I NDEX G UIDELINE
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 1500 SERIES

Version 1.7
03 July 2023

INDEX GUIDELINETABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 3
1.

Index Specifications ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
1.1.

Scope of the Index ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 4

1.2.

Identifiers and Publication ................................................................................................................................................................................ 4

1.3.

Initial Level of the Index ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 6

1.4.

Prices and calculation frequency ................................................................................................................................................................... 6

1.5.

Licensing.................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 7

2.

Index Selection ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 8
2.1.

Index Universe Requirements........................................................................................................................................................................... 8

2.2.

Selection of the Index Components ............................................................................................................................................................... 8

2.3.

Weighting of the Index Components ............................................................................................................................................................. 11

3.

Rebalance .................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 12
3.1.

Ordinary Rebalance ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 12

3.2.

Extraordinary Rebalance .................................................................................................................................................................................. 12

4.

Calculation of the Index ..........................................................................................................................................................................................13
4.1.

Index formula ........................................................................................................................................................................................................13

4.2.

Accuracy .................................................................................................................................................................................................................13

4.3. Adjustments ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................13
4.4. Corporate actions ................................................................................................................................................................................................144.5. Recalculation ........................................................................................................................................................................................................15
4.6. Market Disruption ................................................................................................................................................................................................15
5.

Miscellaneous .............................................................................................................................................................................................................16
5.1.

Discretion ...............................................................................................................................................................................................................16

5.2.

Methodology Review...........................................................................................................................................................................................16

5.3. Changes in calculation method ......................................................................................................................................................................16
5.4. Termination ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17
5.5.

Oversight ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 17

6.

Definitions ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................18

7.

History of Index Changes ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 20

Contact ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 21

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INDEX GUIDELINEINTRODUCTION
This document (the “GUIDELINE”) is to be used as a guideline with regard to the composition, calculation andmaintenance of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 1500 SERIES (the “INDICES” and individually the “INDEX”). Anyamendments to the rules made to the GUIDELINE are approved by the OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE specified in
Section 5.5. The INDEX is owned, calculated, administered, and published by Solactive AG (“SOLACTIVE”)
assuming the role as administrator (the “INDEX ADMINISTRATOR”) under the Regulation (EU) 2016/1011 (the“BENCHMARK REGULATION” or “BMR”). The name “Solactive” is trademarked.

The text uses defined terms which are formatted with “SMALL CAPS”. Such Terms shall have the meaning
assigned to them as specified in Section 6 (Definitions).
The GUIDELINE and the policies and methodology documents referenced herein contain theunderlying principles and rules regarding the structure and operation of the INDEX. SOLACTIVE does
not offer any explicit or tacit guarantee or assurance, neither pertaining to the results from the useof the INDEX nor the level of the INDEX at any certain point in time nor in any other respect. SOLACTIVE
strives to the best of its ability to ensure the correctness of the calculation. There is no obligationfor SOLACTIVE – irrespective of possible obligations to issuers – to advise third parties, including
investors and/or financial intermediaries, of any errors in the INDEX. The publication of the INDEX by
SOLACTIVE does not constitute a recommendation for capital investment and does not contain any
assurance or opinion of SOLACTIVE regarding a possible investment in a financial instrument basedon this INDEX.

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1.

INDEX SPECIFICATIONS

1.1.

SCOPE OF THE INDEX

Category
Asset Class
Strategy
Regional Allocation
Rebalancing Fee
Rebalancing Frequency

Description
EquityThe SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 1500 SERIES intends to track the
performance of various size segments of the top 1500 companies from theUnited States
United States
Quarterly

1.2. IDENTIFIERS AND PUBLICATIONThe INDICES are published under the following identifiers:
Name
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100
INDEX
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100
INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100
INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 EUR INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 EUR INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 EUR INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 CAD INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 CAD INDEX NTR

ISINCurrency TypeRIC

BBG ticker

LIVE DATE

DE000SL0AFM8

USD

PR*

.US100--2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFN6

USD

NTR*

.US100N--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFP1

USD

GTR*

.US100T--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AE65

USD

PR*

.US500US500P

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AE73

USD

NTR*

.US500N--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AE81

USD

GTR*

.US500T

US500T

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFQ9

EUR

PR*

.US500E--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFR7

EUR

NTR*

.US500EN

DE000SL0AFS5

EUR

GTR*

.US500ET--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0BBG7

CAD

PR*

.US500C--

2020-07-28

DE000SL0BBH5

CAD

NTR*

.US500CN--

2020-07-28

US500EN

2020-02-14

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SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 CAD INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 CAD INDEX (CA NTR)
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
400 INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
400 INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
400 INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
600 INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
600 INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
600 INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
1500 INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
1500 INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
1500 INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 10% CAPPED INDEX PR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 10% CAPPED INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 10% CAPPED INDEX GTRSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
900 INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
900 INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
900 INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
400 + 600 INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
400 + 600 INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
400 + 600 INDEX TR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100
EQUAL WEIGHT INDEXSOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100
EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100
EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX TR

DE000SL0BBJ1

CAD

GTR*

.US500CT--

2020-07-28

DE000SL0BBK9

CAD

NTR**

.US500CC

US500CC

2020-07-28

DE000SL0AE99

USD

PR*

.US400US400P

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFA3

USD

NTR*

.US400N--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFB1

USD

GTR*

.US400T

US400T

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFC9

USD

PR*

.US600US600P

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFD7

USD

NTR*

.US600N--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFE5

USD

GTR*

.US600T

US600T

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFF2

USD

PR*

.US1500--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFG0

USD

NTR*

.US1500N--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0AFH8

USD

GTR*

.US1500T--

2020-02-14

DE000SL0EVY2

USD

PR*

.US50010P--

2021-12-21

DE000SL0EVZ9

USD

NTR*

.US50010N--

2021-12-21

DE000SL0EV03

USD

GTR*

.US50010T--

2021-12-21

DE000SL0AFC9

USD

PR*

.US900--2022-08-30

DE000SL0AFD7

USD

NTR*

.US900N--

2022-08-30

DE000SL0AFE5

USD

GTR*

.US900T--

2022-08-30

DE000SL0GYV7

USD

PR*

.US4P6--2022-08-31

DE000SL0GYW5

USD

NTR*

.US4P6N--

2022-08-31

DE000SL0GYX3

USD

GTR*

.US4P6T--

2022-08-31

DE000SL0JPU1

USD

PR*

.US100EW--

2023-05-23

DE000SL0JPV9

USD

NTR*

.US100EWN

US100EWN

2023-05-23

DE000SL0JPW7

USD

GTR*

.US100EWT--

2023-05-23

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SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX PR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX NTR
SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES
500 EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX TR

DE000SL0J4P4

USD

PR*

.US500EW--

2023-06-20

DE000SL0J4Q2

USD

NTR*

.US500EWN--

2023-06-20

DE000SL0J4R0

USD

GTR*

.US500EWT--

2023-06-20*PR, NTR, and GTR means that the Index is calculated as price return, net total return, and gross total return Index as described in the Equity Index Methodology,
which is available on the SOLACTIVE website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/equity-index-methodology/** NTR Indices that includes an ISO Country Code (2 letters) in the index name indicate that withholding tax rates from the perspective of an investor based inthat country are applied

The INDICES are published on the website of the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR (www.solactive.com) and is, in addition,
available via the price marketing services of Boerse Stuttgart GmbH and may be distributed to all of its
affiliated vendors. Each vendor decides on an individual basis as to whether it will distribute or display the
INDICES via its information systems.
Any publication in relation to the INDICES (e.g. notices, amendments to the GUIDELINE) will be available at thewebsite of the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR: https://www.solactive.com/news/announcements/.

1.3. INITIAL LEVEL OF THE INDEXThe initial level of the INDICES on the 08/05/2006, the START DATE, is 1000. Historical values from the LIVE
DATE, as shown in Section 1.2, will be recorded in accordance with Article 8 of the BMR. Levels of the INDICES
published for a period prior to the LIVE DATE have been back-tested.

1.4. PRICES AND CALCULATION FREQUENCY
The level of the INDICES is calculated on each CALCULATION DAY from 9:30 a.m. to 4:50 p.m. EST based on the
TRADING PRICES on the EXCHANGES on which the INDEX COMPONENTS are listed. TRADING PRICES of INDEXCOMPONENTS not listed in the INDEX CURRENCY are converted using the current Reuters spot foreign exchange
rate. Should there be no current TRADING PRICE for an INDEX COMPONENT, the later of: (i) the most recent
CLOSING PRICE; or (ii) the last available TRADING PRICE for the preceding TRADING DAY is used in the calculation.
In addition to the intraday calculation a closing level of the INDEX for each CALCULATION DAY is also
calculated. This closing level is based on the CLOSING PRICES for the INDEX COMPONENTS on the respective
EXCHANGES on which the INDEX COMPONENTS are listed. The CLOSING PRICES of INDEX COMPONENTS not listed in
the INDEX CURRENCY are converted using the 4pm London time WM Fixing quoted by Reuters. If there is no
4pm London time WM Fixing for the relevant CALCULATION DAY, the last available 4pm London time WM
Fixing will be used for the closing level calculation.

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1.5. LICENSING
Licenses to use the INDICES as the underlying value for financial instruments, investment funds, andfinancial contracts may be issued to stock exchanges, banks, financial services providers, and investment
houses by SOLACTIVE.

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2.

INDEX SELECTION

On each SELECTION DAY, the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR will revise the composition of the INDICES.
In a first step, the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR determines the INDEX UNIVERSE in accordance with Section 2.1. The
INDEX UNIVERSE comprises all those financial instruments which fulfill the INDEX UNIVERSE REQUIREMENTS (asspecified in Section 2.1) and will constitute a starting pool from which the components of the INDICES will
be selected. Based on this INDEX UNIVERSE, the new composition of the INDICES will be determined by applying
the rules outlined in Section 2.2.
Each INDEX COMPONENT will be assigned a weight as described in Section 2.3.

2.1.

INDEX UNIVERSE REQUIREMENTS

The INDEX UNIVERSE is comprised of all financial instruments which fulfill the below requirements (the“INDEX UNIVERSE REQUIREMENTS“):First, all companies that are part of the GBS INDEX UNIVERSE of the Solactive GBS United States Investable
Universe Index PR (ISIN: DE000SLA8D10), on a SELECTION DAY, as published on the SOLACTIVE website:
https://www.solactive.com are eligible for inclusion.
Second, eligible companies need to fulfill the following additional criteria:
Only securities listed on an EXCHANGE in the United States as defined in the LIST OF ELIGIBLE
EXCHANGES are eligible for inclusion.
Only securities trading in USD are eligible for inclusion.
Only common stocks and REITs are eligible for inclusion.
The determination of the INDEX UNIVERSE is fully rule-based and the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR cannot make any
discretionary decisions.

2.2. SELECTION OF THE INDEX COMPONENTS
Based on the INDEX UNIVERSE, the initial composition of the INDICES as well as any selection for an ordinary
rebalance is determined on the SELECTION DAY in accordance with the following rules (the “INDEXCOMPONENT REQUIREMENTS“):

2.2.1. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100 INDEX
1. Securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE are sorted by TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION in descending order. Eachsecurity is assigned a rank based on the position in the sorted list, e.g., the security with the highest
TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION is assigned rank 1.
2. All securities ranked in the top 85 are selected as INDEX COMPONENTS.
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3. Current INDEX COMPONENTS with a rank from 86 to 120 are added to the INDEX until the total numberof companies in the INDEX reaches 100.
4. If the total number of companies is still below 100 after the previous steps, the highest-ranking
securities are added to the INDEX until 100 companies are reached.
5. All share lines from the INDEX COMPONENTS are added to the INDEX.

2.2.2. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100 EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX
1. All INDEX COMPONENTS of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100 INDEX are added to the INDEX.

2.2.3. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 INDEX
2. Securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE are sorted by TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION in descending order. Eachsecurity is assigned a rank based on the position in the sorted list, e.g., the security with the highest
TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION is assigned rank 1.
3. All securities ranked in the top 425 are selected as INDEX COMPONENTS.
4. Current INDEX COMPONENTS with a rank from 426 to 600 are added to the INDEX until the total numberof companies in the INDEX reaches 500.
5. If the total number of companies is still below 500 after the previous steps, the highest-ranking
securities are added to the INDEX until 500 companies are reached.
6. All share lines from the INDEX COMPONENTS are added to the INDEX.

2.2.4. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 EQUAL WEIGHT INDEX
1. All INDEX COMPONENTS of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 INDEX are added to the INDEX.

2.2.5. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 10% CAPPED INDEX
1. All INDEX COMPONENTS of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 INDEX are added to the INDEX.

2.2.6. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 400 INDEX
1. Securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE, which are not an INDEX COMPONENT of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITEDSTATES 500 INDEX, are sorted by TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION in descending order. Each security is
assigned a rank based on the position in the sorted list, e.g., the security with the highest TOTALMARKET CAPITALIZATION is assigned rank 1.
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2. All securities ranked in the top 340 are selected as INDEX COMPONENTS.
3. Current INDEX COMPONENTS with a rank from 341 to 480 are added to the INDEX until the total numberof companies in the INDEX reaches 400.
4. If the total number of companies is still below 400 after the previous steps, the highest-ranking
securities are added to the INDEX until 400 companies are reached.
5. All share lines from the INDEX COMPONENTS are added to the INDEX.

2.2.7. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 900 INDEX
1. All INDEX COMPONENTS from the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 INDEX and the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITEDSTATES 400 INDEX are added to the INDEX.

2.2.8. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 600 INDEX
1. Securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE, which are not an INDEX COMPONENT of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITEDSTATES 500 INDEX or an INDEX COMPONENT of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 400 INDEX, are sorted by
TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION in descending order. Each security is assigned a rank based on theposition in the sorted list, e.g., the security with the highest TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION is assigned
rank 1.
2. All securities ranked in the top 510 are selected as INDEX COMPONENTS.
3. Current INDEX COMPONENTS with a rank from 511 to 720 are added to the INDEX until the total numberof companies in the INDEX reaches 600.
4. If the total number of companies is still below 600 after the previous steps, the highest-ranking
securities are added to the INDEX until 600 companies are reached.
5. All share lines from the INDEX COMPONENTS are added to the INDEX.

2.2.9. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 400 + 600 INDEX
1. All INDEX COMPONENTS from the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 400 INDEX and the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITEDSTATES 600 INDEX are added to the INDEX.

2.2.10. SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 1500 INDEX
1. All INDEX COMPONENTS from the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 INDEX, the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITEDSTATES 400 INDEX, and the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 600 INDEX are added to the INDEX.

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The selection of the INDEX COMPONENTS is fully rule-based and the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR cannot make any
discretionary decision.

2.3. WEIGHTING OF THE INDEX COMPONENTS
On each SELECTION DAY each INDEX COMPONENT is assigned a weight according to FREE FLOAT MARKET
CAPITALIZATION. Additionally, the following indices need to satisfy these supplementary constraints:

2.3.1. Solactive GBS United States 500 10% Capped Index
The weight of individual securities is capped at 10%. Any excess weight is redistributed to the other
INDEX COMPONENTS that have a weight of less than 10%. This allocation is performed pro-rata basedon the FREE FLOAT MARKET CAPITALIZATION in an iterative manner.

2.3.2. Solactive GBS United States 100 Equal Weight Index
On each SELECTION DAY each company in the INDEX is assigned an equal weight.
If multiple shares lines of a company are included, the weight of the company is distributed equally
among its share lines.

2.3.3. Solactive GBS United States 500 Equal Weight Index
On each SELECTION DAY each company in the INDEX is assigned an equal weight.
If multiple shares lines of a company are included, the weight of the company is distributed equally
among its share lines.

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3. REBALANCE
3.1. ORDINARY REBALANCE
In order to reflect the new selection of the INDEX COMPONENTS determined on the SELECTION DAY (inaccordance with Section 2.1 and 2.2) the INDICES are adjusted on the REBALANCE DAY after CLOSE OF BUSINESS.
This is carried out by implementing the shares as determined on the FIXING DAY based on the weights
calculated on the SELECTION DAY.
While the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 INDEX (SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 400 INDEX, SOLACTIVE GBSUNITED STATES 900 INDEX, SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 600 INDEX, SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 1500 INDEX)
aims to retain a fixed constituent company count of 500 (400, 900, 600, 1500), extraordinary adjustments
may influence the constituent company count. In particular, the following rules apply:
First, the INDEX may include more or less than 500 (400, 900, 600, 1500) companies between ordinary
rebalances due to spin-offs being added to or delisted companies being removed from the INDEX in
accordance with the rules set forth in Section 4.3.
Secondly, newly determined INDEX COMPONENTS can be affected by extraordinary adjustments between therespective SELECTION DAY and the subsequent REBALANCE DAY. Spinoffs of newly determined INDEXCOMPONENTS will be added to the INDEX and lead to a constituent company count of more than 500 (400,
900, 600, 1500) after the respective REBALANCE DAY.
For more information on the rebalance procedure please refer to the Equity Index Methodology, which isincorporated
byreference
andavailable
on
the
SOLACTIVE
website:https://www.solactive.com/documents/equity-index-methodology/.
SOLACTIVE will publish any changes made to the INDEX COMPONENTS with sufficient notice before the
REBALANCE DAY on the SOLACTIVE webpage under the section “Announcement”, which is available athttps://www.solactive.com/news/announcements/.

3.2. EXTRAORDINARY REBALANCE
The INDEX is not rebalanced extraordinarily.

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INDEX GUIDELINE4.

CALCULATION OF THE INDEX

4.1. INDEX FORMULA
The INDICES are calculated as a price return, net total return, and gross total return Index.
The calculation is performed according to the Equity Index Methodology, which is available on the SOLACTIVE
website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/equity-index-methodology/. The divisor index formula
stipulates that the level of the INDEX changes based on the change of the prices of its INDEX COMPONENTS
taking into account their weight in the INDEX and any currency conversion in case the price of an INDEXCOMPONENT is quoted in a currency other than the INDEX CURRENCY.
Any dividends or other distributions are reinvested across the entire basket of INDEX COMPONENTS by meansof a divisor at the opening of the effective date (the so-called ex-date) of the payment of such dividend orother distribution.
A more detailed description of the mechanics of the index calculation formula can be found in the Equity
Index Methodology under Section 1.2.

4.2. ACCURACY
The level of the INDEX will be rounded to two decimal places. Divisors will be rounded to six decimal places.
TRADING PRICES and foreign exchange rates will be rounded to six decimal places.

4.3. ADJUSTMENTS
Under certain circumstances, an adjustment of the INDEX may be necessary between two regular REBALANCE
DAYS. Such adjustment has to be made if a corporate action (as specified in Section 4.4 below) in relation of
an INDEX COMPONENT occurs. Such adjustment may have to be done in relation to an INDEX COMPONENT and/or
may also affect the number of INDEX COMPONENTS and/or the weighting of certain INDEX COMPONENTS and will
be made in compliance with the SOLACTIVE Equity Index Methodology, which is incorporated by reference andavailable on the SOLACTIVE website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/equity-index-methodology/.
SOLACTIVE will announce the INDEX adjustment giving a notice period of at least two TRADING DAYS (withrespect to the affected INDEX COMPONENT) on the SOLACTIVE website under the Section “Announcements”,
which is available at https://www.solactive.com/news/announcements/. The INDEX adjustments will be
implemented on the effective day specified in the respective notice.

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4.4. CORPORATE ACTIONS
As part of the INDEX maintenance SOLACTIVE will consider various events – also referred to as corporate
actions – which result in an adjustment to the INDEX between two regular REBALANCE DAYS. Such events havea material impact on the price, weighting or overall integrity of INDEX COMPONENTS. Therefore, they need tobe accounted for in the calculation of the INDEX. Corporate actions will be implemented from the cum-day
to the ex-day of the corporate action, so that the adjustment to the INDEX coincides with the occurrence ofthe price effect of the respective corporate action.
Adjustments to the INDEX to account for corporate actions will be made in compliance with the Equity Index
Methodology, which is available on the SOLACTIVE website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/equityindex-methodology/. This document contains for each corporate action a brief definition and specifies therelevant adjustment to the INDEX variables.
While SOLACTIVE aims at creating and maintaining its methodology for the treatment of corporate actions
as generic and transparent as possible and in line with regulatory requirements, it retains the right inaccordance with the Equity Index Methodology to deviate from these standard procedures in case of any
unusual or complex corporate action or if such a deviation is made to preserve the comparability andrepresentativeness of the INDEX over time.
SOLACTIVE considers the following, but not conclusive, list of corporate actions as relevant for the INDEX
maintenance:
Cash Distributions (e.g. payment of a dividend)
Stock distributions (e.g. payment of a dividend in form of additional shares)
Stock distributions of another company (e.g. payment of a dividend in form of additional shares ofanother company (e.g. of a subsidiary))
Share splits (company´s present shares are divided and therefore multiplied by a given factor)
Reverse splits (company´s present shares are effectively merged)
Capital increases (such as issuing additional shares)
Share repurchases (a company offer its shareholders the option to sell their shares to a fixed price)
Spin-offs (the company splits its business activities into two or more entities and distributes newequity shares in the created entities to the shareholders of the former entity)
Mergers & Acquisitions (transaction in which the ownership of a company (or other businessorganizations) are transferred or consolidated with other entities, e.g. fusion of two or more
separate companies into one entity)
Delistings (company´s shares are no longer publicly traded at a stock exchange)
Nationalization of a company (effective control of a legal entity is taken over by a state)
Insolvency
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4.5. RECALCULATIONSOLACTIVE makes the greatest possible efforts to accurately calculate and maintain its indices. However,errors in the determination process may occur from time to time for variety reasons (internal or external)
and therefore, cannot be completely ruled out. SOLACTIVE endeavors to correct all errors that have been
identified within a reasonable period of time. The understanding of “a reasonable period of time” as well as
the general measures to be taken are generally depending on the underlying and is specified in the
SOLACTIVE Correction Policy, which is incorporated by reference and available on the SOLACTIVE website:
https://www.solactive.com/documents/correction-policy/.

4.6. MARKET DISRUPTION
In periods of market stress SOLACTIVE calculates its indices following predefined and exhaustive
arrangements as described in the SOLACTIVE Disruption Policy, which is incorporated by reference andavailable on the SOLACTIVE website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/disruption-policy/. Suchmarket stress can arise due to a variety of reasons, but generally results in inaccurate or delayed prices forone or more INDEX COMPONENTS. The determination of the INDEX may be limited or impaired at times of illiquid
or fragmented markets and market stress.

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INDEX GUIDELINE5.

MISCELLANEOUS

5.1. DISCRETION
Any discretion which may need to be exercised in relation to the determination of the INDEX (for example
the determination of the INDEX UNIVERSE (if applicable), the selection of the INDEX COMPONENTS (if applicable)or any other relevant decisions in relation to the INDEX) shall be made in accordance with strict rules
regarding the exercise of discretion or expert judgement.

5.2. METHODOLOGY REVIEWThe methodology of the INDEX is subject to regular review, at least annually. In case a need of a change ofthe methodology has been identified within such review (e.g. if the underlying market or economic reality
has changed since the launch of the INDEX, i.e. if the present methodology is based on obsolete
assumptions and factors and no longer reflects the reality as accurately, reliably and appropriately as
before), such change will be made in accordance with the SOLACTIVE Methodology Policy, which isincorporated
byreference
andavailable
on
the
SOLACTIVE
website:https://www.solactive.com/documents/methodology-policy/.
Such change in the methodology will be announced on the SOLACTIVE website under the Section“Announcement”, which is available at https://www.solactive.com/news/announcements/. The date of
the last amendment of this INDEX is contained in this GUIDELINE.

5.3. CHANGES IN CALCULATION METHOD
The application by the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR of the method described in this document is final and binding.
The INDEX ADMINISTRATOR shall apply the method described above for the composition and calculation of the
INDEX. However, it cannot be excluded that the market environment, supervisory, legal, and financial or tax
reasons may require changes to be made to this method. The INDEX ADMINISTRATOR may also make changes
to the terms and conditions of the INDEX and the method applied to calculate the INDEX that it deems to benecessary and desirable in order to prevent obvious or demonstrable error or to remedy, correct or
supplement incorrect terms and conditions. The INDEX ADMINISTRATOR is not obliged to provide information
on any such modifications or changes. Despite the modifications and changes, the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR willtake the appropriate steps to ensure a calculation method is applied that is consistent with the method
described above.

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5.4. TERMINATIONSOLACTIVE makes the greatest possible efforts to ensure the resilience and continued integrity of its indicesover time. Where necessary, SOLACTIVE follows a clearly defined and transparent procedure to adapt Index
methodologies to changing underlying markets (see Section 5.2 “Methodology Review”) in order to maintaincontinued reliability and comparability of the indices. Nevertheless, if no other options are available theorderly cessation of the INDEX may be indicated. This is usually the case when the underlying market or
economic reality, which an index is set to measure or to reflect, changes substantially and in a way notforeseeable at the time of inception of the index, the index rules, and particularly the selection criteria, canno longer be applied coherently or the index is no longer used as the underlying value for financial
instruments, investment funds, and financial contracts.
SOLACTIVE has established and maintains clear guidelines on how to identify situations in which the
cessation of an index is unavoidable, how stakeholders are to be informed and consulted, and theprocedures to be followed for a termination or the transition to an alternative index. Details are specified
in the SOLACTIVE Termination Policy, which is incorporated by reference and available on the SOLACTIVE
website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/termination-policy/.

5.5. OVERSIGHT
An oversight committee composed of staff from SOLACTIVE and its subsidiaries (the “OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE”)
is responsible for decisions regarding any amendments to the rules of the INDEX. Any such amendment,
which may result in an amendment of the GUIDELINE, must be submitted to the OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE for priorapproval and will be made in compliance with the Methodology Policy, which is available on the SOLACTIVE
website: https://www.solactive.com/documents/methodology-policy/.

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6.

DEFINITIONS“BENCHMARK REGULATION” shall have the meaning as defined in Section “Introduction”.
“BMR” shall have the meaning as defined in Section “Introduction”.
“BUSINESS DAY” is every weekday from Monday to Friday.
“CALCULATION DAY” is every BUSINESS DAY. A day on which the New York Stock Exchange or the NASDAQ
Stock Exchange are not open for general business is not a CALCULATION DAY.
“CLOSE OF BUSINESS” is the calculation time of the closing level of the INDEX as outlined in Section 1.4.
The “CLOSING PRICE” in respect of an INDEX COMPONENT and a TRADING DAY is a security's final regular-hours
TRADING PRICE published by the EXCHANGE and determined in accordance with the EXCHANGE regulations. If
the EXCHANGE has no or has not published a CLOSING PRICE in accordance with the EXCHANGE rules for an INDEXCOMPONENT, the last TRADING PRICE will be used.
“ELIGIBLE GBS REBALANCE DAY” is each day that is a TRADING DAY at the New York Stock Exchange, theLondon Stock Exchange, the EUREX Exchange, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
“ELIGIBLE REBALANCE DAY” is each day that is an ELIGIBLE GBS REBALANCE DAY and a TRADING DAY on each of
the EXCHANGES of current and new INDEX COMPONENTS.
“EXCHANGE” is with respect to the INDEX and every INDEX COMPONENT, the respective exchange where the
INDEX COMPONENT has its listing as determined in accordance with the rules in Section 2.
“FIXING DAY” is the SELECTION DAY.
The “FREE FLOAT” is with regard to each of the securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE on a SELECTION DAY the shareclass-specific fraction of the total number of shares of such share class issued that are available for tradingby market participants and not locked-in by long term holders, as sourced from data vendors.
The “FREE FLOAT MARKET CAPITALIZATION” is with regard to each of the securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE on a
SELECTION DAY the share class-specific free float market capitalization. It is calculated as the multiplicationof the shares outstanding in FREE FLOAT (as sourced from data vendors) with the CLOSING PRICE of the shareclass as of the respective SELECTION DAY.
“GBS INDEX UNIVERSE” is the INDEX UNIVERSE as defined in the guideline of the SOLACTIVE Global Benchmark
Series: https://solactive.com/downloads/Guideline-Solactive-GBS-Benchmark-Series.pdf.
“GBS REBALANCE DAY” is the first Wednesday in February, May, August, and November. If that day is not an
ELIGIBLE GBS REBALANCE DAY, the GBS REBALANCE DAY will be the following ELIGIBLE GBS REBALANCE DAY.
“GUIDELINE” shall have the meaning as defined in Section “Introduction”.
“INDEX” shall have the meaning as defined in Section “Introduction”.
“INDEX ADMINISTRATOR” shall have the meaning as defined in Section “Introduction”.
“INDEX COMPONENT” is each security reflected in the INDEX.
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INDEX GUIDELINE“INDEX COMPONENT REQUIREMENTS” shall have the meaning as defined in Section 2.2.
“INDEX CURRENCY” is the currency specified in the column “Currency” in the table in Section 1.2.
“INDEX UNIVERSE REQUIREMENTS” shall have the meaning as defined in Section 2.1.
“INDEX UNIVERSE” is the sum of all financial instruments which fulfill the INDEX UNIVERSE REQUIREMENTS.
“LIST OF ELIGIBLE EXCHANGES” shall have the meaning as defined in the guideline of the SOLACTIVE Global
Benchmark Series: https://solactive.com/downloads/Guideline-Solactive-GBS-Benchmark-Series.pdf.
“LIVE DATE” shall have the meaning as defined in Section 1.3.
“OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE” shall have the meaning as defined in Section 5.5.
“REBALANCE DAY” is the first Wednesday in February, May, August, and November. If that day is not an
ELIGIBLE REBALANCE DAY, the REBALANCE DAY will be the following ELIGIBLE REBALANCE DAY.
“SELECTION DAy” is 20 BUSINESS DAYS before the scheduled GBS REBALANCE DAY.
The “SHARE CLASS MARKET CAPITALIZATION” is with regard to each of the securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE on
a SELECTION DAY the share class-specific market capitalization for any security in the INDEX UNIVERSE. It is
calculated as the multiplication of the shares outstanding with the CLOSING PRICE of the share class as of
the respective SELECTION DAY.
“SOLACTIVE” shall have the meaning as defined in Section “Introduction”.
“START DATE” shall have the meaning as defined in Section 1.3.
The “TOTAL MARKET CAPITALIZATION” is with regard to each of the securities in the INDEX UNIVERSE on a
SELECTION DAY the sum of all SHARE CLASS MARKET CAPITALIZATIONs of a company.
“TRADING DAY” is with respect to an INDEX COMPONENT included in the INDEX at the REBALANCE DAY and every
INDEX COMPONENT included in the INDEX at the CALCULATION DAY immediately following the REBALANCE DAY (forclarification: this provision is intended to capture the TRADING DAYS for the securities to be included in the
INDEX as new INDEX COMPONENTS with close of trading on the relevant EXCHANGE on the REBALANCE DAY) a dayon which the relevant EXCHANGE is open for trading (or a day that would have been such a day if a market
disruption had not occurred), excluding days on which trading may be ceased prior to the scheduled
EXCHANGE closing time and days on which the EXCHANGE is open for a scheduled shortened period. The INDEXADMINISTRATOR is ultimately responsible as to whether a certain day is a TRADING DAY.
The “TRADING PRICE” in respect of an INDEX COMPONENT and a TRADING DAY is the most recent published priceat which the INDEX COMPONENT was traded on the respective EXCHANGE.

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7. HISTORY OF INDEX CHANGES
VersionDate

Description

1.0

2020-02-14

Index Guideline creation

1.1

2020-07-28

Addition of the CAD index version

1.2

2021-12-21

Addition of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 10% CAPPED
INDEX

1.3

2022-08-30

Addition of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 900 INDEX

1.4

2022-08-31

Addition of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 400 + 600 INDEX

1.5

2023-05-23

Addition of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 100 EQUAL WEIGHT
INDEX

1.6

2023-06-20

Addition of the SOLACTIVE GBS UNITED STATES 500 EQUAL WEIGHT
INDEX

1.7

2023-07-03

The rule to select a successor in case of a delisting before therebalance day is removed

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INDEX GUIDELINECONTACT
Solactive AG
German Index Engineering
Platz der Einheit 1
60327 Frankfurt am Main
Germany
Tel.:
Fax:
Email:
Website:+49 (0) 69 719 160 00+49 (0) 69 719 160 25
info@solactive.com
www.solactive.com© Solactive AG
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