufficient distributions, and otherwise satisfied the applicable requirements, to maintain its qualification as a RIC and avoid fund-level taxation.
Securities Issued or Purchased at a Discount and Payment-in-Kind Securities
A fund's investments, if any, in securities issued or purchased at a discount, as well as certain other securities (including zero coupon obligations and certain redeemable preferred stock), may require the fund to accrue and distribute income not yet received. Similarly, a fund's investment in payment-in-kind securities will give rise to income which is required to be distributed even though the fund receives no payment in cash on the security during the year. In order to generate sufficient cash to make its requisite distributions, a fund may be required to borrow money or sell securities in its portfolio that it otherwise would have continued to hold.
Certain Higher-Risk and High Yield Securities
A fund may invest in lower-quality fixed income securities, including debt obligations of issuers not currently paying interest or that are in default. Investments in debt obligations that are at risk of or are in default present special tax issues for a fund. Tax rules are not entirely clear on the treatment of such debt obligations, including as to whether and to what extent a fund should recognize market discount on such a debt obligation, when a fund may cease to accrue interest, original issue discount or market discount, when and to what extent a fund may take deductions for bad debts or worthless securities and how a fund shall allocate payments received on obligations in default between principal and interest. These and other related issues will be addressed by the Fund if it invests in such securities as part of the Fund's efforts to ensure that it distributes sufficient income to preserve its status as a RIC and does not become subject to U.S. federal income or excise tax.
Investor Tax Matters
The rules regarding the taxation of the separate accounts of Participating Insurance Companies that utilize the Fund as investment vehicles for VA contracts and VLI policies are complex. The foregoing is only a summary of certain material United States federal income tax consequences affecting the Fund. Participating Insurance Companies and Policyowners should consult their own tax advisers with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the Fund.
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS
General. The Manager assumes general supervision over the placement of securities purchase and sale orders on behalf of the funds it manages. Funds managed by dual employees of the Manager and an affiliated entity, and funds that employ a sub-investment adviser, execute portfolio transactions through the trading desk of the affiliated entity or sub-investment adviser, as applicable (the "Trading Desk"). Those funds use the research facilities, and are subject to the internal policies and procedures, of applicable affiliated entity or sub-investment adviser.
The Trading Desk generally has the authority to select brokers (for equity securities) or dealers (for fixed income securities) and the commission rates or spreads to be paid. Allocation of brokerage transactions is made in the best judgment of the Trading Desk and in a manner deemed fair and reasonable. In choosing brokers or dealers, the Trading Desk evaluates the ability of the broker or dealer to execute the transaction at the best combination of price and quality of execution.
In general, brokers or dealers involved in the execution of portfolio transactions on behalf of a fund are selected on the basis of their professional capability and the value and quality of their services. The Trading Desk attempts to obtain best execution for the funds by choosing brokers or dealers to execute transactions based on a variety of factors, which may include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) price; (ii) liquidity; (iii) the nature and character of the relevant market for the security to be purchased or sold; (iv) the quality and efficiency of the broker's or dealer's execution; (v) the broker's or dealer's willingness to commit capital; (vi) the reliability of the broker or dealer in trade settlement and clearance; (vii) the level of counter-party risk (i.e., the broker's or dealer's financial condition); (viii) the commission rate or the spread; (ix) the value of research provided; (x) the availability of electronic trade entry and reporting links; and (xi) the size and type of order (e.g., foreign or domestic security, large block, illiquid security). In selecting brokers or dealers no factor is necessarily determinative; however, at various times and for various reasons, certain factors will be more important than others in determining which broker or dealer to use. Seeking to obtain best execution for all trades takes precedence over all other considerations.
Investment decisions for the Fund are made independently from those of the other investment companies and accounts advised by Dreyfus and its affiliates. If, however, such other investment companies or accounts desire to invest in, or dispose of, the same securities as the Fund, Dreyfus or its affiliates may, but are not required to, aggregate (or "bunch") orders that are placed or received concurrently for more than one investment company or account and available investments or opportunities for sales will be allocated equitability to each. In some cases, this procedure may adversely affect the size of the position obtained for or disposed of by the Fund or the price paid or received by the Fund. When transactions are aggregated, but it is not possible to receive the same price or execution on the entire volume of securities purchased or sold, the various prices may be averaged, and the Fund will be charged or credited with the average price.
Dreyfus may buy for the Fund securities of issuers in which other investment companies or accounts advised by Dreyfus or BNY Mellon and its other affiliates have made, or are making, an investment in securities that are subordinate or senior to the securities purchased for the Fund. For example, the Fund may invest in debt securities of an issuer at the same time that other investment companies or accounts are investing, or currently have an investment, in equity securities of the same issuer. To the extent that the issuer experiences financial or operational challenges which may impact the price of its securities and its ability to meet its obligations, decisions by BNY Mellon or its affiliates (including Dreyfus) relating to what actions are to be taken may raise conflicts of interests and Dreyfus or BNY Mellon and its other affiliates may take actions for certain accounts that have negative impacts on other advisory accounts, including the Fund.
Portfolio turnover may vary from year to year as well as within a year. In periods in which extraordinary market conditions prevail, the portfolio managers will not be deterred from changing a Fund's investment strategy as rapidly as needed, in which case higher turnover rates can be anticipated which would result in greater brokerage expenses. The overall reasonableness of brokerage commissions paid is evaluated by the Trading Desk based upon its knowledge of available information as to the general level of commissions paid by other institutional investors for comparable services. Higher portfolio turnover rates usually generate additional brokerage commissions and transaction costs, and any short-term gains realized from these transactions are taxable to shareholders as ordinary income.
To the extent that a fund invests in foreign securities, certain of such fund's transactions in those securities may not benefit from the negotiated commission rates available to funds for transactions in securities of domestic issuers. For funds that permit foreign exchange transactions, such transactions are made with banks or institutions in the interbank market at prices reflecting a mark-up or mark-down and/or commission.
The portfolio managers may deem it appropriate for one fund or account they manage to sell a security while another fund or account they manage is purchasing the same security. Under such circumstances, the portfolio managers may arrange to have the purchase and sale transactions effected directly between the funds and/or accounts ("cross transactions"). Cross transactions will be effected in accordance with procedures adopted pursuant to Rule 17a-7 under the 1940 Act.
Funds and accounts managed by the Manager, an affiliated entity or a sub-investment adviser may own significant positions in portfolio companies which, depending on market conditions, may affect adversely the ability to dispose of some or all of such positions.
For its portfolio securities transactions for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, the Fund paid total brokerage commissions of $22,279, $40,760 and $27,258, respectively, none of which was paid to the Distributor. For the fiscal years ended December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, the Fund paid spreads and concessions on principal transactions of $0, $0 and $5,253, respectively, none of which was paid to the Distributor.
There were no transactions conducted on an agency basis through a broker, for among other things, research services for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010.
Regular Broker-Dealers. The Fund may acquire securities issued by one or more of its "regular brokers or dealers," as defined in Rule 10b-1 under the 1940 Act. Rule 10b-1 provides that a "regular broker or dealer" is one of the ten brokers or dealers that, during the Fund's most recent fiscal year (i) received the greatest dollar amount of brokerage commissions from participating, either directly or indirectly, in the Fund's portfolio transactions, (ii) engaged as principal in the largest dollar amount of the Fund's portfolio transactions or (iii) sold the largest dollar amount of the Fund's securities. The following is a list of the Fund's regular brokers or dealers whose securities the Fund acquired, and the aggregate value of such securities, as of December 31, 2010: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. - $21,133,000; Bank of America NA - $20,690,000; Goldman, Sachs & Co. - $13,228,000; and Morgan Stanley - $6,327,000.
Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings. It is the policy of the Dreyfus to protect the confidentiality of funds portfolio holdings and prevent the selective disclosure of non-public information about such holdings. Each fund, or its duly authorized service providers, publicly discloses its holdings in accordance with regulatory requirements, such as periodic portfolio disclosure in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Each non-money market fund, or its duly authorized service providers, may publicly disclose its complete schedule of portfolio holdings, at month-end, with a one-month lag, on the Dreyfus website at www.dreyfus.com. In addition, fifteen days following the end of each calendar quarter, each non-money market fund, or its duly authorized service providers, will publicly disclose on the website its complete schedule of portfolio holdings as of the end of such quarter. Each money market fund will disclose daily on www.dreyfus.com the fund's complete schedule of holdings as of the end of the previous day. The schedule of holdings will remain on the website until the date on which the fund files its Form N-CSR or Form N-Q for the period that includes the date of the posted holdings.
If a fund's portfolio holdings are released pursuant to an ongoing arrangement with any party, such fund must have a legitimate business purpose for doing so, and neither the fund, nor Dreyfus or its affiliates, may receive any compensation in connection with an arrangement to make available information about the fund's portfolio holdings. Funds may distribute portfolio holdings to mutual fund evaluation services such as Standard & Poor's, Morningstar or Lipper Analytical Services; due diligence departments of broker-dealers and wirehouses that regularly analyze the portfolio holdings of mutual funds before their public disclosure; and broker-dealers that may be used by the fund, for the purpose of efficient trading and receipt of relevant research, provided that: (a) the recipient does not distribute the portfolio holdings to persons who are likely to use the information for purposes of purchasing or selling fund shares or fund portfolio holdings before the portfolio holdings become public information; and (b) the recipient signs a written confidentiality agreement.
Funds may also disclose any and all portfolio information to their service providers and others who generally need access to such information in the performance of their contractual duties and responsibilities and are subject to duties of confidentiality, including a duty not to trade on non-public information, imposed by law and/or contract. These service providers include the fund's custodian, independent registered public accounting firm, investment adviser, administrator, and each of their respective affiliates and advisers.
Disclosure of portfolio holdings may be authorized only by the fund's Chief Compliance Officer, and any exceptions to this policy are reported quarterly to the fund's Board.
SUMMARY OF THE PROXY VOTING POLICY, PROCEDURES AND GUIDELINES OF THE DREYFUS FAMILY OF FUNDS
The Board of each fund in the Dreyfus Family of Funds has delegated to Dreyfus the authority to vote proxies of companies held in a fund's portfolio. Dreyfus, through its participation on The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation's Proxy Policy Committee (the "PPC") applies The Bank of New York Mellon's Proxy Voting Policy, related procedures and voting guidelines when voting proxies on behalf of the funds.
Dreyfus recognizes that an investment adviser is a fiduciary that owes its clients a duty of utmost good faith and full and fair disclosure of all material facts. Dreyfus further recognizes that the right to vote proxies is an asset, just as the economic investment represented by the shares is an asset. An investment adviser's duty of loyalty precludes an adviser from subrogating its clients' interests to its own. Accordingly, in voting proxies, Dreyfus seeks to act solely in the best financial and economic interests of the funds.
Dreyfus seeks to avoid material conflicts of interest through its participation in the PPC, which applies detailed, pre-determined proxy voting guidelines in an objective and consistent manner across client accounts, based on internal and external research and recommendations provided by third party vendors, and without consideration of any client relationship factors. Further, Dreyfus engages a third party as an independent fiduciary to vote all proxies for Fund securities.
Each proxy is reviewed, categorized and analyzed in accordance with the PPC's written guidelines in effect from time to time. The guidelines are reviewed periodically and updated as necessary to reflect new issues and changes to the PPC's policies on specific issues. Items that can be categorized will be voted in accordance with any applicable guidelines or referred to the PPC, if the applicable guidelines so require. Proposals for which a guideline has not yet been established are referred to the PPC for discussion and vote. Additionally, the PPC may elect to review any proposal where it has identified a particular issue for special scrutiny in light of new information. The PPC will also consider specific interests and issues raised by a fund, which interests and issues may require that a vote for a fund be cast differently from the collective vote in order to act in the best interests of such fund.
Dreyfus believes that a shareholder's role in the governance of a publicly-held company is generally limited to monitoring the performance of the company and its managers and voting on matters which properly come to a shareholder vote. Dreyfus carefully reviews proposals that would limit shareholder control or could affect shareholder values.
Dreyfus generally opposes proposals that seem designed to insulate management unnecessarily from the wishes of a majority of the shareholders and that would lead to a determination of a company's future by a minority of its shareholders. Dreyfus generally supports proposals that seem to have as their primary purpose providing management with temporary or short-term insulation from outside influences so as to enable them to bargain effectively with potential suitors and otherwise achieve identified long-term goals to the extent such proposals are discrete and not bundled with other proposals.
On questions of social responsibility where economic performance does not appear to be an issue, Dreyfus attempts to ensure that management reasonably responds to the social issues. Responsiveness is measured by management's efforts to address the particular social issue including, where appropriate, assessment of the implications of the proposal to the ongoing operations of the company. Dreyfus pays particular attention to repeat issues where management has failed in its commitment to take specific actions. With respect to funds having investment policies that require proxies to be cast in a certain manner on particular social responsibility issues, Dreyfus votes such issues in accordance with those investment policies.
Information regarding how Dreyfus voted proxies for the funds is available on the Dreyfus website at www.dreyfus.com and on the SEC's website at www.SEC.gov on the fund's Form N-PX.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND
The Fund's shares are classified into two classes. Each share has one vote and shareholders will vote in the aggregate and not by class, except as otherwise required by law or with respect to any matter which affects only one class. Each Fund share, when issued and paid for in accordance with the terms of the offering, is fully paid and non‑assessable. Fund shares have no preemptive, subscription or conversion rights and are freely transferable.
Unless otherwise required by the 1940 Act, ordinarily it will not be necessary for the Fund to hold annual meetings of shareholders. As a result, Fund shareholders may not consider each year the election of Board members or the appointment of auditors. However, the holders of at least 10% of the shares outstanding and entitled to vote may require the Fund to hold a special meeting of shareholders for purposes of removing a Board member from office. Fund shareholders may remove a Board member by the affirmative vote of a majority of the Fund's outstanding voting shares. In addition, the Fund's Board will call a meeting of shareholders for the purpose of electing Board members if, at any time, less than a majority of the Board members then holding office have been elected by shareholders.
The Fund sends annual and semi‑annual financial statements to all its shareholders.
The Fund is intended to be a long-term investment vehicle and is not designed to provide investors with a means of speculating on short-term market movements. A pattern of frequent purchases and exchanges can be disruptive to efficient portfolio management and, consequently, can be detrimental to the Fund's performance and its shareholders. If Fund management determines that an investor is following an abusive investment strategy, it may reject any purchase request, or terminate the investor's exchange privilege, with or without prior notice. Such investors also may be barred from purchasing share of other funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds. Accounts under common ownership or control may be considered as one account for purposes of determining a pattern of excessive or abusive trading. In addition, the Fund may refuse or restrict purchase or exchange requests for Fund shares by any Participating Insurance Company, person or group if, in the judgment of the Fund's management, the Fund would be unable to invest the money effectively in accordance with its investment objective and policies or could otherwise be adversely affected or if the Fund receives or anticipates receiving simultaneous orders that may significantly affect the Fund. If an exchange request is refused, the Fund will take no other action with respect to the Fund shares until it receives further instructions from the investor. While the Fund will take reasonable steps to prevent excessive short term trading deemed to be harmful to the Fund, it may not be able to identify excessive trading conducted through certain financial intermediaries or omnibus accounts.
The Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by S&P. S&P makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of the Fund or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the Fund particularly or the ability of the S&P 500 Index to track general stock market performance. S&P's only relationship to the Fund is the licensing of certain trademarks and trade names of S&P and of the S&P 500 Index which is determined, composed and calculated by S&P without regard to the Fund. S&P has no obligation to take the needs of the Fund or the owners of the Fund into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the S&P 500 Index. S&P is not responsible for and has not participated in the calculation of the Fund's net asset value, nor is S&P a distributor of the Fund. S&P has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Fund.
S&P DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE S&P 500 INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. S&P MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE FUND, OWNERS OF THE FUND, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE S&P 500 INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. S&P MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE S&P 500 INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL S&P HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS), EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
The following separate accounts are known by the Fund to own of record 5% or more of the Fund's voting securities outstanding on April 1, 2011. A shareholder who beneficially owns, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the Fund's voting securities may be deemed a "control person" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund.
Initial Shares |
|
Nationwide Life Insurance Company PO Box 182029 Columbus OH 43218-2029 |
63.1178% |
|
|
Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada P.O. BOX 9134 Wellesley Hills MA 02481-9134 |
5.2554% |
|
|
|
|
Service Shares |
|
Nationwide Life Insurance Company PO Box 182029 Columbus OH 43218-2029 |
67.0116% |
|
|
Symetra Life Insurance Company PO Box 3882 Seattle WA 98124-3882 |
15.5550% |
|
|
Transamerica Life Insurance Company 4333 Edgewood Rd NE Cedar Rapids IA 52499-0001 |
8.4441% |
|
|
Annuity Investors Life Insurance Co. PO Box 5423 Cincinnati OH 45201-5423 |
7.5575% |
COUNSEL AND INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, 180 Maiden Lane, New York, New York 10038‑4982, as counsel for the Fund, has rendered its opinion as to certain legal matters regarding the due authorization and valid issuance of the shares being sold pursuant to the Fund's Prospectus.
Ernst & Young LLP, 5 Times Square, New York, New York 10036, an independent registered public accounting firm, have been selected as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Fund for the current fiscal year.