# EDGAR Filing Document

**Accession Number:** 0001479026
**File Stem:** 0001193125-26-183131
**Filing Date:** 2026-4
**Character Count:** 1406947
**Document Hash:** 43426d6db3f3fd63ed103317d8e05bce
**Contains OCR:** False
**Source Format:** 

## Filing Content

## Filing Summary
**0001193125-26-183131.hdr.sgml**: 20260428

**ACCESSION NUMBER**: 0001193125-26-183131

**CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE**: N-14

**PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT**: 13

**FILED AS OF DATE**: 20260428

**DATE AS OF CHANGE**: 20260427

**FILER**: 

**COMPANY DATA:**
- **COMPANY CONFORMED NAME:** Goldman Sachs ETF Trust
- **CENTRAL INDEX KEY:** 0001479026

**ORGANIZATION NAME:**
- **EIN:** 000000000
- **STATE OF INCORPORATION:** DE
- **FISCAL YEAR END:** 0831

**FILING VALUES:**
- **FORM TYPE:** N-14
- **SEC ACT:** 1933 Act
- **SEC FILE NUMBER:** 333-295361
- **FILM NUMBER:** 26902901

**BUSINESS ADDRESS:**
- **STREET 1:** 200 WEST STREET
- **CITY:** NEW YORK
- **STATE:** NY
- **ZIP:** 10282-2198
- **BUSINESS PHONE:** (312) 655-4400

**MAIL ADDRESS:**
- **STREET 1:** 200 WEST STREET
- **CITY:** NEW YORK
- **STATE:** NY
- **ZIP:** 10282-2198
**CENTRAL INDEX KEY**: 0001479026

**CENTRAL INDEX KEY**: 0000822977

**CENTRAL INDEX KEY**: 0001479026

**CENTRAL INDEX KEY**: 0000822977

## Series and Classes Contracts Data

### Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF (Series ID: S000106340)

| Class ID   | Class Name                       | Ticker Symbol   |
|:---|:---|:---|
| C000277194 | Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF |  |

### Goldman Sachs Bond Fund (Series ID: S000013795)

| Class ID   | Class Name      | Ticker Symbol   |
|:---|:---|:---|
| C000037818 | Class A         | GSFAX           |
| C000037819 | Class C         | GSFCX           |
| C000037820 | Institutional   | GSNIX           |
| C000041010 | Service         | GSNSX           |
| C000058984 | Class R         | GSNRX           |
| C000058985 | Investor Shares | GSNTX           |
| C000161293 | Class R6 Shares | GSFUX           |
| C000202041 | Class P Shares  | GMVPX           |

### Goldman Sachs Income ETF (Series ID: S000106341)

| Class ID   | Class Name               | Ticker Symbol   |
|:---|:---|:---|
| C000277195 | Goldman Sachs Income ETF |  |

### Goldman Sachs Income Fund (Series ID: S000067093)

| Class ID   | Class Name           | Ticker Symbol   |
|:---|:---|:---|
| C000215834 | Class P Shares       | GSCUX           |
| C000215835 | Class R6 Shares      | GSCRX           |
| C000215837 | Class A Shares       | GSCHX           |
| C000215838 | Institutional Shares | GSNCX           |
| C000215839 | Class C Shares       | GSCJX           |
| C000215840 | Investor Shares      | GSCMX           |

**Securities Act File No. 333-[**●**]** 

**As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 28, 2026** 

**UNITED STATES** 

**SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION** 

**Washington, D.C. 20549** 

**FORM N-14** 

**REGISTRATION STATEMENT** 

***UNDER***

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ***THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933*** |  |
| **Pre-Effective Amendment No.** | ☐ |
| **Post-Effective Amendment No.**<br>| ☐ |

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**(Check appropriate box or boxes.)** 

## GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST
**(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)** 

**200 West Street** 

**New York, New York 10282** 

**(Address of Principal Executive Offices)** 

**Registrant's Telephone Number, including Area Code (212) 902-1000** 

**ROBERT GRIFFITH, ESQ.** 

**Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC** 

**200 West Street** 

**New York, New York 10282** 

**(Name and Address of Agent for Service)** 

***COPY TO:***

**STEPHEN H. BIER, ESQ.** 

**ALLISON M. FUMAI, ESQ.** 

**Dechert LLP** 

**1095 Avenue of the Americas** 

**New York, New York 10036** 

**Approximate Date of Proposed Public Offering:** As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Registration Statement.

**Title of Securities Being Registered:** Shares of Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF, each a series of the Registrant. The Registrant has heretofore declared its intention to register an indefinite amount of securities pursuant to Rule 24f-2 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended; accordingly, no fee is payable herewith in reliance upon Section 24(f).

The Registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

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![LOGO](g144724g01a03.jpg)

**GOLDMAN SACHS BOND FUND** 

**GOLDMAN SACHS INCOME FUND** 

71 South Wacker Drive

Chicago, Illinois 60606

May [●], 2026

Dear Shareholder:

We are writing to inform you of an important matter concerning your investment in the Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Income Fund (each, an "Acquired Fund," and collectively, the "Acquired Funds"). At a meeting held on April 21-22, 2026, the Board of Trustees of the Acquired Funds (the "Board") approved reorganizations pursuant to which each Acquired Fund will be reorganized with and into a corresponding newly created shell series of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (each, an "Acquiring Fund," and collectively, the "Acquiring Funds", and together with the Acquired Funds, the "Funds") as follows:

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Acquired Fund** | **Acquiring Fund** |
| Goldman Sachs Bond Fund | Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF |
| Goldman Sachs Income Fund | Goldman Sachs Income ETF |

---

Shareholders were first notified of the reorganizations on April 24, 2026 in a supplement to the Acquired Funds' then effective Prospectuses and Summary Prospectuses.

After careful consideration, the Board, including a majority of the Trustees who are not "interested persons" of the Funds, as that term is defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Independent Trustees"), approved the reorganizations. After considering the recommendation of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. ("GSAM"), the investment adviser to the Funds, the Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, concluded that: (i) each reorganization is in the best interests of each Fund; and (ii) the interests of the existing shareholders of each Acquired Fund will not be diluted as a result of the reorganization.

Effective on or about August 7, 2026 (with respect to the applicable reorganization, the "Closing Date"), unless you redeem your investment in your Acquired Fund, you will receive shares of the corresponding Acquiring Fund and/or cash equal to the value of your shares of the Acquired Fund on that date. **Importantly, in order to receive shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund as part of the reorganization, you must hold shares of your Acquired Fund through a brokerage account eligible to hold and trade shares of an exchange-traded fund as of the Closing Date. Otherwise, your investment in your Acquired Fund will be liquidated and you may receive cash, which may be a taxable event for you.**

No sales charge, redemption fees or other transaction fees will be imposed in the reorganizations. Each reorganization is intended to be a tax-free reorganization for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

**NO APPROVAL IS REQUIRED ON YOUR PART IN CONNECTION WITH THE REORGANIZATIONS. YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY RECEIVE SHARES OF THE APPLICABLE ACQUIRING FUND AND/OR CASH IN EXCHANGE FOR YOUR SHARES OF THE ACQUIRED FUND AS OF THE CLOSING DATE. THE BOARD IS NOT ASKING YOU FOR A PROXY AND YOU ARE REQUESTED NOT TO SEND A PROXY.** 

If you have any questions regarding the attached Information Statement/Prospectus or other materials, please contact the Acquired Funds at 1-800-526-7384.

By Order of the Board of Trustees

of the Goldman Sachs Trust

James A. McNamara

President

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**The information in this Combined Information Statement/Prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This Combined Information Statement/Prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.** 

**PRELIMINARY COMBINED INFORMATION STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS** 

**SUBJECT TO COMPLETION** 

**COMBINED INFORMATION STATEMENT** 

**FOR** 

**GOLDMAN SACHS BOND FUND** 

**GOLDMAN SACHS INCOME FUND** 

**(each a series of the GOLDMAN SACHS TRUST)** 

**AND** 

**COMBINED PROSPECTUS FOR** 

**GOLDMAN SACHS CORE PLUS BOND ETF** 

**GOLDMAN SACHS INCOME ETF** 

**(each a series of the GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST)** 

The address, telephone number and website of the Funds are:

71 South Wacker Drive

Chicago, Illinois 60606

1-800-526-7384

am.gs.com

Shares of the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF have not been approved or disapproved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The SEC has not passed upon the adequacy of this Information Statement/Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

**An investment in either the Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Income Fund (the "Acquired Funds") or the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF (the "Acquiring Funds," and collectively with the Acquired Funds, the "Funds") is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.** 

**Shares of the Acquiring Funds are expected to be listed for trading on the NYSE Arca, Inc. (the "Exchange"). Reports, proxy materials and other information concerning the Acquiring Funds can be inspected at the Exchange (when available).** 

**This Information Statement/Prospectus sets forth information about the Acquiring Funds that an investor needs to know before investing. Please read this Information Statement/Prospectus carefully before investing and keep it for future reference.** 

**The date of this Information Statement/Prospectus is May [**●**], 2026.** 

**For more complete information about each Fund, please read the Acquired Funds' and the Acquiring Funds' (when available) Prospectuses and Statements of Additional Information ("SAI"), as they may be amended and/or supplemented. Each Acquired Fund's Prospectus and SAI, and other additional information about each Acquired Fund, have been filed with the SEC (www.sec.gov) and are available upon written or oral request and without charge by writing to the address above or calling the following toll-free number: 1-800-526-7384.** 

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**INTRODUCTION** 

This combined information statement/prospectus, dated May [●], 2026 (the "Information Statement/Prospectus"), is being furnished to shareholders of the Acquired Funds in connection with an Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation between each Acquired Fund and its corresponding Acquiring Fund (each, a "Plan"), pursuant to which the Acquired Fund will (i) transfer all of its assets attributable to each class of its shares to the Acquiring Fund in exchange for shares of the Acquiring Fund and the assumption by the Acquiring Fund of all of the liabilities of the Acquired Fund; and (ii) distribute to its shareholders a portion of the Acquiring Fund shares to which each shareholder is entitled (as discussed below) in complete liquidation of the Acquired Fund (with respect to each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund, the "Reorganization," and collectively, the "Reorganizations"). At a meeting held on April 21-22, 2026, the Board of Trustees of the Funds (the "Board" or "Trustees") approved the Plans. A copy of a Plan is attached to this Information Statement/Prospectus as *Exhibit A.* Shareholders should read this entire Information Statement/Prospectus, including the exhibits, carefully.

**NO APPROVAL IS REQUIRED ON YOUR PART IN CONNECTION WITH THE REORGANIZATIONS. AS DISCUSSED MORE FULLY BELOW, THE FUNDS ARE RELYING ON RULE 17a-8 UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940, AS AMENDED ("1940 ACT"). SHAREHOLDERS OF EACH ACQUIRED FUND ARE NOT BEING ASKED TO VOTE ON OR APPROVE THE APPLICABLE PLAN. THE BOARD IS NOT ASKING YOU FOR A PROXY AND YOU ARE REQUESTED NOT TO SEND A PROXY.** 

**Background to the Reorganization** 

Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. ("GSAM" or the "Investment Adviser"), an SEC-registered investment adviser, serves as investment adviser to the Acquired Funds, each an investment company registered under the 1940 Act. GSAM also serves as investment adviser to the Acquiring Funds, each also an investment company registered under the 1940 Act.

The Investment Adviser recommended to the Board that it approve the Reorganization of each Acquired Fund, each an existing series of Goldman Sachs Trust (the "Acquired Fund Trust"), with and into a corresponding Acquiring Fund (the "Acquiring Funds," and collectively with the Acquired Fund, the "Funds"), each a newly created shell series of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (the "Acquiring Fund Trust") as follows:

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Acquired Fund** | **Acquiring Fund** |
| Goldman Sachs Bond Fund | Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF |
| Goldman Sachs Income Fund | Goldman Sachs Income ETF |

---

On April 21-22, 2026, the Board, including a majority of the Trustees who are not "interested persons" of the Funds, as that term is defined in the 1940 Act (the "Independent Trustees"), voted to approve the Reorganizations. In approving the Reorganizations, the Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, concluded that: (i) the Reorganization is in the best interests of each Fund; and (ii) the interests of the shareholders of each Acquired Fund will not be diluted as a result of the Reorganization. Given that each Acquiring Fund will not have any shareholders at the time of the applicable Reorganization, there would be no dilution of Acquiring Fund shareholder interests.

At its meeting, the Board received and evaluated materials provided by the Investment Adviser regarding the Reorganizations and their effect on the existing shareholders of the Acquired Funds, including the anticipated capital gain distributions to shareholders of each Acquired Fund as a result of the applicable Reorganization. The Board also evaluated and discussed, among other things: (i) whether there are any material differences between each Acquired Fund's and its Acquiring Fund's investment strategies and risks; (ii) the impact to shareholders of each Acquired Fund in connection with the repositioning of the Fund's portfolio prior to the Closing of the

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applicable Reorganization, if any; (iii) the specific terms of the Reorganizations; and (vi) other information, such as the performance history of the Acquired Funds, the current or projected expense ratios of the Funds, and the asset growth of the Acquired Funds.

The Independent Trustees were assisted in their consideration of the Reorganizations by independent counsel.

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**<u>QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS</u>**

***Q. Am I Being Asked to Vote on the Reorganizations?***

**A.** No. The Reorganizations are not subject to shareholder approval.

***Q. When are the Reorganizations expected to occur?***

**A.** The Reorganizations are currently scheduled to take place upon the close of business (4:00 pm Eastern Time) on August 7, 2026 (with respect to the applicable Reorganization, the "Closing Date"). The Closing Date may be delayed. The Acquired Fund will publicly disclose any changes to its Closing Date. The Reorganizations are not contingent upon each other. In the event that a Reorganization does not occur, the applicable Acquired Fund will continue its investment operations, subject to further actions by the Board, if any.

***Q. How will the Reorganizations affect me as a shareholder? What do I need to do to prepare for the Reorganizations?***

**A.** If the Reorganization is consummated, you will cease to be a shareholder of your Acquired Fund. It is important for you to determine whether you hold your Acquired Fund shares in the type of account that can accommodate the receipt of the Acquiring Fund shares that will be received in the Reorganizations. If you hold your Acquired Fund shares in an account directly with the Acquired Fund at the transfer agent of the Acquired Fund ("Transfer Agent) or in a brokerage account with a financial intermediary that only allows you to hold mutual fund shares, you will need to set up a brokerage account that allows investment in ETF shares if you elect to participate in a Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Accommodating Brokerage Accounts*. If you hold your shares of the Acquired Fund through
a brokerage account that can accept shares of an ETF on the Closing Date of the Reorganization, you will automatically become a shareholder of the Acquiring Fund. No further action is required. As described in more detail above, upon completion of
the Reorganization, you will receive shares of the Acquiring Fund. Shares of the Acquiring Fund are not issued in fractional shares. **As a result, cash will be paid to shareholders in lieu of fractional shares, which may be taxable.** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Non-Accommodating Brokerage Accounts.* If your shares are held in
an account that cannot accept ETF shares, you will need to contact your financial intermediary to set up a brokerage account that permits investment in ETF shares. If such a change is not made before the applicable reorganization, you may not
receive shares of an Acquiring Fund as part of a reorganization. Instead, your investment will be liquidated and you may receive cash equal in value to the NAV of your Acquired Fund shares. **The liquidation of your investment may be a taxable event for shareholders who hold their shares in a taxable account.** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Non-Accommodating Retirement Accounts*. If you hold your Acquired
Fund shares through an individual retirement account ("IRA") or group retirement plan whose plan sponsor does not have the ability to hold shares of ETFs on its platform, you may need to redeem your shares prior to the applicable
Reorganization or your financial intermediary may transfer your investment in your Acquired Fund to a different investment option prior to the Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Fund Direct Accounts*. If you hold your Acquired Fund shares in an account directly with the Acquired Fund
at its Transfer Agent (a "fund direct account"), you should transfer your shares of the Acquired Fund to a brokerage account that can accept shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund prior to the Reorganization. Transferring your shares
from a fund direct account to a brokerage account that can accept shares of the Acquiring Fund should be a simple process. If you have a brokerage account or a relationship with a brokerage firm, please talk to your broker and inform the broker that
you would like to transfer a mutual fund position that you hold directly with your Acquired Fund into your brokerage account. Also inform your broker that such an account will need to be set up to accept shares of an ETF, such as the applicable
Acquiring Fund. If you do not have a brokerage account or a relationship with a brokerage firm, you will need to open an account.

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We suggest you provide your broker with a copy of the quarterly statement from your Acquired Fund. Your broker will require your account number with your Acquired Fund, which can be found on your statement. Your broker will help you complete a form to initiate the transfer. Once you sign that form, your broker will submit the form to the Transfer Agent directly, and the shares will be transferred into your brokerage account. **The sooner you initiate the transfer, the better.**

If such a change is not made before the applicable Reorganization, you will not receive shares of an Acquiring Fund as part of a reorganization. Instead, your investment will be liquidated and you will receive cash equal in value to the NAV of your Acquired Fund shares. **The liquidation of your investment will likely be a taxable event for shareholders who hold their shares in a taxable account.**

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Fund Direct IRA*. If you hold your Acquired Fund shares through a fund direct IRA and do not take action to
transfer your investment in your Acquired Fund to a different investment option or to transfer your investment to a brokerage IRA account that can accept shares of an Acquiring Fund prior to the applicable Reorganization, your Acquired Fund shares
will be exchanged for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the NAV of your Acquired Fund shares.

In some cases, the return of cash or the transfer of your investment may be subject to fees and expenses and may also be subject to tax. It may take time for you to receive your cash. Different tax considerations apply to you if you hold your Acquired Fund shares through a fund direct IRA and exchange your Acquired Fund shares for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund. **For more information on the impact that the Reorganization will have on you and your investments, or if you are unsure about the ability of your account to accept shares of the Acquiring Fund, please contact your financial advisor or other financial intermediary.**

No action on the part of the Acquired Funds or their shareholders is required for shareholders that hold shares of an Acquired Fund through a brokerage account that can hold shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund.

After the Reorganization, individual shares of an Acquiring Fund may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market. Shares of the Acquiring Funds will be listed on the Exchange. Shares of the Acquiring Funds may also be traded on other national securities exchanges, electronic crossing networks, and other alternative trading systems. Should you decide to purchase or sell shares of an Acquiring Fund after the Reorganizations, you will need to place a trade through a broker who will execute your trade in the secondary market at prevailing market prices. Because an Acquiring Fund's shares trade at market prices rather than at NAV, the Acquiring Fund's shares may trade at a price less than (discount) or greater than (premium) the Acquiring Fund's NAV. As with all transactions for ETFs, your broker may charge a commission for purchase and sale transactions.

***Q. What are the differences between an ETF and a mutual fund?***

**A.** ETFs are structurally different from mutual funds in several important aspects:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• A mutual fund may offer multiple share classes with different sales charges, expenses, and/or minimum
investments. An ETF will not issue multiple classes of shares.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• A mutual fund investor may purchase and redeem shares directly from the mutual fund (through a distributor or a
financial intermediary). Most ETF investors will buy and sell shares in secondary market transactions through brokers.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• A mutual fund will accept purchase and redemption orders from any shareholders on days that the mutual fund is
open for business, and those orders will be effected at that day's NAV. An ETF will issue or redeem shares at its NAV per share only in one or more groupings of a large specified number of shares called a "Creation Unit," on days
that the ETF is open for business. Only an ETF's "authorized participants" are permitted to engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the ETF. All other shareholders will buy and sell shares of the ETF on an
exchange at market price.

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As a result of these structural differences, there are certain benefits associated with the ETF structure, such as secondary market liquidity, increased transparency, and the potential for increased tax efficiency. There are, however, certain risks associated with the ETF structure, including the risk that shares of an ETF will trade at market prices that are above (premium) or below (discount) NAV, or that an ETF's "authorized participants" will not engage in creation or redemption transactions which could cause the Acquiring Fund's shares to trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.

***Q. Will the fees and expenses of the Acquiring Fund be lower than the fees and expenses of the Acquired Fund?***

**A.** Yes. Following the Reorganizations, each Acquiring Fund is expected to have a lower net expense ratio than each share class of the corresponding Acquired Fund.

***Q. Are there other benefits that I will experience as a shareholder of an Acquiring Fund?***

**A.** Yes. In addition to lower net expenses, as a shareholder of the Acquiring Fund you will also benefit from additional trading flexibility, increased transparency, and the potential for enhanced tax efficiency.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Additional Trading Flexibility.* As a shareholder of your Acquired Fund you can only purchase or redeem
your shares of the Acquired Fund at a price based on the Acquired Fund's NAV that is next calculated after your order is received by the Acquired Fund. This NAV is calculated once per business day. As a shareholder of the applicable Acquiring
Fund, however, you will be able to purchase and sell shares of the Acquiring Fund throughout a trading day on the secondary market. These trades will occur at market prices, which may be higher or lower than the Acquiring Fund's NAV. This
intraday liquidity will give you the opportunity to act on purchase and sale decisions immediately, rather than waiting to transact at the Acquiring Fund's NAV.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Increased Transparency*. Currently, the Acquired Funds only provide periodic disclosure of its complete
portfolio holdings. Following the Reorganizations, however, the Acquiring Funds will make their complete portfolio holdings public each business day. This holdings information, along with other information about the Acquiring Funds, will be found on
each Acquiring Fund's website at am.gs.com.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• *Enhanced Tax Efficiency.* Shareholders of the Acquired Funds also are expected to benefit from the
potential for greater tax efficiency with the ETF structure. While the tax treatment of ETFs and mutual funds is the same, the mechanics of the creation and redemption process for ETFs allows ETFs to acquire securities in-kind in creations and redeem shares in-kind for securities in redemptions, which generally allows shareholders of an ETF to defer the
realization of capital gains as the result of the ETF's portfolio transactions. In contrast, when portfolio securities are sold within a mutual fund (either to rebalance the mutual fund's holdings or to raise cash for redemptions), the
sale can create capital gains within the mutual fund that impact all taxable shareholders of the mutual fund. Shares of the Goldman Sachs Income ETF are expected to be redeemed principally in-kind, while
shares of the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF are expected to be redeemed partially in-kind and partially in cash.

***Q. Will I be subject to comparable investment risks as a shareholder of an Acquiring Fund?***

**A.** Yes. As noted above, the Acquired Fund and the Acquiring Fund have identical investment objectives, fundamental investment policies and investment strategies. Therefore, each Acquiring Fund will be subject to identical investment-related risks as its corresponding Acquired Fund.

For additional discussion of these and other risk factors, please see the section entitled "Comparison of Principal Investment Risks of Investing in the Funds."

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***Q. Will I be subject to comparable structural risks as a shareholder of the applicable Acquiring Fund?***

**A.** As a shareholder of the Acquiring Fund, you will be subject to risks related to the Acquiring Fund's ETF structure. For example, you will be subject to the risk that shares of the Acquiring Fund will trade at market prices that are above (premium) or below (discount) the Acquiring Fund's NAV. You will also be subject to the risk that the Acquiring Fund's "authorized participants," which are the only entities that are permitted to engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Acquiring Fund, do not engage in such transactions, which could cause the Acquiring Fund's shares to trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.

For additional discussion of these and other risk factors, please see the section entitled "Comparison of Principal Investment Risks of Investing in the Funds."

***Q. Is there anything else that will be different once I am a shareholder of the applicable Acquiring Fund?***

**A.** Yes. As a shareholder of your Acquired Fund, you can only purchase or redeem your shares of the Acquired Fund at a price based on the Acquired Fund's NAV that is next calculated after your order is received by the Acquired Fund, subject to any applicable sales charges and fees.

Individual Acquiring Fund shares may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market through a broker at market prices. When you buy or sell shares of an Acquiring Fund through a broker, you may incur a brokerage commission or other charges imposed by the broker. In addition, each Acquired Fund operates in a multiple class structure. A multiple class fund is an open-end investment company that issues two or more classes of shares representing interests in the same investment portfolio, but with different availability and eligibility criteria, sales charges, expenses, dividends and distributions. In contrast, the Acquiring Funds, by virtue of operating in an ETF structure, will not issue multiple classes of shares. Unlike shareholders of the Acquired Funds, shareholders of the Acquiring Funds will not own a particular class of shares.

***Q. Will the Acquired Funds or Acquiring Funds charge shareholders any sales charges (loads), commissions, or other similar fees in connection with the Reorganizations?***

**A.** No. None of the Acquired Funds or the Acquiring Funds will charge shareholders any sales charges (loads), commissions, or other similar fees in connection with the Reorganizations.

***Q. Who will pay the costs in connection with the Reorganizations?***

**A.** GSAM will pay for the costs incurred by the Funds associated with the Reorganizations (including the legal costs associated with the Reorganization), but will not pay any brokerage fees and expenses incurred by the Acquired Funds related to the disposition and acquisition of assets as part of the Reorganizations. Brokerage fees and expenses related to the disposition and acquisition of assets will be borne by the Acquired Funds.

***Q. Will the Reorganization result in any federal tax liability to me?***

**A.** Each Reorganization is intended to be treated as a tax-free reorganization for U.S. federal income tax purposes, except with respect to cash received by shareholders. If the Reorganizations qualify for tax-free treatment, Acquired Fund shareholders would recognize no gain or loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes upon the exchange of Acquired Fund shares for Acquiring Fund shares pursuant to the Reorganization (except with respect to cash received, if any).

Different tax considerations apply to you if you hold your shares of the Acquired Fund through a fund direct IRA and exchange your Acquired Fund shares for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund. In addition, as described above, you may also experience tax consequences if your investment in the Acquired Fund is liquidated because you did not hold your shares of the Acquired Fund through a brokerage account that can accept shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund.

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Prior to the closing of each Reorganization, each Acquired Fund expects to declare a distribution of all of its net investment income and net capital gains, if any attributable to gains realized from disposition of portfolio securities. All or a portion of such distribution may be taxable to such Acquired Fund's shareholders for U.S. federal income tax purposes. To the extent that portfolio securities of an Acquired Fund are sold in connection with any portfolio repositioning prior to the closing of a Reorganization, the Acquired Fund may realize gains or losses, which may increase or decrease the net capital gains or net investment income to be distributed by such Acquired Fund.

Shareholders should consult their tax advisors about possible state and local tax consequences of the Reorganizations, if any, because the information about tax consequences in this document relates to the federal income tax consequences of the Reorganizations only.

***Q. Can I purchase, redeem, or exchange shares of my Acquired Fund before the Reorganizations take place?***

**A.** Yes. Purchase orders, exchange orders, and redemption orders must be received by your Acquired Fund by the dates indicated below:

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Acquired Fund** | **Final Date to Redeem Acquired Fund<br>Shares or Exchange for Shares of<br>Another Goldman Sachs Mutual Fund** |
| Goldman Sachs Income Fund<br>Closed to new investors<sup>\*</sup> May 26, 2026<br> Closed to subsequent investments by existing investors August 3, 2026 | August 6, 2026<br>|
| Goldman Sachs Bond Fund<br>Closed to new investors<sup>\*</sup> May 26, 2026<br> Closed to subsequent investments by existing investors August 3, 2026 | August 6, 2026<br>|

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<sup>\*</sup> New investors are those investors who do not hold shares of an Acquired Fund on May 26, 2026.

If you hold your shares of the Acquired Fund through a fund direct IRA, on the Closing Date, your Acquired Fund shares will be converted to the equivalent share class of the Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the NAV of your Acquired Fund shares.

These dates may change if the Closing Date of a Reorganization changes. Any changes to the Closing Date of a Reorganization will be communicated to shareholders. If you hold your shares in an account directly with the Acquired Funds' Transfer Agent, on the Closing Date, your Acquired Fund shares will be converted to cash and the cash proceeds will be sent to you, except with respect to a fund direct IRA, as discussed above. The conversion of Acquired Fund shares to cash will likely be a taxable event if you hold your Acquired Fund shares in a taxable account.

If you redeem or exchange your Acquired Fund shares, you will recognize a taxable gain or loss based on the difference between your tax basis in the shares and the amount you receive for them, if the Acquired Fund shares are held in a taxable account.

***Q. Will the Reorganization affect the way my investments are managed?***

**A.** No. GSAM is the investment adviser to the Acquired Funds and will continue to serve as the investment adviser to the Acquiring Funds. The same individuals responsible for the day-to-day portfolio management of the Acquired Fund prior to the Reorganizations will continue to be responsible for the day-to-day portfolio management of the Acquiring Fund, with the addition of three portfolio managers for the Core Plus Bond ETF

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and two portfolio managers for the Income ETF, all from the Fixed Income Team. An Acquired Fund and its corresponding Acquiring Fund have identical investment objectives, fundamental investment policies and investment strategies.

***Q. What if I do not want to own shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund?***

**A.** If you do not want to receive shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund in connection with the Reorganizations, you can exchange your Acquired Fund shares for shares of another Goldman Sachs mutual fund that is not participating in the Reorganization or redeem your Acquired Fund shares. Prior to doing so, however, you should consider the tax consequences associated with either action. Redemption of your Acquired Fund shares will be a taxable event if you hold your shares in a taxable account. The last date to redeem your shares or exchange them into another Goldman Sachs mutual fund prior to the Reorganization is August 6, 2026.

These dates may change if the Closing Date of the applicable Reorganization changes. Any changes to the Closing Date of a Reorganization will be communicated to shareholders.

***Where can I get more information?***

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| The current Prospectuses for the Acquired Funds dated July 29, 2025, and Statement of Additional Information for the Acquired Funds dated July 29, 2025 (as supplemented February 20, 2026), and the supplement dated January 8, 2026 with respect to the Goldman Sachs Income Fund (Accession Number: 0001193125-26-007343). | On file with the SEC (http://www.sec.gov) (file nos. 811-05349; 033-17619) and available at no charge by calling: 1-800-526-7384 or on the Funds' website (dfinview.com/GoldmanSachs). |
| The most recent Form N-CSRS of the Acquired Funds, including the unaudited financial statement for the semi-annual period ended September 30, 2025. | On file with the SEC (http://www.sec.gov) (file nos. 811-05349; 033-17619) and available at no charge by calling: 1-800-526-7384 or on the Funds' website (dfinview.com/GoldmanSachs). |
| The most recent Form N-CSR of the Acquired Funds, including the audited financial statement for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025. | On file with the SEC (http://www.sec.gov) (file nos. 811-05349; 033-17619) and available at no charge by calling: 1-800-526-7384 or on the Funds' website (dfinview.com/GoldmanSachs). |
| The Statement of Additional information ("SAI") for this Information Statement/Prospectus, dated May [●], 2026. The SAI contains additional information about the Acquiring Funds. | On file with the SEC (http://www.sec.gov) (file nos. 333-[ ]) and available at no charge by calling: 1-800-526-7384. The SAI is incorporated by reference into this Information Statement/Prospectus. |
| To ask questions about this Information Statement/Prospectus. | Call the toll-free telephone number: 1-800-526-7384. |

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The above documents are incorporated into this Information Statement/Prospectus by reference, which means they are considered legally a part of this Information Statement/Prospectus. The materials have been filed with the SEC (www.sec.gov) and are available upon written or oral request and without charge by writing to the address above or calling the following toll-free number: 1-800-526-7384.

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**TABLE OF CONTENTS** 

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| | |
|:---|:---|
|  [SUMMARY](#toc144724_1) | 1 |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [Comparison of Principal Investment Risks of Investing in the Funds](#toc144724_2) | 7 |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [The Funds' Fees and Expenses and Supplemental Financial Information](#toc144724_3) | 18 |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [The Funds' Past Performance](#toc144724_4) | 22 |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [Reasons for the Reorganizations and Board Considerations](#toc144724_5) | 26 |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [Buying and Selling Shares of the Funds](#toc144724_6) | 28 |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries](#toc144724_7) | 29 |
|  [RISKS OF THE FUNDS](#toc144724_8) | 30 |
|  [OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THE REORGANIZATION](#toc144724_9) | 46 |
|  [CAPITALIZATION](#toc144724_10) | 47 |
|  [TERMS OF THE AGREEMENTS AND PLANS OF REORGANIZATION AND LIQUIDATION](#toc144724_11) | 48 |
|  [MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES OF THE REORGANIZATIONS](#toc144724_12) | 49 |
|  [FUNDAMENTAL INVESTMENT POLICIES OF THE FUNDS](#toc144724_13) | 57 |
|  [ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS](#toc144724_14) | 60 |
|  [DISTRIBUTIONS](#toc144724_15) | 70 |
|  [EXPERTS](#toc144724_16) | 71 |
|  [FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS](#toc144724_17) | 72 |
|  [OTHER INFORMATION](#toc144724_18) | 86 |
|  [EXHIBIT A FORM OF AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF REORGANIZATION AND LIQUIDATION](#toc144724_19) | A-1 |
|  [EXHIBIT B ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES, PORTFOLIO RISKS, SECURITIES AND TECHNIQUES](#toc144724_20) | B-1 |
|  [EXHIBIT C SHAREHOLDER GUIDE](#toc144724_21) | C-1 |
|  [EXHIBIT D INTERESTS OF CERTAIN PERSONS](#toc144724_22) | D-1 |

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**SUMMARY** 

The following is a summary of more complete information appearing later in this Information Statement/Prospectus or incorporated by reference herein. You should read carefully the entire Information Statement/Prospectus, including the form of Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation attached as *Exhibit A*, because it contains details that are not in the summary.

Each Acquired Fund currently operates as an open-end mutual fund. Each Acquired Fund will be reorganized into an exchange-traded fund ("ETF") through the Reorganization of the Acquired Fund into the corresponding Acquiring Fund. Each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund have identical investment objectives, fundamental investment policies and investment strategies.

**Comparison of Each Acquired Fund with Corresponding Acquiring Fund** 

As set forth in the charts below, each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund have an identical investment objective and principal investment strategies. Each Fund's investment objective is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon sixty days' notice. The charts have been marked to show certain differences between each Acquired Fund and its corresponding Acquiring Fund.

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** |
| **Investment**<br> **Objective** | Each Fund seeks a total return consisting of capital appreciation and income. | Each Fund seeks a total return consisting of capital appreciation and income. |
| **Principal Investment**<br> **Strategy** | The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase) ("Net Assets") in bonds and other fixed income securities, including securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises ("U.S. Government Securities"), including agency issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities"), corporate debt securities, privately issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Private Mortgage-Backed Securities" and, together with Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, "Mortgage-Backed Securities"), asset-backed securities (including collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs")), high yield non-investment grade securities (securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization ("NRSRO") or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality). The Fund may also invest in custodial receipts, fixed income securities issued by or on behalf of states, territories, and possessions of the United States (including the District of Columbia) ("Municipal Securities"), loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund may also engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in derivatives, including (but not limited to) forwards, interest rate futures, interest rate swaps and credit default swaps, which are used primarily to hedge the Fund's portfolio risks, manage the Fund's duration and/or gain exposure to certain fixed income securities or indices. The Fund may invest in obligations of domestic and foreign issuers which are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its total assets measured at the time of purchase ("Total Assets") in sovereign and corporate debt securities and other instruments of issuers in emerging market countries ("emerging countries debt"). The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) senior secured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Senior Loans"), (b) second lien or other subordinated or unsecured floating rate and fixed loans or debt ("Second Lien Loans") and (c) other types of secured or unsecured | The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase) ("Net Assets") in bonds and other fixed income securities, including securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises ("U.S. Government Securities"), including agency issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities"), corporate debt securities, privately issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Private Mortgage-Backed Securities" and, together with Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, "Mortgage-Backed Securities"), asset-backed securities (including collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs")), high yield non-investment grade securities (securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization ("NRSRO") or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality). The Fund may also invest in custodial receipts, fixed income securities issued by or on behalf of states, territories, and possessions of the United States (including the District of Columbia) ("Municipal Securities"), loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund may also engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in derivatives, including (but not limited to) forwards, interest rate futures, interest rate swaps and credit default swaps, which are used primarily to hedge the Fund's portfolio risks, manage the Fund's duration and/or gain exposure to certain fixed income securities or indices. The Fund may invest in obligations of domestic and foreign issuers which are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its total assets measured at the time of purchase ("Total Assets") in sovereign and corporate debt securities and other instruments of issuers in emerging market countries ("emerging countries debt"). The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) senior secured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Senior Loans"), (b) second lien or other subordinated or unsecured floating rate and fixed loans or debt ("Second Lien Loans") and (c) other types of secured or unsecured |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** |
| loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. The Fund may also purchase securities of issuers in default.<br>The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities through several methods, including by utilizing to-be-announced ("TBA") agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are standardized contracts for future delivery of fixed-rate mortgage pass-through securities in which the exact mortgage pools to be delivered are not specified until shortly before settlement. A reverse repurchase agreement enables the Fund to gain exposure to specified pools of Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by purchasing them on a forward settling basis and using the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement to settle the trade.<br>The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund may utilize short positions to implement macro views on securities valuations, long term views on relative value or short term views on security mispricings, as well as any other views the Investment Adviser deems appropriate. For example, the Fund may enter into a TBA agreement to sell an Agency Mortgage-Backed Security that it believes will underperform. The Fund will benefit from a short position to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale.<br>Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement.<br>The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including exchange-traded funds ("ETFs").<br>The Fund's investments in non-investment grade securities (i.e., junk bonds) will not exceed 25% of its Total Assets at the time of purchase. Otherwise, the Fund invests in fixed income securities rated at least BBB– or Baa3 at the time of purchase. Securities will either be rated by an NRSRO or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality.<br>The Fund's target duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to approximate that of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (the "Index"), plus or minus 2.5 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years. "Duration" is a measure of a debt security's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of the Fund (or an individual debt security), the more sensitive its market price to changes in interest rates. For example, if market interest rates increase by 1%, the market price of a debt security with a positive duration of 3 years will generally decrease by approximately 3%. Conversely, a 1% decline in market interest rates will generally result in an increase of approximately 3% of that security's market price. | loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. The Fund may also purchase securities of issuers in default.<br>The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities through several methods, including by utilizing to-be-announced ("TBA") agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are standardized contracts for future delivery of fixed-rate mortgage pass-through securities in which the exact mortgage pools to be delivered are not specified until shortly before settlement. A reverse repurchase agreement enables the Fund to gain exposure to specified pools of Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by purchasing them on a forward settling basis and using the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement to settle the trade.<br>The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund may utilize short positions to implement macro views on securities valuations, long term views on relative value or short term views on security mispricings, as well as any other views the Investment Adviser deems appropriate. For example, the Fund may enter into a TBA agreement to sell an Agency Mortgage-Backed Security that it believes will underperform. The Fund will benefit from a short position to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale.<br>Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement.<br>The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including exchange-traded funds ("ETFs").<br>The Fund's investments in non-investment grade securities (i.e., junk bonds) will not exceed 25% of its Total Assets at the time of purchase. Otherwise, the Fund invests in fixed income securities rated at least BBB– or Baa3 at the time of purchase. Securities will either be rated by an NRSRO or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality.<br>The Fund's target duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to approximate that of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (the "Index"), plus or minus 2.5 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years. "Duration" is a measure of a debt security's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of the Fund (or an individual debt security), the more sensitive its market price to changes in interest rates. For example, if market interest rates increase by 1%, the market price of a debt security with a positive duration of 3 years will generally decrease by approximately 3%. Conversely, a 1% decline in market interest rates will generally result in an increase of approximately 3% of that security's market price. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **,** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** |
|  | The Investment Adviser employs a fundamental investment process that may integrate environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors alongside traditional fundamental factors. No one factor or consideration is determinative in the fundamental investment process.<br>The Investment Adviser measures the Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. | The Investment Adviser employs a fundamental investment process that may integrate environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors alongside traditional fundamental factors. No one factor or consideration is determinative in the fundamental investment process.<br>The Investment Adviser measures the Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. |
| **Diversification Status** | Each Fund is diversified under the 1940 Act. | Each Fund is diversified under the 1940 Act. |
| **Benchmark** | GSAM measures each Fund's benchmark against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. | GSAM measures each Fund's benchmark against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. |
| **Portfolio Turnover** | Each Fund pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities or instruments (i.e., "turns over" its portfolio). A high rate of portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in higher short-term capital gains for taxable shareholders. These costs are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example, but are reflected in the Fund's performance. | Each Fund pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities or instruments (i.e., "turns over" its portfolio). A high rate of portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in higher short-term capital gains for taxable shareholders. These costs are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example, but are reflected in the Fund's performance. |
|  | The Acquired Fund's portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025 was 1200% of the average value of its portfolio. However, the Acquired Fund's portfolio turnover rate was calculated without regard to transactions involving certain short-term instruments or derivatives. If such transactions were included in the calculation, the Acquired Fund would have a higher portfolio turnover rate. | Because the Acquiring Fund has not yet commenced operations as of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus, there is no portfolio turnover information quoted for the Acquiring Fund. |
| **Investment Adviser** | GSAM serves as the investment adviser of each Fund. | GSAM serves as the investment adviser of each Fund. |
| **Fund Management Team** | The Acquired Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner and Simon Dangoor. The Acquiring Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner, Simon Dangoor, Paul Seary, David Westbrook and Todd Henry.<br>*Lindsay Rosner, CFA.* Ms. Rosner joined the Investment Adviser in 2023. She is Head of Multi-Sector Investing within GSAM's Fixed Income and Liquidity Solutions business.<br>*Simon Dangoor, CFA.* Mr. Dangoor joined the Investment Adviser in 2004. He is Head of Macro Strategies within GSAM's Fixed Income and Liquidity Solutions business. He also leads the Government and Swap Strategy in London and is a member of the Fixed Income Strategy Group.<br>*Paul Seary, CFA.* Mr. Seary joined the Investment Adviser in 2009. He is a senior portfolio manager on the Multi-Sector Fixed Income Team within GSAM.<br>*David Westbrook.* Mr. Westbrook joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the U.S. Fixed Income Team.<br>*Todd Henry.* Mr. Westbrook joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the U.S. Fixed Income Team.<br>The Statement of Additional Information provides additional information about the portfolio managers' compensation and other accounts managed by the portfolio managers. | The Acquired Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner and Simon Dangoor. The Acquiring Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner, Simon Dangoor, Paul Seary, David Westbrook and Todd Henry.<br>*Lindsay Rosner, CFA.* Ms. Rosner joined the Investment Adviser in 2023. She is Head of Multi-Sector Investing within GSAM's Fixed Income and Liquidity Solutions business.<br>*Simon Dangoor, CFA.* Mr. Dangoor joined the Investment Adviser in 2004. He is Head of Macro Strategies within GSAM's Fixed Income and Liquidity Solutions business. He also leads the Government and Swap Strategy in London and is a member of the Fixed Income Strategy Group.<br>*Paul Seary, CFA.* Mr. Seary joined the Investment Adviser in 2009. He is a senior portfolio manager on the Multi-Sector Fixed Income Team within GSAM.<br>*David Westbrook.* Mr. Westbrook joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the U.S. Fixed Income Team.<br>*Todd Henry.* Mr. Westbrook joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the U.S. Fixed Income Team.<br>The Statement of Additional Information provides additional information about the portfolio managers' compensation and other accounts managed by the portfolio managers. |
| **Fiscal Year End** | March 31<br>|  |
| **Creation Unit Size** | N/A | 50,000 Shares |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income ETF** |
| **Investment Objective** | Each Fund seeks a high level of current income, and secondarily, capital appreciation. | Each Fund seeks a high level of current income, and secondarily, capital appreciation. |
| **Principal Investment Strategy** | The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase) ("Net Assets") in fixed income securities. Fixed income securities include U.S. Government securities (such as U.S. Treasury securities or Treasury inflation protected securities and including agency issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities")), non-U.S. sovereign debt, agency securities, corporate debt securities, privately issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Private Mortgage-Backed Securities" and, together with Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, "Mortgage-Backed Securities"), asset-backed securities (including collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs")), custodial receipts, municipal securities, loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) senior secured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Senior Loans"), (b) second lien or other subordinated or unsecured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Second Lien Loans") and (c) other types of secured or unsecured loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity.<br>The Fund invests in a multi-sector portfolio of U.S. and foreign investment grade and non-investment grade fixed income investments of varying maturities. The Fund's investment sectors include, but are not limited to: (a) government securities, (b) corporate debt securities, (c) commercial and residential mortgage-backed securities, (d) asset-backed securities (including CLOs) and (e) emerging countries debt denominated in both U.S. dollars and foreign currencies. The Fund may not have exposure to all of these investment sectors, and the Fund's exposure to any one investment sector may vary over time.<br>Non-investment grade fixed income securities are securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization ("NRSRO"), or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality.<br>The Fund may invest up to 35% of its total assets measured at the time of purchase ("Total Assets") in sovereign and corporate debt securities and other instruments of issuers in emerging market countries ("emerging countries debt"). Such investments may include sovereign debt issued by emerging countries that have sovereign ratings below investment grade or that are unrated. The Fund's investments may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.<br>The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Total Assets in privately issued corporate debt securities and other obligations issued by private companies, including privately issued credit obligations and related instruments, and up to an additional 10% of its Total Assets in equity investments, including preferred securities and dividend paying common stocks.<br>The Fund may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in other derivative instruments.<br>Derivatives are instruments that have a value based on another instrument, exchange rate, interest rate or index. The Fund's investments in derivatives may include, in addition to forward foreign currency exchange contracts, futures contracts (including interest rate futures and treasury and sovereign bond futures), options (including options on futures | The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase) ("Net Assets") in fixed income securities. Fixed income securities include U.S. Government securities (such as U.S. Treasury securities or Treasury inflation protected securities and including agency issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities")), non-U.S. sovereign debt, agency securities, corporate debt securities, privately issued adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities or other mortgage-related securities ("Private Mortgage-Backed Securities" and, together with Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, "Mortgage-Backed Securities"), asset-backed securities (including collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs")), custodial receipts, municipal securities, loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) senior secured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Senior Loans"), (b) second lien or other subordinated or unsecured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Second Lien Loans") and (c) other types of secured or unsecured loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity.<br>The Fund invests in a multi-sector portfolio of U.S. and foreign investment grade and non-investment grade fixed income investments of varying maturities. The Fund's investment sectors include, but are not limited to: (a) government securities, (b) corporate debt securities, (c) commercial and residential mortgage-backed securities, (d) asset-backed securities (including CLOs) and (e) emerging countries debt denominated in both U.S. dollars and foreign currencies. The Fund may not have exposure to all of these investment sectors, and the Fund's exposure to any one investment sector may vary over time.<br>Non-investment grade fixed income securities are securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization ("NRSRO"), or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality.<br>The Fund may invest up to 35% of its total assets measured at the time of purchase ("Total Assets") in sovereign and corporate debt securities and other instruments of issuers in emerging market countries ("emerging countries debt"). Such investments may include sovereign debt issued by emerging countries that have sovereign ratings below investment grade or that are unrated. The Fund's investments may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.<br>The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Total Assets in privately issued corporate debt securities and other obligations issued by private companies, including privately issued credit obligations and related instruments, and up to an additional 10% of its Total Assets in equity investments, including preferred securities and dividend paying common stocks.<br>The Fund may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in other derivative instruments.<br>Derivatives are instruments that have a value based on another instrument, exchange rate, interest rate or index. The Fund's investments in derivatives may include, in addition to forward foreign currency exchange contracts, futures contracts (including interest rate futures and treasury and sovereign bond futures), options (including options on futures |

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|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income ETF** |
|  | <br> contracts, swaps, bonds, stocks and indexes), swaps (including credit default, index, basis, total return, volatility, interest rate and currency swaps), and other forward contracts. The Fund may use derivatives instead of buying and selling bonds to manage duration, to gain exposure or to short individual securities or to gain exposure to a credit or asset backed index. The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities through several methods, including by utilizing to-be-announced ("TBA") agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are standardized contracts for future delivery of fixed-rate mortgage pass-through securities in which the exact mortgage pools to be delivered are not specified until shortly before settlement. A reverse repurchase agreement enables the Fund to gain exposure to specified pools of Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by purchasing them on a forward settling basis and using the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement to settle the trade.<br>The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency mortgage-backed securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund will benefit to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale. Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The Fund uses short positions and derivatives for both investment and hedging purposes.<br>The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including exchange-traded funds ("ETFs").<br>The Fund's target average duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to be between 0 and 8 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years. "Duration" is a measure of a debt security's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of the Fund (or an individual debt security), the more sensitive its market price to changes in interest rates. For example, if market interest rates increase by 1%, the market price of a debt security with a positive duration of 3 years will generally decrease by approximately 3%. Conversely, a 1% decline in market interest rates will generally result in an increase of approximately 3% of that security's market price.<br>The Investment Adviser employs a fundamental investment process that may integrate environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors alongside traditional fundamental factors. No one factor or consideration is determinative in the fundamental investment process.<br>The Investment Adviser measures the Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. | <br> contracts, swaps, bonds, stocks and indexes), swaps (including credit default, index, basis, total return, volatility, interest rate and currency swaps), and other forward contracts. The Fund may use derivatives instead of buying and selling bonds to manage duration, to gain exposure or to short individual securities or to gain exposure to a credit or asset backed index. The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities through several methods, including by utilizing to-be-announced ("TBA") agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are standardized contracts for future delivery of fixed-rate mortgage pass-through securities in which the exact mortgage pools to be delivered are not specified until shortly before settlement. A reverse repurchase agreement enables the Fund to gain exposure to specified pools of Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by purchasing them on a forward settling basis and using the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement to settle the trade.<br>The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency mortgage-backed securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund will benefit to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale. Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The Fund uses short positions and derivatives for both investment and hedging purposes.<br>The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including exchange-traded funds ("ETFs").<br>The Fund's target average duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to be between 0 and 8 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years. "Duration" is a measure of a debt security's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of the Fund (or an individual debt security), the more sensitive its market price to changes in interest rates. For example, if market interest rates increase by 1%, the market price of a debt security with a positive duration of 3 years will generally decrease by approximately 3%. Conversely, a 1% decline in market interest rates will generally result in an increase of approximately 3% of that security's market price.<br>The Investment Adviser employs a fundamental investment process that may integrate environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors alongside traditional fundamental factors. No one factor or consideration is determinative in the fundamental investment process.<br>The Investment Adviser measures the Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. |
| **Diversification Status** | Each Fund is diversified under the 1940 Act. |  |
| **Benchmark** | GSAM measures each Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. | GSAM measures each Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. |

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|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income ETF** |
| **Portfolio Turnover** | Each Fund pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities or instruments (i.e., "turns over" its portfolio). A high rate of portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in higher short-term capital gains for taxable shareholders. These costs are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example, but are reflected in the Fund's performance. | Each Fund pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities or instruments (i.e., "turns over" its portfolio). A high rate of portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in higher short-term capital gains for taxable shareholders. These costs are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example, but are reflected in the Fund's performance. |
|  | The Acquired Fund's portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025 was 761% of the average value of its portfolio. However, the Acquired Fund's portfolio turnover rate was calculated without regard to transactions involving certain short-term instruments or derivatives. If such transactions were included in the calculation, the Acquired Fund would have a higher portfolio turnover rate. | Because the Acquiring Fund has not yet commenced operations as of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus, there is no portfolio turnover information quoted for the Acquiring Fund. |
| **Investment Adviser** | GSAM serves as the investment adviser of each Fund. | GSAM serves as the investment adviser of each Fund. |
| **Fund Management Team** | The Acquired Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner, Aakash Thombre, , Benjamin Johnson and John McClain. The Acquiring Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner, Aakash Thombre, Benjamin Johnson, John McClain, David Westbrook and Todd Henry.<br>*Lindsay Rosner, CFA.* Ms. Rosner joined the Investment Adviser in 2023. She is Head of Multi-Sector Investing within GSAM's Fixed Income and Liquidity Solutions business.<br>*Aakash Thombre, CFA*. Mr. Thombre joined the Investment Adviser in 2007. He is Global Co-Head of High Yield & Leveraged Credit Investing. <br>*Benjamin Johnson, CFA*. Mr. Johnson joined the Investment Adviser in 1998. He is Global Head of Corporate Credit.<br>*John McClain, CFA*. Mr. McClain joined the Investment Adviser in 2025. He is Co-Head of High Yield & Leveraged Credit Investing. Before joining the Investment Adviser, Mr. McClain led the Corporate Credit, High Yield and Global High Yield strategies at Brandywine Global Investment Management. Prior to that, he led Below Investment Grade strategies at Diamond Hill Capital Management, Inc.<br>*David Westbrook.* Mr. Westbrook joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the U.S. Fixed Income Team.<br>*Todd Henry.* Mr. Henry joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the Fixed Income Team.<br>The Statement of Additional Information provides additional information about the portfolio managers' compensation and other accounts managed by the portfolio managers. | The Acquired Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner, Aakash Thombre, , Benjamin Johnson and John McClain. The Acquiring Fund's portfolio management team consists of Lindsay Rosner, Aakash Thombre, Benjamin Johnson, John McClain, David Westbrook and Todd Henry.<br>*Lindsay Rosner, CFA.* Ms. Rosner joined the Investment Adviser in 2023. She is Head of Multi-Sector Investing within GSAM's Fixed Income and Liquidity Solutions business.<br>*Aakash Thombre, CFA*. Mr. Thombre joined the Investment Adviser in 2007. He is Global Co-Head of High Yield & Leveraged Credit Investing. <br>*Benjamin Johnson, CFA*. Mr. Johnson joined the Investment Adviser in 1998. He is Global Head of Corporate Credit.<br>*John McClain, CFA*. Mr. McClain joined the Investment Adviser in 2025. He is Co-Head of High Yield & Leveraged Credit Investing. Before joining the Investment Adviser, Mr. McClain led the Corporate Credit, High Yield and Global High Yield strategies at Brandywine Global Investment Management. Prior to that, he led Below Investment Grade strategies at Diamond Hill Capital Management, Inc.<br>*David Westbrook.* Mr. Westbrook joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the U.S. Fixed Income Team.<br>*Todd Henry.* Mr. Henry joined the Investment Adviser in 2012. He is a portfolio manager on the Fixed Income Team.<br>The Statement of Additional Information provides additional information about the portfolio managers' compensation and other accounts managed by the portfolio managers. |
| **Fiscal Year End** | March 31<br>|  |
| **Creation Unit Size** | N/A | 50,000 Shares<br>|

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**Comparison of Principal Investment Risks of Investing in the Funds** 

Loss of money is a risk of investing in a Fund. An investment in a Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") or any government agency. The Funds should not be relied upon as a complete investment program. There can be no assurance that a Fund will achieve its investment objective. Investments in a Fund involve substantial risks which prospective investors should consider carefully before investing. The Funds' principal risks are presented below in alphabetical order, and not in the order of importance or potential exposure. For the purpose of this section, "the Fund" refers to each Fund (unless otherwise specified). Because the Funds have identical investment objectives and principal investment strategies, as described above, the risks of investing in the Funds are identical, except that the Acquiring Funds are subject to certain additional risks specific to operating as ETFs as set forth below. All other differences between the risks of an Acquiring Fund and those of its corresponding Acquired Fund reflect only a tailoring or clarification of the risks of the Acquired Fund, and such differences do not reflect (and should not be interpreted to reflect) any difference in the way an Acquiring Fund will be managed as compared to its corresponding Acquired Fund.

**<u>Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF</u>**

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| **Principal Investment Risks Applicable to Each Fund** | ***Cash Transactions Risk.*** Unlike certain ETFs, the Acquiring Fund expects to effect redemptions partially for cash, rather than primarily for in-kind securities. As such, investments in Shares may be less tax-efficient than an investment in a conventional ETF that generally is able to make in-kind redemptions and avoid realizing gains in connection with transactions designed to raise cash to meet redemption requests.<br>***Collateralized Loan Obligations Risk.*** The Fund may invest in CLOs and other similarly structured investments. A CLO is an asset-backed security whose underlying collateral is a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign floating rate and fixed rate senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans. In addition to the normal risks associated with loan- and credit-related securities discussed elsewhere in the Prospectus (e.g., loan-related investments risk, interest rate risk and default risk), investments in CLOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to, the risk that: (i) distributions from the collateral may not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the Fund may invest in tranches of CLOs that are subordinate to other tranches; (iv) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents could lead to disputes among investors regarding the characterization of proceeds; and (v) the CLO's manager may perform poorly.<br>CLOs issue classes or "tranches" that offer various maturity, risk and yield characteristics. Losses caused by defaults on underlying assets are borne first by the holders of subordinate tranches. Despite the protection from subordinate tranches, more senior tranches of CLOs can experience losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of more subordinate tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CLO securities as a class. The Fund's investments in CLOs primarily consist of investment grade tranches.<br>***Credit/Default Risk.*** An issuer or guarantor of fixed income securities or instruments held by the Fund (which may have low credit ratings) may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal or default on any other obligation. Additionally, the credit quality of securities or instruments may deteriorate rapidly, which may impair the Fund's liquidity and cause significant deterioration in net asset value ("NAV"). These risks are heightened in market environments where interest rates are rising as well as in connection with the Fund's investments in non-investment grade fixed income securities. |

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<br> ***Derivatives Risk.*** The Fund's use of options, futures, forwards, swaps and other derivative instruments may result in losses, including due to adverse market movements. These instruments, which may pose risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, currencies or other assets and instruments, may increase market exposure and be illiquid or less liquid, volatile, difficult to price and leveraged so that small changes in the value of the underlying assets or instruments may produce disproportionate losses to the Fund. Certain derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will not fulfill its contractual obligations. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments.<br>***Floating and Variable Rate Obligations Risk.*** For floating and variable rate obligations, there may be a lag between an actual change in the underlying interest rate benchmark and the reset time for an interest payment of such an obligation, which could harm or benefit the Fund, depending on the interest rate environment or other circumstances. In a rising interest rate environment, for example, a floating or variable rate obligation that does not reset immediately would prevent the Fund from taking full advantage of rising interest rates in a timely manner. However, in a declining interest rate environment, the Fund may benefit from a lag due to an obligation's interest rate payment not being immediately impacted by a decline in interest rates.<br>Certain floating and variable rate obligations have an interest rate floor feature, which prevents the interest rate payable by the security from dropping below a specified level as compared to a reference interest rate (the "reference rate"), such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), a term SOFR rate published by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited (CBA) calculated using certain derivatives markets ("Term SOFR") or another rate determined using SOFR values. Such a floor protects the Fund from losses resulting from a decrease in the reference rate below the specified level. However, if the reference rate is below the floor, there will be a lag between a rise in the reference rate and a rise in the interest rate payable by the obligation, and the Fund may not benefit from increasing interest rates for a significant amount of time.<br>***Foreign and Emerging Countries Risk.*** Foreign securities may be subject to risk of loss because of more or less foreign government regulation; less public information; less stringent investor protections; less stringent accounting, corporate governance, financial reporting and disclosure standards; and less economic, political and social stability in the countries in which the Fund invests. The imposition of sanctions, exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions), confiscations, trade restrictions (including tariffs) and other government restrictions by the United States and other governments, or from problems in share registration, settlement or custody, may also result in losses. The type and severity of sanctions and other similar measures, including counter sanctions and other retaliatory actions, that may be imposed could vary broadly in scope, and their impact is impossible to predict. For example, the imposition of sanctions and other similar measures could, among other things, cause a decline in the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country and increase market volatility and disruption in the sanctioned country and throughout the world. Sanctions and other similar measures could limit or prevent the Fund from buying and selling securities (in the sanctioned country and other markets), significantly delay or prevent the settlement of securities transactions, and significantly impact the Fund's liquidity and performance. Foreign risk also involves the risk of negative foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, which may cause the value of securities denominated in such foreign currency (or other instruments through which the Fund has exposure to foreign currencies) to decline in value. Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of<br>

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time. These risks are more pronounced in connection with the Fund's investments in securities of issuers located in, or otherwise economically tied to, emerging countries.<br>***Interest Rate Risk*.** When interest rates increase, fixed income securities or instruments held by the Fund will generally decline in value. Long-term fixed income securities or instruments will normally have more price volatility because of this risk than short-term fixed income securities or instruments. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets, may result in heightened market volatility and may detract from Fund performance. In addition, changes in monetary policy may exacerbate the risks associated with changing interest rates. Funds with longer average portfolio durations will generally be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than funds with a shorter average portfolio duration. Fluctuations in interest rates may also affect the yield and liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund.<br>***Large Shareholder Transactions Risk.*** Certain shareholders, including other funds advised by the Investment Adviser, may from time to time own a substantial amount of the Fund's Shares. In addition, a third party investor, the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment Adviser, an authorized participant, a lead market maker, or another entity (i.e., a seed investor) may invest in the Fund and hold its investment solely to facilitate commencement of the Fund or to facilitate the Fund's achieving a specified size or scale. Any such investment may be held for a limited period of time. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment, that the size of the Fund would be maintained at such levels or that the Fund would continue to meet applicable listing requirements. Redemptions by large shareholders could have a significant negative impact on the Fund, including on the Fund's liquidity. In addition, transactions by large shareholders may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on NYSE Arca, Inc. and may, therefore, have a material upward or downward effect on the market price of the Shares.<br>***Loan-Related Investments Risk.*** In addition to risks generally associated with debt investments (*e.g.*, interest rate risk and default risk), loan-related investments such as loan participations and assignments are subject to other risks. Although a loan obligation may be fully collateralized at the time of acquisition, the collateral may decline in value, be or become illiquid or less liquid, or lose all or substantially all of its value subsequent to investment. Many loan investments are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale and certain loan investments may be or become illiquid or less liquid and more difficult to value, particularly in the event of a downgrade of the loan or the borrower. There is less readily available, reliable information about most loan investments than is the case for many other types of securities. Substantial increases in interest rates may cause an increase in loan obligation defaults. With respect to loan participations, the Fund may not always have direct recourse against a borrower if the borrower fails to pay scheduled principal and/or interest; may be subject to greater delays, expenses and risks than if the Fund had purchased a direct obligation of the borrower; and may be regarded as the creditor of the agent lender or counterparty (rather than the borrower), subjecting the Fund to the creditworthiness of that lender as well. Investors in loans, such as the Fund , may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.<br>The market for loan obligations may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. Because transactions in many loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund's redemption obligations for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, the Fund may have to sell<br>

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other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from its credit facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. During periods of heightened redemption activity (to the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions) or distressed market conditions, the Fund may seek to obtain expedited trade settlement, which will generally incur additional costs (although expedited trade settlement will not always be available).<br>Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a business entity, and are typically secured with specific collateral, but are nevertheless usually rated below investment grade. Because Second Lien Loans are subordinated or unsecured and thus lower in priority of payment to Senior Loans, they are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. Second Lien Loans generally have greater price volatility than Senior Loans and may be less liquid. Generally, loans have the benefit of restrictive covenants that limit the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets or impose other obligations. To the extent a loan does not have certain covenants (or has less restrictive covenants), an investment in the loan will be particularly sensitive to the risks associated with loan investments.<br>***Market Risk.*** The value of the securities in which the Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies, particular sectors, governments or countries and/or general economic conditions throughout the world due to increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets. Events such as war, military conflict, geopolitical disputes, acts of terrorism, social or political unrest, natural disasters, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, supply chain disruptions, tariffs and other restrictions on trade, sanctions or the spread of infectious illness or other public health threats, or the threat or potential of one or more such events and developments, could also significantly impact the Fund and its investments.<br>***Mortgage-Backed and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.*** Mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities are subject to credit/ default, interest rate and certain additional risks, including "extension risk" (i.e., in periods of rising interest rates, issuers may pay principal later than expected) and "prepayment risk" (i.e., in periods of declining interest rates, issuers may pay principal more quickly than expected, causing the Fund to reinvest proceeds at lower prevailing interest rates). Due to these risks, asset-backed securities may become more volatile in certain interest rate environments. Mortgage-Backed Securities offered by non-governmental issuers are subject to other risks as well, including failures of private insurers to meet their obligations and unexpectedly high rates of default on the mortgages backing the securities, particularly during periods of rising interest rates. Other asset-backed securities are subject to risks similar to those associated with Mortgage-Backed Securities, as well as risks associated with the nature and servicing of the assets backing the securities. Asset-backed securities may not have the benefit of a security interest in collateral comparable to that of mortgage assets, resulting in additional credit risk.<br>The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by utilizing TBA agreements. TBA agreements involve the risk that the other party to the transaction will not meet its obligation. If this occurs, the Fund could lose the opportunity to obtain a price or yield that it considers advantageous. In such circumstances, the Fund may not be able to secure an alternative investment with comparable terms. TBA agreements may give rise to a form of leverage. The Fund's use of TBA agreements may also result in a higher portfolio turnover rate and/or increased capital gains for the Fund.<br>

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<br> ***Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities Risk.*** Non-investment grade fixed income securities and unrated securities of comparable credit quality (commonly known as "junk bonds") are considered speculative and are subject to the increased risk of an issuer's inability to meet principal and interest payment obligations. These securities may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific issuer developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of the junk bond markets generally and less liquidity.<br>***Other Investment Companies Risk.*** By investing in other investment companies (including ETFs) indirectly through the Fund, investors will incur a proportionate share of the expenses of the other investment companies held by the Fund (including operating costs and investment management fees) in addition to the fees regularly borne by the Fund. In addition, the Fund will be affected by the investment policies, practices and performance of such investment companies in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Fund invests therein.<br>***Portfolio Turnover Rate Risk.*** A high rate of portfolio turnover may involve correspondingly greater expenses which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in short-term capital gains taxable to shareholders.<br>***Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk.*** Reverse repurchase agreements are a form of secured borrowing and subject the Fund to the risks associated with leverage, including exposure to potential gains and losses in excess of the amount invested. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the investment return earned by the Fund (from the investment of the proceeds) will be less than the interest expense of the transaction, that the market value of the securities sold by the Fund will decline below the price the Fund is obligated to pay to repurchase the securities, and that the other party may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all.<br>***Short Position Risk.*** The Fund may enter into a short position through a futures contract, an option or swap agreement or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. Taking short positions involves leverage of the Fund's assets and presents various risks. If the value of the underlying instrument or market in which the Fund has taken a short position increases, then the Fund will incur a loss equal to the increase in value from the time that the short position was entered into plus any related interest payments or other fees. Taking short positions involves the risk that losses may be disproportionate, may exceed the amount invested and may be unlimited.<br>***U.S. Government Securities Risk.*** The U.S. government may not provide financial support to U.S. government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obligated to do so by law. U.S. Government Securities issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae"), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("Freddie Mac") and the Federal Home Loan Banks, are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and, therefore, are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The maximum potential liability of the issuers of some U.S. Government Securities held by the Fund may greatly exceed their current resources, including any legal right to support from the U.S. Treasury. It is possible that issuers of U.S. Government Securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.<br>

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**<u>Goldman Sachs Income Fund and Goldman Sachs Income ETF</u>**

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| **Principal Investment Risks Applicable to Each Fund** | ***Collateralized Loan Obligations Risk.*** The Fund may invest in collateralized loan obligations CLOs and other similarly structured investments. A CLO is an asset-backed security whose underlying collateral is a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign floating rate and fixed rate senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans. In addition to the normal risks associated with loan- and credit-related securities discussed elsewhere in this Information Statement/Prospectus (e.g., loan-related investments risk, interest rate risk and default risk), investments in CLOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to, the risk that: (i) distributions from the collateral may not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the Fund may invest in tranches of CLOs that are subordinate to other tranches; (iv) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents could lead to disputes among investors regarding the characterization of proceeds; and (v) the CLO's manager may perform poorly.<br>CLOs issue classes or "tranches" that offer various maturity, risk and yield characteristics. Losses caused by defaults on underlying assets are borne first by the holders of subordinate tranches. Despite the protection from subordinate tranches, more senior tranches of CLOs can experience losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of more subordinate tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CLO securities as a class. The Fund's investments in CLOs primarily consist of investment grade tranches.<br>***Credit/Default Risk.*** An issuer or guarantor of fixed income securities or instruments held by the Fund (which may have low credit ratings) may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal or default on any other obligation. Additionally, the credit quality of securities or instruments may deteriorate rapidly, which may impair the Fund's liquidity and cause significant deterioration in net asset value ("NAV"). These risks are heightened in market environments where interest rates are rising as well as in connection with the Fund's investments in non-investment grade fixed income securities.<br>***Derivatives Risk.*** The Fund's use of options, futures, forwards, swaps and other derivative instruments may result in losses, including due to adverse market movements. These instruments, which may pose risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, currencies or other assets and instruments, may increase market exposure and be illiquid or less liquid, volatile, difficult to price and leveraged so that small changes in the value of the underlying assets or instruments may produce disproportionate losses to the Fund. Certain derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will not fulfill its contractual obligations. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments.<br>***Floating and Variable Rate Obligations Risk.*** For floating and variable rate obligations, there may be a lag between an actual change in the underlying interest rate benchmark and the reset time for an interest payment of such an obligation, which could harm or benefit the Fund, depending on the interest rate environment or other circumstances. In a rising interest rate environment, for example, a floating or variable rate obligation that does not reset immediately would prevent the Fund from taking full advantage of rising interest rates in a timely manner. However, in a declining interest rate environment, the Fund may benefit from a lag due to an obligation's interest rate payment not being immediately impacted by a decline in interest rates. |

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Certain floating and variable rate obligations have an interest rate floor feature, which prevents the interest rate payable by the security from dropping below a specified level as compared to a reference interest rate (the "reference rate"), such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), a term SOFR rate published by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited (CBA) calculated using certain derivatives markets ("Term SOFR") or another rate determined using SOFR values. Such a floor protects the Fund from losses resulting from a decrease in the reference rate below the specified level. However, if the reference rate is below the floor, there will be a lag between a rise in the reference rate and a rise in the interest rate payable by the obligation, and the Fund may not benefit from increasing interest rates for a significant amount of time.<br>***Foreign and Emerging Countries Risk.*** Foreign securities may be subject to risk of loss because of more or less foreign government regulation; less public information; less stringent investor protections; less stringent accounting, corporate governance, financial reporting and disclosure standards; and less economic, political and social stability in the countries in which the Fund invests. The imposition of sanctions, exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions), confiscations, trade restrictions (including tariffs) and other government restrictions by the United States and other governments, or from problems in share registration, settlement or custody, may also result in losses. The type and severity of sanctions and other similar measures, including counter sanctions and other retaliatory actions, that may be imposed could vary broadly in scope, and their impact is impossible to predict. For example, the imposition of sanctions and other similar measures could, among other things, cause a decline in the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country and increase market volatility and disruption in the sanctioned country and throughout the world. Sanctions and other similar measures could limit or prevent the Fund from buying and selling securities (in the sanctioned country and other markets), significantly delay or prevent the settlement of securities transactions, and significantly impact the Fund's liquidity and performance. Foreign risk also involves the risk of negative foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, which may cause the value of securities denominated in such foreign currency (or other instruments through which the Fund has exposure to foreign currencies) to decline in value. Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. These risks are more pronounced in connection with the Fund's investments in securities of issuers located in, or otherwise economically tied to, emerging countries.<br>***Interest Rate Risk*.** When interest rates increase, fixed income securities or instruments held by the Fund will generally decline in value. Long-term fixed income securities or instruments will normally have more price volatility because of this risk than short-term fixed income securities or instruments. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets, may result in heightened market volatility and may detract from Fund performance. In addition, changes in monetary policy may exacerbate the risks associated with changing interest rates. Funds with longer average portfolio durations will generally be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than funds with a shorter average portfolio duration. Fluctuations in interest rates may also affect the yield and liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund.<br>***Large Shareholder Transactions Risk.*** Certain shareholders, including other funds advised by the Investment Adviser, may from time to time own a substantial amount of the Fund's Shares. In addition, a third party investor, the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment Adviser, an authorized participant, a lead market maker, or another entity (i.e., a seed investor) may invest in the Fund and hold its investment solely to facilitate commencement of the Fund or to facilitate the Fund's achieving a specified size or scale.<br>

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Any such investment may be held for a limited period of time. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment, that the size of the Fund would be maintained at such levels or that the Fund would continue to meet applicable listing requirements. Redemptions by large shareholders could have a significant negative impact on the Fund, including on the Fund's liquidity. In addition, with respect to the Acquiring Fund, transactions by large shareholders may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on NYSE Arca, Inc. and may, therefore, have a material upward or downward effect on the market price of the Shares.<br>***Liquidity Risk.*** The Fund may make investments that are illiquid or that may become less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Illiquid investments may be more difficult to value. Liquidity risk may also refer to the risk that the Fund will not be able to pay redemption proceeds within the allowable time period because of unusual market conditions, declining prices of the securities sold, an unusually high volume of redemption requests, or other reasons. To meet redemption requests, the Fund may be forced to sell securities at an unfavorable time and/or under unfavorable conditions. Liquidity risk may be the result of, among other things, the reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed income securities or the lack of an active market. The potential for liquidity risk may be magnified by a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed income funds may be higher than normal, potentially causing increased supply in the market due to selling activity. These risks may be more pronounced in connection with the Fund's investments in securities of issuers located in emerging market countries. Redemptions by large shareholders may have a negative impact on the Fund's liquidity.<br>***Loan-Related Investments Risk.*** In addition to risks generally associated with debt investments (e.g., interest rate risk and default risk), loan-related investments such as loan participations and assignments are subject to other risks. Although a loan obligation may be fully collateralized at the time of acquisition, the collateral may decline in value, be or become illiquid or less liquid, or lose all or substantially all of its value subsequent to investment. Many loan investments are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale and certain loan investments may be or become illiquid or less liquid and more difficult to value, particularly in the event of a downgrade of the loan or the borrower. There is less readily available, reliable information about most loan investments than is the case for many other types of securities. Substantial increases in interest rates may cause an increase in loan obligation defaults. With respect to loan participations, the Fund may not always have direct recourse against a borrower if the borrower fails to pay scheduled principal and/or interest; may be subject to greater delays, expenses and risks than if the Fund had purchased a direct obligation of the borrower; and may be regarded as the creditor of the agent lender or counterparty (rather than the borrower), subjecting the Fund to the creditworthiness of that lender as well. Investors in loans, such as the Fund, may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.<br>The market for loan obligations may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. Because transactions in many loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund's redemption obligations for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from its credit<br>

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facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. During periods of heightened redemption activity (to the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions) or distressed market conditions, the Fund may seek to obtain expedited trade settlement, which will generally incur additional costs (although expedited trade settlement will not always be available).<br>Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a business entity, and are typically secured with specific collateral, but are nevertheless usually rated below investment grade. Because Second Lien Loans are subordinated or unsecured and thus lower in priority of payment to Senior Loans, they are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. Second Lien Loans generally have greater price volatility than Senior Loans and may be less liquid. Generally, loans have the benefit of restrictive covenants that limit the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets or impose other obligations. To the extent a loan does not have certain covenants (or has less restrictive covenants), an investment in the loan will be particularly sensitive to the risks associated with loan investments.<br>***Management Risk****.* A strategy used by the Investment Adviser may fail to produce the intended results.<br>***Market Risk.*** The value of the securities in which the Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies, particular sectors, governments or countries and/or general economic conditions throughout the world due to increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets. Events such as war, military conflict, geopolitical disputes, acts of terrorism, social or political unrest, natural disasters, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, supply chain disruptions, tariffs and other restrictions on trade, sanctions or the spread of infectious illness or other public health threats, or the threat or potential of one or more such events and developments, could also significantly impact the Fund and its investments.<br>***Mortgage-Backed and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.*** Mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities are subject to credit/ default, interest rate and certain additional risks, including "extension risk" (i.e., in periods of rising interest rates, issuers may pay principal later than expected) and "prepayment risk" (i.e., in periods of declining interest rates, issuers may pay principal more quickly than expected, causing the Fund to reinvest proceeds at lower prevailing interest rates). Due to these risks, asset-backed securities may become more volatile in certain interest rate environments. Mortgage-Backed Securities offered by non-governmental issuers are subject to other risks as well, including failures of private insurers to meet their obligations and unexpectedly high rates of default on the mortgages backing the securities, particularly during periods of rising interest rates. Other asset-backed securities are subject to risks similar to those associated with Mortgage-Backed Securities, as well as risks associated with the nature and servicing of the assets backing the securities. Asset-backed securities may not have the benefit of a security interest in collateral comparable to that of mortgage assets, resulting in additional credit risk.<br>The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by utilizing TBA agreements. TBA agreements involve the risk that the other party to the transaction will not meet its obligation. If this occurs, the Fund could lose the opportunity to obtain a price or yield that it considers advantageous. In such circumstances, the Fund may not be able to secure an alternative investment with comparable terms. TBA agreements may give rise to a form of leverage. The Fund's use of TBA agreements may also result in a higher portfolio turnover rate and/or increased capital gains for the Fund.<br>

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<br> ***Municipal Securities Risk.*** Municipal securities are subject to credit/default risk, interest rate risk and certain additional risks. The Fund may be more sensitive to adverse economic, business, political, environmental or other developments if it invests a substantial portion of its assets in the bonds of similar projects (such as those relating to education, health care, housing, transportation, and utilities), industrial development bonds, or in particular types of municipal securities (such as general obligation bonds, private activity bonds and moral obligation bonds). While interest earned on municipal securities is generally not subject to federal tax, any interest earned on taxable municipal securities is fully taxable at the federal level and may be subject to tax at the state level.<br>***Non-Hedging Foreign Currency Trading Risk.*** The Fund may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Investment Adviser may purchase or sell foreign currencies through the use of forward contracts based on the Investment Adviser's judgment regarding the direction of the market for a particular foreign currency or currencies. In pursuing this strategy, the Investment Adviser seeks to profit from anticipated movements in currency rates by establishing "long" and/or "short" positions in forward contracts on various foreign currencies. Foreign exchange rates can be extremely volatile and a variance in the degree of volatility of the market or in the direction of the market from the Investment Adviser's expectations may produce significant losses to the Fund. Some of these transactions may also be subject to interest rate risk.<br>***Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities Risk.*** Non-investment grade fixed income securities and unrated securities of comparable credit quality (commonly known as "junk bonds") are considered speculative and are subject to the increased risk of an issuer's inability to meet principal and interest payment obligations. These securities may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific issuer developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of the junk bond markets generally and less liquidity.<br>***Other Investment Companies Risk.*** By investing in other investment companies (including ETFs) indirectly through the Fund, investors will incur a proportionate share of the expenses of the other investment companies held by the Fund (including operating costs and investment management fees) in addition to the fees regularly borne by the Fund. In addition, the Fund will be affected by the investment policies, practices and performance of such investment companies in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Fund invests therein.<br>***Portfolio Turnover Rate Risk.*** A high rate of portfolio turnover may involve correspondingly greater expenses which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in short-term capital gains taxable to shareholders.<br>***Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk.*** Reverse repurchase agreements are a form of secured borrowing and subject the Fund to the risks associated with leverage, including exposure to potential gains and losses in excess of the amount invested. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the investment return earned by the Fund (from the investment of the proceeds) will be less than the interest expense of the transaction, that the market value of the securities sold by the Fund will decline below the price the Fund is obligated to pay to repurchase the securities, and that the other party may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all.<br>***Short Position Risk.*** The Fund may enter into a short position through a futures contract, an option or swap agreement or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. Taking short positions involves leverage of the Fund's assets and presents various risks. If the value of the underlying instrument or market in which the Fund has taken a short position increases, then the Fund will incur a loss equal to the increase in<br>

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value from the time that the short position was entered into plus any related interest payments or other fees. Taking short positions involves the risk that losses may be disproportionate, may exceed the amount invested and may be unlimited.<br> ***Sovereign Default Risk.*** An issuer of non-U.S. sovereign debt, or the governmental authorities that control the repayment of the debt, may be unable or unwilling to repay the principal or interest when due. This may result from political or social factors, the general economic environment of a country, levels of borrowing rates, foreign debt, or foreign currency exchange rates.<br>***U.S. Government Securities Risk.*** The U.S. government may not provide financial support to U.S. government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obligated to do so by law. U.S. Government Securities issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae"), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("Freddie Mac") and the Federal Home Loan Banks, are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and, therefore, are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The maximum potential liability of the issuers of some U.S. Government Securities held by the Fund may greatly exceed their current resources, including any legal right to support from the U.S. Treasury. It is possible that issuers of U.S. Government Securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.<br>

In addition, the following investment risks are applicable to each Acquiring Fund.

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Principal Investment Risks Applicable to the Acquiring Funds only** | ***Market Trading Risk.*** The NAV of the Fund and the value of your investment may fluctuate. Market prices of Shares may fluctuate, in some cases significantly, in response to the Fund's NAV, the intraday value of the Fund's holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares. Any of these factors, among others, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV, which will be reflected in the intraday bid/ask spreads and/or the closing price of Shares as compared to NAV. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay more for, or receive less than, the underlying value of the Shares, respectively. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund's underlying portfolio holdings.<br>The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the stock exchange on which the Fund's Shares are listed. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Fund's listing exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares' NAV may widen.<br>***Secondary Listing Risk***. The Fund's shares may be listed or traded on U.S. and non-U.S. stock exchanges other than the U.S. stock exchange where the Fund's primary listing is maintained. There can be no assurance that the Fund's shares will continue to trade on any such stock exchange or in any market or that the Fund's shares will continue to meet the requirements for listing or trading on any exchange or in any market. The Fund's shares may be less actively traded in certain markets than in others, and investors are subject to the execution and settlement risks and market standards of the market where they or their broker direct their trades for execution. Certain information available to investors who trade Fund shares on a U.S. stock exchange during regular U.S. market hours may not be available to investors who trade in other markets, which may result in secondary market prices in such markets being less efficient. Shares of the Fund may trade in the secondary market outside of |

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the trading hours of the Fund's primary exchange. At such times, shares may trade with more significant premiums or discounts than might be experienced otherwise.<br>***Valuation Risk.*** The sale price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund's valuation of the security, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. Because non-U.S. exchanges may be open on days when the Fund does not price its Shares, the value of foreign securities or assets in the Fund's portfolio may change on days when investors will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund's Shares. The Fund relies on various sources to calculate its NAV. The information may be provided by third parties that are believed to be reliable, but the information may not be accurate due to errors by such pricing sources, technological issues or otherwise. NAV calculation may also be impacted by operational risks arising from factors such as failures in systems and technology.<br>

An additional discussion of these and other risks is included in the "Risks of the Funds" section below.

**The Funds' Fees and Expenses and Supplemental Financial Information** 

**Fees and Expenses of the Funds** 

Following the Reorganizations, you, as a shareholder, will pay the fees assessed by the applicable Acquiring Fund. The following tables compare the fees and expenses paid by shareholders of each Acquired Fund as of September 30, 2025 with those of the corresponding Acquiring Fund. Because the Acquiring Fund has not yet commenced operations as of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus, the Acquiring Funds' *pro forma* expenses are based upon estimated expenses for its first fiscal year. The tables do not take into account brokerage commissions that you may pay on your purchases and sales of Shares of a Fund.

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**<u>Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF</u>**

**Shareholder Fees** 

(fees paid directly from your investment)

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| | | | | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Pro Forma –<br>Acquiring Fund<br>– Goldman<br>Sachs Core Plus<br>Bond ETF** |
|  | **Class A** | **Class C** | **Institutional** | **Service** | **Investor** | **Class R** | **Class R6** | **Class P** | **ETF Shares** |
|  Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) | 3.75% |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | N/A |
|  Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as a percentage of the lower of original purchase price or sale proceeds)<sup>1</sup> |  | 1.00% |  |  |  |  |  |  | N/A |

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**Annual Fund Operating Expenses** 

(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

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| | | | | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Pro Forma –<br>Acquiring Fund<br>– Goldman<br>Sachs Core Plus<br>Bond ETF** |
|  | **Class A** | **Class C** | **Institutional** | **Service** | **Investor** | **Class R** | **Class R6** | **Class P** | **Pro Forma –<br>Acquiring Fund<br>– Goldman<br>Sachs Core Plus<br>Bond ETF** |
|  Management Fees | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.40% |
|  Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | 0.25% | 0.75% |  | 0.25% |  | 0.50% |  |  |  |
|  Other Expenses<sup>2</sup> | 0.41%<sup>2</sup> | 0.66% | 0.33% | 0.58% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.32% | 0.32% |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Service Fees |  | 0.25% |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Shareholder Administration Fees |  |  |  | 0.25% |  |  |  |  |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; All Other Expenses | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.33% | 0.33% | 0.41% | 0.41% | 0.32% | 0.32% |  |
|  Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses<sup>3</sup> | 1.07% | 1.82% | 0.74% | 1.24% | 0.82% | 1.32% | 0.73% | 0.73% |  |
|  Expense Limitation<sup>4</sup>  | (0.28)% | (0.28)% | (0.28)% | (0.28)% | (0.28)% | (0.28)% | (0.28)% | (0.28)% |  |
|  Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Expense Limitation | 0.79% | 1.54% | 0.46% | 0.96% | 0.54% | 1.04% | 0.45% | 0.45% | 0.40% |

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1. A contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC") of 1.00% is imposed on Class C Shares redeemed
within 12 months of purchase.

2. The Acquiring Fund's "Other Expenses" have been estimated to reflect expenses expected to be
incurred during the first fiscal year.

3. The "Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses" do not correlate to the ratios of net and total expenses
to average net assets provided in the Financial Highlights, which reflect the operating expenses of the Fund and do not include "Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses."

4. The Investment Adviser has agreed to reduce or limit "Other Expenses" (excluding acquired fund fees
and expenses, transfer agency fees and expenses, service and shareholder administration fees, taxes, interest, brokerage fees, expenses of shareholder meetings, litigation and indemnification, and extraordinary expenses) to 0.004% of the
Fund's average daily net assets through at least July 29, 2026, and prior to such date, the Investment Adviser may not terminate the arrangement without the approval of the Board of Trustees.

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**<u>Goldman Sachs Income Fund and Goldman Sachs Income ETF</u>**

**Shareholder Fees** 

(fees paid directly from your investment)

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| | | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Pro Forma –**<br>**Acquiring Fund**<br>**– Goldman**<br>**Sachs Income**<br>**ETF** |
|  | **Class A** | **Class C** | **Institutional** | **Investor** | **Class R6** | **Class P** | **ETF Shares** |
|  Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) | 3.75% |  |  |  |  |  | N/A |
|  Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as a percentage of the lower of original purchase price or sale proceeds)<sup>1</sup> |  | 1.00% |  |  |  |  | N/A |

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**Annual Fund Operating Expenses** 

(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

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| | | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Pro Forma –**<br>**Acquiring Fund**<br>**– Goldman**<br>**Sachs Income**<br>**ETF** |
|  | **Class A** | **Class C** | **Institutional** | **Investor** | **Class R6** | **Class P** | **ETF Shares** |
|  Management Fee | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.40% |
|  Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees | 0.25% | 0.75% |  |  |  | N/A |  |
|  Other Expenses<sup>2</sup> | 0.49% | 0.74% | 0.41% | 0.49% | 0.40% | 0.40% |  |
|  Service Fees |  | 0.25% |  |  |  | N/A |  |
|  All Other Expenses | 0.49% | 0.49% | 0.41% | 0.49% | 0.40% | N/A |  |
|  Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | 1.29% | 2.04% | 0.96% | 1.04% | 0.95% | 0.95% |  |
|  Fee Waiver and Expense Limitation<sup>3</sup> | (0.40%) | (0.40%) | (0.40%) | (0.40%) | (0.40%) | (0.40%) |  |
|  Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Expense Limitation | 0.89% | 1.64% | 0.56% | 0.64% | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.40% |

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<sup>1</sup> A contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC") of 1.00% is imposed on Class C Shares redeemed within 12 months of purchase. 

<sup>2</sup> The "Other Expenses" of the Acquired Fund have been restated to reflect expenses expected to be incurred during the current fiscal year. The Acquiring Fund's "Other Expenses" have been estimated to reflect expenses expected to be incurred during the first fiscal year.

<sup>3</sup> The Investment Adviser has agreed to (i) waive a portion of the management fee in order to achieve an effective net management fee rate of 0.50% as an annual percentage rate of average daily net assets of the Acquired Fund; and (ii) reduce or limit "Other Expenses" (excluding acquired Acquired Fund fees and expenses, transfer agency fees and expenses, service fees, taxes, interest, brokerage fees, expenses of shareholder meetings, litigation and indemnification, and extraordinary expenses) to 0.014% of the Acquired Fund's average daily net assets. These arrangements will remain in effect through at least July 29, 2026, and prior to such date, the Investment Adviser may not terminate the arrangement without the approval of the Board of Trustees. 

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**Expense Example** 

This Example is meant to help you compare the cost of investing in an Acquiring Fund with the cost of investing in the corresponding Acquired Fund.

The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in Class A, Class C, Institutional, Service, Investor, Class R, Class R6, and Class P Shares of the applicable Acquired Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Class A, Class C, Institutional, Service, Investor, Class R, Class R6, and Class P Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Acquired Fund's operating expenses remain the same (except that the Example incorporates the fee waiver and expense limitation arrangements for only the first year). The Acquiring Fund *pro forma* row shows the estimated costs after giving effect to the Reorganization; the Acquiring Fund is not operational and does not currently have investment assets. *Pro forma* numbers are estimated in good faith and are hypothetical. *Pro forma* numbers do not reflect any potential cash paid in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund shares. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **1 Year** | **3 Years** | **5 Years** | **10 Years** |
|  **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |  |  |  |  |
|  Class A Shares | $453 | $676 | $917 | $1607 |
|  Class C Shares | $257 | $545 | $959 | $2114 |
|  Institutional Shares | $47 | $208 | $384 | $892 |
|  Service Shares | $98 | $366 | $654 | $1475 |
|  Investor Shares | $55 | $234 | $428 | $987 |
|  Class R Shares | $106 | $391 | $697 | $1566 |
|  Class R6 Shares | $46 | $205 | $378 | $880 |
|  Class C Shares – Assuming no redemption | $157 | $545 | $959 | $2114 |
|  Class P Shares | $46 | $205 | $378 | $880 |
|  ***Pro Forma* Acquiring Fund – Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** | $41 | $128 | $224 | $505 |

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **1 Year** | **3 Years** | **5 Years** | **10 Years** |
|  **Acquired Fund – Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |  |  |  |  |
|  Class A Shares | $462 | $731 | $1019 | $1839 |
|  Class C Shares | $267 | $601 | $1061 | $2337 |
|  Institutional Shares | $57 | $266 | $492 | $1142 |
|  Investor Shares | $56 | $282 | $526 | $1227 |
|  Class R6 Shares | $56 | $263 | $486 | $1130 |
|  Class C Shares – Assuming no redemption | $167 | $601 | $1061 | $2337 |
|  Class P Shares | $56 | $263 | $486 | $1130 |
|  ***Pro Forma* Acquiring Fund – Goldman Sachs Income ETF** | $41 | $128 | $224 | $505 |

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**Supplemental Financial Information** 

The Reorganizations will not result in a material change to an Acquired Fund's investment portfolio due to the investment restrictions of the corresponding Acquiring Fund. In particular, each security held by an Acquired Fund is eligible to be held by the corresponding Acquiring Fund. As a result, a schedule of investments of each Acquired Fund modified to show the effects of such change is not required and is not included.

There are no material differences in accounting and valuation policies of the Acquired Funds as compared to those of the Acquiring Funds with respect to the securities and investments held by the Funds. For more information on the Acquired Funds' valuation policies, please see "Shareholder Guide—How To Buy Shares—How Are Shares Priced?" in each Acquired Fund's Prospectus and "*Exhibit C*—Shareholder Guide—Net Asset Value" in this Information Statement/Prospectus.

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**The Funds' Past Performance** 

Each Acquiring Fund is a newly-formed "shell" fund that has not yet commenced operations, and therefore, will have no performance history prior to its Reorganization. Each Acquiring Fund has been organized solely in connection with the Reorganization to acquire all of the assets and liabilities of the corresponding Acquired Fund and continue the business of the corresponding Acquired Fund. Therefore, after the Reorganization, each Acquired Fund will remain the "accounting survivor." This means that each Acquiring Fund will continue to show the historical investment performance and returns of the corresponding Acquired Fund (even after conversion of the Acquired Fund).

The bar charts and tables below provide an indication of the risks of investing in a Fund by showing: (a) changes in the performance of each Acquired Fund's Class A or Institutional (as applicable) and Class P Shares from year to year; and (b) how the average annual total returns of each Acquired Fund's Class A, Class C, Institutional, Service, Investor, Class R, Class R6 and Class P Shares, as applicable, compare to those of a broad-based securities market index and an additional benchmark (as applicable). Each Fund's past performance, before and after taxes, is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available at no cost at am.gs.com or by calling the appropriate phone number on the back cover of the Acquired Funds' Prospectuses.

The after-tax returns are for Class A Shares and Class P Shares only. The after-tax returns for Class C, Institutional, Service, Investor and Class R6 Shares, and returns for Class R Shares (which are offered exclusively to employee benefit plans), will vary. After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown. In addition, the after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold Fund Shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.

The bar chart (including "Best Quarter" and "Worst Quarter" information) does not reflect the sales loads applicable to Class A Shares. If the sales loads were reflected, returns would be less. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown.

Benchmark returns do not reflect any deductions for fees or expenses.

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**Goldman Sachs Bond Fund's Past Performance** 

***All Share Classes Except Class P Shares***

![LOGO](g144724g01a37.jpg)

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| | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Average Annual Total Return <br>For the period ended December 31, 2025** | **1 Year** | **5 Years** | **10 Years** |  | **Inception Date** |
|  **Class A Shares** |  |  |  |  | 11/30/2006 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 4.13% | -1.44% | 1.67 | % |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions | 2.29% | -2.78% | 0.44 | % |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions Sale of Fund Shares | 2.41% | -1.66% | 0.76 | % |  |
|  **Class C Shares** |  |  |  |  | 11/30/2006 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 6.24% | -1.42% | 1.30 | %\* |  |
|  **Institutional Shares** |  |  |  |  | 11/30/2006 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.55% | -0.34% | 2.41 | % |  |
|  **Service Shares** |  |  |  |  | 6/20/2007 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.01% | -0.85% | 1.91 | % |  |
|  **Investor Shares** |  |  |  |  | 11/30/2007 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.36% | -0.44% | 2.32 | % |  |
|  **Class R Shares** |  |  |  |  | 11/30/2007 |
|  Returns | 7.81% | -0.94% | 1.82 | % |  |
|  **Class R6 Shares** |  |  |  |  | 7/31/2015 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.56% | -0.33% | 2.40 | %\*\* |  |
|  Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 7.30% | -0.36% | 2.01 | % |  |

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*Benchmark returns do not reflect any deductions for fees or expenses.* 

*\** *Class C Shares automatically convert into Class A Shares eight years after the purchase date. The 10-Year performance for Class C Shares does not reflect the conversion to Class A Shares after the first eight years of performance.* 

*\*\** *Class R6 Shares commenced operations on July 31, 2015. Prior to that date, the performance of Class R6 Shares shown in the table above is that of Institutional Shares. Performance has not been adjusted to reflect the lower expenses of Class R6 Shares. Class R6 Shares would have had higher returns because: (i) Institutional Shares and Class R6 Shares represent interests in the same portfolio of securities; and (ii) Class R6 Shares have lower expenses.* 

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***Class P Shares***

![LOGO](g144724g01a38.jpg)

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Average Annual Total Return <br>For the period ended December 31, 2025** | **1 Year** | **5 Years** | **Since Inception** | **Inception Date** |
|  **Class P Shares** |  |  |  | 4/20/2018 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.56% | -0.33% | 2.63% |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions | 6.49% | -1.81% | 1.16% |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | 5.03% | -0.90% | 1.41% |  |
|  Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 7.30% | -0.36% | 2.11% |  |

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*Benchmark returns do not reflect any deductions for fees or expenses.* 

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**Goldman Sachs Income Fund's Past Performance** 

***All Share Classes Except Class P Shares***

![LOGO](g144724g01a39.jpg)

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| | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Average Annual Total Return <br>For the period ended December 31, 2025** | **1 Year** | **5 Years** | **Since Inception** |  | **Inception Date** |
|  **Class A Shares** |  |  |  |  | 12/3/2019 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 4.21% | 1.90% | 3.20 | % |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions | 2.16% | -0.31% | 0.90 | % |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | 2.45% | 0.44% | 1.34 | % |  |
|  **Class C Shares** |  |  |  |  | 12/3/2019 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 6.46% | 1.90% | 3.06 | %\* |  |
|  **Institutional Shares** |  |  |  |  | 12/3/2019 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.66% | 3.00% | 4.17 | % |  |
|  **Investor Shares** |  |  |  |  | 12/3/2019 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.68% | 2.96% | 4.12 | % |  |
|  **Class R6 Shares** |  |  |  |  | 12/3/2019 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.78% | 3.03% | 4.20 | % |  |
|  Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 7.30% | -0.36% | 0.83 | % |  |

---

*Benchmark returns do not reflect any deductions for fees or expenses.* 

*\** *Class C Shares automatically convert into Class A Shares eight years after the purchase date. The since inception performance for Class C Shares does not reflect the conversion to Class A Shares after the first eight years of performance.* 

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***Class P Shares***

![LOGO](g144724g01a40.jpg)

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Average Annual Total Return <br>For the period ended December 31, 2025** | **1 Year** | **5 Years** | **Since Inception** | **Inception Date** |
|  **Class P Shares** |  |  |  | 12/3/2019 |
|  Returns Before Taxes | 8.78% | 3.03% | 4.20% |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions | 6.49% | 0.65% | 1.73% |  |
|  Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | 5.15% | 1.23% | 2.04% |  |
|  Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 7.30% | -0.36% | 0.83% |  |

---

*Benchmark returns do not reflect any deductions for fees or expenses.* 

**Reasons for the Reorganizations and Board Considerations** 

GSAM recommended to the Board that it approve the Reorganization of each Acquired Fund with and into the corresponding Acquiring Fund because it believes the investment strategy of the Acquired Fund would be better positioned in an ETF format given the competitive marketplace for the Acquired Fund, ability for investors to trade intra-day, daily holdings transparency, and the potential for greater tax efficiency within the ETF structure. GSAM believes that the strategy has a better opportunity to gain scale in the ETF wrapper and that a Reorganization is preferable to liquidating the Acquired Fund, as it will provide you and other shareholders with the opportunity to invest in a fund that has the same investment objective and investment strategies.

On April 21-22, 2026, the Board, including a majority of the Trustees who are not "interested persons" of the Acquired Funds, as that term is defined in the 1940 Act (the "Independent Trustees"), voted to approve the Reorganizations. In approving each Reorganization, the Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, concluded that: (i) the Reorganization is in the best interests of the applicable Acquired Fund; and (ii) the interests of the shareholders of the Acquired Fund will not be diluted as a result of the Reorganization. The Board also considered and approved the terms and conditions of each Plan.

At its meeting, the Board received and evaluated materials provided by GSAM regarding the Reorganizations and their effects on the existing shareholders of each Acquired Fund. The Board considered and discussed: (i) the size of each Acquired Fund; (ii) the differences in how mutual fund and ETF shares are

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purchased and sold and the related implications for existing shareholders; (iii) the investment objective and strategies of each Acquired Fund and corresponding Acquiring Fund; (iv) the specific terms of the Reorganizations; and (v) other information, such as the fees and expenses of the Funds. As part of its consideration of the Reorganizations, the Board considered various alternatives to the Reorganization, including liquidating the Acquired Fund.

The Board also believes that the Reorganization offers a number of potential benefits. These potential benefits and considerations include the following:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund have the same investment objective and principal
investment strategies.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Each Acquiring Fund will have a lower expense ratio than each class of the corresponding Acquired Fund. Each
Acquiring Fund has contractual management fee rates equal to or lower than those of its corresponding Acquired Fund. In addition, each Acquiring Fund employs a unitary fee structure pursuant to which GSAM bears all operating expenses of the Fund,
subject to limited exceptions.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• A Reorganization is preferable to liquidating an Acquired Fund as it will provide you and other shareholders with
the opportunity to invest in a fund that has the same investment objective and investment strategy but that is better positioned for potential asset growth.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Each Reorganization is expected to qualify as a "reorganization" within the meaning of
Section 368 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"), and, therefore, you will not recognize gain or loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes on the exchange of your shares of the Acquired Fund for the shares
of the Acquiring Fund (except with respect to cash received, if any).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• No sales charge, CDSC, commission, redemption fee or other transactional fee will be charged as a result of the
Reorganizations.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Transaction costs are expected to be incurred in order to transfer certain Acquired Fund holdings, but these
transaction costs are expected to be de minimis.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• GSAM has agreed to pay the external costs (e.g., legal, auditor/accounting, printing and mailing costs)
associated with each Fund's participation in a Reorganization. GSAM estimates that these costs will be approximately $475,000 with respect to the Reorganizations.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Shareholders of an Acquired Fund must have a brokerage account that is permitted to hold ETF shares in order to
receive shares of the Acquiring Fund, and if a shareholder does not hold their Acquired Fund shares through that type of brokerage account, the shareholder will not receive shares of the corresponding Acquiring Fund as part of the Reorganization.
Instead, the shareholder's investment will be liquidated and the shareholder will receive cash equal in value to the NAV of Acquired Fund shares.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Current shareholders of an Acquired Fund may redeem their shares at any time before its Reorganization takes
place, as set forth in the Acquired Fund's prospectuses, without being subject to any Fund-imposed fees.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Current shareholders of the Acquired Funds are expected to benefit directly from the potential for greater tax
efficiency and trading efficiency with the ETF structure.

The Board concluded that the Reorganization and the Plan likely would benefit each Acquired Fund and its shareholders and that each Reorganization should be approved.

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**Buying and Selling Shares of the Funds** 

The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund have different procedures for purchasing, exchanging, and redeeming shares, which are summarized below. The Acquired Funds' prospectuses provides this information under the sections entitled "How to Buy Shares" and "How to Sell Shares."

*Each Acquiring Fund* 

Shares of the Fund may be acquired or redeemed directly from the Fund at NAV only in Creation Units or multiples thereof. Only an Authorized Participant (as defined in the Creations and Redemptions section below) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. Once created, shares of the Fund generally trade in the secondary market in amounts less than a Creation Unit.

Shares of the Fund are expected to be listed for trading on a national securities exchange during the trading day. shares can be bought and sold throughout the trading day at market price like shares of other publicly traded companies. However, there can be no guarantee that an active trading market will develop or be maintained, or that the Fund shares listing will continue or remain unchanged. The Acquiring Fund Trust does not impose any minimum investment for shares of the Fund purchased on an exchange. Buying or selling the Fund's shares involves certain costs that apply to all securities transactions. When buying or selling shares of the Fund through a financial intermediary, you may incur a brokerage commission or other charges determined by your financial intermediary. Due to these brokerage costs, if any, frequent trading may detract significantly from investment returns. In addition, you may also incur the cost of the spread (the difference between the bid price and the ask price). The commission is frequently a fixed amount and may be a significant cost for investors seeking to buy or sell small amounts of shares. The spread varies over time for shares of the Fund based on its trading volume and market liquidity, and is generally less if the Fund has more trading volume and market liquidity and more if the Fund has less trading volume and market liquidity.

The Fund's primary listing exchange is the Exchange. The Exchange is open for trading Monday through Friday and is closed on the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

A "business day" with respect to the Fund is each day the New York Stock Exchange, the Exchange and Acquiring Fund Trust are open and includes any day that the Fund is required to be open under Section 22(e) of the Investment Company Act. Orders from Authorized Participants to create or redeem Creation Units will only be accepted on a business day. On days when NYSE Arca closes earlier than normal, the Fund may require orders to create or redeem Creation Units to be placed earlier in the day. See the Statement of Additional Information for more information.

The Acquiring Fund Trust's Board of Trustees has not adopted a policy of monitoring for frequent purchases and redemptions of Fund shares ("frequent trading") that appear to attempt to take advantage of potential arbitrage opportunities presented by a lag between a change in the value of the Fund's portfolio securities after the close of the primary markets for the Fund's portfolio securities and the reflection of that change in the Fund's NAV ("market timing"). The Acquiring Fund Trust believes this is appropriate because ETFs, such as the Fund, are intended to be attractive to arbitrageurs, as trading activity is critical to ensuring that the market price of Fund shares remains at or close to NAV. Since the Fund issues and redeems Creation Units at NAV plus applicable transaction fees, and the Fund's shares may be purchased and sold on NYSE Arca at prevailing market prices, the risks of frequent trading are limited.

Section 12(d)(1) of the Investment Company Act restricts investments by registered investment companies and companies relying on Sections 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act in the securities of other investment companies. Registered investment companies are permitted to invest in the Fund beyond the limits set

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forth in Section 12(d)(1), subject to certain terms and conditions set forth in SEC regulations, including that such investment companies enter into an agreement with the Acquiring Fund Trust.

The Acquiring Funds and ALPS Distributor, Inc. will have the sole right to accept orders to purchase shares and reserve the right to reject any purchase order in whole or in part.

*Each Acquired Fund* 

The Fund offers multiple share classes, and each class has different sales charges, expenses, and/or minimum investments.

An investor may purchase and redeem (sell) shares of the Fund on any business day through certain intermediaries that have a relationship with Goldman Sachs, including banks, trust companies, brokers, registered investment advisers and other financial institutions ("Intermediaries"). Certain Intermediaries have been authorized by the Fund to accept purchase, redemption or exchange orders on behalf of the Fund for its customers ("Authorized Institutions"), and if approved by the Fund, may designate other financial intermediaries to accept such orders. The price you pay when you buy shares is the Fund's next-determined NAV per share (as adjusted for any applicable sales charge) after Goldman Sachs (or, if applicable, an Authorized Institution) has received and accepted your order in proper form. The price you receive when you sell shares is the Fund's next-determined NAV per share (adjusted for any applicable CDSCs) after Goldman Sachs (or, if applicable, an Authorized Institution) has received and accepted your order in proper form, with the redemption proceeds reduced by any applicable charges (e.g., CDSCs).

You may exchange shares of the Fund at NAV without the imposition of an initial sales charge or CDSC, if applicable, at the time of exchange for certain shares of another Goldman Sachs fund.

**Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries** 

If you purchase Shares of a Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), GSAM or other related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund Shares or related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend a Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary's website for more information.

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**RISKS OF THE FUNDS** 

**Risks of Investing in the Funds** 

The chart below compares the principal risks of investing in each Fund. The following section provides additional information on the risks that apply to the Funds, which may result in a loss of your investment. The risks applicable to each Fund are presented below in alphabetical order, and not in the order of importance or potential exposure. The Funds should not be relied upon as a complete investment program. There can be no assurance that each Fund will achieve its investment objective. Investments in each Fund involve substantial risks which prospective investors should consider carefully before investing.

The risks associated with an investment in an Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund are identical, except that, as a shareholder of the Acquiring Fund you will be subject to risks related to the Acquiring Fund's ETF structure; all other differences between the risks of the Acquiring Fund and those of the Acquired Fund reflect only a tailoring or clarification of the risks of the Acquired Fund, and such differences do not reflect (and should not be interpreted to reflect) any difference in the way the Acquiring Fund will be managed as compared to the Acquired Fund. For the purpose of this section, "the Fund" refers to each applicable Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund.

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| ✓ **Principal Risk**<br> **• Additional Risk** | **Bond Fund** | **Core Plus Bond ETF** | **Income<br>Fund** | **Income ETF** |
|  Absence of Active Market |  | • |  | • |
|  Authorized Participant Concentration |  | • |  | • |
|  Call/Prepayment | • | • | • | • |
|  Cash Transactions |  | ✓ |  |  |
|  Collateralized Loan Obligations and Other Collateralized Debt Obligations | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Counterparty | • | • | • | • |
|  Credit/Default | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Cybersecurity | • | • | • | • |
|  Derivatives | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Emerging Countries | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  ESG Integration | • | • | • | • |
|  Extension | • | • | • | • |
|  Floating and Variable Rate Obligations | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Foreign | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Geographic | • | • | • | • |
|  Interest Rate | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Large Shareholder Transactions | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Leverage | • | • | • | • |
|  Liquidity | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Loan-Related Investments | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Management | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Market | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Market Trading |  | ✓ |  | ✓ |
|  Mortgage-Backed and Other Asset-Backed Securities | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Municipal Securities | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
|  NAV | • |  | • |  |
|  Non-Hedging Foreign Currency Trading | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Other Investment Companies | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Portfolio Turnover Rate | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| ✓ **Principal Risk**<br> **• Additional Risk** | **Bond Fund** | **Core Plus Bond ETF** | **Income<br>Fund** | **Income ETF** |
|  Reverse Repurchase Agreements | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Secondary Listing |  | ✓ |  | ✓ |
|  Sector | • | • | • | • |
|  Short Position | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Sovereign Default |  |  |  |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Economic | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Political | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Repayment | • | • | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Stock |  |  | • | • |
|  Trading Issues |  | • |  | • |
|  Treasury Inflation Protected Securities | • | • | • | • |
|  U.S. Government Securities | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
|  Valuation |  | ✓ |  | ✓ |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Absence of Active Market Risk***—With respect to an Acquiring Fund, there can be no assurance that active trading markets for the shares will develop or be maintained by market makers or authorized participants, and there are no obligations of market makers to make a market in the Fund's Shares or of authorized participants to submit purchase or redemption orders for Creation Units. ALPS Distributors, Inc., the distributor of the shares ("ALPS"), does not maintain a secondary market in the shares.  |

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Although market makers will generally take advantage of differences between the NAV and the trading price of Fund shares through arbitrage opportunities, there is no guarantee that they will do so. Decisions by market makers or authorized participants to reduce their role or "step away" from market making or creation/redemption activities in times of market stress could inhibit the effectiveness of the arbitrage process in maintaining the relationship between the underlying value of the Fund's portfolio securities and the Fund's market price. This reduced effectiveness could result in shares trading at a discount to NAV and also in greater than normal intraday bid/ask spreads for shares. Market makers and authorized participants may be less willing to create or redeem Fund shares if there is a lack of an active market for the shares or its underlying investments, which may also contribute to the Fund's shares trading at a premium or discount to NAV.

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Authorized Participant Concentration Risk***—Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with an Acquiring Fund, and the Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as authorized participants. None of those authorized participants is obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that the securities underlying the Fund are traded outside of a collateralized settlement system, authorized participants may be required to post collateral on certain trades on an agency basis, which only a limited number of authorized participants may be willing or able to do. To the extent that the Fund's authorized participants exit the business or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other authorized participant is able to step forward to create and redeem shares, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for shares.  |

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As a result, shares may trade at a discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. Authorized Participant concentration risk may be heightened to the extent the Fund invests in securities issued by non-U.S. issuers or other securities or instruments that have lower trading volumes.

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Call/Prepayment Risk***—An issuer could exercise its right to pay principal on an obligation held by the Fund (such as a mortgage-backed security) earlier than expected. This may happen when there is a decline in interest rates, when credit spreads change, or when an issuer's credit quality improves. Under these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to recoup all of its initial investment and will also suffer from having to reinvest in lower-yielding securities.  |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Cash Transactions Risk***—Unlike certain ETFs, the Core Plus Bond ETF effects its redemptions partially for cash, rather than primarily for in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less  |

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tax-efficient than an investment in a more conventional ETF. Other ETFs generally are able to make in-kind redemptions and avoid realizing gains in connection with transactions designed to raise cash to meet redemption requests. Because the Fund currently intends to effect all or a portion of redemptions, as applicable, for cash, rather than in-kind distributions, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds, which involves transaction costs. If the Fund recognizes gain on these sales, this generally will cause the Fund to recognize gain it might not otherwise have recognized if it were to distribute portfolio securities in-kind, or to recognize such gain sooner than would otherwise be required. The Fund generally intends to distribute these gains to shareholders to avoid being taxed on this gain at the Fund level and otherwise comply with the special tax rules that apply to it. This strategy may cause shareholders to be subject to tax on gains they would not otherwise be subject to, or at an earlier date than, if they had made an investment in a different ETF.

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Collateralized Loan Obligations and Other Collateralized Debt Obligations Risk***—The Fund may invest in CLOs and other similarly structured investments. A CLO is an asset-backed security whose underlying collateral is a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign floating rate and fixed rate senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans. In addition to the normal risks associated with loan- and credit-related securities discussed elsewhere in this Information Statement/Prospectus (e.g., loan-related investments risk, interest rate risk and default risk), investments in CLOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to, the risk that: (i) distributions from the collateral may not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the Fund may invest in tranches of CLOs that are subordinate to other tranches; (iv) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents could lead to disputes among investors regarding the characterization of proceeds; and (v) the CLO's manager may perform poorly. CLOs may charge management and other administrative fees, which are in addition to those of the Fund.  |

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CLOs issue classes or "tranches" that offer various maturity, risk and yield characteristics. Losses caused by defaults on underlying assets are borne first by the holders of subordinate tranches. Tranches are categorized as senior, mezzanine and subordinated/ equity, according to their degree of risk. If there are defaults or the CLO's collateral otherwise underperforms, scheduled payments to senior tranches take precedence over those of mezzanine tranches, and scheduled payments to mezzanine tranches take precedence over those of subordinated/equity tranches. The riskiest portion is the "equity" tranche which bears the bulk of defaults from the collateral and serves to protect the other, more senior tranches from default in all but the most severe circumstances. Because it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CLO trust typically has higher ratings and lower yields than its underlying collateral and may be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the equity and mezzanine tranches, more senior tranches of CLOs can experience losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of more subordinate tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CLO securities as a class. The Fund's investments in CLOs primarily consist of investment grade tranches.

Typically, CLOs are privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, investments in CLOs may be characterized by the Fund as illiquid investments and may have limited independent pricing transparency. However, an active dealer market may exist for CLOs that qualify under the Rule 144A "safe harbor" from the registration requirements of the Securities Act for resales of certain securities to qualified institutional buyers, and such CLOs may be characterized by the Fund as liquid investments.

The Fund may also invest in collateralized debt obligations ("CDOs"), which are structured similarly to CLOs, but are backed by pools of assets that are debt securities (rather than being limited only to loans), typically including bonds, other structured finance securities (including other asset-backed securities and other CDOs) and/or synthetic instruments. Like CLOs, the risks of an investment in a CDO depend largely on the type and quality of the collateral securities and the tranche of the CDO in which the Fund invests. CDOs collateralized by pools of asset-backed securities carry the same risks as investments in asset-backed securities directly, including losses with respect to the collateral underlying those asset-backed securities. In

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addition, certain CDOs may not hold their underlying collateral directly, but rather, use derivatives such as swaps to create "synthetic" exposure to the collateral pool. Such CDOs entail the risks associated with derivative instruments.

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Counterparty Risk—***Many of the protections afforded to cleared transactions, such as the security afforded by transacting through a clearing house, might not be available in connection with certain OTC transactions. Therefore, in those instances in which the Fund enters into certain OTC transactions, the Fund will be subject to the risk that its direct counterparty will not perform its obligations under the transactions and that the Fund will sustain losses. However, recent regulatory developments require margin on certain uncleared OTC transactions which may reduce, but not eliminate, this risk.  |

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| ◾ | ***Credit/Default Risk***—An issuer or guarantor of fixed income securities or instruments held by the Fund (which may have low credit ratings) may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal or default on any other obligation. The credit quality of the Fund's portfolio securities or instruments may meet the Fund's credit quality requirements at the time of purchase but then deteriorate thereafter, and such a deterioration can occur rapidly. In certain instances, the downgrading or default of a single holding or guarantor of the Fund's holdings may impair the Fund's liquidity and have the potential to cause significant NAV deterioration. These risks are heightened in market environments where interest rates are rising as well as in connection with the Fund's investments in non-investment grade fixed income securities.  |

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| ◾ | ***Cybersecurity Risk***—The Fund may be susceptible to operational and information security risks resulting from cyber-attacks. Cyber-attacks include, among others, stealing or corrupting confidential information and other data that is maintained online or digitally for financial gain, denial-of-service attacks on websites causing operational disruption, and the unauthorized release of confidential information and other data. Cyber-attacks have the ability to cause significant disruptions and impact business operations; to result in financial losses; to prevent shareholders from transacting business; to interfere with the Fund's calculation of NAV; and to lead to violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs and/or additional compliance costs. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund or its Investment Adviser, custodian, Transfer Agent, or other third-party service providers may adversely impact the Fund and its shareholders.  |

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| ◾ | ***Derivatives Risk—***The Fund's use of options, futures, forwards, swaps, options on swaps, structured securities and other derivative instruments (collectively referred to in this paragraph as "derivatives") may result in losses, including due to adverse market movements. Derivatives, which may pose risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, currencies or other instruments, may increase market exposure and be illiquid or less liquid, volatile, difficult to price and leveraged so that small changes in the value of the underlying assets or instruments may produce disproportionate losses to the Fund. Certain derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will not fulfill, or lacks the capacity or authority to fulfill, its contractual obligations, liquidity risk, which includes the risk that the Fund will not be able to close its derivatives position when it is advantageous to do so, and risks arising from margin requirements, which include the risk that the Fund will be required to pay additional margin or set aside additional collateral to maintain open derivative positions. Derivatives may be used for both hedging and non-hedging purposes.  |

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The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments, and there is no guarantee that the use of derivatives will achieve their intended result. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of the timing or level of fluctuation in securities prices, interest rates, currency prices or other variables, the use of derivatives could result in losses, which in some cases may be significant. A lack of correlation between changes in the value of derivatives and the value of the portfolio assets (if any) being hedged could also result in losses. In addition, there is a risk that the performance of the derivatives or other instruments used by the Investment Adviser to replicate the performance of a particular asset class may not accurately track the performance of that asset class.

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The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation or legality or enforceability of a contract.

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| ◾ | ***Emerging Countries Risk—***Investments in securities of issuers located in, or otherwise economically tied to, emerging and frontier market countries are subject to the risks associated with investments in foreign securities. The securities markets of most emerging countries are less liquid, developed and efficient, are subject to greater price volatility, and have smaller market capitalizations. In addition, emerging markets and frontier countries may have more or less government regulation and generally do not impose as extensive and frequent accounting, auditing, financial and other reporting requirements as the securities markets of more developed countries. As a result, there could be less information available about issuers in emerging and frontier market countries, which could negatively affect the Investment Adviser's ability to evaluate local companies or their potential impact on the Fund's performance. Further, investments in securities of issuers located in certain emerging countries involve the risk of loss resulting from problems in share registration, settlement or custody, substantial economic, political and social disruptions and the imposition of sanctions or exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions). The legal remedies for investors in emerging and frontier markets may be more limited than the remedies available in the U.S., and the ability of U.S. authorities (*e.g.*, SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice) to bring actions against bad actors may be limited. These risks are not normally associated with investments in more developed countries.  |

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| ◾ | ***ESG Integration Risk***—The Investment Adviser employs a fundamental investment process that may integrate ESG factors with traditional fundamental factors. The relevance and weightings of specific ESG factors to or within the fundamental investment process varies across asset classes, sectors and strategies and no one factor or consideration is determinative. When integrating ESG factors into the investment process, the Investment Adviser may rely on third-party data that it believes to be reliable, but it does not guarantee the accuracy of such third-party data. ESG information from third-party data providers may be incomplete, inaccurate or unavailable, which may adversely impact the investment process. Moreover, ESG information, whether from an external and/or internal source, is, by nature and in many instances, based on a qualitative and subjective assessment. An element of subjectivity and discretion is therefore inherent to the interpretation and use of ESG data. The process for conducting ESG assessments and implementation of ESG views in client/fund portfolios, including the format and content of such analysis and the tools and/or data used to perform such analysis, may also vary among the Investment Adviser's portfolio management teams. While the Investment Adviser believes that the integration of material ESG factors into the Fund's investment process has the potential to identify financial risks and contribute to the Fund's long-term performance, ESG factors may not be considered for each and every investment decision, and there is no guarantee that the integration of ESG factors will result in better performance. Investors can differ in their views of what constitutes positive or negative ESG characteristics. Moreover, the current lack of common standards may result in different approaches to integrating ESG factors. As a result, the Fund may invest in companies that do not reflect the beliefs and values of any particular investor. The Investment Adviser's approach to ESG integration may evolve and develop over time, both due to a refinement of investment decision-making processes to address ESG factors and risks, and because of legal and regulatory developments.  |

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| ◾ | ***Extension Risk***—An issuer could exercise its right to pay principal on an obligation held by the Fund (such as a mortgage-backed security) later than expected. This may happen when there is a rise in interest rates. Under these circumstances, the value of the obligation will decrease, and the Fund will also suffer from the inability to reinvest in higher yielding securities.  |

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| ◾ | ***Floating and Variable Rate Obligations Risk—***Floating rate and variable rate obligations are debt instruments issued by companies or other entities with interest rates that reset periodically (typically, daily, monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually) in response to changes in the market rate of interest on which the interest rate is based. For floating and variable rate obligations, there may be a lag between an actual change  |

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in the underlying interest rate benchmark and the reset time for an interest payment of such an obligation, which could harm or benefit the Fund, depending on the interest rate environment or other circumstances. In a rising interest rate environment, for example, a floating or variable rate obligation that does not reset immediately would prevent the Fund from taking full advantage of rising interest rates in a timely manner. However, in a declining interest rate environment, the Fund may benefit from a lag due to an obligation's interest rate payment not being immediately impacted by a decline in interest rates.

Certain floating and variable rate obligations have an interest rate floor feature, which prevents the interest rate payable by the security from dropping below a specified level as compared to a reference interest rate (the "reference rate"), such as SOFR, Term SOFR or another rate determined using SOFR values. Such a floor protects the Fund from losses resulting from a decrease in the reference rate below the specified level. However, if the reference rate is below the floor, there will be a lag between a rise in the reference rate and a rise in the interest rate payable by the obligation, and the Fund may not benefit from increasing interest rates for a significant amount of time.

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| ◾ | ***Foreign Risk***—When the Fund invests in foreign securities, it may be subject to risk of loss not typically associated with U.S. issuers. Loss may result because of more or less foreign government regulation; less public information; less stringent investor protections; less stringent accounting, corporate governance, financial reporting and disclosure standards; less liquid, developed or efficient trading markets; greater volatility; and less economic, political and social stability in the countries in which the Fund invests. Loss may also result from, among other things, deteriorating economic and business conditions in other countries, including the United States, regional and global conflicts, the imposition of sanctions, exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions), foreign taxes, confiscation of assets and property, trade restrictions (including tariffs), expropriations and other government restrictions by the United States and other governments, higher transaction costs, difficulty enforcing contractual obligations or from problems in share registration, settlement or custody. The type and severity of sanctions and other similar measures, including counter sanctions and other retaliatory actions, that may be imposed could vary broadly in scope, and their impact is impossible to predict. These types of measures may include, but are not limited to, banning a sanctioned country from global payment systems that facilitate cross-border payments, restricting the settlement of securities transactions by certain investors, and freezing the assets of particular countries, entities, or persons. The imposition of sanctions and other similar measures could, among other things, cause a decline in the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country, downgrades in the credit ratings of the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country, devaluation of the sanctioned country's currency, and increased market volatility and disruption in the sanctioned country and throughout the world. Sanctions and other similar measures could limit or prevent the Fund from buying and selling securities (in the sanctioned country and other markets), significantly delay or prevent the settlement of securities transactions, and significantly impact the Fund's liquidity and performance. The Fund or the Investment Adviser may determine not to invest in, or may limit its overall investment in, a particular issuer, country or geographic region due to, among other things, heightened risks regarding repatriation restrictions, confiscation of assets and property, expropriation or nationalization. Geopolitical developments in certain countries in which the Fund may invest have caused, or may in the future cause, significant volatility in financial markets and could negatively impact the value of the Fund's investments.  |

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The Fund's investments in foreign securities may also be subject to foreign currency risk, and the risk of negative foreign currency rate fluctuations, which may cause the value of securities denominated in such foreign currency (or other instruments through which the Fund may have exposure to foreign currencies) to decline in value. Foreign risks will normally be greatest when the Fund invests in securities of issuers located in emerging countries.

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| ◾ | ***Geographic Risk—***If the Fund focuses its investments in securities of issuers located in a particular country or geographic region, the Fund may be subjected, to a greater extent than if its investments were less focused, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions and developments that may be particular  |

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to that country or region, such as: adverse securities markets; adverse exchange rates; adverse social, political, regulatory, economic, business, environmental or other developments; or natural disasters.

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| ◾ | ***Interest Rate Risk—***When interest rates increase, fixed income securities or instruments held by the Fund (which may include inflation protected securities) will generally decline in value. Long-term fixed income securities or instruments will normally have more price volatility because of this risk than short-term fixed income securities or instruments. A wide variety of market factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation and changes in general economic conditions. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets, may result in heightened market volatility and may detract from Fund performance to the extent the Fund is exposed to such interest rates and/or volatility. In addition, changes in monetary policy may exacerbate the risks associated with changing interest rates. Funds with longer average portfolio durations will generally be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than funds with a shorter average portfolio duration. Fluctuations in interest rates may also affect the yield and liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund.  |

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It is difficult to predict the magnitude, timing or direction of interest rate changes and the impact these changes will have on the markets in which the Fund invests.

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| ◾ | ***Large Shareholder Transactions Risk—***Certain large shareholders, including other funds advised by the Investment Adviser, may from time to time own a substantial amount of the Fund's Shares. In addition, a third party investor, the Investment Adviser or an affiliate of the Investment Adviser, an authorized participant, a lead market maker, or another entity (i.e., a seed investor) may invest in the Fund and hold its investment solely to facilitate commencement of the Fund or to facilitate the Fund's achieving a specified size or scale. Any such investment may be held for a limited period of time. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment. Dispositions of a large number of Shares by these shareholders, which may occur rapidly or unexpectedly, may adversely affect the Fund's liquidity and net assets to the extent such transactions are executed directly with the Fund in the form of redemptions through an authorized participant, rather than executed in the secondary market. To the extent effected in cash, these redemptions may also force the Fund to sell portfolio securities when it might not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact the Fund's NAV and increase the Fund's brokerage costs. Such cash redemptions may also accelerate the realization of taxable income to shareholders, which could make investments in Shares less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that is able to effect redemptions in-kind. Similarly, large Fund share purchases through an authorized participant may adversely affect the performance of the Fund to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash or otherwise maintains a larger cash position than it ordinarily would. To the extent these large shareholders transact in Shares on the secondary market, such transactions may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on the Exchange and may, therefore, have a material upward or downward effect on the market price of the Shares.  |

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| ◾ | ***Leverage Risk—***Leverage creates exposure to potential gains and losses in excess of the initial amount invested. Borrowing and the use of derivatives may result in leverage and may increase market exposure and make the Fund more volatile. When the Fund uses leverage, the sum of the Fund's investment exposures may significantly exceed the amount of assets invested in the Fund, although these exposures may vary over time. Relatively small market movements may result in large changes in the value of a leveraged investment. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions to satisfy its obligations or to meet margin/collateral requirements when it may not be advantageous to do so. The use of leverage by the Fund can substantially increase the Fund's investment risks and cause losses to be realized more quickly.  |

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| ◾ | ***Liquidity Risk—***The Fund may invest in securities or instruments that trade in lower volumes, that are less liquid than other investments and/or that may become illiquid or less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Investments that are illiquid or that trade in lower volumes may be more difficult to value. The Fund's transactions in securities that trade in lower volumes may be executed over a period of time, which could impact the prices at which the Fund transacts. When there is no willing buyer and investments cannot be readily sold at the desired time or price, the Fund may have to  |

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accept a lower price or may not be able to sell the security or instrument at all. An inability to sell one or more portfolio positions can adversely affect the Fund's value or prevent the Fund from being able to take advantage of other investment opportunities.

Illiquidity can be caused by a drop in overall market trading volume, an inability to find a willing buyer, or legal restrictions on the securities' resale. To the extent that the traditional dealer counterparties that engage in fixed income trading do not maintain inventories of bonds (which provide an important indication of their ability to "make markets") that keep pace with the growth of the bond markets over time, relatively low levels of dealer inventories could lead to decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the fixed income markets. Additionally, market participants other than the Fund may attempt to sell fixed income holdings at the same time as the Fund, which could cause downward pricing pressure and contribute to decreased liquidity.

To the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions, then liquidity risk may also refer to the risk that the Fund will not be able to pay redemption proceeds within the allowable time period or without significant dilution to remaining investors' interests because of unusual market conditions, declining prices of the securities sold, an unusually high volume of redemption requests, a redemption request by a large shareholder (such as a seed investor) or other reasons. If the Fund is forced to sell securities at an unfavorable time and/or under unfavorable conditions, such sales may adversely affect the Fund's NAV and dilute remaining investors' interests.

Because the Fund may invest in non-investment grade fixed income securities, and/or emerging country issuers, the Fund may be especially subject to the risk that during certain periods, the liquidity of particular issuers or industries, or all securities within a particular investment category, may shrink or disappear suddenly and without warning as a result of adverse economic, market or political events (including periods of rapid interest rate changes), or adverse investor perceptions, whether or not accurate.

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| ◾ | ***Loan-Related Investments Risk—***In addition to risks generally associated with debt investments (e.g., interest rate risk and default risk), loan-related investments such as loan participations and assignments are subject to other risks. Although a loan obligation may be fully collateralized at the time of acquisition, the collateral may decline in value, be or become illiquid or less liquid, or lose all or substantially all of its value subsequent to investment. Many loan investments are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale and certain loan investments may be or become illiquid or less liquid and more difficult to value, particularly in the event of a downgrade of the loan or the borrower. There is less readily available, reliable information about most loan investments than is the case for many other types of securities and the Investment Adviser relies primarily on its own evaluation of a borrower's credit quality rather than on any available independent sources. The ability of the Fund to realize full value in the event of the need to sell a loan investment may be impaired by the lack of an active trading market for certain loans or adverse market conditions limiting liquidity. Loan obligations are not traded on an exchange, and purchasers and sellers rely on certain market makers, such as the administrative agent for the particular loan obligation, to trade that loan obligation. The market for loan obligations may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. Because transactions in many loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund's redemption obligations (to the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions) for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from a credit facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. During periods of heightened redemption activity (to the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions) or distressed market conditions, the Fund may seek to obtain expedited trade settlement, which will generally incur additional costs (although expedited trade settlement will not always be available). The Fund may also hold a larger position in cash and cash items to limit the impact of extended trade settlement periods, which may adversely impact the Fund's performance. In addition, substantial increases in interest rates or deteriorating market conditions may cause an increase in loan obligation defaults.  |

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Affiliates of the Investment Adviser may participate in the primary and secondary market for loans. Because of limitations imposed by applicable law, the presence of such affiliates in the loan markets may restrict the Fund's ability to acquire certain loans, affect the timing of such acquisition, or affect the price at which the loan is acquired.

With respect to loan participations, the Fund may not always have direct recourse against a borrower if the borrower fails to pay scheduled principal and/or interest; may be subject to greater delays, expenses and risks than if the Fund had purchased a direct obligation of the borrower; and may be regarded as the creditor of the agent lender or counterparty (rather than the borrower), subjecting the Fund to the creditworthiness of that lender as well and the ability of the lender to enforce appropriate credit remedies against the borrower. Investors in loans, such as the Fund, may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.

Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a business entity, and are typically secured with specific collateral and have a claim on the assets of the borrower that is senior to that held by subordinated debt holders and stockholders of the borrower. Nevertheless, Senior Loans may become subordinated to other debt holders and creditors. Senior Loans are usually rated below investment grade. Because Second Lien Loans are subordinated or unsecured and thus lower in priority of payment to Senior Loans, they are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. This risk is generally higher for subordinated unsecured loans or debt, which are not backed by a security interest in any specific collateral. Second Lien Loans generally have greater price volatility than Senior Loans and may be less liquid. Generally, loans have the benefit of restrictive covenants that limit the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets, impose other obligations and/or release or transfer the specific collateral securing the loan. To the extent a loan does not have certain covenants (or has less restrictive covenants), an investment in the loan will be particularly sensitive to the risks associated with loan investments. In addition, to the extent a loan is modified or restructured, an investment in the loan may be materially and adversely affected. Under these circumstances, the Fund may incur expenses enforcing or defending its claims against the borrower and/or other debt holders and creditors.

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| ◾ | ***Management Risk***—A strategy used by the Investment Adviser may fail to produce the intended results.  |

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| ◾ | ***Market Risk—***The value of the securities in which the Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies, particular sectors, governments or countries and/or general economic conditions throughout the world. Price changes may be temporary or last for extended periods. The Fund's investments may be overweighted from time to time in one or more sectors, countries or regions, which will increase the Fund's exposure to risk of loss from adverse developments affecting those sectors, countries or regions.  |

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Global economies and financial markets are becoming increasingly interconnected, and conditions and events in one country, region or financial market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Furthermore, local, regional and global events such as war, military conflict, geopolitical disputes, acts of terrorism, social or political unrest, natural disasters, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, supply chain disruptions, tariffs and other restrictions on trade, sanctions or the spread of infectious illness or other public health threats, or the threat or potential of one or more such events and developments, could also adversely impact issuers, markets and economies, including in ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen. The Fund could be negatively impacted if the value of a portfolio holding were harmed by such political or economic conditions or events. In addition, governmental and quasi-governmental organizations have taken a number of unprecedented actions designed to support the markets. Such conditions, events and actions may result in greater market risk.

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| ◾ | ***Market Trading Risk***—The NAV of an Acquiring Fund and the value of your investment may fluctuate. Market prices of shares may fluctuate, in some cases significantly, in response to the Fund's NAV, the intraday value of the Fund's holdings and supply and demand for shares. The Fund faces numerous market  |

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trading risks, including disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for shares. If a shareholder purchases shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay more for, or receive less than, the underlying value of the shares, respectively. The Investment Adviser cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their NAV. Price differences may be due, in large part, to the fact that supply and demand forces at work in the secondary trading market for shares will be closely related to, but not identical to, the same forces influencing the prices of the securities in the Fund's portfolio trading individually or in the aggregate at any point in time. While the creation/redemption feature is designed to make it more likely that the Fund's shares normally will trade on stock exchanges at prices close to the Fund's next calculated NAV, exchange prices are not expected to correlate exactly with the Fund's NAV due to timing reasons, supply and demand imbalances, perception of unreliability of disclosed NAV, and other factors. Any of these factors, among others, may result in shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV, which will be reflected in the intraday bid/ask spreads and/or the closing price of shares as compared to NAV. In addition, because liquidity in certain underlying securities may fluctuate, shares may trade at a larger premium or discount to NAV than shares of other kinds of ETFs. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund's underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell shares and various orders that may be placed. Investors should consult their financial intermediary before purchasing or selling shares of the Fund.

An investor that buys or sells shares through a broker will likely incur a brokerage commission or other charge imposed by the broker. In addition, the market price of shares, like other exchange-traded securities, includes a "bid-ask spread" (the difference between the price at which investors are willing to buy shares and the price at which investors are willing to sell shares). The bid-ask spread will vary over time based on the Fund's trading volume and market liquidity and may increase as a result of a decrease in the Fund's trading volume, the spread of the Fund's underlying securities, or market liquidity. The bid-ask spread may increase significantly in times of market disruption, meaning that shares may trade at a discount to the Fund's NAV and that discount is likely to be greatest during significant market volatility. During such periods, you may be unable to sell your shares or may incur significant losses if you sell your shares.

Shares of the Fund, like other publicly-traded securities, may be sold short. Shares are therefore subject to the risk of price decreases and increased volatility associated with being sold short.

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| ◾ | ***Mortgage-Backed and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk—***Mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities are subject to credit/default, interest rate and certain additional risks. Generally, rising interest rates tend to extend the duration of fixed rate mortgage-backed securities, making them more sensitive to changes in interest rates. As a result, in a period of rising interest rates, if the Fund holds mortgage-backed securities, it may exhibit additional volatility. This is known as extension risk. In addition, adjustable and fixed rate mortgage-backed securities are subject to prepayment risk. When interest rates decline, borrowers may pay off their mortgages sooner than expected. This can reduce the returns of the Fund because the Fund may have to reinvest that money at the lower prevailing interest rates. Due to these risks, asset-backed securities may become more volatile in certain interest rate environments.  |

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The Fund's investments in other asset-backed securities are subject to risks similar to those associated with mortgage-backed securities, as well as additional risks associated with the nature of the assets and the servicing of those assets. Asset-backed securities may not have the benefit of a security interest in collateral comparable to that of mortgage assets, resulting in additional credit risk.

The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities issued by the U.S. Government (see "U.S. Government Securities Risk"). To the extent that the Fund invests in mortgage-backed securities offered by non-governmental issuers, such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers, the Fund may be subject to additional risks. Timely payment of interest and principal of non-governmental issuers are supported by

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various forms of private insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, title, pool and hazard insurance purchased by the issuer. There can be no assurance that the private insurers can meet their obligations under the policies. An unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may adversely affect the value of a mortgage-backed security and could result in losses to the Fund. The risk of such defaults is generally higher in the case of mortgage pools that include subprime mortgages or during periods of rising interest rates. Subprime mortgages refer to loans made to borrowers with weakened credit histories or with a lower capacity to make timely payments on their mortgages.

The values of, and income generated by, commercial mortgage-backed securities ("CMBS") may be adversely affected by changing interest rates and other developments impacting the commercial real estate market, such as population shifts and other demographic changes, increasing vacancies (potentially for extended periods) and reduced demand for commercial and office space as well as maintenance or tenant improvement costs and costs to convert properties for other uses. These developments could result from, among other things, changing tastes and preferences (such as for remote work arrangements) as well as cultural, technological, global or local economic and market developments. In addition, changing interest rate environments and associated changes in lending standards and higher refinancing rates may adversely affect the commercial real estate and CMBS markets. The occurrence of any of the foregoing developments would likely increase default risk for the properties and loans underlying these investments as well as impact the value of, and income generated by, these investments. These developments could also result in reduced liquidity for CMBS and other real estate-related investments.

The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by utilizing TBA agreements. TBA agreements involve the risk that the other party to the transaction will not meet its obligation. If this occurs, the Fund could lose the opportunity to obtain a price or yield that it considers advantageous. In such circumstances, the Fund may not be able to secure an alternative investment with comparable terms. TBA agreements may give rise to a form of leverage. The Fund's use of TBA agreements may also result in a higher portfolio turnover rate and/or increased capital gains for the Fund.

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| ◾ | ***Municipal Securities Risk—*** Municipal securities are subject to call/prepayment risk, credit/default risk, extension risk, interest rate risk and certain additional risks. The Fund may be more sensitive to adverse economic, business, political, environmental or other developments if it invests a substantial portion of its assets in the debt securities of similar projects (such as those relating to education, health care, housing, transportation, and utilities), industrial development bonds, or in particular types of municipal securities (such as general obligation bonds, private activity bonds and moral obligation bonds). While interest earned on municipal securities is generally not subject to federal tax, any interest earned on taxable municipal securities is fully taxable at the federal level and may be subject to tax at the state level. Specific risks are associated with different types of municipal securities. With respect to general obligation bonds, the full faith, credit and taxing power of the municipality that issues a general obligation bond secures payment of interest and repayment of principal. Timely payments depend on the issuer's credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. Certain of the municipalities in which the Fund invests may experience significant financial difficulties, which may lead to bankruptcy or default.  |

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With respect to revenue bonds, payments of interest and principal are made only from the revenues generated by a particular facility, class of facilities or the proceeds of a special tax, or other revenue source, and depends on the money earned by that source. Private activity bonds are issued by municipalities and other public authorities to finance development of industrial facilities for use by a private enterprise. The private enterprise pays the principal and interest on the bond, and the issuer does not pledge its full faith, credit and taxing power for repayment. If the private enterprise defaults on its payments, the Fund may not receive any income or get its money back from the investment. Moral obligation bonds are generally issued by special purpose public authorities of a state or municipality. If the issuer is unable to meet its obligations, repayment of these bonds becomes a moral commitment, but not a legal obligation, of the state or municipality. Municipal notes are shorter term municipal debt obligations. They may provide interim financing in anticipation of, and are secured by, tax collection, bond sales or revenue receipts. If there is a shortfall in the anticipated proceeds, the notes may not be fully repaid and the Fund may lose money. In a

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municipal lease obligation, the issuer agrees to make payments when due on the lease obligation. The issuer will generally appropriate municipal funds for that purpose, but is not obligated to do so. Although the issuer does not pledge its unlimited taxing power for payment of the lease obligation, the lease obligation is secured by the leased property. However, if the issuer does not fulfill its payment obligation it may be difficult to sell the property and the proceeds of a sale may not cover the Fund's loss.

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| ◾ | ***NAV Risk—***The net asset value of an Acquired Fund and the value of your investment will fluctuate.  |

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| ◾ | ***Non-Hedging Foreign Currency Trading Risk—***The Fund may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund's Investment Adviser may purchase or sell foreign currencies through the use of forward contracts based on the Investment Adviser's judgment regarding the direction of the market for a particular foreign currency or currencies. In pursuing this strategy, the Investment Adviser seeks to profit from anticipated movements in currency rates by establishing "long" and/or "short" positions in forward contracts on various foreign currencies. Foreign exchange rates can be extremely volatile and a variance in the degree of volatility of the market or in the direction of the market from the Investment Adviser's expectations may produce significant losses to the Fund. Some of the transactions may also be subject to interest rate risk.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities Risk—***Non-investment grade fixed income securities and unrated securities of comparable credit quality (commonly known as "junk bonds") are considered speculative and are subject to the increased risk of an issuer's inability to meet principal and interest payment obligations. These securities may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific issuer developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of the junk bond markets generally and less liquidity.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Other Investment Companies Risk***—By investing in other investment companies (including ETFs) indirectly through the Fund, investors will incur a proportionate share of the expenses of the other investment companies held by the Fund (including operating costs and investment management fees) in addition to the fees and expenses regularly borne by the Fund. In addition, the Fund will be affected by the investment policies, practices and performance of such investment companies in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Fund invests therein.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Portfolio Turnover Rate Risk***—The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of portfolio securities to pursue their principal investment strategies. A high rate of portfolio turnover may involve correspondingly greater expenses which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in short-term capital gains taxable to shareholders.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk—***Reverse repurchase agreements involve the sale of securities held by the Fund subject to an agreement to repurchase them at a mutually agreed upon date and price (including interest). The Fund may enter these transactions when the Investment Adviser expects that the return to be earned from the investment of the transaction proceeds to be greater than the interest expense of the transaction. Reverse repurchase agreements may also be entered into as a temporary measure for emergency purposes or to meet redemption requests.  |

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Reverse repurchase agreements are a form of secured borrowing and subject the Fund to the risks associated with leverage, including exposure to potential gains and losses in excess of the amount invested. If the securities held by the Fund decline in value while these transactions are outstanding, the NAV of the Fund's outstanding shares will decline in value by proportionately more than the decline in value of the securities. In addition, reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the investment return earned by the Fund (from the investment of the proceeds) will be less than the interest expense of the transaction, that the market value of the securities sold by the Fund will decline below the price the Fund is obligated to pay to repurchase the securities, and that the other party may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all.

When the Fund enters into a reverse repurchase agreement, it is subject to the risk that the buyer under the agreement may file for bankruptcy, become insolvent or otherwise default on its obligations to the Fund. In

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the event of a default by the counterparty, there may be delays, costs and risks of loss involved in the Fund's exercising its rights under the agreement, or those rights may be limited by other contractual agreements or obligations or by applicable law. Such an insolvency may result in a loss equal to the amount by which the value of the securities or other assets sold by the Fund exceeds the repurchase price payable by the Fund; if the value of the purchased securities or other assets increases during such a delay, that loss may also be increased. The Fund could lose money if it is unable to recover the securities or if the value of investments made by the Fund using the proceeds of the transaction is less than the value of securities.

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Secondary Listing Risk—***The Fund's Shares may be listed or traded on U.S. and non-U.S. stock exchanges other than the U.S. stock exchange where the Fund's primary listing is maintained. There can be no assurance that the Fund's Shares will continue to trade on any such stock exchange or in any market or that the Fund's Shares will continue to meet the requirements for listing or trading on any exchange or in any market. The Fund's Shares may be less actively traded in certain markets than in others, and investors are subject to the execution and settlement risks and market standards of the market where they or their broker direct their trades for execution. Certain information available to investors who trade Fund Shares on a U.S. stock exchange during regular U.S. market hours may not be available to investors who trade in other markets, which may result in secondary market prices in such markets being less efficient. Shares of the Fund may trade in the secondary market outside of the trading hours of the Fund's primary exchange. At such times, Shares may trade with more significant premiums or discounts than might be experienced otherwise.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Sector Risk***—To the extent the Fund focuses its investments in securities of issuers in one or more sectors (such as the financial services or telecommunications sectors), the Fund will be subject to a greater extent than if its investments were diversified across different sectors, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions and developments that may be particular to that sector, such as: adverse economic, business, political, environmental or other developments.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Short Position Risk—***The Fund may use derivatives, including options, futures and swaps, to implement short positions, and may engage in short selling. Taking short positions and short selling involve leverage of the Fund's assets and presents various risks. If the value of the instrument or market in which the Fund has taken a short position increases, then the Fund will incur a loss equal to the increase in value from the time that the short position was entered into plus any premiums and interest paid to a third party. Therefore, taking short positions involves the risk that losses may be exaggerated, potentially losing more money than the actual cost of the investment. Also, there is the risk that the counterparty to a short transaction may fail to honor its contract terms, causing a loss to the Fund.  |

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The Fund may make short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. In such transactions, the Fund sells a security it does not own (i.e., "naked" short) in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the security. Because selling securities that the Fund does not own exposes the Fund to the risks associated with those securities, naked shorts involve speculative exposure risk, and such transactions may increase the costs incurred by the Fund.

In order to sell an instrument short, the Fund must first borrow the instrument from a lender, such as a broker or other institution. The Fund may not always be able to borrow an instrument at a particular time or at an acceptable price. Thus, there is risk that the Fund may be unable to implement its investment strategy due to the lack of available instruments or for other reasons.

After selling a borrowed instrument, the Fund is then obligated to "cover" the short sale by purchasing and returning the instrument to the lender on a later date. The Fund cannot guarantee that the instrument necessary to cover a short position will be available for purchase at the time the Fund wishes to close a short position or, if available, that the instrument will be available at an acceptable price. If the borrowed instrument has appreciated in value, the Fund will be required to pay more for the replacement instrument than the amount it received for selling the instrument short. Moreover, purchasing an instrument to cover a short position can itself cause the price of the instrument to rise further, thereby exacerbating the loss. The potential loss on a short sale is unlimited because the loss increases as the price of the instrument sold short

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increases and the price may rise indefinitely. To the extent the Fund uses the proceeds it receives from a short position to take additional long positions, the risks associated with the short position, including leverage risks, may be heightened, because doing so increases the exposure of the Fund to the markets and therefore could magnify changes to the Fund's NAV. If the price of a borrowed instrument declines before the short position is covered, the Fund may realize a gain. The Fund's gain on a short sale, before transaction and other costs, is generally limited to the difference between the price at which it sold the borrowed instrument and the price it paid to purchase the instrument to return to the lender.

While the Fund has an open short position, it is subject to the risk that the instrument's lender will terminate the loan at a time when the Fund is unable to borrow the same instrument from another lender. If this happens, the Fund may be required to buy the replacement instrument immediately at the instrument's then current market price or "buy in" by paying the lender an amount equal to the cost of purchasing the instrument to close out the short position.

Short sales also involve other costs. The Fund must normally repay to the lender an amount equal to any dividends or interest that accrues while a loan is outstanding. In addition, to borrow an instrument, the Fund may be required to pay a premium. The Fund also will incur transaction costs in effecting short sales. The amount of any ultimate gain for the Fund resulting from a short sale will be decreased, and the amount of any ultimate loss will be increased, by the amount of premiums, dividends, interest or expenses the Fund may be required to pay in connection with the short sale.

Until the Fund replaces a borrowed instrument, the Fund may be required to maintain short sale proceeds with the lending broker as collateral. Moreover, the Fund will be required to make margin payments to the lender during the term of the borrowing if the value of the security it borrowed (and sold short) increases. Thus, short sales involve credit exposure to the broker that executes the short sales. In the event of the bankruptcy or other similar insolvency with respect to a broker with whom the Fund has an open short position, the Fund may be unable to recover, or delayed in recovering, any margin or other collateral held with or for the lending broker.

*Short Sales of TBA Securities Risk.* The Fund intends to make short sales of TBA securities. TBA transactions are forward agreements for the purchase or sale of securities, including Mortgage-Backed Securities, for a fixed price, with payment and delivery on an agreed upon future settlement date. The specific securities to be delivered are not identified at the trade date. However, delivered securities must meet specified terms, including, for TBA Mortgage-Backed Securities, issuer, rate and mortgage terms. Although most TBA short sale transactions are closed before the Fund would be required to deliver the security, if the Fund does not close the position, the Fund may have to purchase the securities required to be delivered at a higher price than anticipated, causing a loss to the Fund. The Fund may not always be able to purchase the securities required to settle a short at a particular time or at an attractive price.

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Sovereign Default Risk—***The issuer of non-U.S. sovereign debt held by the Fund or the governmental authorities that control the repayment of the debt may be unable or unwilling to repay the principal or interest when due. This may result from political or social factors, the general economic environment of a country or levels of borrowing rates, foreign debt, or foreign currency exchange rates.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Economic Risk***—The risks associated with the general economic environment of a country. These can encompass, among other things, low quality and growth rate of Gross Domestic Product ("GDP"), high inflation or deflation, high government deficits as a percentage of GDP, weak financial sector, overvalued exchange rate, and high current account deficits as a percentage of GDP.  |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Political Risk***—The risks associated with the general political and social environment of a country. These factors may include among other things government instability, poor socioeconomic conditions, corruption, lack of law and order, lack of democratic accountability, poor quality of the bureaucracy, internal and external conflict, the imposition of international sanctions, and religious and ethnic tensions. High political risk can impede the economic welfare of a country.  |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Repayment Risk***—A country may be unable to pay its external debt obligations in the immediate future. Repayment risk factors may include but are not limited to high foreign debt as a percentage of  |

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GDP, high borrowing rates (which may increase in market environments where interest rates are rising), high foreign debt service as a percentage of exports, low foreign exchange reserves as a percentage of short-term debt or exports, and an unsustainable exchange rate structure.

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Stock Risk—***Stock prices have historically risen and fallen in periodic cycles. U.S. and foreign stock markets have experienced periods of substantial price volatility in the past and may do so again in the future. Stock prices may fluctuate from time to time in response to the activities of individual companies and in response to general market and economic conditions. Individual companies may report poor results or be negatively affected by industry and/or economic trends and developments, and the stock prices of such companies may suffer a decline in response.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Trading Issues Risk***—With respect to an Acquiring Fund, trading in ETF shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the exchange, make trading in ETF shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in ETF shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange's "circuit breaker" rules. If a trading halt or unanticipated closing of the Exchange occurs, a shareholder may be unable to purchase or sell ETF shares. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund, including the required number of shareholders, will continue to be met or will remain unchanged, which may cause the Fund to be delisted from the Exchange. If the Fund were delisted from the Exchange, the value of the Fund may decline and performance may be negatively impacted. Any resulting liquidation of the Fund may cause the Fund to incur elevated transaction costs and result in negative tax consequences for its shareholders.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Risk—***The value of Treasury inflation-protected securities ("TIPS") generally fluctuates in response to inflationary concerns. As inflationary expectations increase, TIPS will become more attractive, because they protect future interest payments against inflation. Conversely, as inflationary concerns decrease, TIPS will become less attractive and less valuable. However, repayment of the face value upon maturity is guaranteed by the U.S. government, even during periods of deflation that cause the principal value of TIPS to decline. Nevertheless, if the Fund purchases TIPS in the secondary market, where principal values have been adjusted upward due to inflation since issuance, the Fund may experience a loss if there is a subsequent period of deflation. If inflation is lower than expected during the period the Fund holds a TIPS, the Fund may earn less on the security than on a conventional bond.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***U.S. Government Securities Risk—***The U.S. government may not provide financial support to U.S. government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obligated to do so by law. U.S. Government Securities issued by those agencies, instrumentalities and sponsored enterprises, including those issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks, are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and, therefore, are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The maximum potential liability of the issuers of some U.S. Government Securities held by the Fund may greatly exceed their current resources, including any legal right to support from the U.S. Treasury. It is possible that issuers of U.S. Government Securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been operating under conservatorship, with the Federal Housing Finance Agency ("FHFA") acting as their conservator, since September 2008. The entities are dependent upon the continued support of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and FHFA in order to continue their business operations. These factors, among others, could affect the future status and role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the value of their securities and the securities which they guarantee. Additionally, the U.S. government and its agencies and instrumentalities do not guarantee the market values of their securities, which may fluctuate.  |

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|:---|:---|
| ◾ | ***Valuation Risk***—The sale price the Fund could receive for a security may differ from the Fund's valuation of the security, particularly for securities that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. Because non-U.S. exchanges may be open on days when the Fund does not price its shares, the value of foreign securities or assets in the Fund's portfolio may change on days when  |

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investors will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund's shares. The Fund relies on various sources to calculate its NAV. The information may be provided by third parties that are believed to be reliable, but the information may not be accurate due to errors by such pricing sources, technological issues or otherwise. NAV calculation may also be impacted by operational risks arising from factors such as failures in systems and technology.

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**OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THE REORGANIZATIONS** 

**Final Distributions of the Acquired Funds** 

Each Plan provides for the transfer of all of the assets of the Acquired Fund to the corresponding Acquiring Fund in exchange for shares of the Acquiring Fund having an aggregate NAV equal to the value of the assets of the Acquired Fund attributable to the Acquired Fund shares on such date, less: (i) the value of cash distributed to Acquired Fund shareholders in lieu of fractional shares of the Acquiring Fund; (ii) the value of cash to be distributed to certain shareholders that do not establish a brokerage account as necessary to which shares of the Acquiring Fund can be transferred ("Cash-Out Shareholders"); and (iii) the value of the Acquired Fund shares of Acquired Fund shareholders whose Acquired Fund shares are held through a fund direct IRA ("IRA Shareholders"), which shall be exchanged for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the NAV of such Acquired Fund shares; and (iv) the value of the liabilities of the Acquired Fund attributable to those Acquired Fund shares.

To completely liquidate each Acquired Fund, the Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, will (a) distribute shares of the Acquiring Fund to its respective shareholders of record, other than IRA Shareholders, on a pro rata basis, with cash distributed in lieu of fractional shares; (b) with respect to IRA Shareholders, will initiate the exchange of Acquired Fund shares for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the NAV of such Acquired Fund shares held by such Acquired Fund shareholders; and (c) completely liquidate. If a shareholder holds Acquired Fund shares in an account directly with the Funds' Transfer Agent and does not act prior to the Closing Date of the Reorganization, the shareholder's investment will be liquidated and the shareholder will receive cash equal in value to the NAV of their Acquired Fund shares. Alternatively, if a shareholder holds their Acquired Fund shares through an account with a financial intermediary that is not able to hold shares of the Acquiring Fund, like many group retirement plans, a financial intermediary may transfer the shareholder's investment in such Acquired Fund to a different investment option prior to the Reorganization. In some cases, the return of cash or the transfer of your investment may be subject to fees and expenses and may also be subject to tax.

After shares of the applicable Acquiring Fund are distributed to an Acquired Fund's shareholders, the Acquired Fund will be completely liquidated and dissolved. As a result of the Reorganizations, you will cease to be a shareholder of your Acquired Fund and will become a shareholder of the corresponding Acquiring Fund. This exchange will occur on the Closing Date of the Reorganization, which is the specific date on which the Reorganization takes place. The expected Closing Date of the Reorganization is August 7, 2026.

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**CAPITALIZATION** 

The following table sets forth the capitalization of the Funds as of March 31, 2026. The table also sets forth the *pro forma* combined capitalization of each combined Fund as adjusted to give effect to the proposed Reorganization. If a Reorganization is consummated, the net assets, NAV per share and shares outstanding on the Closing Date will vary from the information below due to changes in the market value of the portfolio securities of the Acquired Funds between March 31, 2026 and the Closing Date, changes in the amount of undistributed net investment income and net realized capital gains of the Acquired Funds during that period resulting from income and distributions, and changes in the accrued liabilities of the Acquired Funds during the same period.

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Net Assets** | **Net Asset Value<br>Per Share** | **Shares<br>Outstanding** |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Class A Shares | $40242381 | $9.01 | 4466159 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Class C Shares | $2368600 | $9.00 | 263150 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Institutional Shares | $86544808 | $9.01 | 9607151 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Service Shares | $23198479 | $8.98 | 2583443 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Investor Shares | $68654 | $9.01 | 7623 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Class R Shares | $2921652 | $9.00 | 324561 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Class R6 Shares | $74113791 | $9.00 | 8230388 |
|  Goldman Sachs Bond Fund – Class P Shares | $133142571 | $9.00 | 14786209 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF<sup>1</sup> | N/A | N/A | N/A |
|  Adjustment<sup>2</sup> |  |  |  |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF (pro forma combined) | $362600936 | $50.00 | 7252019 |

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<sup>1</sup> The Acquiring Fund is expected to commence operations in August 10, 2026.

<sup>2</sup> The adjustment reflects fractional share redemptions and the adjustment to the number of shares outstanding is attributable to the Acquiring Fund's initial NAV. The Acquiring Fund is expected to launch at $50 NAV per share. 

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Net Assets** | **Net Asset Value<br>Per Share** | **Shares<br>Outstanding** |
|  Goldman Sachs Income Fund – Class A Shares | $1880989 | $9.23 | 203770 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income Fund – Class C Shares | $2368329 | $9.23 | 256697 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income Fund – Institutional Shares | $23225044 | $9.23 | 2517085 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income Fund – Investor Shares | $19103143 | $9.24 | 2067423 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income Fund – Class R6 Shares | $72676 | $9.23 | 7874 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income Fund – Class P Shares | $101944271 | $9.23 | 11045107 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF<sup>1</sup> | N/A | N/A | N/A |
|  Adjustment<sup>2</sup> |  |  |  |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF (pro forma combined) | $170535508.98 | $50.00 | 3410710.18 |

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<sup>1</sup> The Acquiring Fund is expected to commence operations in August 10, 2026.

<sup>2</sup> The adjustment reflects fractional share redemptions and the adjustment to the number of shares outstanding is attributable to the Acquiring Fund's initial NAV. The Acquiring Fund is expected to launch at $50 NAV per share. 

It is impossible to predict how many shares of the Acquiring Fund will actually be received and distributed by the Acquired Fund on the Closing Date. The table should not be relied upon to determine the amount of the Acquiring Fund shares that will actually be received and distributed.

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**TERMS OF THE AGREEMENTS AND PLANS OF REORGANIZATION AND LIQUIDATION** 

The description of the Plans contained herein includes the material provisions of the Plans, but this description is qualified in its entirety by the attached form copy of the Plans.

Acquired Fund shareholders who do not wish to have their Acquired Fund shares exchanged for shares of the Acquiring Fund as part of the Reorganization should consider redeeming their shares prior to the consummation of the Reorganization. If you redeem your shares, you may recognize a taxable gain or loss based on the difference between your tax basis in the shares and the amount you receive for them.

*Timing.* The Reorganization is scheduled to occur on or about [●], 2026 *(i.e.,* with respect to the applicable Reorganization, the Closing Date), but may occur on such earlier or later date as the parties agree in writing.

*Transfer and Valuation of the Assets.* Each Plan contemplates the transfer of all of the assets of the applicable Acquired Fund to the corresponding Acquiring Fund in exchange for shares of the Acquiring Fund having an aggregate NAV equal to the value of the assets of the Acquired Fund attributable to the Acquired Fund shares on such date, less: (i) the value of cash distributed to Acquired Fund shareholders in lieu of fractional shares of the Acquiring Fund; (ii) the value of cash to be distributed to Cash-Out Shareholders; and (iii) the value of the Acquired Fund shares of IRA Shareholders, which shall be exchanged for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the NAV of such Acquired Fund shares; and (iv) the value of the liabilities of the Acquired Fund attributable to those Acquired Fund shares, as of the time of valuation specified in the Plan. Each Acquired Fund would then distribute to its shareholders the portion of the Acquiring Fund shares to which each such shareholder is entitled. Thereafter, the Acquired Fund would be liquidated. All computations of value will be made by The Bank of New York ("BNY"), in its capacity as provider of administrative services for the Acquired Funds.

*Conditions to Closing the Reorganization.* The obligation of each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund to consummate the Reorganization is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including each Fund's performance of all of its obligations under the applicable Plan, the receipt of certain documents and financial statements from the Funds and the receipt of all consents, orders and permits necessary to consummate the Reorganization. The obligations of each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund are also subject to the receipt of an opinion of Dechert LLP as to the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Reorganization on the Acquired Fund, Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund shareholders that exchange their Acquired Fund shares for the Acquiring Fund shares.

*Termination of the Plan.* Each Plan may be terminated and the Reorganization may be abandoned by action of the Board at any time prior to the Closing Date, if circumstances should develop that, in the opinion of the Board, make proceeding with the Plan inadvisable.

*Cost of the Reorganization.* GSAM (or an affiliate) has agreed to pay the legal and other costs associated with each Fund's participation in the Reorganization. Brokerage fees and expenses related to the disposition and acquisition of assets of each Acquired Fund will be borne by the Acquired Fund.

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**MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES OF THE REORGANIZATIONS** 

**U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences of the Reorganizations** 

The following is a general summary of some of the important U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Reorganizations, and is based upon the current provisions of the Code, the existing U.S. Treasury Regulations thereunder, current administrative rulings of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") and published judicial decisions, all of which are subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect. These considerations are general in nature and apply with respect to Acquired Fund shareholders that exchange their Acquired Fund shares for Acquiring Fund shares. Individual shareholders should consult their own tax advisors as to the federal, state, local, and foreign tax considerations applicable to them and their individual circumstances. These same considerations generally do not apply to shareholders who hold their shares in a tax-advantaged account, such as an IRA or qualified retirement plan and to the IRA Shareholders whose Acquired Fund shares are exchanged for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund.

Each Reorganization is intended to be a tax-free "reorganization" within the meaning of section 368 of the Code for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As a condition to the consummation of each Reorganization, Dechert will deliver an opinion ("Tax Opinion") to the Acquired Fund Trust and the Acquiring Fund Trust to the effect that, based on the facts and assumptions stated therein (as well as certain representations made on behalf of each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund) and the existing U.S. federal income tax law, and conditioned on the Reorganization being completed in accordance with the Plan, for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The acquisition by the Acquiring Fund of all of the properties of the Acquired Fund in exchange solely for
Acquiring Fund shares and the assumption of all liabilities of the Acquired Fund by the Acquiring Fund followed by the distribution by the Acquired Fund of Acquiring Fund shares and cash in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund shares to the Acquired
Fund shareholders and cash to Cash-Out Shareholders in exchange for their Acquired Fund shares in complete liquidation and termination of the Acquired Fund will constitute a "reorganization"
within the meaning of section 368(a) of the Code. The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund each will be "a party to a reorganization" within the meaning of section 368(b) of the Code;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Acquired Fund will not recognize gain or loss upon the transfer of the Assets of the Acquired Fund to the
Acquiring Fund in exchange solely for the assumption of all the Acquired Fund's liabilities and the Acquiring Fund shares, except that the Acquired Fund may be required to recognize gain or loss with respect to contracts described in
section 1256(b) of the Code or stock in a passive foreign investment company, as defined in section 1297(a) of the Code;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Acquired Fund will not recognize gain or loss upon the distribution to the Acquired Fund shareholders of the
Acquiring Fund shares received by , the Acquired Fund in the Reorganization;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Acquiring Fund will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving the assets of the Acquired Fund in exchange
solely for the assumption of all liabilities of the Acquired Fund and the issuance of the Acquiring Fund shares.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Acquired Fund shareholders will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving Acquiring Fund shares solely in
exchange for the Acquired Fund shares (except with respect to cash received in lieu of fractional shares, if any);

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The aggregate basis of the Acquiring Fund shares received by the Acquired Fund shareholder in the Reorganization
will be the same as the aggregate basis of the Acquired Fund shares exchanged in the Reorganization (reduced by any amount of tax basis allocable to fractional shares for which cash is received);

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• An Acquired Fund shareholder's holding period for the Acquiring Fund shares received by the Acquired Fund
shareholder in the Reorganization will include the holding period during which the

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Acquired Fund shareholder held the Acquired Fund shares surrendered in exchange therefor, provided that the Acquired Fund shareholder held the shares as a capital asset on the date of Reorganization;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The tax basis of the assets of the Acquired Fund acquired by the Acquiring Fund will be the same as the tax basis
of such assets to the Acquired Fund immediately prior to the Reorganization;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The holding period of the Assets of the Acquired Fund in the hands of the Acquiring Fund will include the period
during which those assets were held by the Acquired Fund; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Acquired Fund's tax attributes enumerated in section 381(c) of the Code will be taken into account
by the Acquiring Fund without limitation.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, no opinion will be expressed as to the tax consequences of the Reorganizations on contracts or securities on which gain or loss is recognized upon the transfer of an asset regardless of whether such transfer would otherwise be a nonrecognition transaction under the Code and as to the IRA Shareholders exchanging their Acquired Fund shares for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund. None of the Funds have requested or will request an advance ruling from the IRS as to the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Reorganizations.

A Tax Opinion is not binding on the IRS or the courts and is not a guarantee that the tax consequences of a Reorganization will be as described above. If a Reorganization were consummated but the IRS or the courts were to determine that the Reorganization did not qualify as a tax-free reorganization under the Code, and thus was taxable, the Acquired Fund would recognize gain or loss on the transfer of its assets to the corresponding Acquiring Fund, and each shareholder of the Acquired Fund that held shares in a taxable account would recognize a taxable gain or loss equal to the difference between its tax basis in the Acquired Fund shares and the fair market value of the shares of the corresponding Acquiring Fund it received.

The tax year of each Acquired Fund is expected to continue with its corresponding Acquiring Fund, and the capital gains, if any, resulting from portfolio turnover (including sales of securities to fund shareholder redemptions, if any) prior to its Reorganization, if not distributed prior to such Reorganization, will be carried over to the corresponding Acquiring Fund. If the Reorganization were to end the tax year of an Acquired Fund (which is not the intended or expected plan as of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus), it would accelerate distributions to shareholders from the Acquired Fund for its short tax year ending on the Closing Date. Such distributions may be taxable and would include any capital gains resulting from portfolio turnover prior to the Reorganization. Even if its tax year is expected to continue with the corresponding Acquiring Fund, the Acquired Fund expects to declare a distribution to shareholders, which together with all previous distributions, will have the effect of distributing to shareholders all of its investment company taxable income (computed without regard to the deduction for dividends paid), net tax-exempt income, if any, through the closing of the Reorganization. The foregoing distributions, regardless of whether distributed before or after the Reorganization, may be taxable, and would include capital gains from securities sales by the Acquired Fund prior to the Reorganization.

*General Limitation on Losses.* Assuming the Reorganization qualifies as a tax-free reorganization, as expected, an Acquiring Fund will succeed to the tax attributes of the corresponding Acquired Fund upon the closing of the Reorganization, including any capital loss carryovers that could have been used by the Acquired Fund to offset its future realized capital gains, if any, for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Capital losses of an Acquired Fund, if any, may be carried forward indefinitely to offset future capital gains.

If, as is anticipated, at the time of the closing of the Reorganization, an Acquiring Fund has either no assets or *de minimis* assets incident to its organization, there will be no change of ownership of the corresponding Acquired Fund as a result of the Reorganization. Thus, the Reorganization of an Acquired Fund into the corresponding Acquiring Fund is not expected to result in any limitation on the future use by the Acquiring Fund of the Acquired Fund's capital loss carryovers, if any. However, the capital losses of an Acquiring Fund, as the

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successor in interest to the corresponding Acquired Fund, may subsequently become subject to an annual limitation as a result of sales of the Acquiring Fund shares or other reorganization transactions in which the Acquiring Fund might engage post-Reorganization.

The foregoing description of the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Reorganizations applies generally to shareholders who are not tax-exempt investors and does not take into account your particular facts and circumstances. Consult your own tax advisor about the effect of state, local, foreign, and other tax laws because this discussion only relates to U.S. federal income tax laws.

**U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences of an Investment in the Acquiring Fund** 

As with any investment, you should consider how your investment in the Acquiring Fund will be taxed. The tax information below is provided as general information. More tax information is available in the Statement of Additional Information. You should consult your tax adviser about the federal, state, local or foreign tax consequences of your investment in the Acquiring Fund. Except as otherwise noted, the tax information provided assumes that you are a U.S. citizen or resident.

Unless your investment is through an IRA or other tax-advantaged account, you should carefully consider the possible tax consequences of the Acquiring Fund distributions and the sale of your Acquiring Fund shares.

***Distributions***

Each Acquiring Fund contemplates declaring as dividends each year all substantially all of its taxable income. Distributions you receive from an Acquiring Fund are generally subject to U.S. federal income tax and may also be subject to state or local taxes. This is true whether you reinvest your distributions in additional Acquiring Fund shares or receive them in cash. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, an Acquiring Fund's distributions attributable to net investment income and short-term capital gains are taxable to you as ordinary income while distributions of long-term capital gains are taxable to you as long-term capital gains, no matter how long you have owned your Acquiring Fund shares.

Under current provisions of the Code, the maximum individual rate applicable to long-term capital gains is generally either 15% or 20%, depending on whether the individual's income exceeds certain threshold amounts. The Acquiring Fund distributions to non-corporate shareholders attributable to dividends received by an Acquiring Fund from U.S. and certain qualified foreign corporations will be reported as subject to the long-term capital gain rate as long as certain holding period and other requirements are met. For these lower rates to apply, if any such dividends are so reported, the non-corporate shareholder must own their Acquiring Fund shares for at least 61 days during the 121-day period beginning 60 days before an Acquiring Fund's ex-dividend date. Distributions by the Acquiring Fund are not anticipated to be eligible for a lower tax rate applicable to a qualified dividend income.

Distributions in excess of an Acquiring Fund's current and accumulated earnings and profits are treated as a tax-free return of your investment to the extent of your basis in the shares, and generally as capital gain thereafter. An Acquiring Fund expects that a significant portion of its distributions will be treated as nontaxable return of capital. A return of capital, which for tax purposes is treated as a return of your investment, reduces your basis in shares, thus reducing any loss or increasing any gain on a subsequent taxable disposition of shares. If your basis in the shares is reduced to zero, future returns of capital would be taxable to you as capital gain. A distribution will reduce an Acquiring Fund's NAV per share and may be taxable to you as ordinary income or capital gain even though, from an economic standpoint, the distribution may constitute a return of capital.

An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from an Acquiring Fund and net gains from redemptions or other taxable dispositions of Acquiring Fund shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person's "modified adjusted gross income" (in the case of an individual) or "adjusted gross income" (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds certain threshold amounts.

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Although distributions are generally treated as taxable to you in the year they are paid, distributions declared in October, November or December but paid in January are taxable as if they were paid in December. A percentage of an Acquiring Fund's dividends paid to corporate shareholders may be eligible for the corporate dividends-received deduction. Distributions by the Acquiring Fund are not anticipated to be eligible for a dividend received deduction for corporate shareholders. The character and tax status of all distributions will be available to shareholders after the close of each calendar year.

An Acquiring Fund may be subject to foreign withholding or other foreign taxes on income or gain from certain foreign securities. In general, an Acquiring Fund may deduct these taxes when computing its taxable income.

If you buy shares of an Acquiring Fund before it makes a distribution, the distribution will be taxable to you even though it may actually be a return of a portion of your investment. This is known as "buying into a dividend."

***Taxes on Creations and Redemptions of Creation Units***

A person who exchanges securities for Creation Units generally will recognize a gain or loss. The gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time of exchange and the sum of the exchanger's aggregate basis in the securities surrendered and the amount of any cash paid for such Creation Units. A person who exchanges Creation Units for securities will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the exchanger's basis in the Creation Units and the sum of the aggregate market value of the securities received. The Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS"), however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of primarily securities for Creation Units cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing "wash sales," or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position. Persons exchanging securities for Creation Units or redeeming Creation Units should consult their own tax adviser with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss might be deductible and the tax treatment of any creation or redemption transaction.

Under current U.S. federal income tax laws, any capital gain or loss realized upon a redemption (or creation) of Creation Units is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares (or securities surrendered) have been held for more than one year and as a short-term capital gain or loss if the Shares (or securities surrendered) have been held for one year or less.

***Sales of Acquiring Fund Shares***

Your sale of an Acquiring Fund's shares is a taxable transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and may also be subject to state and local taxes. When you sell your shares, you will generally recognize a capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between your adjusted tax basis in the Shares and the amount received. Generally, this capital gain or loss is long-term or short-term depending on whether your holding period exceeds one year, except that any loss realized on Shares held for six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any long-term capital gain dividends that were received on the Shares. Additionally, any loss realized on a sale, exchange or redemption of shares of an Acquiring Fund may be disallowed under "wash sale" rules to the extent the shares disposed of are replaced with other shares of that Acquiring Fund within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the date of disposition (such as pursuant to a dividend reinvestment in shares of the Acquiring Fund). If disallowed, the loss will be reflected in an adjustment to the basis of the shares acquired.

***Other Information***

You may be subject to backup withholding at a rate of 24% with respect to taxable distributions if you do not provide your correct taxpayer identification number, or certify that it is correct, or if you have been notified by the IRS that you are subject to backup withholding.

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Non-U.S. investors are generally subject to U.S. withholding tax and may be subject to estate tax with respect to their Acquiring Fund shares. However, withholding is generally not required on properly reported distributions to non-U.S. investors of long-term capital gains. Non-U.S. investors generally are not subject to U.S. federal income tax withholding on certain distributions of interest income and/or short-term capital gains that are reported by an Acquiring Fund. It is expected that an Acquiring Fund will generally make reports of short-term gains, to the extent permitted, but the Acquiring Fund does not intend to report any distributions attributable to interest income. Therefore, all distributions of interest income will be subject to withholding when paid to non-U.S. investors.

Withholding of U.S. tax (at a 30% rate) is required with respect to payments of taxable dividends made to certain non-U.S. entities that fail to comply (or be deemed compliant) with extensive reporting and withholding requirements designed to inform the U.S. Department of the Treasury of U.S.-owned foreign investment accounts. Shareholders may be requested to provide additional information to enable the applicable withholding agent to determine whether withholding is required.

Reporting to you and the IRS is required annually on Form 1099-B not only with respect to the gross proceeds of Acquiring Fund shares you sell or redeem but also their cost basis. Shareholders should contact their intermediaries with respect to reporting of cost basis and available elections with respect to their accounts. You should carefully review the cost basis information provided by the applicable intermediary and make any additional basis, holding period or other adjustments that are required when reporting these amounts on your U.S. federal income tax returns.

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**CHARTER DOCUMENTS OF GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST** 

Each Acquiring Fund is a series of the Acquiring Fund Trust, an open-end management investment company. The Acquiring Fund Trust is organized as a Delaware statutory trust and was established by an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated December 16, 2009. Accordingly, the operations of each Acquiring Fund are governed by the Acquiring Fund Trust's Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust and By-Laws, each as amended. The operations of each Acquiring Fund are also governed by applicable Delaware law and are subject to the provisions of the 1940 Act and the roles and regulations of the SEC thereunder.

Each Acquired Fund is a series of the Acquired Fund Trust, a Delaware statutory trust established by an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated January 28, 1997. Accordingly, the operations of the Acquired Fund are governed by the Acquired Fund Trust's Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust and By-Laws, each as amended. The operations of each Acquired Fund are also governed by applicable Delaware law and are subject to the provisions of the 1940 Act and the roles and regulations of the SEC thereunder.

The following is a summary of certain important differences between the organizational documents governing the Acquired Funds and the Acquiring Funds. It is not a complete description of these governing documents. In many instances, shareholders of the Acquired Funds will have the same or similar rights as shareholders of the Acquiring Funds. The organizational documents of the Acquiring Fund Trust and Acquired Fund Trust contain certain procedural differences with respect to record dates and notice of shareholder meetings, with the Acquiring Fund Trust permitted to set a record date up to 120 days before a meeting (as compared to 90 for the Acquired Fund Trust) and allowed more flexibility as to the timing of the required notice. The Acquiring Fund Trust also has more flexibility than the Acquired Fund Trust to amend its Declaration of Trust without shareholder approval. In addition, the organizational documents for the Acquiring Fund Trust, unlike those for the Acquired Fund Trust, contain a requirement for shareholders to make a pre-suit demand prior to bringing a derivative action. For more information, shareholders should review the applicable governing documents in their entirety.

**Shareholder Voting Powers and Meetings** 

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| Notice of Shareholder Meetings | Goldman Sachs ETF Trust | The Secretary or an Assistant Secretary shall call a meeting of Shareholders by order pursuant to Section 2.2 of the By-Laws by giving written notice of the place (including that the meeting will be held by remote communication, as applicable), date and hour, and general nature of the business to be transacted at that meeting not less than ten (10) days (or such other number of days as the Board of Trustees shall determine in its sole discretion) before the date of the meeting, to each Shareholder entitled to vote at such meeting. (By-laws) |
|  | Goldman Sachs Trust | Notice of all meetings of the Shareholders, stating the time, place (including that the meeting will be held by remote communication, as applicable) and purposes of the meeting, shall be given by the Trustees by mail or telegraphic or electronic means to each Shareholder at his address as recorded on the register of the Trust mailed at least (10) days and not more than ninety (90) days before the meeting. (By-laws) |
| Record Date | Goldman Sachs ETF Trust | The Trustees may fix in advance a date up to one hundred and twenty (120) days (or such other number of days as the Board of Trustees shall determine in its sole discretion) before the date of any Shareholders' meeting as a record date for the |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  |  | determination of the Shareholders entitled to notice of, and to vote at, any such meeting (subject to the provisions of Section 6.2(e) of the Declaration of Trust with respect to redeemed Shares). Subject to the provisions of Section 6.2(e) of the Declaration of Trust with respect to redeemed Shares, the Shareholders of record entitled to vote at a Shareholders' meeting shall be deemed the Shareholders of record at any meeting that has been postponed or reconvened after one or more adjournments, unless the Trustees have fixed a new record date. (By-laws) |
|  | Goldman Sachs Trust | The Trustees may fix in advance a date up to ninety (90) days before the date of any Shareholders' meeting, or the date for the payment of any dividends or other distributions, or the date for the allotment of rights, or the date when any change or conversion or exchange of Shares shall go into effect as a record date for the determination of the Shareholders entitled to notice of, and to vote at, any such meeting, or entitled to receive payment of such dividend or other distribution, or to receive any such allotment of rights, or to exercise such rights in respect of any such change, conversion or exchange of Shares. (Declaration of Trust) For the purpose of determining the Shareholders who are entitled to notice of and to vote at any meeting, or to participate in any distribution, or for the purpose of any other action, the Trustees may from time to time close the transfer books for such period, not exceeding thirty (30) days, as the Trustees may determine; or without closing the transfer books the Trustees may fix a date not more than ninety (90) days prior to the date of any meeting of Shareholders or distribution or other action as a record date for the determination of the persons to be treated as Shareholders of record for such purposes, except for dividend payments which shall be governed by the Declaration. (By-laws) |
| Derivative Actions | Goldman Sachs ETF Trust | The Shareholder or Shareholders must make a pre-suit demand upon the Trustees to bring the subject action unless an effort to cause the Trustees to bring such an action is not likely to succeed. For purposes of this Section 8.9(a), a demand on the Trustees shall only be deemed not likely to succeed and therefore excused if a majority of the Board of Trustees, or a majority of any committee established to consider the merits of such action, is composed of Trustees who are not "independent trustees" (as that term is defined in the Delaware Act). (Declaration of Trust) For purposes of this Section 8.9, the Board of Trustees may designate a committee of one Trustee to consider a Shareholder demand if necessary to create a committee with a majority of Trustees who are "independent trustees" (as that term is defined in the Delaware Act). |
|  |  | The Trustees shall be entitled to retain counsel or other advisors in considering the merits of the request and may require an undertaking by the Shareholders making such request to reimburse the Trust for the expense of any such advisors in the event that the Trustees determine not to bring such action. (Declaration of Trust) |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | Goldman Sachs Trust | While there are certain provisions regarding derivative suits, there are no provisions that correspond specifically to these provisions. |
| Amendments to the Declaration of Trust | Goldman Sachs ETF Trust | This Declaration of Trust may be restated and/or amended at any time by (i) an instrument in writing signed by a majority of the Trustees then holding office or (ii) adoption by a majority of the Trustees then holding office of a resolution specifying the restatement and/or amendment. Any such restatement and/or amendment hereto shall be effective immediately upon such execution or adoption. No vote or consent of any Shareholder shall be required for any amendment to this Declaration of Trust except (i) as determined by the Trustees in their sole discretion or (ii) as required by federal law, including the 1940 Act, but only to the extent so required. (Declaration of Trust) |
|  | Goldman Sachs Trust | The Trustees may, without any Shareholder vote, amend or otherwise supplement this Declaration by making an amendment, a Declaration of Trust supplemental hereto or an amended and restated trust instrument; provided, that Shareholders shall have the right to vote on any amendment (a) which would adversely affect the voting rights of Shareholders granted in Article VII, Section 1, (b) to this Section 8, (c) required to be approved by Shareholders by law or by the Trust's registration statement(s) filed with the Commission, and (d) submitted to them by the Trustees in their discretion. (Declaration of Trust) |

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**FUNDAMENTAL INVESTMENT POLICIES OF THE FUNDS** 

The fundamental investment policies of each Acquiring Fund and the corresponding Acquired Fund have no material differences. For the purpose of this section, "the Fund" refers to each Acquiring Fund and the corresponding Acquired Fund and "the Trust" refers to each of the Acquired Fund Trust and Acquiring Fund Trust.

The investment restrictions set forth below have been adopted by the Trust as fundamental policies that cannot be changed with respect to the Fund without the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund. The investment objective of the Fund and all other investment policies or practices of the Fund are considered by the Trust not to be fundamental and accordingly may be changed without shareholder approval. For purposes of the 1940 Act, a "majority" of the outstanding voting securities means the lesser of (i) 67% or more of the shares of the Trust or the Fund present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Trust or the Fund are present or represented by proxy, or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Trust or the Fund.

For purposes of the following limitations (except for the asset coverage requirement with respect to borrowings, which is subject to different requirements under the 1940 Act), any limitation which involves a maximum percentage shall not be considered violated unless an excess over the percentage occurs immediately after, and is caused by, an acquisition or encumbrance of securities or assets of, or borrowings by, the Fund. With respect to the Goldman Sachs Income Fund, in applying fundamental investment restriction number (1) below to derivative transactions or instruments, including, but not limited to, futures, swaps, forwards, options and structured notes, the Fund will look to the industry of the reference asset(s) and not to the counterparty or issuer. With respect to the Fund's fundamental investment restriction number (2) below, in the event that asset coverage (as defined in the 1940 Act) at any time falls below 300%, the Fund, within three days thereafter (not including Sundays and holidays) or such longer period as the SEC may prescribe by rules and regulations, will reduce the amount of its borrowings to the extent required so that the asset coverage of such borrowings will be at least 300%.

The Fund may, notwithstanding any other fundamental investment restriction or policy, invest some or all of its assets in a single open-end investment company or series thereof with substantially the same fundamental investment restrictions and policies as the Fund.

**<u>Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF</u>**

**Fundamental Investment Restrictions** 

As a matter of fundamental policy, the Fund may not:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1) Invest more than 25% of its total assets in the securities of one or more issuers conducting their principal
business activities in the same industry (excluding the U.S. Government or its agencies or instrumentalities). (For the purposes of this restriction, state and municipal governments and their agencies, authorities and instrumentalities are not
deemed to be industries; telephone companies are considered to be a separate industry from water, gas or electric utilities; personal credit finance companies and business credit finance companies are deemed to be separate industries; and
wholly-owned finance companies are considered to be in the industry of their parents if their activities are primarily related to financing the activities of their parents.) This restriction does not apply to investments in Municipal Securities
which have been pre-refunded by the use of obligations of the U.S. Government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities. These Municipal Securities include (a) Municipal Securities, the interest on
which is paid solely from revenues of similar projects such as hospitals, electric utility systems, multi-family housing, nursing homes, commercial facilities (including hotels), steel companies or life care facilities; (b) Municipal Securities
whose issuers are in the same state; and (c) industrial development obligations;

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(2) Borrow money, except (a) the Fund may borrow from banks (as defined in the 1940 Act) or through reverse
repurchase agreements in amounts up to 33-1/3% of its total assets (including the amount borrowed); (b) the Fund may, to the extent permitted by applicable law, borrow up to an additional 5% of its total
assets for temporary purposes; (c) the Fund may obtain such short-term credits as may be necessary for the clearance of purchases and sales of portfolio securities; (d) the Fund may purchase securities on margin to the extent permitted by
applicable law; and (e) the Fund may engage in transactions in mortgage dollar rolls which are accounted for as financings;

The following interpretation applies to, but is not part of, this fundamental policy: In determining whether a particular investment in portfolio instruments or participation in portfolio transactions is subject to this borrowing policy, the accounting treatment of such instrument or participation shall be considered, but shall not by itself be determinative. Whether a particular instrument or transaction constitutes a borrowing shall be determined by the Board, after consideration of all of the relevant circumstances;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(3) Make loans, except through (a) the purchase of debt obligations in accordance with the Fund's
investment objective and policies; (b) repurchase agreements with banks, brokers, dealers and other financial institutions; and (c) loans of securities as permitted by applicable law;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(4) Underwrite securities issued by others, except to the extent that the sale of portfolio securities by the Fund
may be deemed to be an underwriting;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(5) Purchase, hold or deal in real estate (including real estate limited partnerships) or oil, gas or mineral
leases, although the Fund may purchase and sell securities that are secured by real estate or interests therein, may purchase mortgage-related securities and may hold and sell real estate acquired by the Fund as a result of the ownership of
securities;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(6) Invest in commodities or commodity contracts, except that the Fund may invest in currency and financial
instruments and contracts that are commodities or commodity contracts;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(7) Issue senior securities to the extent such issuance would violate applicable law; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(8) Make any investment inconsistent with the Fund's classification as a diversified company under the 1940
Act.

**<u>Goldman Sachs Income Fund and Goldman Sachs Income ETF</u>**

**Fundamental Investment Restrictions** 

As a matter of fundamental policy, the Fund may not:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1) Invest more than 25% of its total assets in the securities of one or more issuers conducting their principal
business activities in the same industry (for the purposes of this restriction, the U.S. Government, state and municipal governments and their agencies, authorities and instrumentalities are not deemed to be industries);

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(2) Borrow money, except as permitted by the Act, or interpretations or modifications by the SEC, SEC staff or
other authority with appropriate jurisdiction.

The following interpretation applies to, but is not part of, this fundamental policy: In determining whether a particular investment in portfolio instruments or participation in portfolio transactions is subject to this borrowing policy, the accounting treatment of such instrument or participation shall be considered, but shall not by itself be determinative. Whether a particular instrument or transaction constitutes a borrowing shall be determined by the Board, after consideration of all of the relevant circumstances;

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(3) Make loans, except through (a) the purchase of debt obligations, loan interests and other interests or
obligations in accordance with the Fund's investment objective and policies; (b) repurchase agreements with banks, brokers, dealers and other financial institutions; (c) loans of securities as permitted by applicable law or pursuant
to an exemptive order granted under the Act; and (d) loans to affiliates of the Fund to the extent permitted by law;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(4) Underwrite securities issued by others, except to the extent that the sale of portfolio securities by the Fund
may be deemed to be an underwriting;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(5) Purchase, hold or deal in real estate, although the Fund may purchase and sell securities that are secured by
real estate or interests therein or that reflect the return of an index of real estate values, securities of issuers which invest or deal in real estate, securities of real estate investment trusts and mortgage-related securities and may hold and
sell real estate it has acquired as a result of the ownership of securities;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(6) Invest in physical commodities, except that the Fund may invest in currency and financial instruments and
contracts in accordance with its investment objective and policies, including, without limitation, structured notes, futures contracts, swaps, options on commodities, currencies, swaps and futures, ETFs, investment pools and other instruments,
regardless of whether such instrument is considered to be a commodity; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(7) Issue senior securities to the extent such issuance would violate applicable law.

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**ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS** 

**Other Investment Practices and Securities** 

The following tables identify some of the investment techniques that may (but are not required to) be used by the Funds in seeking to achieve their investment objectives. The tables also highlight the similarities between each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund in their use of these techniques and other investment practices and investment securities. Numbers in these tables show allowable usage only; for actual usage, consult the Funds' Form N-CSR. For more information about these and other investment practices and securities, see *Exhibit B.*

*Each Acquiring Fund* 

On each business day, before commencement of trading in Fund shares on the Exchange, the Fund will disclose on its website (am.gs.com) the identities and quantities of the portfolio securities and other assets held by the Fund that will form the basis for the Fund's calculation of NAV at the end of the business day. In addition, a description of the Fund's policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund's portfolio holdings is available in the Statement of Additional Information.

*Each Acquired Fund* 

The Fund publishes on its website (am.gs.com) complete portfolio holdings as of the end of each calendar quarter subject to a 60 day lag between the date of the information and the date on which the information is disclosed. The Fund may, however, at its discretion, publish its holdings earlier than 60 calendar days, if deemed necessary by the Fund. In addition, the Fund publishes on its website certain month-end holdings information (month-end top ten holdings) subject to a fifteen calendar-day lag between the date of the information and the date on which the information is disclosed. In addition, a description of the Fund's policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund's portfolio holdings is available in the Fund's SAI.

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**<u>Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF</u>**

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|:---|:---|
| *10* | *Percent of total assets (including securities lending collateral) (italic type)*  |

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|:---|:---|
| 10 | Percent of net assets (excluding borrowings for investment purposes) (roman type)  |

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• No specific percentage limitation on usage; limited only by the objectives and strategies of the Fund

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| | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Bond<br>Fund** | **Bond<br>Fund** | **Core Plus<br>Bond ETF** | **Core Plus<br>Bond ETF** |  |
|  **Investment Practices** |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Borrowings | *<sub></sub>* | *33<sup>1</sup>/<sub>3</sub>* | *<sub></sub>* | *33<sup>1</sup>/<sub>3</sub>* | *<sub></sub>* |
|  Credit, Currency, Interest Rate, Total Return and Mortgage Swaps and Options on Swaps |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Cross Hedging of Currencies |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Custodial Receipts and Trust Certificates |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Foreign Currency Transactions |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Futures Contracts and Options and Swaps on Futures Contracts |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Illiquid Investments\* |  | 15 |  | 15 |  |
|  Interest Rate Floors, Caps and Collars | | *•* | | *•* | |
|  Investment Company Securities (including ETFs)\*\* |  | 10 |  | 10 |  |
|  Mortgage Dollar Rolls |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Options<sup>1</sup> |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Options on Foreign Currencies<sup>2</sup> |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Repurchase Agreements | | *•* | | *•* | |
|  Reverse Repurchase Agreements |  | • |  | • |  |
|  Short Sales<sup>3</sup> |  | • |  | • |  |
|  When-Issued Securities and Forward Commitments |  | • |  | • |  |

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<sup>\*</sup> Illiquid investments are any investments that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment.

\*\* This percentage limitation does not apply to the Fund's investments in investment companies (including ETFs) where a higher percentage limitation is permitted under the Investment Company Act or rules, regulations or exemptive relief thereunder. 

1 The Fund may purchase and sell call and put options on securities and securities indices in which they may invest.

2 The Fund may purchase and sell call and put options on foreign currencies.

3 The Fund may engage in short selling of physical securities that they do not own.

------

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| *10* | *Percent of total assets (italic type)*  |

---

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| 10 | Percent of net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) (roman type)  |

---

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• No specific percentage limitation on usage; limited only by the objectives and strategies of the Fund

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Bond<br>Fund** | **Core Plus<br>Bond ETF** |
|  **Investment Securities** |  |  |
|  Asset-Backed Securities | • | • |
|  Bank Obligations | • | • |
|  Collateralized Loan Obligations | • | • |
|  Convertible Securities | • | • |
|  Corporate Debt Obligations and Trust Preferred Securities | • | • |
|  Emerging Country Securities | *15* | *15* |
|  Floating and Variable Rate Obligations | • | • |
|  Foreign Securities<sup>1</sup> | • | • |
|  Inflation Protected Securities | • | • |
|  Loan Participations and Loan Assignments | • | • |
|  Mortgage-Related Securities |  |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Adjustable Rate Mortgage Loans | • | • |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Collateralized Mortgage Obligations | • | • |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Fixed Rate Mortgage Loans | • | • |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Government Issued Mortgage-Backed Securities | • | • |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Multiple Class Mortgage-Backed Securities | • | • |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Privately Issued Mortgage-Backed Securities | • | • |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities | • | • |
|  Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities | *25* | *25* |
|  Preferred Stock, Warrants and Rights | • | • |
|  Structured Securities (which may include credit linked notes)<sup>2</sup> | • | • |
|  Taxable Municipal Securities | • | • |
|  Tax-Free Municipal Securities | • | • |
|  Temporary Investments | • | • |
|  U.S. Government Securities | • | • |
|  Yield Curve Options and Inverse Floating Rate Securities | • | • |
|  Zero Coupon, Deferred Interest, Pay-In-Kind and Capital Appreciation Bond | • | • |

---

1 Includes issuers domiciled in one country and issuing securities denominated in the currency of another.

2 Structured securities are not subject to the same minimum credit quality requirement as the Fund's investments in fixed income securities.

------

**<u>Goldman Sachs Income Fund and Goldman Sachs Income ETF</u>**

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| *10* | *Percent of total assets (including securities lending collateral) (italic type)*  |

---

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| 10 | Percent of net assets (excluding borrowings for investment purposes) (roman type)  |

---

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• No specific percentage limitation on usage; limited only by the objectives and strategies of the Fund

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Income<br>Fund** | **Income<br>ETF** |
|  **Investment Practices** |  |  |
|  Borrowings | *33<sup>1</sup>/<sub>3</sub>* | *33<sup>1</sup>/<sub>3</sub>* |
|  Credit, Currency, Interest Rate, Total Return and Mortgage Swaps and Options on Swaps | • | • |
|  Cross Hedging of Currencies | • | • |
|  Custodial Receipts and Trust Certificates | • | • |
|  Direct Equity Investments | 10 | 10 |
|  Foreign Currency Transactions | • | • |
|  Futures Contracts and Options and Swaps on Futures Contracts | • | • |
|  Illiquid Investments\* | 15 | 15 |
|  Interest Rate Floors, Caps and Collars | • | • |
|  Investment Company Securities (including ETFs)\*\* | *10* | *10* |
|  Mortgage Dollar Rolls | • | • |
|  Options<sup>1</sup> | • | • |
|  Options on Foreign Currencies<sup>2</sup> | • | • |
|  Repurchase Agreements | • | • |
|  Reverse Repurchase Agreements | • | • |
|  Short Sales<sup>3</sup> | • | • |
|  When-Issued Securities and Forward Commitments | • | • |

---

<sup>\*</sup> Limited investments are any investments that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment.

\*\* This percentage limitation does not apply to the Fund's investments in investment companies (including ETFs) where a higher percentage limitation is permitted under the Investment Company Act or rules, regulations or exemptive relief thereunder. 

1 The Fund may purchase and sell call and put options on securities and securities indices in which they may invest.

2 The Fund may purchase and sell call and put options on foreign currencies.

3 The Fund may engage in short selling of physical securities that they do not own.

------

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| *10* | *Percent of total assets (italic type)*  |

---

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| 10 | Percent of net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) (roman type)  |

---

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• No specific percentage limitation on usage; limited only by the objectives and strategies of the Fund

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Income<br>Fund** | **Income<br>Fund** |  | **Income<br>ETF** | **Income<br>ETF** |  |
|  **Investment Securities** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Asset-Backed Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Bank Obligations |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Collateralized Loan Obligations |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Convertible Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Corporate Debt Obligations and Trust Preferred Securities |  | • | <sup>1</sup> |  | • | <sup>1</sup> |
|  Emerging Country Securities |  | *35* |  |  | *35* |  |
|  Equity Investments |  | *10* |  |  | *10* |  |
|  Floating and Variable Rate Obligations |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Foreign Government Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Foreign Securities<sup>2</sup> |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Inflation Protected Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Loan Participations and Loan Assignments |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Mortgage-Related Securities |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Adjustable Rate Mortgage Loans |  | • |  |  | • |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Collateralized Mortgage Obligations |  | • |  |  | • |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Fixed Rate Mortgage Loans |  | • |  |  | • |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Government Issued Mortgage-Backed Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Multiple Class Mortgage-Backed Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Privately Issued Mortgage-Backed Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
| &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Preferred Stock, Warrants and Rights | | *10* | | | *10* | |
|  Structured Securities (which may include credit linked notes)<sup>3</sup> |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Taxable Municipal Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Tax-Free Municipal Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Temporary Investments |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  U.S. Government Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Yield Curve Options and Inverse Floating Rate Securities |  | • |  |  | • |  |
|  Zero Coupon, Deferred Interest, Pay-In-Kind and Capital Appreciation Bond |  | • |  |  | • |  |

---

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| 1 | The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Total Assets in privately issued corporate debt securities and other obligations issued by private companies, including privately issued credit obligations and related instruments.  |

---

2 Includes issuers domiciled in one country and issuing securities denominated in the currency of another.

3 Structured securities are not subject to the same minimum credit quality requirement as the Fund's investments in fixed income securities.

**Investment Adviser** 

GSAM has been registered as an investment adviser with the SEC since 1990 and is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and an affiliate of Goldman Sachs. Founded in 1869, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is a publicly-held financial holding company and a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm. As of December 31, 2025, GSAM, including its investment advisory affiliates, had assets under supervision of approximately $3.35 trillion.

------

The Investment Adviser provides day-to-day advice regarding the Funds' portfolio transactions. The Investment Adviser makes the investment decisions for the Funds and place purchase and sale orders for the Funds' portfolio transactions in U.S. and foreign markets. As permitted by applicable law, these orders may be directed to any executing brokers, dealers, futures commission merchants ("FCMs") or other counterparties, including Goldman Sachs and its affiliates. While the Investment Adviser is ultimately responsible for the management of the Funds, it is able to draw upon the research and expertise of its asset management affiliates for portfolio decisions and management with respect to certain portfolio securities. The Investment Adviser is responsible for the risk management functions for the Funds. In addition, the Investment Adviser has access to the research and certain proprietary technical models developed by Goldman Sachs (subject to legal, internal, regulatory and Chinese Wall restrictions), and will apply quantitative and qualitative analysis in determining the appropriate allocations among categories of issuers and types of securities.

The Investment Adviser also performs the following additional services for the Funds, to the extent such services are not required to be performed by others pursuant to the fund administration and accounting agreement, the custodian agreement, the transfer agency agreement, distribution agreement or such other agreements with service providers to the Funds that the Board has approved:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Supervises non-advisory operations of the Funds, including oversight of
vendors hired by the Funds, oversight of Fund liquidity and risk management, oversight of regulatory inquiries and requests with respect to the Funds made to the Investment Adviser, valuation and accounting oversight and oversight of ongoing
compliance with federal and state securities laws, tax regulations, and other applicable law

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Provides personnel to perform such executive, administrative and clerical services as are reasonably necessary to
provide effective administration of the Funds

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Arranges for: (a) the preparation of all required tax returns, (b) the preparation and submission of
reports to existing shareholders, (c) the periodic updating of prospectuses and statements of additional information and (d) the preparation of reports to be filed with the SEC and other regulatory authorities

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Maintains the records of the Funds

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Provides office space and necessary office equipment and services for the Investment Adviser

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Markets the Funds

An investment in the Funds may be negatively impacted because of the operational risks arising from factors such as processing errors and human errors, inadequate or failed internal or external processes, failures in systems and technology, changes in personnel, and errors caused by third-party service providers or trading counterparties. The use of certain investment strategies that involve manual or additional processing, such as over-the-counter derivatives, increases these risks. Although the Funds attempt to minimize such failures through controls and oversight, it is not possible to identify all of the operational risks that may affect the Funds or to develop processes and controls that completely eliminate or mitigate the occurrence of such failures. A Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

GSAM may manage other funds, accounts, additional pooled vehicles and/or separate accounts that have similar investment strategies to those of the Funds. These funds, pooled vehicles or accounts may perform differently than the Funds despite their similar strategies. Because the pooled vehicles may not be registered under the Investment Company Act, they are subject to fewer regulatory restraints than the Funds (e.g., fewer trading constraints) and may employ strategies that are not subject to the same constraints as the Funds.

**Management Fee and Other Expenses** 

*Acquiring Funds* 

Pursuant to the Funds' Management Agreement, as compensation for its services to each Fund, the Investment Adviser is entitled to a management fee, computed daily and payable monthly, at the annual rates listed below (as a percentage of each Fund's average daily net assets). Under the Management Agreement, the

------

Investment Adviser is responsible for substantially all the expenses of each Fund, excluding payments under the Fund's 12b-1 plan (if any), interest expenses, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses, brokerage fees, costs of holding shareholder meetings and litigation, indemnification and extraordinary expenses.

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Fund** | **Contractual<br>Management Fee<br>Annual Rate** | **Average Daily Net Assets** |
|  **Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** | 0.40% | First $1 Billion |
|  | 0.37% | Next $1 Billion |
|  | 0.35% | Next $3 Billion |
|  | 0.34% | Next $3 Billion |
|  | 0.34% | Over $8 Billion |
|  **Goldman Sachs Income ETF** | 0.40% |  |

---

The Investment Adviser may waive a portion of its management fee, including fees earned as the Investment Adviser to any of the affiliated funds in which the Fund invests, except those management fees it earns from the Fund's investments of cash collateral received in connection with securities lending transactions in affiliated funds, from time to time, and may discontinue or modify any such waivers in the future, consistent with the terms of any fee waiver arrangements that may be in place.

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board's approval of the Management Agreement for the Acquiring Funds will be available in the Funds' first Form N-CSR following its launch.

*Acquired Funds* 

As compensation for its services and its assumption of certain expenses, the Investment Adviser is entitled to the following fees, computed daily and payable monthly, at the annual rates listed below (as a percentage of each Fund's average daily net assets):

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Contractual<br>Management Fee<br>Annual Rate** | **Average Daily Net Assets** | **Actual Rate For<br>the Fiscal Year Ended<br>March 31, 2025\*** |
|  **Bond Fund** | 0.41% | First $1 Billion | 0.41% |
|  | 0.37% | Next $1 Billion |  |
|  | 0.35% | Next $3 Billion |  |
|  | 0.34% | Next $3 Billion |  |
|  | 0.34% | Over $8 Billion |  |
|  **Income Fund** | 0.55% | First $1 Billion | 0.54% |
|  | 0.50% | Next $1 Billion |  |
|  | 0.47% | Next $3 Billion |  |
|  | 0.46% | Next $3 Billion |  |
|  | 0.45% | Over $8 Billion |  |

---

*\** *The Actual Rate, which reflects the combined management fees paid to GSAM by the Fund, may not correlate to the Contractual Management Fee Annual Rate as a result of management fee waivers that may be in effect from time to time.* 

The Investment Adviser has agreed to waive a portion of its management fee in order to achieve an effective net management fee rate of 0.50% as an annual percentage rate of the average daily net assets of the Income Fund. In addition. This management fee waiver will remain in effect through at least July 29, 2026, and prior to such date, the Investment Advisers may not terminate the arrangements without the approval of the Board of Trustees.

------

In addition to the management fee waiver described above, the Investment Adviser may waive a portion of its management fees, including fees earned as the Investment Adviser to the affiliated funds in which a Fund invests, from time to time, and may discontinue or modify any such waivers in the future, consistent with the terms of any fee waiver arrangements in place.

The Investment Adviser has agreed to reduce or limit "Other Expenses" (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, transfer agency fees and expenses, service fees, shareholder administration fees (as applicable), taxes, interest, brokerage fees, expenses of shareholder meetings, litigation and indemnification, and extraordinary expenses) to 0.004% and 0.014% of average daily net assets for the Bond and Income Funds, respectively, through at least July 29, 2026, and prior to such date, the Investment Adviser may not terminate the arrangements without the approval of the Board of Trustees. The expense limitations may be modified or terminated by the Investment Adviser at its discretion and without shareholder approval after such date, although the Investment Adviser does not presently intend to do so. A Fund's "Other Expenses" may be further reduced by any custody and transfer agency fee credits received by the Fund.

The discussion regarding the basis for the Board's approval of the Management Agreement for the Funds in 2025 is available in the Funds' Form N-CSR dated September 30, 2025.

**Activities of Goldman Sachs and its Affiliates and Other Accounts Managed by Goldman Sachs** 

The involvement of the Investment Adviser, Goldman Sachs and their affiliates in the management of, or their interest in, other accounts and other activities of Goldman Sachs will present conflicts of interest with respect to a Fund and will, under certain circumstances, limit the Fund's investment activities. Goldman Sachs is a worldwide, full service investment banking, broker dealer, asset management and financial services organization and a major participant in global financial markets that provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals. As such, it acts as a broker-dealer, investment adviser, investment banker, underwriter, research provider, administrator, financier, adviser, market maker, trader, prime broker, derivatives dealer, clearing agent, lender, counterparty, agent, principal, distributor, investor or in other commercial capacities for accounts or companies (including Fund portfolio companies) or affiliated or unaffiliated investment funds (including pooled investment vehicles and private funds) in which one or more accounts, including a Fund, invest. In those and other capacities, Goldman Sachs and its affiliates advise and deal with clients and third parties in all markets and transactions and purchase, sell, hold and recommend a broad array of investments, including securities, derivatives, loans, commodities, currencies, credit default swaps, indices, baskets and other financial instruments and products for their own accounts or for the accounts of their customers and have other direct and indirect interests in the global fixed income, currency, commodity, equities, bank loans and other markets in which the Fund directly and indirectly invests. Thus, it is expected that a Fund will have multiple business relationships with and will invest in, engage in transactions with, make voting decisions with respect to, or obtain services from entities for which Goldman Sachs and its affiliates perform or seek to perform investment banking or other services. The Investment Adviser and/or certain of its affiliates are the managers of the Goldman Sachs Funds. The Investment Adviser and its affiliates earn fees from this and other relationships with a Fund. Although management fees paid by a Fund to the Investment Adviser and certain other fees paid to the Investment Adviser's affiliates are based on asset levels, the fees are not directly contingent on Fund performance, and the Investment Adviser and its affiliates will still receive significant compensation from the Fund even if shareholders lose money. Goldman Sachs and its affiliates engage in proprietary trading and advise accounts and funds which have investment objectives, principal investment strategies and/or policies similar or substantially similar to those of a Fund and/or which engage in and compete for transactions in the same types of securities, currencies and instruments as the Fund. Due to differences in tax management considerations and implementation techniques, trades of an Acquiring Fund's portfolio holdings may be executed on a delayed basis relative to such accounts advised by Goldman Sachs and its affiliates with investment objectives, principal investment strategies and/or policies substantially similar to those of the Acquiring Fund. This may cause trades of an Acquiring Fund's portfolio holdings to be executed at inopportune times and/or prices. In addition,

------

Goldman Sachs and its affiliates will not have any obligation to make available any information regarding their proprietary activities or strategies, or the activities or strategies used for other accounts managed by them, for the benefit of the management of the Fund. The results of a Fund's investment activities, therefore, will likely differ from those of Goldman Sachs, its affiliates and other accounts managed by Goldman Sachs, and it is possible that the Fund could sustain losses during periods in which Goldman Sachs and its affiliates and other accounts achieve significant profits on their trading for proprietary or other accounts. In addition, a Fund may enter into transactions in which Goldman Sachs and its affiliates or their other clients have an adverse interest. For example, a Fund may take a long position in a security at the same time that Goldman Sachs and its affiliates or other accounts managed by the Investment Adviser or its affiliates take a short position in the same security (or vice versa). These and other transactions undertaken by Goldman Sachs, its affiliates or Goldman Sachs-advised clients may, individually or in the aggregate, adversely impact a Fund. In some cases, such adverse impacts may result from differences in the timing of transactions by Accounts relative to when a Fund executes transactions in the same securities. Transactions by one or more Goldman Sachs-advised clients or the Investment Adviser may have the effect of diluting or otherwise disadvantaging the values, prices or investment strategies of the Fund. A Fund's activities will, under certain circumstances, be limited because of regulatory restrictions applicable to Goldman Sachs and its affiliates, and/or their internal policies designed to comply with such restrictions. As a global financial services firm, Goldman Sachs and its affiliates also provide a wide range of investment banking and financial services to issuers of securities and investors in securities. Goldman Sachs, its affiliates and others associated with it are expected to create markets or specialize in, have positions in and/or effect transactions in, securities of issuers held by a Fund, and will likely also perform or seek to perform investment banking and financial services for one or more of those issuers. Goldman Sachs and its affiliates are expected to have business relationships with and purchase or distribute or sell services or products from or to distributors, consultants or others who recommend the Fund or who engage in transactions with or for the Fund. For more information about conflicts of interest, see the section titled "Potential Conflicts of Interest" in the SAI.

A Fund will, from time to time, make brokerage and other payments to Goldman Sachs and its affiliates in connection with the Fund's portfolio investment transactions, in accordance with applicable law.

A Fund's Board of Trustees may approve a securities lending program where an affiliate of the Investment Adviser is retained to serve as the securities lending agent for the Fund to the extent that the Fund engages in the securities lending program. For these services, the lending agent would receive a fee from a Fund, including a fee based on the returns earned on the Fund's investment of the cash received as collateral for the loaned securities.

**Comparison of Distributor and Transfer Agent** 

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **The Acquired Funds** | **The Acquiring Funds** |
| **Distributor** | Goldman Sachs, 200 West Street, New York, NY 10282, serves as the exclusive distributor of the Fund's shares. | ALPS, 1290 Broadway, Suite 1000, Denver, Colorado 80203, serves as the exclusive distributor of Creation Units of Shares of the Fund pursuant to a "best efforts" arrangement as provided by a distribution agreement with the Acquiring Fund Trust on behalf of the Fund. Shares of the Fund are offered and sold on a continuous basis by ALPS, acting as agent. ALPS does not maintain a secondary market in the Fund's Shares. |
| **Transfer Agent** | Goldman Sachs, 71 S. Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL 60606, also serves as the Fund's transfer agent and, as such, performs various shareholder servicing | The Bank of New York ("BNY"), 240 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10286, serves as the Acquiring Fund Trust's transfer and dividend disbursing agent. Under its transfer agency agreement with the Acquiring Fund Trust, BNY has |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **The Acquired Funds** | **The Acquiring Funds** |
| functions. For its transfer agency services, Goldman Sachs is entitled to receive a transfer agency fee equal, on an annualized basis, to 0.03% of average daily net assets with respect to Class R6 Shares, 0.04% of average daily net assets with respect to the Institutional and Service Shares and 0.12% of average daily net assets with respect to the Class A, Class C, Investor and Class R Shares, as applicable. From time to time, Goldman Sachs or any of its affiliates may purchase and hold shares of the Fund. Goldman Sachs and its affiliates reserve the right to redeem at any time some or all of the shares acquired for their own accounts. | undertaken with the Acquiring Fund Trust to provide the following services with respect to the Fund: (i) perform and facilitate the performance of purchases and redemptions of Creation Units, (ii) prepare and transmit by means of Depository Trust Company's ("DTC") book-entry system payments for dividends and distributions on or with respect to the Shares declared by the Acquiring Fund Trust on behalf of the Fund, (iii) prepare and deliver reports, information and documents as specified in the transfer agency agreement, (iv) perform the customary services of a transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent, and (v) render certain other miscellaneous services as specified in the transfer agency agreement or as otherwise agreed upon. BNY is the custodian of the Acquiring Fund Trust's portfolio securities and cash. The custodian of the Acquiring Fund Trust may change from time to time. BNY also maintains the Acquiring Fund Trust's accounting records. BNY may appoint domestic and foreign sub-custodians and use depositories from time to time to hold securities and other instruments purchased by the Acquiring Fund Trust in foreign countries and to hold cash and currencies for the Acquiring Fund Trust. BNY provides administrative services pursuant to a fund administration agreement with the Acquiring Fund Trust (the "Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement") pursuant to which BNY provides certain services, including, among others, (i) preparation of certain shareholder reports and communications; (ii) preparation of certain reports and filings with the SEC; (iii) certain NAV computation services; and (iv) such other services for the Acquiring Fund Trust as may be mutually agreed upon between the Acquiring Fund Trust and BNY. For its services under the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement, BNY receives such fees based on a stated percentage of net assets as are agreed upon from time to time between the parties. In addition, BNY is reimbursed for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement. In addition, an affiliate of BNY will also provide certain other services for the Acquiring Fund Trust, including, (i) providing foreign exchange transaction services and (ii) executing trades in connection with certain creation and redemption transactions effected partially in cash. For these services, the BNY affiliate will receive compensation based on levels that are negotiated with the Acquiring Fund Trust and/or the Investment Adviser. BNY also provides certain middle office services to GSAM pursuant to a service agreement. |

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**DISTRIBUTIONS** 

The Acquiring Funds pay distributions from their investment income and from net realized capital gains.

Distributions from net investment income, if any, are normally declared and paid monthly. Distributions from net capital gains, if any, are normally declared and paid annually. In addition, the Acquiring Funds may occasionally make a distribution at a time when it is not normally made.

In addition to the net investment income dividends declared and paid monthly, the Acquiring Funds may also earn additional net investment income throughout the year. Any additional net investment income will be distributed annually as a declared event and paid to shareholders of record for such events.

From time to time a portion of the Acquiring Funds' distributions may constitute a return of capital for tax purposes, and/or may include amounts in excess of the Acquiring Funds' net investment income for the period calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP").

Dividends and other distributions on shares of the Acquiring Funds are distributed on a pro rata basis to beneficial owners of such Shares. Dividend payments are made through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants (each as described in the Book Entry section below) to beneficial owners then of record with proceeds received from the Acquiring Funds.

No dividend reinvestment service is provided by the Acquiring Funds. Broker-dealers may make available the DTC book-entry dividend reinvestment service for use by beneficial owners of the Acquiring Funds for reinvestment of their dividend distributions. Beneficial owners should contact their broker to determine the availability and costs of the service and the details of participation therein. Brokers may require beneficial owners to adhere to specific procedures and timetables. If this service is available and used, dividend distributions of both income and realized gains will be automatically reinvested in additional whole shares of the Acquiring Funds purchased in the secondary market.

For the Acquired Funds, both distributions from net investment income, if any, and distributions from net capital gains, if any, are normally declared and paid annually.

------

**EXPERTS** 

The financial highlights and financial statements of each of the Acquired Funds incorporated in this Information Statement/Prospectus by reference to each Acquired Fund's Form N-CSR dated March 31, 2025, have been so incorporated in reliance on the report of [ ], an independent registered public accounting firm, given on the authority of such firm as experts in auditing and accounting.

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**FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS** 

Each Acquiring Fund is new and has no performance history as of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus. Each Acquiring Fund will adopt the financial history, including the financial highlights, of its corresponding Acquired Fund following the Reorganization.

The financial highlights tables below are intended to help you understand each Acquired Fund's financial performance for the past five fiscal years and the six-month period ended September 30, 2025. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Acquired Fund share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned or lost on an investment in an Acquired Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). The information through March 31, 2025 for the Acquired Funds has been derived from the financial statements audited by [ ], whose report, along with each Acquired Fund's financial statements, is included in the Acquired Funds' Form N-CSR dated March 31, 2025 (available upon request).

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| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.86 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.83 | $10.54 | $10.33 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.18 | 0.37 | 0.33 | 0.26 | 0.15 | 0.22 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.06 | (0.11) | (0.87) | (0.66) | 0.48 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.33 | 0.43 | 0.22 | (0.61) | (0.51) | 0.70 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.18) | (0.38) | (0.34) | (0.21) | (0.11) | (0.30) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.08) | (0.09) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.18) | (0.38) | (0.34) | (0.29) | (0.20) | (0.49) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.01 | $8.86 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.83 | $10.54 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.61% | 5.12% | 2.44% | (6.08)% | (4.92)% | 6.56% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $40433 | $46776 | $47886 | $50814 | $58088 | $92871 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.80 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.80% | 0.80% | 0.79% | 0.78% | 0.78% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 1.06 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 1.04% | 1.05% | 1.02% | 0.96% | 0.93% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 3.96 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 4.22% | 3.75% | 2.89% | 1.41% | 2.03% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1287% | 1007% | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(c) Annualized.

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.85 | $8.80 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.53 | $10.32 |
|  Net investment loss<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.14 | 0.31 | 0.26 | 0.19 | 0.07 | 0.14 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.05 | (0.12) | (0.86) | (0.66) | 0.48 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.29 | 0.36 | 0.14 | (0.67) | (0.59) | 0.62 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.14) | (0.31) | (0.27) | (0.16) | (0.07) | (0.22) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.06) | (0.05) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.14) | (0.31) | (0.27) | (0.22) | (0.12) | (0.41) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.00 | $8.85 | $8.80 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.53 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.22% | 4.34% | 1.68% | (6.79) | (5.55)% | 5.67% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $2374 | $2411 | $2325 | $3649 | $5928 | $11437 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 1.55 %<sup>(c)</sup> | 1.55% | 1.55% | 1.54 | 1.53% | 1.53% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 1.81 %<sup>(c)</sup> | 1.79% | 1.80% | 1.77 | 1.70% | 1.68% |
|  Ratio of net investment loss to average net assets | 3.20 %<sup>(c)</sup> | 3.47% | 2.98% | 2.09 | (0.65)% | 1.29% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1287% | 1007 | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(c) Annualized

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.86 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.83 | $10.53 | $10.33 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.19 | 0.40 | 0.36 | 0.29 | 0.18 | 0.26 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.06 | (0.11) | (0.87) | (0.64) | 0.47 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.34 | 0.46 | 0.25 | (0.58) | (0.46) | 0.73 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.19) | (0.41) | (0.37) | (0.23) | (0.14) | (0.34) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Total distributions |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.10) |  |
|  | (0.19) | (0.41) | (0.37) | (0.32) | (0.24) | (0.53) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.01 | $8.86 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.83 | $10.53 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.90% | 5.35% | 2.78% | (5.68)% | (4.61)% | 6.82% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $86865 | $85702 | $93070 | $106676 | $116520 | $158080 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.47 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.47% | 0.47% | 0.46% | 0.45% | 0.45% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.73 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.71% | 0.72% | 0.69% | 0.63% | 0.60% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 4.28 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 4.55% | 4.08% | 3.23% | 1.75% | 2.36% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1287% | 1007% | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the year, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions, a
complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the year and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of taxes to
shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

(c) Annualized.

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Service Shares** | **Service Shares** | **Service Shares** | **Service Shares** | **Service Shares** | **Service Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.86 | $8.81 | $8.94 | $9.83 | $10.54 | $10.33 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.17 | 0.36 | 0.31 | 0.25 | 0.14 | 0.20 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.06 | (0.11) | (0.87) | (0.66) | 0.48 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.32 | 0.42 | 0.20 | (0.62) | (0.52) | 0.68 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.17) | (0.37) | (0.33) | (0.19) | (0.11) | (0.28) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.08) | (0.08) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.17) | (0.37) | (0.33) | (0.27) | (0.19) | (0.47) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.01 | $8.86 | $8.81 | $8.94 | $9.83 | $10.54 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.64% | 4.82% | 2.31% | (6.24)% | (5.08)% | 6.39% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $69 | $145 | $123 | $130 | $94 | $84 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.96 %<sup>(c)</sup> | 0.97% | 0.96% | 0.95% | 0.95% | 0.95% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 1.22 %<sup>(c)</sup> | 1.21% | 1.22% | 1.18% | 1.13% | 1.09% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 3.79 %<sup>(c)</sup> | 4.04% | 3.59% | 2.77% | 1.31% | 1.83% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1287% | 1007% | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(c) Annualized.

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.83 | $8.78 | $8.90 | $9.79 | $10.50 | $10.30 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.19 | 0.39 | 0.34 | 0.28 | 0.18 | 0.25 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.06 | (0.10) | (0.86) | (0.66) | 0.47 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.34 | 0.45 | 0.24 | (0.58) | (0.48) | 0.72 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.19) | (0.40) | (0.36) | (0.22) | (0.13) | (0.33) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.10) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.19) | (0.40) | (0.36) | (0.31) | (0.23) | (0.52) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $8.98 | $8.83 | $8.78 | $8.90 | $9.79 | $10.50 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.74% | 5.38% | 2.69% | (5.78)% | (4.71)% | 6.84% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $23331 | $23734 | $28542 | $46802 | $64096 | $68314 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.55 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.55% | 0.55% | 0.54% | 0.53% | 0.53% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.81 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.78% | 0.80% | 0.77% | 0.71% | 0.68% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 4.20 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 4.47% | 3.96% | 3.10% | 1.70% | 2.24% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1287% | 1007% | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(c) Annualized.

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.85 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.53 | $10.33 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.19 | 0.40 | 0.36 | 0.29 | 0.19 | 0.26 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.16 | 0.05 | (0.11) | (0.86) | (0.66) | 0.47 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.35 | 0.45 | 0.25 | (0.57) | (0.47) | 0.73 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.19) | (0.41) | (0.37) | (0.23) | (0.14) | (0.34) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.10) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.19) | (0.41) | (0.37) | (0.32) | (0.24) | (0.53) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.01 | $8.85 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.53 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.79% | 5.47% | 2.79% | (5.77)% | (4.60)% | 6.93% |
|  Net assets, end of year (in 000's) | $74417 | $71208 | $67704 | $66642 | $71588 | $72608 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.46 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.46% | 0.46% | 0.45% | 0.44% | 0.44% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.72 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.70% | 0.71% | 0.68% | 0.62% | 0.59% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 4.29 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 4.56% | 4.09% | 3.23% | 1.80% | 2.39% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1287% | 1007% | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(c) Annualized.

(d) (d)The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Class R Shares** | **Class R Shares** | **Class R Shares** | **Class R Shares** | **Class R Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.85 | $8.80 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.32 |
|  Net investment income (loss)<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.16 | 0.35 | 0.30 | 0.24 | 0.20 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.06 | (0.11) | (0.86) | 0.47 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.31 | 0.41 | 0.19 | (0.62) | 0.67 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.16) | (0.36) | (0.32) | (0.19) | (0.27) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.08) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.16) | (0.36) | (0.32) | (0.27) | (0.46) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.00 | $8.85 | $8.80 | $8.93 | $10.53 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(c)</sup>** | 3.48% | 4.86% | 2.19% | (6.33)% | 6.30% |
|  Net assets, end of year (in 000's) | $2930 | $2756 | $2575 | $2537 | $5030 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 1.05 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 1.05% | 1.05% | 1.04% | 1.03% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 1.31 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 1.29% | 1.30% | 1.27% | 1.18% |
|  Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets | 3.70 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 3.97% | 3.50% | 2.65% | 1.79% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(e)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1.287% | 1.007% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(c) Annualized.

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Bond Fund** |
|  | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.85 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.53 | $10.33 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.19 | 0.40 | 0.36 | 0.29 | 0.19 | 0.26 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.15 | 0.05 | (0.11) | (0.86) | (0.66) | 0.47 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.34 | 0.45 | 0.25 | (0.57) | (0.47) | 0.73 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.19) | (0.41) | (0.37) | (0.23) | (0.14) | (0.34) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  |  | (0.19) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.10) |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.19) | (0.41) | (0.37) | (0.32) | (0.24) | (0.53) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.00 | $8.85 | $8.81 | $8.93 | $9.82 | $10.53 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 3.79% | 5.47% | 2.79% | (5.77)% | (4.60)% | 6.93% |
|  Net assets, end of year (in 000's) | $133590 | $114834 | $96055 | $85915 | $87773 | $94092 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.46 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.46% | 0.46% | 0.45% | 0.44% | 0.44% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.72 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.70% | 0.71% | 0.68% | 0.62% | 0.59% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 4.29 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 4.55% | 4.09% | 3.24% | 1.79% | 2.37% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 557% | 1200% | 1.287% | 1007% | 627% | 690% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the year, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions, a
complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the year and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of taxes to
shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

(c) Annualized.

(d) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short-term investments. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |
|  | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** | **Class A Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.96 | $8.90 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 | $8.88 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.25 | 0.49 | 0.48 | 0.42 | 0.32 | 0.33 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.21 | 0.05 | 0.37 | (0.80) | (0.59) | 1.43 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.46 | 0.54 | 0.85 | (0.38) | (0.27) | 1.76 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.19) | (0.48) | (0.44) | (0.62) | (0.34) | (0.35) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.04) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  | — <sup>(b)</sup> | (0.05) | (0.01) |  |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.19) | (0.48) | (0.49) | (0.63) | (0.43) | (0.39) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.23 | $8.96 | $8.90 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 5.23% | 6.16% | 10.29% | (3.85)% | (2.86)% | 19.94% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $1886 | $1508 | $1305 | $598 | $501 | $501 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.88 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 0.95% | 0.98% | 0.97% | 0.97% | 0.97% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 1.28 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 1.33% | 1.46% | 1.42% | 1.30% | 1.71% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 5.50 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 5.43% | 5.60% | 4.76% | 3.12% | 3.19% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 278% | 761% | 641% | 469% | 139% | 363% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Amount is less than ($0.005) per share.

(c) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(d) Annualized.

(e) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |
|  | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** | **Class C Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.95 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 | $8.88 |
|  Net investment income (loss)<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.22 | 0.42 | 0.41 | 0.36 | 0.25 | 0.26 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.22 | 0.05 | 0.37 | (0.81) | (0.60) | 1.42 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.44 | 0.47 | 0.78 | (0.45) | (0.35) | 1.68 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.16) | (0.41) | (0.38) | (0.55) | (0.26) | (0.27) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.04) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  | — <sup>(b)</sup> | (0.05) | (0.01) |  |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.16) | (0.41) | (0.43) | (0.56) | (0.35) | (0.31) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.23 | $8.95 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 4.96% | 5.38% | 9.35% | (4.57)% | (3.59)% | 19.06% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $2374 | $1943 | $597 | $328 | $197 | $77 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 1.63 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 1.70% | 1.73% | 1.72% | 1.72% | 1.72% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 2.03 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 2.10% | 2.23% | 2.18% | 2.07% | 2.71% |
|  Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets | 4.75 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 4.65% | 4.79% | 4.09% | 2.52% | 2.52% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 278% | 761% | 641% | 469% | 139% | 363% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Amount is less than ($0.005) per share.

(c) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions, a
complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of taxes
to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(d) Annualized.

(e) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |
|  | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** | **Institutional Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.95 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 | $8.88 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.27 | 0.51 | 0.51 | 0.43 | 0.36 | 0.37 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.22 | 0.06 | 0.36 | (0.78) | (0.60) | 1.42 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.49 | 0.57 | 0.87 | (0.35) | (0.24) | 1.79 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.21) | (0.51) | (0.47) | (0.65) | (0.37) | (0.38) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.04) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  | — <sup>(b)</sup> | (0.05) | (0.01) |  |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.21) | (0.51) | (0.52) | (0.66) | (0.46) | (0.42) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.23 | $8.95 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 5.52% | 6.52% | 10.53% | (3.53)% | (2.54)% | 20.34% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $23497 | $26116 | $14364 | $13094 | $25483 | $25710 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.55 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 0.62% | 0.65% | 0.64% | 0.64% | 0.64% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.95 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 1.00% | 1.15% | 1.06% | 0.98% | 1.75% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 5.84 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 5.73% | 5.89% | 4.96% | 3.47% | 3.63% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 278% | 761% | 641% | 469% | 139% | 363% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Amount is less than ($0.005) per share.

(c) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(d) Annualized.

(e) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |
|  | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** | **Investor Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.97 | $8.90 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 | $8.88 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.26 | 0.51 | 0.51 | 0.44 | 0.35 | 0.36 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.22 | 0.06 | 0.36 | (0.80) | (0.60) | 1.43 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.48 | 0.57 | 0.87 | (0.36) | (0.25) | 1.79 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.21) | (0.50) | (0.46) | (0.64) | (0.36) | (0.38) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.04) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  | — <sup>(b)</sup> | (0.05) | (0.01) |  |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.21) | (0.50) | (0.51) | (0.65) | (0.45) | (0.42) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.24 | $8.97 | $8.90 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 5.35% | 6.55% | 10.56% | (3.61)% | (2.62)% | 20.24% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $19144 | $15161 | $7253 | $268 | $118 | $54 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.63 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 0.70% | 0.74% | 0.72% | 0.72% | 0.72% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 1.03 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 1.09% | 1.20% | 1.18% | 1.05% | 1.81% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 5.75 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 5.66% | 5.86% | 5.12% | 3.46% | 3.54% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 278% | 761% | 641% | 469% | 139% | 363% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Amount is less than ($0.005) per share.

(c) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(d) Annualized.

(e) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |
|  | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** | **Class R6 Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** | **Year Ended March 31,** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.96 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 | $8.88 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.27 | 0.52 | 0.51 | 0.44 | 0.36 | 0.37 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.21 | 0.06 | 0.36 | (0.79) | (0.60) | 1.43 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.48 | 0.58 | 0.87 | (0.35) | (0.24) | 1.80 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.21) | (0.51) | (0.47) | (0.65) | (0.37) | (0.39) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.04) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  | — <sup>(b)</sup> | (0.05) | (0.01) |  |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.21) | (0.51) | (0.52) | (0.66) | (0.46) | (0.43) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.23 | $8.96 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 5.41% | 6.64% | 10.54% | (3.52)% | (2.53)% | 20.35% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $73 | $60 | $56 | $51 | $53 | $54 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.54 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.61% | 0.64% | 0.63% | 0.63% | 0.63% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.94 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 0.99% | 1.13% | 1.07% | 0.97% | 1.72% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 5.84 %<sup>(e)</sup> | 5.78% | 5.90% | 5.07% | 3.48% | 3.64% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 278% | 761% | 641% | 469% | 139% | 363% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Amount is less than ($0.005) per share.

(c) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(d) Annualized.

(e) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

---

| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** | **Goldman Sachs Income Fund** |
|  | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** | **Class P Shares** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **Year Ended March 31** | **Year Ended March 31** | **Year Ended March 31** | **Year Ended March 31** | **Year Ended March 31** |
|  | **Six Months Ended<br>September 30, 2025<br>(Unaudited)** | **2025** | **2024** | **2023** | **2022** | **2021** |
|  **Per Share Data** |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  Net asset value, beginning of period | $8.96 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 | $8.88 |
|  Net investment income<sup>(a)</sup> | 0.27 | 0.52 | 0.51 | 0.44 | 0.36 | 0.36 |
|  Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) | 0.21 | 0.06 | 0.36 | (0.79) | (0.60) | 1.44 |
|  Total from investment operations | 0.48 | 0.58 | 0.87 | (0.35) | (0.24) | 1.80 |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net investment income | (0.21) | (0.51) | (0.47) | (0.65) | (0.37) | (0.39) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |  |  |  |  | (0.09) | (0.04) |
|  Distributions to shareholders from return of capital |  | — <sup>(b)</sup> | (0.05) | (0.01) |  |  |
|  Total distributions | (0.21) | (0.51) | (0.52) | (0.66) | (0.46) | (0.43) |
|  Net asset value, end of period | $9.23 | $8.96 | $8.89 | $8.54 | $9.55 | $10.25 |
|  **Total Return<sup>(b)</sup>** | 5.41% | 6.65% | 10.54% | (3.52)% | (2.53)% | 20.35% |
|  Net assets, end of period (in 000's) | $102262 | $93534 | $73551 | $50736 | $73188 | $89424 |
|  Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 0.54 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 0.61% | 0.64% | 0.63% | 0.63% | 0.63% |
|  Ratio of total expenses to average net assets | 0.94 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 0.99% | 1.11% | 1.06% | 0.97% | 1.10% |
|  Ratio of net investment income to average net assets | 5.85 %<sup>(d)</sup> | 5.78% | 5.95% | 5.02% | 3.48% | 3.46% |
|  Portfolio turnover rate<sup>(d)</sup> | 278% | 761% | 641% | 469% | 139% | 363% |

---

(a) Calculated based on the average shares outstanding methodology.

(b) Amount is less than ($0.005) per share.

(c) Assumes investment at the NAV at the beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distributions,
a complete redemption of the investment at the NAV at the end of the period and no sales or redemption charges (if any). Total returns would be reduced if a sales or redemption charge was taken into account. Returns do not reflect the impact of
taxes to shareholders relating to Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. Total returns for periods less than one full year are not annualized.

(d) Annualized.

(e) The Fund's portfolio turnover rate is calculated in accordance with regulatory requirements, without
regard to transactions involving short term investments and certain derivatives. If such transactions were included, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate may be higher.

------

**OTHER INFORMATION** 

**Premium/Discount Information** 

The Acquiring Funds have not yet commenced operations as of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus and, therefore, do not have information to report regarding how often the shares of the Acquiring Funds traded on the Exchange at a price above NAV (*i.e.*, a premium) or below NAV (*i.e.*, a discount). When available, information regarding how often shares of the Acquiring Funds traded on the Exchange at a premium or discount during the most recently completed calendar year and the most recently completed calendar quarter(s) since that year (or the life of an Acquiring Fund, if shorter) can be found at <u>am.gs.com</u>.

**Continuous Offering** 

The method by which Creation Units are created and traded may raise certain issues under applicable securities laws. Because new Creation Units are issued and sold by the Acquiring Fund Trust on an ongoing basis, a "distribution," as such term is used in the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), may occur at any point. Broker dealers and other persons are cautioned that some activities on their part may, depending on the circumstances, result in their being deemed participants in a distribution in a manner which could render them statutory underwriters and subject them to the prospectus delivery and liability provisions of the Securities Act.

For example, a broker dealer firm or its client may be deemed a statutory underwriter if it takes Creation Units after placing an order with the Distributor, breaks them down into constituent Shares, and sells such Shares directly to customers, or if it chooses to couple the creation of a supply of new Shares with an active selling effort involving solicitation of secondary market demand for Shares. A determination of whether one is an underwriter for purposes of the Securities Act must take into account all the facts and circumstances pertaining to the activities of the broker dealer or its client in the particular case, and the examples mentioned above should not be considered a complete description of all the activities that could lead to a categorization as an underwriter.

Broker dealers who are not "underwriters" but are participating in a distribution (as contrasted to ordinary secondary trading transactions), and thus dealing with Shares that are part of an "unsold allotment" within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act, would be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act. This is because the prospectus delivery exemption in Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act is not available in respect of such transactions as a result of Section 24(d) of the Investment Company Act. As a result, broker dealer firms should note that dealers who are not underwriters but are participating in a distribution (as contrasted with ordinary secondary market transactions) and thus dealing with the Shares that are part of an overallotment within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(A) of the Securities Act would be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act. Firms that incur a prospectus delivery obligation with respect to Shares are reminded that, under Rule 153 of the Securities Act, a prospectus delivery obligation under Section 5(b)(2) of the Securities Act owed to an exchange member in connection with a sale on the Exchange is satisfied by the fact that the prospectus is available at the Exchange upon request. The prospectus delivery mechanism provided in Rule 153 is only available with respect to transactions on an exchange.

In addition, certain affiliates of an Acquiring Fund and the Investment Adviser may purchase and resell Fund shares pursuant to the Prospectus.

------

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **The Acquiring Funds** | **The Acquiring Funds** |
| **Distribution and Service Plan** | &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Acquired Fund Trust has adopted a distribution and service plan (the "D&S Plan") under which Class A and Class C Shares bear distribution and/or service fees paid to Goldman Sachs, some of which Goldman Sachs may pay to Intermediaries. Intermediaries seek distribution and/or servicing fee revenues to, among other things, offset the cost of servicing small and medium sized plan investors and providing information about the Fund. If the fees received by Goldman Sachs pursuant to the D&S Plan exceed its expenses, Goldman Sachs may realize a profit from these arrangements. Goldman Sachs generally receives and pays the distribution and service fees on a quarterly basis.<br>Under the D&S Plan, Goldman Sachs is entitled to a monthly fee from the Fund for distribution services equal, on an annual basis, to 0.25%, 0.75% and 0.50% of the Fund's average daily net assets attributed to Class A, Class C and Class R Shares, respectively. Because these fees are paid out of the Fund's assets on an ongoing basis, over time, these fees will increase the cost of your investment and may cost you more than paying other types of such charges.<br>The distribution fees are subject to the requirements of Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act, and may be used (among other things) for:<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Compensation paid to and expenses incurred by Intermediaries, Goldman Sachs and their respective officers, employees and sales representatives;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Commissions paid to Intermediaries;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Allocable overhead;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Telephone and travel expenses;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Interest and other costs associated with the financing of such compensation and expenses;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Printing of prospectuses for prospective shareholders;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Preparation and distribution of sales literature or advertising of any type; and<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• All other expenses incurred in connection with activities primarily intended to result in the sale of Class A and Class C Shares.<br>| The Acquiring Funds do not currently intend to charge distribution and/or service, or shareholder administration fees. |

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| |
|:---|
| **The Acquiring Funds** |
| <br> In connection with the sale of Class C Shares, Goldman Sachs normally begins paying the 0.75% distribution fee as an ongoing commission to Intermediaries after the shares have been held for one year. Goldman Sachs normally begins accruing the annual 0.25% and 0.50% distribution fee for the Class A and Class R shares, respectively, as ongoing commission to Intermediaries, immediately. Goldman Sachs generally pays the distribution fee on a quarterly basis.<br>Under the Class C Plan, Goldman Sachs is also entitled to receive a separate fee equal on an annual basis to 0.25% of each Fund's average daily net assets attributed to Class C Shares. This fee is for personal and account maintenance services, and may be used to make payments to Goldman Sachs, Intermediaries and their officers, sales representatives and employees for responding to inquiries of, and furnishing assistance to, shareholders regarding ownership of their shares or their accounts or similar services not otherwise provided on behalf of the Fund. If the fees received by Goldman Sachs pursuant to the Plan exceed its expenses, Goldman Sachs may realize a profit from this arrangement.<br>In connection with the sale of Class C Shares, Goldman Sachs normally begins paying the 0.25% ongoing service fee to Intermediaries after the shares have been held for one year.<br>The Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Bond Fund offering Service Shares, has adopted a Service Plan and Shareholder Administration Plan for Service Shares, pursuant to which Goldman Sachs and certain Intermediaries are entitled to receive payments for their services from the Acquired Fund Trust. These payments are equal to 0.25% (annualized) for personal and account maintenance services, plus an additional 0.25% (annualized) for shareholder administration services of the average daily net assets of Service Shares of the Fund that are attributable to or held in the name of Goldman Sachs or an Intermediary for its customers. Fees for personal and account maintenance services are paid pursuant to the Service Shares' Service Plan and are subject to the requirements of Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act. Because these fees are paid out of the Fund's assets on an ongoing basis, over time, these fees will increase the cost of your investment and may cost you more than paying other types of such charges. |

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**Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm** 

[ ], [ ], is the Funds' independent registered public accounting firm. In addition to audit services, [ ] provides assistance on certain non-audit matters.

**Interests of Certain Persons** 

*Exhibit D* to this Information Statement/Prospectus sets forth the persons who owned beneficially more than 5% of each Fund as of March 31, 2026.

**Legal Matters** 

Certain legal matters concerning the issuance of shares of the Acquiring Fund will be passed upon by Dechert LLP, 1095 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036.

**You can obtain more free information about each Fund from your Authorized Institution or** 

By calling: 1-800-526-7384

By writing to: Goldman Sachs,

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;71 South Wacker Drive, Suite 1200

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Chicago, IL 60606

On the Internet: SEC EDGAR database – http://www.sec.gov.

The Funds' statements of additional information, annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders, and other information such as the Funds' financial statements are available free upon request by using the contact information above or visiting the Fund's website at: dfinview.com/GoldmanSachs.

Additional information about the Funds' investments is available in the Funds' annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders and in Form N-CSR. In the Funds' annual reports, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund's performance during the last fiscal year. In Form N-CSR, you will find the Fund's annual and semi-annual financial statements.

Each Fund is subject to the informational requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and the 1940 Act and files reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. These, and other information about the Fund is available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC's website at <u>http://www.sec.gov</u>. You may obtain copies of this information, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov.

May [●], 2026

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**Exhibit A** 

**FORM OF** 

**AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF REORGANIZATION AND LIQUIDATION** 

**[ ]** 

This Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation (the "Plan") is made as of [●], 2026 by and between Goldman Sachs Trust, a Delaware statutory trust ("Acquired Fund Trust"), on behalf of its series [ ] (the "Acquired Fund"), and Goldman Sachs ETF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust ("Acquiring Fund Trust"), on behalf of its series [ ] (the "Acquiring Fund") and, with respect to paragraphs 10.2 and 15.3 of this Plan, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. ("GSAM").

This agreement is intended to be and is adopted as a plan of reorganization and liquidation within the meaning of section 368(a)(1) of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"). The reorganization and liquidation will consist of the transfer of all of the assets of the Acquired Fund to the Acquiring Fund in exchange for shares of beneficial interest of the Acquiring Fund ("Acquiring Fund Shares") equal in aggregate net asset value to the outstanding shares of beneficial interest of the Acquired Fund ("Acquired Fund Shares"), the assumption by the Acquiring Fund of all liabilities of the Acquired Fund, and the distribution of the Acquiring Fund Shares to the applicable shareholders of the Acquired Fund (the "Acquired Fund Shareholders", excluding Cash-Out Shareholders and IRA Shareholders (each defined below)) in complete liquidation of the Acquired Fund, as provided herein (the "Reorganization"), all upon the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth in this Plan. The Acquiring Fund is, and will be immediately prior to the date of the closing (the "Closing Date") (defined in paragraph 3.1), a shell series, without assets or liabilities, created for the purpose of acquiring the assets and liabilities of the Acquired Fund.

WHEREAS, each of the Acquired Fund and the Acquiring Fund is a series of an open-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act");

WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees of Goldman Sachs Trust (the "Acquired Fund Trust Board") has determined, with respect to the Acquired Fund, that the sale, assignment, conveyance, transfer and delivery of all of the property and assets of the Acquired Fund for Acquiring Fund Shares and the assumption of all liabilities of the Acquired Fund by the Acquiring Fund is in the best interests of the Acquired Fund and that the interest of the existing Acquired Fund Shareholders will not be diluted as a result of the Reorganization; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (the "Acquiring Fund Trust Board") has determined, with respect to the Acquiring Fund, that the sale, assignment, conveyance, transfer and delivery of all of the property and assets of the Acquired Fund for Acquiring Fund Shares and the assumption of all liabilities of the Acquired Fund by the Acquiring Fund is in the best interests of the Acquiring Fund;

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and of the covenants and agreements hereinafter set forth, the parties hereto covenant and agree as follows:

**1. TRANSFER OF ASSETS OF THE ACQUIRED FUND (AS DEFINED HEREINAFTER) TO THE ACQUIRING FUND IN EXCHANGE FOR ACQUIRING FUND SHARES, THE ASSUMPTION OF ALL OF THE ACQUIRED FUND'S LIABILITIES (AS DEFINED HEREINAFTER) AND THE LIQUIDATION OF THE ACQUIRED FUND** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.1. Subject to the requisite approvals and the other terms and conditions herein set forth and on the basis of the representations and warranties contained herein, the Acquired Fund agrees to transfer all of its Assets, as set forth in paragraph 1.2, to the Acquiring Fund, and the Acquiring Fund agrees in exchange therefor:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(a) to deliver to the Acquired Fund the number of full Acquiring Fund Shares having an aggregate net asset value equal to the value of the Assets of the Acquired Fund attributable to the Acquired Fund Shares on such date, less:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(i) the value of cash to be distributed to Acquired Fund Shareholders in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund Shares;

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(ii) the value of cash to be distributed to Acquired Fund Shareholders who do not hold Acquired Fund Shares through a brokerage account that can accept Acquiring Fund Shares ("Cash-Out Shareholders"), who shall not receive a distribution of such Acquiring Fund Shares and in lieu thereof shall receive a distribution of cash equal to the net asset value of their Acquired Fund Shares; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(iii) the value of the Acquired Fund Shares of shareholders of the Acquired Fund whose Acquired Fund Shares are held through a fund direct IRA ("IRA Shareholders"), which shall be exchanged for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the net asset value of such Acquired Fund Shares;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(iv) the value of the Liabilities of the Acquired Fund attributable to those Acquired Fund Shares as of the time as set forth in paragraph 1.3;

with the number of full shares to be delivered determined by dividing the value of the Acquired Fund's net Assets, computed in the manner and as of the time and date set forth in paragraph 2.1, except for the sum of the values in subparagraph (a)(i)-(iii) of this paragraph 1.1, by the net asset value of one Acquiring Fund Share, computed in the manner and as of the time and date set forth in paragraph 2.1; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(b) to assume all liabilities of the Acquired Fund, as set forth in paragraph 1.3.

Such transactions shall take place on the Closing Date provided for in paragraph 3.1.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.2. The assets of the Acquired Fund to be acquired by the Acquiring Fund shall consist of all assets and property, including, without limitation, all cash, securities, commodities and futures interests and dividends or interests receivable that are owned by the Acquired Fund and any deferred or prepaid expenses shown as an asset on the books of the Acquired Fund on the Closing Date, except for assets having a value equal to the sum of the values in subparagraph (a)(i)-(iii) of paragraph 1.1 (collectively, "Assets").

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.3. The Acquired Fund will endeavor to discharge all of its liabilities and obligations prior to the Closing Date. The Acquiring Fund shall also assume all of the liabilities of the Acquired Fund, whether accrued or contingent, known or unknown, existing at the Valuation Date as defined in paragraph 2.1 (collectively, "Liabilities"). The Acquired Fund may declare and pay to its shareholders (as defined in paragraph 1.4) one or more dividends and/or other distributions on or prior to the Closing Date so that it will have distributed all or a portion of its investment company taxable income (computed without regard to any deduction for dividends paid) and realized net capital gain, if any, through the Closing Date.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.4. Immediately after the transfer of Assets provided for in paragraph 1.1, the Acquired Fund Trust will take such actions necessary to complete the liquidation of the Acquired Fund. To complete the liquidation, the Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, will (a) distribute to its respective shareholders of record ("Shareholders"), determined as of the Valuation Date (as defined in paragraph 2.1), other than IRA Shareholders and Cash-Out Shareholders, on a pro rata basis, the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund pursuant to paragraph 1.1, with cash distributed in lieu of fractional shares; (b) with respect to IRA Shareholders, will initiate the exchange of for Acquired Fund Shares for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the net asset value of such Acquired Fund Shares held by such Acquired Fund Shareholders; (c) distribute cash to the Cash-Out Shareholders; and (d) completely liquidate. Such distribution and liquidation will be accomplished by the transfer of the Acquiring Fund Shares then credited to the account of the Acquired Fund on the books of the Acquiring Fund to open accounts on the share records of the Acquiring Fund in the names of the Acquired Fund's Shareholders. The aggregate net asset value of Acquiring Fund Shares to be so credited to the Acquired Fund's Shareholders, shall be equal to the aggregate net asset value of the Acquired Fund Shares owned by the Acquired Fund's Shareholders on the Closing Date less: (a) the value of cash to be distributed to Acquired Fund Shareholders in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund Shares;

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(ii) the value of cash to be distributed to Cash-Out Shareholders, who shall not receive a distribution of Acquiring Fund Shares and in lieu thereof shall receive a distribution of cash equal to the net asset value of their Acquired Fund Shares; and (iii) the value of the Acquired Fund Shares of IRA Shareholders whose Acquired Fund Shares are held through a fund direct IRA, which shall be exchanged for the equivalent share class of Goldman Sachs Financial Square Government Fund equal in value to the net asset value of such Acquired Fund Shares. All issued and outstanding Shares of the Acquired Fund will simultaneously be redeemed and canceled on the books of the Acquired Fund. The Acquiring Fund shall not issue certificates representing the Acquiring Fund Shares in connection with such exchange.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.5. The Acquiring Fund Shares will be issued in the manner that complies with the Acquiring Fund Trust's Declaration of Trust.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.6. Any reporting responsibility of the Acquired Fund, including, but not limited to, the responsibility for filing regulatory reports, or other documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), any state securities commission, or any other relevant regulatory authority, is and shall remain the responsibility of the Acquired Fund up to and including the Closing Date.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.7. Any reporting responsibility of the Acquired Fund, including, but not limited to, the responsibility for filing tax returns, or other documents with any Federal, state or local tax authorities with respect to the tax year ending on or before the Closing Date, is and shall remain the responsibility of the Acquired Fund.

**2. VALUATION** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2.1. The value of the Assets shall be the value of such Assets computed as of immediately after the close of business of the New York Stock Exchange and after the declaration of any dividends by the Acquired Fund, on the Closing Date (such time and date being hereinafter called the "Valuation Date"), using the valuation procedures set forth in the then-current prospectuses and statement of additional information with respect to the Acquired Fund and valuation procedures established by the Acquired Fund Trust Board (which are the same in all material respects as those of the Acquiring Fund).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2.2. The aggregate net asset value of the Acquiring Fund Shares shall be the net asset value per share computed as of the Valuation Date, using the valuation procedures set forth in the Acquiring Fund's then-current prospectuses and statement of additional information and valuation procedures established by the Acquiring Fund Trust Board (which are the same in all material respects as those of the Acquired Fund).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2.3. The number of the Acquiring Fund Shares to be issued in exchange for the Acquired Fund's Assets shall be determined by dividing the value of the net assets with respect to the Acquired Fund Shares, determined using the same valuation procedures referred to in paragraph 2.1, except for the sum of the values in subparagraph (a)(i)-(iii) of paragraph 1.1, by the net asset value per share of the Acquiring Fund Shares, determined in accordance with paragraph 2.2.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2.4. Reserved.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2.5. All computations of value shall be made by The Bank of New York ("BNY"), in its capacity as administrator for the Acquired Fund.

**3. CLOSING AND CLOSING DATE** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3.1. The Closing Date shall be on or about [ ], 2026 or such other date as the parties may agree. All acts taking place at the closing of the transactions provided for in this Plan (the "Closing") shall be deemed to take place simultaneously as of immediately after the close of business on the Closing Date unless otherwise

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agreed to by the parties. The close of business on the Closing Date shall be as of 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. The Closing shall be held at the offices of GSAM or at such other time and/or place, including by virtual means, as the parties may agree. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, and subject thereto, at the Closing, except as otherwise provided herein, all the Assets, rights, privileges, powers and franchises of the Acquired Fund shall vest in the Acquiring Fund, and all Liabilities, restrictions, disabilities and duties of the Acquired Fund shall become the Liabilities, obligations, restrictions, disabilities and duties of the Acquiring Fund.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3.2. The Acquired Fund shall direct BNY, as custodian for the Acquired Fund (the "Custodian"), to deliver, at the Closing, a certificate of an authorized officer stating that the Assets have been delivered in proper form to the Acquiring Fund. The Acquired Fund's portfolio securities represented by a certificate or other written instrument shall be presented by the Custodian to those persons at the Custodian who have primary responsibility for the safekeeping of the Assets of the Acquiring Fund, which Custodian also serves as the custodian for the Acquiring Fund. Such presentation shall be made for examination no later than five business days preceding the Closing Date, and shall be transferred and delivered by the Acquired Fund as of the Closing Date for the account of the Acquiring Fund duly endorsed in proper form for transfer in such condition as to constitute good delivery thereof. The Custodian shall deliver to those persons at the Custodian who have primary responsibility for the safekeeping of the Assets of the Acquiring Fund as of the Closing Date by book entry, in accordance with customary practices of the Custodian and the requirements of Section 17(f) and the rules thereunder, the Acquired Fund's Assets. The cash to be transferred by the Acquired Fund shall be delivered by wire transfer of Federal funds on the Closing Date. To the extent that any Assets of the Acquired Fund, for any reason, are not transferable at the Closing, the Acquired Fund shall cause such Assets of the Acquired Fund to be transferred to the Acquiring Fund's account with BNY at the earliest practicable date thereafter.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3.3. The Acquired Fund shall direct Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, in its capacity as transfer agent for the Acquired Fund (the "Transfer Agent"), to deliver at the Closing a certificate of an authorized officer stating that its records contain the names and addresses of the Acquired Fund's Shareholders and the number and percentage ownership of outstanding Acquired Fund Shares owned by each such Shareholder immediately prior to the Closing. The Acquiring Fund shall issue and deliver to the Secretary of the Acquired Fund prior to the Closing Date a confirmation evidencing that the appropriate number of Acquiring Fund Shares will be credited to the Acquired Fund on the Closing Date, or provide other evidence satisfactory to the Acquired Fund as of the Closing Date that such Acquiring Fund Shares have been credited to the Acquired Fund's accounts on the books of the Acquiring Fund. At the Closing, each of the Acquired Funds and the Acquiring Fund shall deliver to the other such bills of sale, checks, assignments, share certificates, if any, receipts or other documents as such other party or its counsel may reasonably request.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3.4. In the event that on the Valuation Date (a) the New York Stock Exchange or another primary trading market for portfolio securities of the Acquiring Fund or the Acquired Fund (each, an "Exchange") shall be closed to trading or trading thereupon shall be restricted, or (b) trading or the reporting of trading on such Exchange or elsewhere shall be disrupted so that accurate appraisal of the value of the net assets of the Acquired Fund or the Acquiring Fund is impracticable (in the judgment of the Acquired Fund Trust Board with respect to the Acquired Fund and Acquiring Fund Trust Board with respect to the Acquiring Fund), the Closing Date shall be postponed until the first business day after the day when trading shall have been fully resumed and reporting shall have been restored.

**4. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;4.1. Except as has been fully disclosed to the Acquiring Fund in a written instrument executed by an officer, Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, represents and warrants to the Acquiring Fund, as follows:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(a) The Acquired Fund is a series of Acquired Fund Trust, which is a statutory trust duly organized, validly existing, and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware with power under its Declaration of Trust and By-Laws to own all of its Assets and to carry on its business as it is now being conducted;

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(b) Acquired Fund Trust is a registered investment company classified as a management company of the open-end type, and its registration with the SEC as an investment company under the 1940 Act, and the registration of the Acquired Fund Shares under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended ("1933 Act"), have not been revoked or rescinded and are in full force and effect;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(c) No consent, approval, authorization, or order of any court or governmental authority is required for the consummation by the Acquired Fund of the transactions contemplated herein, except the approvals specifically contemplated by this Plan and such as have been obtained under the 1933 Act, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended ("1934 Act"), and the 1940 Act, and such as may be required by state securities laws and NYSE Arca, Inc.;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(d) The current prospectuses and statement of additional information of the Acquired Fund and each prospectus and statement of additional information of the Acquired Fund used at all times prior to the Closing Date conforms or conformed at the time of its use in all material respects to the applicable requirements of the 1933 Act and the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations of the SEC thereunder and does not or did not at the time of its use include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not materially misleading;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(e) On the Closing Date, Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, will have good and marketable title to the Assets and full right, power, and authority to sell, assign, transfer and deliver such Assets hereunder free of any liens or other encumbrances, and upon delivery and payment for such Assets, Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, will acquire good and marketable title thereto, subject to no restrictions on the full transfer thereof, including such restrictions as might arise under the 1933 Act, other than as disclosed to the Acquiring Fund;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(f) The Acquired Fund is not engaged currently, and the execution, delivery and performance of this Plan will not result, in (i) a material violation of Acquired Fund Trust's Declaration of Trust or By-Laws, or of any agreement, indenture, instrument, contract, lease or other undertaking to which Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, is a party or by which it is bound, or (ii) the acceleration of any obligation, or the imposition of any penalty, under any agreement, indenture, instrument, contract, lease, judgment or decree to which Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, is a party or by which it is bound;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(g) All material contracts or other commitments of the Acquired Fund (other than this Plan and certain investment contracts, including options, futures, and forward contracts) will terminate without liability to the Acquired Fund on or prior to the Closing Date;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(h) Except as otherwise disclosed in writing to and accepted by Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, no litigation or administrative proceeding or investigation of or before any court or governmental body is presently pending or, to its knowledge, threatened against Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, or any of its Assets that, if adversely determined, would materially and adversely affect its financial condition or the conduct of its business. Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, knows of no facts which might form the basis for the institution of such proceedings and is not a party to or subject to the provisions of any order, decree or judgment of any court or governmental body which materially and adversely affects the Acquired Fund's business or its ability to consummate the transactions herein contemplated;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(i) The Statement of Assets and Liabilities, Statement of Operations, Statements of Changes in Net Assets, and Schedule of Investments of the Acquired Fund dated March 31, 2025 have been audited by [ ], Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm, and are in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") consistently applied, and such statements (copies of which have been furnished to the Acquiring Fund) present fairly, in all material respects, the financial condition of the Acquired Fund as of such date in accordance with GAAP, and there are no known contingent Liabilities of the

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Acquired Fund required to be reflected on a balance sheet (including the notes thereto) in accordance with GAAP as of such date not disclosed therein;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(j) Since March 31, 2025, there has not been any material adverse change in the Acquired Fund's financial condition, Assets, Liabilities or business, other than changes occurring in the ordinary course of business, or any incurrence by the Acquired Fund of indebtedness maturing more than one year from the date such indebtedness was incurred, except as otherwise disclosed to and accepted by the Acquiring Fund. For the purposes of this subparagraph (j), a decline in net asset value per share of the Acquired Fund Shares due to declines in market values of securities held by the Acquired Fund, the discharge of the Acquired Fund's Liabilities, or the redemption of the Acquired Fund Shares shall not constitute a material adverse change;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(k) On the Closing Date, all Federal and other tax returns, dividend reporting forms, and other tax-related reports of the Acquired Fund required by law to have been filed by such date (including any extensions) shall have been filed and are or will be correct in all material respects, and all Federal and other taxes shown as due or required to be shown as due on said returns and reports shall have been paid or provision shall have been made for the payment thereof, and to the best of the Acquired Fund's knowledge, no such return is currently under audit and no assessment has been asserted with respect to such returns;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(l) For each taxable year of its operation (including with respect to the taxable year that includes the Closing Date the portion of such taxable year up to the Closing Date), the Acquired Fund has met (or will meet) the requirements of Subchapter M of the Code for qualification as a regulated investment company, has been (or will be) eligible to and has computed (or will compute) its U.S. federal income tax under section 852 of the Code;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(m) All issued and outstanding Shares of the Acquired Fund are, and on the Closing Date will be, duly and validly issued and outstanding and, subject to the qualifications set forth in the Acquired Fund Trust's Declaration of Trust, fully paid and non-assessable by Acquired Fund Trust and have been offered and sold in every state and the District of Columbia in compliance in all material respects with applicable registration requirements of the 1933 Act and state securities laws. All of the issued and outstanding Shares of the Acquired Fund will, at the time of Closing, be held by the persons and in the amounts set forth in the records of the Transfer Agent, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, as provided in paragraph 3.3. The Acquired Fund does not have outstanding any options, warrants or other rights to subscribe for or purchase any of the Acquired Fund Shares, nor is there outstanding any security convertible into any of the Acquired Fund Shares;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(n) The execution, delivery and performance of this Plan will have been duly authorized prior to the Closing Date by all necessary action, if any, on the part of the Acquired Fund Trust Board, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, and this Plan will constitute a valid and binding obligation of the Acquired Fund, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject, as to enforcement, to bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other laws relating to or affecting creditors' rights and to general equity principles;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(o) The information to be furnished by the Acquired Fund for use in registration statements, information statements and other documents filed or to be filed with any Federal, state or local regulatory authority (including the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority), which may be necessary in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby, shall be accurate and complete in all material respects and shall comply in all material respects with Federal securities and other laws and regulations thereunder applicable thereto; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(p) The combined information statement and prospectus ("Information Statement") to be included in the Registration Statement referred to in paragraph 5.5, insofar as the information relates to and was provided by the Acquired Fund, will, on the effective date of the Registration Statement on Form N-14 ("Registration Statement") and on the Closing Date (i) not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not materially misleading, provided, however, that the

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representations and warranties of this subparagraph (p) shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Information Statement and the Registration Statement made in reliance upon and in conformity with information that was furnished by the Acquiring Fund for use therein, and (ii) comply in all material respects with the provisions of the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act, and the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations thereunder.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;4.2. Except as has been fully disclosed to the Acquired Fund in a written instrument executed by an officer of Acquiring Fund Trust, Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, represents and warrants to the Acquired Fund, as follows:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(a) The Acquiring Fund is a series of Acquiring Fund Trust, which is a statutory trust duly organized, validly existing, and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware with power under its Declaration of Trust and By-Laws to own all of its properties and Assets and to carry on its business as it is now being conducted;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(b) Acquiring Fund Trust is a registered investment company classified as a management company of the open-end type, and its registration with the SEC as an investment company under the 1940 Act, and the registration of the Acquiring Fund Shares under the 1933 Act have not been revoked or rescinded and are in full force and effect;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(c) No consent, approval, authorization, or order of any court or governmental authority is required for the consummation by the Acquiring Fund of the transactions contemplated herein, except such as have been obtained under the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act and the 1940 Act, and such as may be required by state securities laws and the NYSE Arca, Inc.;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(d) Each prospectus and statement of additional information of the Acquiring Fund used at all times prior to the Closing Date conforms or conformed at the time of its use in all material respects to the applicable requirements of the 1933 Act and the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations of the SEC thereunder and does not or did not at the time of its use include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not materially misleading;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(e) On the Closing Date, Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, will have good and marketable title to the Acquiring Fund's Assets, free of any liens or other encumbrances, except those liens or encumbrances as to which the Acquired Fund has received notice and necessary documentation at or prior to the Closing;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(f) The Acquiring Fund is not engaged currently, and the execution, delivery and performance of this Plan will not result, in (i) a material violation of Acquiring Fund Trust's Declaration of Trust or By-Laws, or of any agreement, indenture, instrument, contract, lease or other undertaking to which Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, is a party or by which it is bound, or (ii) the acceleration of any obligation, or the imposition of any penalty, under any agreement, indenture, instrument, contract, lease, judgment or decree to which Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, is a party or by which it is bound;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(g) Except as otherwise disclosed in writing to and accepted by Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, no litigation or administrative proceeding or investigation of or before any court or governmental body is presently pending or, to the Acquiring Fund's knowledge, threatened against Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, or any of the Acquiring Fund's Assets that, if adversely determined, would materially and adversely affect the Acquiring Fund's financial condition or the conduct of its business. Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, knows of no facts which might form the basis for the institution of such proceedings and is not a party to or subject to the provisions of any order, decree or judgment of any court or governmental body which materially and adversely affects the Acquiring Fund's business or its ability to consummate the transactions herein contemplated;

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(h) All issued and outstanding Acquiring Fund Shares are, and on the Closing Date will be, duly and validly issued and outstanding and, subject to the qualifications set forth in the Acquiring Fund Trust's Declaration of Trust, fully paid and non-assessable by Acquiring Fund Trust and will have been offered in every state and the District of Columbia in compliance in all material respects with applicable registration requirements of the 1933 Act and state securities laws. The Acquiring Fund does not have outstanding any options, warrants or other rights to subscribe for or purchase any Acquiring Fund Shares, nor is there outstanding any security convertible into any Acquiring Fund Shares;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(i) The execution, delivery and performance of this Plan will have been duly authorized prior to the Closing Date by all necessary action, if any, on the part of the Acquiring Fund Trust Board, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, and this Plan will constitute a valid and binding obligation of the Acquiring Fund, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject, as to enforcement, to bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other laws relating to or affecting creditors' rights and to general equity principles;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(j) The Acquiring Fund Shares to be issued and delivered to the Acquired Fund, for the account of the Acquired Fund's Shareholders, pursuant to the terms of this Plan, will on the Closing Date have been duly authorized and, when so issued and delivered, will be duly and validly issued Acquiring Fund Shares, and, subject to the qualifications set forth in the Acquiring Fund Trust's Declaration of Trust, will be fully paid and non-assessable by the Acquiring Fund;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(k) The Acquiring Fund intends to take all steps necessary to ensure that it meets the requirements of Subchapter M of the Code for qualification and treatment as a regulated investment company and to be eligible to compute its U.S. federal income tax under section 852 of the Code for each taxable year (including the taxable year that includes the Closing Date);

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(l) The information to be furnished by the Acquiring Fund for use in the registration statements, information statements and other documents that may be necessary in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby, shall be accurate and complete in all material respects and shall comply in all material respects with Federal securities and other laws and regulations thereunder applicable thereto; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(m) The Information Statement to be included in the Registration Statement (and any amendment or supplement thereto), insofar as it relates to the Acquiring Fund and the Acquiring Fund Shares, will, from the effective date of the Registration Statement through the Closing Date (i) not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not materially misleading, provided, however, that the representations and warranties of this subparagraph (m) shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Information Statement and the Registration Statement made in reliance upon and in conformity with information that was furnished by the Acquired Fund for use therein, and (ii) comply in all material respects with the provisions of the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act, and the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations thereunder.

**5. COVENANTS OF THE ACQUIRING FUND AND THE ACQUIRED FUND** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.1. The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund each will operate its business in the ordinary course between the date hereof and the Closing Date, it being understood that such ordinary course of business will include the declaration and payment of customary dividends and distributions, and any other distribution that may be advisable. The Acquiring Fund is not currently operational.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.2. The Acquired Fund covenants that the Acquiring Fund Shares to be issued hereunder are not being acquired for the purpose of making any distribution thereof, other than in accordance with the terms of this Plan.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.3. The Acquired Fund will assist the Acquiring Fund in obtaining such information as the Acquiring Fund reasonably requests concerning the beneficial ownership of the Acquired Fund Shares.

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.4. Subject to the provisions of this Plan, the Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund will each take, or cause to be taken, all action, and do or cause to be done all things, reasonably necessary, proper or advisable to consummate and make effective the transactions contemplated by this Plan.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.5. The Acquired Fund has provided the Acquiring Fund with information reasonably necessary for the preparation of the Information Statement (referred to in subparagraph 4.1(p)) to be included in a Registration Statement on Form N-14, in compliance with the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act and the 1940 Act.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.6. Reserved.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.7. As soon as is reasonably practicable after the Closing, the Acquired Fund will make a liquidating distribution to its respective shareholders consisting of the Acquiring Fund Shares received at the Closing.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.8. The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund shall each use their reasonable best efforts to fulfill or obtain the fulfillment of the conditions precedent to effect the transactions contemplated by this Plan as promptly as practicable.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.9. Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, covenants that it will, from time to time, as and when reasonably requested by the Acquiring Fund, execute and deliver or cause to be executed and delivered all such assignments and other instruments, and will take or cause to be taken such further action as Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, may reasonably deem necessary or desirable in order to vest in and confirm (a) Acquired Fund Trust's, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, title to and possession of the Acquiring Fund Shares to be delivered hereunder, and (b) Acquiring Fund Trust's, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, title to and possession of all the Assets and otherwise to carry out the intent and purpose of this Plan.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5.10. The Acquiring Fund will use all reasonable efforts to obtain the approvals and authorizations required by the 1933 Act, the 1940 Act and such of the state blue sky or securities laws as may be necessary in order to continue its operations after the Closing Date.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5. 11. The intention of the parties is that the transaction will qualify as a "reorganization" within the meaning of section 368(a) of the Code. Neither the Acquiring Fund nor the Acquired Fund shall take any action, or cause any action to be taken (including, without limitation, the filing of any tax return) that is inconsistent with such treatment or results in the failure of the transaction to qualify as a reorganization within the meaning of section 368(a) of the Code. At or prior to the Closing Date, the Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund will take such action, or cause such action to be taken, as is reasonably necessary to enable Dechert LLP to render the tax opinion contemplated here in paragraph 8.4.

**6. CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE ACQUIRED FUND** 

The obligations of Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, to consummate the transactions provided for herein shall be subject, at Acquired Fund Trust's election, to the performance by Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, of all the obligations to be performed by it hereunder on or before the Closing Date, and, in addition thereto, the following further conditions:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6.1. Reserved.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6.2. All representations and warranties of Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, contained in this Plan shall be true and correct in all material respects as of the date hereof and, except as they may be affected by the transactions contemplated by this Plan, as of the Closing Date, with the same force and effect as if made on and as of the Closing Date;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6.3. Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, shall have delivered to the Acquired Fund a certificate executed in the name of the Acquiring Fund by its President or Vice President and its Treasurer or

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Assistant Treasurer, in a form reasonably satisfactory to the Acquired Fund, and dated as of the Closing Date, to the effect that the representations and warranties of Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, made in this Plan are true and correct at and as of the Closing Date, except as they may be affected by the transactions contemplated by this Plan, and as to such other matters as Acquired Fund Trust shall reasonably request;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6.4. Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, shall have performed all of the covenants and complied with all of the provisions required by this Plan to be performed or complied with by Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, on or before the Closing Date; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6.5. The Acquired Fund and the Acquiring Fund shall have agreed on the number of Acquiring Fund Shares to be issued in connection with the Reorganization after such number has been calculated in accordance with paragraph 1.1. For the avoidance of doubt, the Acquiring Fund shall not issue fractional shares, and cash shall be distributed to Acquired Fund Shareholders in connection with this Reorganization in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund Shares.

**7. CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE ACQUIRING FUND** 

The obligations of Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, to complete the transactions provided for herein shall be subject, at Acquired Fund Trust's election, to the performance by Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, of all of the obligations to be performed by it hereunder on or before the Closing Date and, in addition thereto, the following conditions:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;7.1. All representations and warranties of Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, contained in this Plan shall be true and correct in all material respects as of the date hereof and, except as they may be affected by the transactions contemplated by this Plan, as of the Closing Date, with the same force and effect as if made on and as of the Closing Date;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;7.2. Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, shall have delivered to the Acquiring Fund a statement of the Acquired Fund's Assets and Liabilities, as of the Closing Date, certified by the Treasurer of the Acquired Fund;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;7.3. Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, shall have delivered to the Acquiring Fund a certificate executed in the name of the Acquired Fund by its President or Vice President and its Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer, in a form reasonably satisfactory to the Acquiring Fund and dated as of the Closing Date, to the effect that the representations and warranties of Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, made in this Plan are true and correct at and as of the Closing Date, except as they may be affected by the transactions contemplated by this Plan, and as to such other matters as Acquiring Fund Trust shall reasonably request;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;7.4. Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, shall have performed all of the covenants and complied with all of the provisions required by this Plan to be performed or complied with by Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, on or before the Closing Date; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;7.5. The Acquired Fund and the Acquiring Fund shall have agreed on the number of Acquiring Fund Shares to be issued in connection with the Reorganization after such number has been calculated in accordance with paragraph 1.1. For the avoidance of doubt, the Acquiring Fund shall not issue fractional shares, and cash shall be distributed to Acquired Fund Shareholders in connection with this Reorganization in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund Shares.

**8. FURTHER CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE ACQUIRING FUND AND THE ACQUIRED FUND** 

If any of the conditions set forth below have not been satisfied on or before the Closing Date with respect to Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund, or Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund,

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the other party to this Plan (or in the case of Paragraph 8.1, either party to this Plan) shall, at its option, not be required to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Plan:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;8.1. On the Closing Date no action, suit or other proceeding shall be pending or, to either party's knowledge, threatened before any court or governmental agency in which it is sought to restrain or prohibit, or obtain damages or other relief in connection with, this Plan or the transactions contemplated herein;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;8.2. All consents of other parties and all other consents, orders and permits of federal, state and local regulatory authorities, and NYSE Arca, Inc. deemed necessary by each party to permit consummation, in all material respects, of the transactions contemplated hereby shall have been obtained, except where failure to obtain any such consent, order or permit would not involve a risk of a material adverse effect on the Assets of the Acquiring Fund or the Acquired Fund, provided that either party hereto may for itself waive any of such conditions;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;8.3. The Registration Statement (and the Information Statement included therein) shall have become effective under the 1933 Act and no stop orders suspending the effectiveness thereof shall have been issued and, to the best knowledge of the parties hereto, no investigation or proceeding for that purpose shall have been instituted or be pending, threatened or contemplated under the 1933 Act; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;8.4. Each of the parties shall have received an opinion of counsel to the parties substantially to the effect that based upon certain facts, assumptions, and representations, and the existing provisions of the Code, Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder, for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(a) The acquisition by the Acquiring Fund of all of the properties of the Acquired Fund in exchange solely for Acquiring Fund Shares and the assumption of all Liabilities of the Acquired Fund by the Acquiring Fund followed by the distribution by the Acquired Fund of Acquiring Fund Shares and cash in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund Shares to the Acquired Fund Shareholders and cash to Cash-Out Shareholders in exchange for their Acquired Fund Shares in complete liquidation and termination of the Acquired Fund will constitute a "reorganization" within the meaning of section 368(a) of the Code. The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund each will be "a party to a reorganization" within the meaning of section 368(b) of the Code.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(b) The Acquired Fund will not recognize gain or loss upon the transfer of the Assets of the Acquired Fund to the Acquiring Fund in exchange solely for the assumption of all the Acquired Fund's Liabilities and the Acquiring Fund Shares, except that the Acquired Fund may be required to recognize gain or loss with respect to contracts described in section 1256(b) of the Code or stock in a passive foreign investment company, as defined in section 1297(a) of the Code.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(c) The Acquired Fund will not recognize gain or loss upon the distribution to the Acquired Fund Shareholders of the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund in the Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(d) The Acquiring Fund will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving the Assets of the Acquired Fund in exchange solely for the assumption of all Liabilities of the Acquired Fund and the issuance of the Acquiring Fund Shares.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(d) The Acquiring Fund will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving the Assets of the Acquired Fund in exchange solely for the assumption of all Liabilities of the Acquired Fund and the issuance of the Acquiring Fund Shares.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(e) The Acquired Fund Shareholders will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving Acquiring Fund Shares solely in exchange for the Acquired Fund Shares (except with respect to cash received in lieu of fractional shares, if any).

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(f) The aggregate basis of the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund Shareholder in the Reorganization will be the same as the aggregate basis of the Acquired Fund Shares exchanged in the Reorganization (reduced by any amount of tax basis allocable to fractional shares for which cash is received).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(g) An Acquired Fund Shareholder's holding period for the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund Shareholder in the Reorganization will include the holding period during which the Acquired Fund Shareholder held the Acquired Fund Shares surrendered in exchange therefor, provided that the Acquired Fund Shareholder held the shares as a capital asset on the date of Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(h) The tax basis of the Assets of the Acquired Fund acquired by the Acquiring Fund will be the same as the tax basis of such Assets to the Acquired Fund immediately prior to the Reorganization;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(i) The holding period of the Assets of the Acquired Fund in the hands of the Acquiring Fund will include the period during which those Assets were held by the Acquired Fund; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(j) The Acquired Fund's tax attributes enumerated in section 381(c) of the Code will be taken into account by the Acquiring Fund without limitation.

For avoidance of doubt, Acquired Fund Shareholders for this purpose refers to shareholders of the Acquired Fund who hold Acquired Fund Shares through a brokerage account that can accept Acquiring Fund Shares and does not include Cash-Out Shareholders.

The delivery of such opinion is conditioned upon receipt by counsel to the parties of representations it shall request of the parties. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the parties may not waive the condition set forth in this paragraph 8.4.

**9. INDEMNIFICATION** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;9.1. Acquiring Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquiring Fund and solely out of the Acquiring Fund's Assets, agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Acquired Fund from and against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses (including, without limitation, the payment of reasonable legal fees and reasonable costs of investigation) to which the Acquired Fund may become subject, insofar as such loss, claim, damage, liability or expense (or actions with respect thereto) arises out of or is based on any breach by the Acquiring Fund of any of its representations, warranties, covenants or agreements set forth in this Plan.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;9.2. Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Acquired Fund and solely out of the Acquired Fund's Assets, agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Acquiring Fund from and against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses (including, without limitation, the payment of reasonable legal fees and reasonable costs of investigation) to which the Acquiring Fund may become subject, insofar as such loss, claim, damage, liability or expense (or actions with respect thereto) arises out of or is based on any breach by the Acquired Fund of any of its representations, warranties, covenants or agreements set forth in this Plan.

**10. BROKERAGE FEES AND EXPENSES** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;10.1. The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund represent and warrant to each other that there are no brokers or finders entitled to receive any payments in connection with the transactions provided for herein, other than any brokerage fees and expenses incurred in connection with the Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;10.2. The expenses relating to the proposed Reorganization will be borne by GSAM (except brokerage costs, trading taxes and other transaction costs associated with portfolio adjustments). The costs of the Reorganization shall include, but not be limited to, costs associated with obtaining any necessary order of exemption from the 1940 Act, if any, preparation, printing and distributing the Registration Statement and

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Information Statement, legal fees, accounting fees, securities registration fees and brokerage costs, trading taxes and other transaction costs associated with portfolio adjustments. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, expenses will in any event be paid by the party directly incurring such expenses if and to the extent that the payment by another person of such expenses would result in the disqualification of such party as a "regulated investment company" within the meaning of Section 851 of the Code.

**11. ENTIRE AGREEMENT; SURVIVAL OF WARRANTIES** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;11.1. Each party to this agreement agrees that it has not made any representation, warranty or covenant, not set forth herein, and that this Plan constitutes the entire agreement between the parties.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;11.2. The representations, warranties and covenants contained in this Plan or in any document delivered pursuant hereto or in connection herewith shall survive the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereunder. The covenants to be performed after the Closing and the obligations of the Acquired Fund and Acquiring Fund in Sections 9.1 and 9.2 shall survive the Closing.

**12. TERMINATION** 

This Plan may be terminated and the transactions contemplated hereby may be abandoned by action of the Acquiring Fund Trust Board or the Acquired Fund Trust Board at any time prior to the Closing Date, if circumstances should develop that, in the determination of either Board, make proceeding with the Plan inadvisable with respect to the Acquiring Fund or the Acquired Fund, respectively.

**13. AMENDMENTS** 

This Plan may be amended, modified or supplemented in such manner as may be deemed necessary or advisable by the authorized officers of Acquiring Fund Trust and Acquired Fund Trust, on behalf of the Funds.

**14. NOTICES** 

Any notice, report, statement or demand required or permitted by any provisions of this Plan shall be in writing and shall be given by facsimile, electronic delivery (*i.e.*, e-mail), personal service or prepaid or certified mail addressed to the Funds, 200 West Street, New York, New York 10282, Attn: Robert Griffith, Esq., Secretary, in each case with a copy to Dechert LLP, 1095 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036, Attn: Stephen H. Bier, Esq.

**15. HEADINGS; GOVERNING LAW; ASSIGNMENT; LIMITATION OF LIABILITY** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;15.1. The Article and paragraph headings contained in this Plan are for reference purposes only and shall not affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this Plan.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;15.2. This Plan shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware without regard to its principles of conflicts of laws.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;15.3. This Plan shall bind and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns, but no assignment or transfer hereof or of any rights or obligations hereunder shall be made by any party without the written consent of the other party. Nothing herein expressed or implied is intended or shall be construed to confer upon or give any person, firm or corporation, other than the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns, any rights or remedies under or by reason of this Plan. Except as expressly provided otherwise in this Plan, the parties hereto will bear the expenses relating to the Reorganization as set forth in Section 10.2 as mutually agreed upon.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, each of the parties hereto has caused this Plan to be executed as of the date above first written.

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST | GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST | GOLDMAN SACHS TRUST | GOLDMAN SACHS TRUST |
| On behalf of the Acquiring Fund: | On behalf of the Acquiring Fund: | On behalf of the Acquired Fund: | On behalf of the Acquired Fund: |
| [ ] | [ ] | [ ] | [ ] |
| By: |  | By: |  |
| Name: | Joseph F. DiMaria | Name: | Joseph F. DiMaria |
| Title: | Principal Financial Officer, Principal Accounting Officer and Treasurer | Title: | Principal Financial Officer, Principal Accounting Officer and Treasurer |

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Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. agrees to the provisions set forth in Sections 10.2 and 15.3 of this Plan.

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| | |
|:---|:---|
|  GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT, L.P. | GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT, L.P. |
| By: |  |
| Name: | James A. McNamara |
| Title: | Managing Director |

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**EXHIBIT B** 

**ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES, PORTFOLIO RISKS, SECURITIES AND TECHNIQUES** 

For the purpose of this section, "Fund" refers to each applicable Acquiring Fund (unless otherwise specified).

**A. PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES** 

**Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** 

The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its Net Assets in bonds and other fixed income securities, including U.S. Government Securities, including Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, corporate debt securities, Private Mortgage-Backed Securities, asset-backed securities (including CLOs) high yield non-investment grade securities (securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by an NRSRO, or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality). The Fund may also invest in custodial receipts, Municipal Securities, loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) Senior Loans, (b) Second Lien Loans and (c) other types of secured or unsecured loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. Shareholders will be provided with sixty days notice in the manner prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") before any change in the Fund's policy to invest at least 80% of its Net Assets in the particular type of investment suggested by its name.

The Fund may also engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in derivatives, including (but not limited to) forwards, interest rate futures, interest rate swaps and credit default swaps, which are used primarily to hedge the Fund's portfolio risks, manage the Fund's duration and/or gain exposure to certain fixed income securities or indices. The Fund may invest in obligations of domestic and foreign issuers which are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its Total Assets in emerging countries debt. The Fund may purchase securities of issuers in default.

The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund may utilize short positions to implement macro views on securities valuations, long term views on relative value or short term views on security mispricings, as well as any other views the Investment Adviser deems appropriate. For example, the Fund may enter into a TBA agreement to sell an Agency TBA Mortgage-Backed Security that it believes will underperform. The Fund will benefit from a short position to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale. Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement.

The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including ETFs.

The Fund's investments in non-investment grade securities (i.e., junk bonds) will not exceed 25% of its Total Assets at the time of purchase. Otherwise, the Fund invests in fixed income securities rated at least BBB– or Baa3 by at least one NRSRO at the time of purchase (or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality).

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The Fund's target duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to approximate that of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (the "Index") plus or minus 2.5 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years.

The Investment Adviser measures the Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. The Index represents an unmanaged diversified portfolio of investment grade, U.S. dollar-denominated, fixed income securities, including U.S. Treasuries, government-related and corporate securities, mortgage-backed securities (agency fixed-rate pass-throughs), asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (agency and non-agency).

**Goldman Sachs Income ETF** 

The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its Net Assets in fixed income securities. Fixed income securities include U.S. Government securities, including Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities (such as U.S. Treasury securities or Treasury inflation protected securities), non-U.S. sovereign debt, agency securities, corporate debt securities, Mortgage-Backed Securities, asset-backed securities (including CLOs), custodial receipts, municipal securities, loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) Senior Loans, (b) Second Lien Loans and (c) other types of secured or unsecured loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity. Shareholders will be provided with sixty days' notice in the manner prescribed by the SEC before any change in the Fund's policy to invest at least 80% of its Net Assets in the particular type of investment suggested by its name.

The Fund invests in a multi-sector portfolio of U.S. and foreign investment grade and non-investment grade fixed income investments of varying maturities. The Fund's investment sectors include, but are not limited to: (a) government securities, (b) corporate debt securities, (c) commercial and residential mortgage-backed securities, (d) asset-backed securities (including CLOs) and (e) emerging countries debt denominated in both U.S. dollars and foreign currencies. The Fund may not have exposure to all of these investment sectors, and the Fund's exposure to any one investment sector may vary over time.

Non-investment grade fixed income securities are securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by a NRSRO, or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality.

The Fund may invest up to 35% of its Total Assets in emerging countries debt. Such investments may include sovereign debt issued by emerging countries that have sovereign ratings below investment grade or that are unrated. The Fund's investments may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.

The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Total Assets in privately issued corporate debt securities and other obligations issued by private companies, including privately issued credit obligations and related instruments, and up to an additional 10% of its Total Assets in equity investments, including preferred securities and dividend paying common stocks. Many of the issuers of such obligations will be smaller companies with stock market capitalizations of $1 billion or less at the time of investment and may be rated below investment grade (so-called "high yield" or "junk" bonds) or unrated.

The Fund may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in other derivative instruments. Derivatives are instruments that have a value based on another instrument, exchange rate, interest rate or index. The Fund's investments in derivatives may include, in addition to forward foreign currency exchange contracts, futures contracts (including interest rate futures and treasury and sovereign bond futures), options (including options on futures contracts, swaps, bonds, stocks and indexes), swaps (including credit default, index, basis, total return, volatility, interest rate and currency swaps), and other forward contracts. The Fund may use derivatives instead of buying and selling bonds to manage duration, to gain exposure or to short individual securities or to gain exposure to a credit or asset backed index.

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The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency mortgage-backed securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund will benefit to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale. Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The Fund uses short positions and derivatives for both investment and hedging purposes.

The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including ETFs.

The Fund's target average duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to be between 0 and 8 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years.

The Investment Adviser measures the Fund's performance against the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. The Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index represents an unmanaged diversified portfolio of investment grade, U.S. dollar-denominated, fixed income securities, including U.S. Treasuries, government-related and corporate securities, mortgage-backed securities (agency fixed-rate pass-throughs), asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (agency and non-agency).

**Both Funds** 

Each Fund is an actively managed ETF, which is a fund that trades like other publicly-traded securities. The Funds are not index funds and do not seek to replicate the performance of a specified index.

The Funds may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities through several methods, including by utilizing TBA agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are standardized contracts for future delivery of fixed-rate mortgage pass-through securities in which the exact mortgage pools to be delivered are not specified until shortly before settlement. In TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, the buyer and seller agree upon general trade parameters such as the issuer, maturity, coupon, face value, price and settlement date. The actual pools of mortgages to be delivered typically are announced two days prior to the settlement date; however, in most instances, a Fund will not take delivery of the pools of mortgages, but will instead participate in rolling TBA agreements, in which it exchanges a near settlement TBA agreement for a TBA agreement with a later settlement date. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the sale of securities held by a Fund subject to an agreement to repurchase them at a mutually agreed upon date and price (including interest). These transactions enable a Fund to gain exposure to specified pools of Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by purchasing them on a forward settling basis and using the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement to settle the trade. A Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements when the Investment Adviser expects that the return to be earned from the investment of the transaction proceeds to be greater than the interest expense of the transaction. Reverse repurchase agreements may also be entered into as a temporary measure for emergency purposes or to meet redemption requests.

"Duration" is a measure of a debt security's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of a Fund (or an individual debt security), the more sensitive its market price to changes in interest rates. For example, if market interest rates increase by 1%, the market price of a debt security with a positive duration of 3 years will generally decrease by approximately 3%. Conversely, a 1% decline in market interest rates will generally result in an increase of approximately 3% of that security's market price.

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The Funds may, from time to time, take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with the Funds' principal investment strategies in attempting to respond to adverse market, political or other conditions. For temporary defensive purposes (and to the extent that it is permitted to invest in the following), each Fund may invest up to 100% of its total assets in U.S. Government Securities, commercial paper rated at least A-2 by S&P Global Ratings ("S&P"), P-2 by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's"), or having a comparable credit rating by another NRSRO (or if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality), certificates of deposit, bankers' acceptances, repurchase agreements, non-convertible preferred stocks and non-convertible corporate bonds with a remaining maturity of less than one year, ETFs and other investment companies and cash items. When a Fund's assets are invested in such instruments, the Fund may not be achieving its investment objective.

**GSAM Fixed Income Team's Investment Philosophy** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Combines diversified sources of return by employing multiple strategies

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Takes a global perspective to seek relative value opportunities

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Employs focused specialist teams to seek to identify short-term mis-pricings and incorporate long-term views

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Emphasizes a risk-aware approach as we view management as both an offensive and defensive tool

The Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team implements this overall philosophy through an investment process that seeks to maximize risk-adjusted total returns by using a diverse set of investment strategies and revolves around four key elements:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;***1. Developing a long-term risk budget***—Lead portfolio managers (the "Portfolio Team") set the strategic direction of a Fund by establishing a "risk budget." The "risk budget" for the Fund is the range the portfolio managers will allow the Fund to deviate from their respective benchmarks with respect to sector allocations, country allocations, securities selection, and, to a lesser extent, duration. Following analysis of risk and return objectives, they allocate the overall risk budget to each component strategy to seek to optimize potential return.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;***2. Fundamental investment process***—The Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team employs a fundamental investment process that considers a wide range of factors, and no one factor or consideration is determinative. Traditional fundamental factors that the Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team may consider include, but are not limited to, leverage, earnings, enterprise value, industry trends and macroeconomic factors. As part of its fundamental investment process, the Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team may integrate environmental, social, and governance ("ESG") factors alongside traditional fundamental factors to seek to: (i) determine whether a particular fixed income security and/or sector is suitable and attractively priced for investment and (ii) assess their potential impact on the credit quality and spreads of a particular fixed income security. ESG factors that the Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team may consider include, but are not limited to, physical risk (e.g., wildfires, floods, droughts and rising sea levels), carbon intensity and emissions profiles, governance practices and board structure. The identification of a risk related to an ESG factor will not necessarily exclude a particular fixed income security and/or sector that, in the Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team's view, is otherwise suitable and attractively priced for investment, and the Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team may invest in a security or sector without integrating ESG factors or considerations into its fundamental investment process. The relevance of specific traditional fundamental factors and ESG factors to the fundamental investment process varies across asset classes, sectors and strategies. The Fixed Income Portfolio Management Team may utilize data sources provided by third-party vendors and/or engage directly with issuers when assessing the above factors.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;***3. Generating investment views and strategies***—The Top-down and Bottom-up Strategy Teams (collectively, "Strategy Teams") generate investment ideas within their areas of specialization. The Top-down

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Strategy Teams are responsible for Cross-Sector, Duration, Country, and Currency decisions. Concurrently, Bottom-up Strategy Teams, comprised of sector specialists, formulate sub-sector allocation and security selection decisions.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;***4. Constructing the portfolios***—The Portfolio and Strategy Teams construct each Fund's portfolio through a collaborative process in which the Portfolio Team oversees the overall portfolio while the Strategy Teams actively manage the securities and strategies within their areas of specialization. This process enables the Portfolio Team to build a portfolio consisting of the ideas of the individual Strategy Teams, consistent with the Fund's overall risk and return objectives.

With every fixed income portfolio, the Investment Adviser applies a team approach that emphasizes risk management and capitalizes on Goldman Sachs' extensive research capabilities.

**B. GENERAL PORTFOLIO RISKS** 

The Funds will be subject to the risks associated with fixed income securities. These risks include, among others, interest rate risk, credit/default risk and call/extension risk. In general, interest rate risk involves the risk that when interest rates decline, the market value of fixed income securities tends to increase (although many mortgage-related securities will have less potential than other debt securities for capital appreciation during periods of declining rates). Conversely, when interest rates increase, the market value of fixed income securities tends to decline. Credit/default risk involves the risk that an issuer or guarantor could default on its obligations, and a Fund will not recover its investment. Call risk and extension risk are normally present in adjustable rate mortgage loans ("ARMs"), mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities. For example, homeowners have the option to prepay their mortgages. Therefore, the duration of a security backed by home mortgages can either shorten (call risk) or lengthen (extension risk). In general, if interest rates on new mortgage loans fall sufficiently below the interest rates on existing outstanding mortgage loans, the rate of prepayment would be expected to increase. Conversely, if mortgage loan interest rates rise above the interest rates on existing outstanding mortgage loans, the rate of prepayment would be expected to decrease. In either case, a change in the prepayment rate can result in losses to investors. The same would be true of asset-backed securities, such as securities backed by car loans.

A rising interest rate environment could cause the value of a Fund's fixed income securities to decrease, and fixed income markets to experience increased volatility in addition to heightened levels of liquidity risk. Additionally, decreases in the value of fixed income securities could lead to increased shareholder redemptions, which could impair a Fund's ability to achieve its investment objective. The risks associated with increasing interest rates are heightened given that interest rates are near historic lows, but may be expected to increase in the future with unpredictable effects on the markets and the Fund's investments.

To the extent a Fund invests in pooled investment vehicles (including investment companies and ETFs) and partnerships, the Fund will be affected by the investment policies, practices and performance of such entities in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Fund invests therein.

To the extent a Fund's net assets decrease or increase in the future due to price volatility or share redemption or purchase activity, a Fund's expense ratio may correspondingly increase or decrease from the expense ratio disclosed in this Information Statement/Prospectus.

The Investment Adviser will not consider the portfolio turnover rate a limiting factor in making investment decisions for a Fund. A high rate of portfolio turnover involves correspondingly greater expenses which must be borne by a Fund and its shareholders, and is also likely to result in higher short-term capital gains taxable to certain shareholders. The portfolio turnover rate is calculated by dividing the lesser of the dollar amount of sales or purchases of portfolio securities by the average monthly value of a Fund's portfolio securities, excluding securities having a maturity at the date of purchase of one year or less.

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A Fund may have a target duration range. A Fund's duration approximates its price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. For example, suppose that interest rates in one day fall by one percent which, in turn, causes yields on every bond in the market to fall by the same amount. In this example, the price of a bond with a duration of three years may be expected to rise approximately three percent and the price of a bond with a five year duration may be expected to rise approximately five percent. The converse is also true. Suppose interest rates in one day rise by one percent which, in turn, causes yields on every bond in the market to rise by the same amount. In this second example, the price of a bond with a duration of three years may be expected to fall approximately three percent and the price of a bond with a five year duration may be expected to fall approximately five percent. The longer the duration of a bond, the more sensitive the bond's price is to changes in interest rates. In computing portfolio duration, a Fund will estimate the duration of obligations that are subject to prepayment or redemption by the issuer, taking into account the influence of interest rates on prepayments and coupon flows. This method of computing duration is known as "option-adjusted" duration. A Fund will not be limited as to its maximum weighted average portfolio maturity or the maximum stated maturity with respect to individual securities unless otherwise noted. The Investment Adviser may use derivative instruments to manage the duration of a Fund's investment portfolio. These derivative instruments may include futures contracts, options on futures contracts and swap transactions, as well as other types of derivatives, and can be used to shorten or lengthen the duration of a Fund.

Maturity measures the time until final payment is due; it takes no account of the pattern of a security's cash flows over time. In calculating maturity, a Fund may determine the maturity of a variable or floating rate obligation according to its interest rate reset date, or the date principal can be recovered on demand, rather than the date of ultimate maturity. Similarly, to the extent that a fixed income obligation has a call, refunding or redemption provision, the date on which the instrument is expected to be called, refunded or redeemed may be considered to be its maturity date. There is no guarantee that the expected call, refund or redemption will occur, and a Fund's average maturity may lengthen beyond the Investment Adviser's expectations should the expected call, refund or redemption not occur.

A Fund's investments in derivative instruments, including financial futures contracts, options and swaps, can be significant. These transactions can result in sizeable realized and unrealized capital gains and losses relative to the gains and losses from a Fund's investments in bonds and other securities. Short-term and long-term realized capital gains distributions paid by a Fund are taxable to its shareholders.

Interest rates, fixed income securities prices, the prices of futures and other derivatives, and currency exchange rates can be volatile, and a variance in the degree of volatility or in the direction of the market from the Investment Adviser's expectations may produce significant losses in a Fund's investments in derivatives. In addition, a perfect correlation between a derivatives position and a fixed income security position is generally impossible to achieve. As a result, the Investment Adviser's use of derivatives may not be effective in fulfilling the Investment Adviser's investment strategies and may contribute to losses that would not have been incurred otherwise.

Financial futures contracts used by a Fund may include interest rate futures contracts. Further information is included in this Information Statement/Prospectus regarding futures contracts, swaps and other derivative instruments used by a Fund, including information on the risks presented by these instruments and other purposes for which they may be used by a Fund.

As discussed below, a Fund may invest in credit default swaps, which are derivative investments.

The Funds may, from time to time, enter into arrangements with certain brokers or other counterparties that require the segregation of collateral. For operational, cost or other reasons, when setting up arrangements relating to the execution/clearing of trades, a Fund may choose to select a segregation model which may not be the most protective option available in the case of a default by a broker or counterparty.

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The following sections provide further information on certain types of securities and investment techniques that may be used by a Fund, including their associated risks. Additional information is provided in the SAI, which is available upon request. Among other things, the SAI describes certain fundamental investment restrictions that cannot be changed without shareholder approval. You should note, however, that all investment objectives and all investment policies not specifically designated as fundamental are non-fundamental, and may be changed without shareholder approval. If there is a change in a Fund's investment objective, you should consider whether that Fund remains an appropriate investment in light of your then current financial position and needs.

**C. OTHER PORTFOLIO RISKS** 

***Credit/Default Risks.*** Debt securities purchased by a Fund may include U.S. Government Securities (including zero coupon bonds) and securities issued by foreign governments, domestic and foreign corporations, banks and other issuers. Some of these fixed income securities are described in the next section below. Further information is provided in the SAI.

Debt securities rated BBB– or higher by S&P, or Baa3 or higher by Moody's or having a comparable credit rating by an NRSRO are considered "investment grade." Securities rated BBB– or Baa3 are considered medium-grade obligations with speculative characteristics, and adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances may weaken their issuers' capacity to pay interest and repay principal.

Both Funds may invest in fixed income securities rated BB+ or Ba1 or below (or comparable unrated securities) which are commonly referred to as "junk bonds." Junk bonds are considered speculative and may be questionable as to principal and interest payments.

Both Funds also have credit rating requirements for the securities they buy, which are applied at the time of purchase. For the purpose of determining compliance with any credit rating requirement, a Fund assigns a security, at the time of purchase, the highest rating by an NRSRO if the security is rated by more than one NRSRO. For this purpose, a Fund relies only on the ratings of the following NRSROs: S&P, Moody's and Fitch, Inc. Unrated securities may be purchased by a Fund if they are determined by the Investment Adviser to be of a credit quality consistent with a Fund's credit rating requirements.

A security satisfies a Fund's credit rating requirement regardless of its relative ranking (for example, plus or minus) within a designated major rating category (for example, BBB or Baa). If a security satisfies a Fund's credit rating requirement at the time of purchase and is subsequently downgraded below a minimum rating requirement, a Fund will not be required to dispose of such security. If a downgrade occurs, the Investment Adviser will consider what action, including the sale of such security, is in the best interests of a Fund and its shareholders.

In some cases, junk bonds may be highly speculative, have poor prospects for reaching investment grade standing and be in default. As a result, investment in such bonds will present greater speculative risks than those associated with investment in investment grade bonds. Also, to the extent that the rating assigned to a security in a Fund's portfolio is downgraded by a rating organization, the market price and liquidity of such security may be adversely affected.

***Risks of Derivative Investments.*** A Fund may invest in derivative instruments including without limitation, options, futures, options on futures, swaps, interest rate caps, floors and collars, structured securities and forward contracts and other derivatives relating to foreign currency transactions. Derivatives may be used for both hedging and nonhedging purposes (that is, to seek to increase total return), although suitable derivative instruments may not always be available to an Investment Adviser for these purposes. Losses from derivative instruments can result from a lack of correlation between changes in the value of derivative instruments and the portfolio assets (if any) being hedged, the potential illiquidity of the markets for derivative instruments, the failure of the counterparty to perform its contractual obligations, or the risks related to leverage factors associated

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with such transactions. Derivatives are also subject to risks arising from margin requirements, which include the risk that a Fund will be required to pay additional margin or set aside additional collateral to maintain open derivative positions and the risk of loss by a Fund of margin deposits in the event of the bankruptcy or other similar insolvency with respect to a broker or counterparty with whom a Fund has an open derivative position. Losses may also arise if a Fund receives cash collateral under the transactions and some or all of that collateral is invested in the market. To the extent that cash collateral is so invested, such collateral will be subject to market depreciation or appreciation, and a Fund may be responsible for any loss that might result from its investment of the counterparty's cash collateral. If cash collateral is not invested, a Fund may be exposed to additional risk of loss in the event of the insolvency of its custodian holding such collateral. The use of these management techniques also involves the risk of loss if the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of the timing or level of fluctuation in securities prices, interest rates, currency prices or other variables. Derivative instruments may be harder to value, subject to greater volatility and more likely subject to changes in tax treatment than other investments. For these reasons, the Investment Adviser's attempts to hedge portfolio risks through the use of derivative instruments may not be successful, and the Investment Adviser may choose not to hedge portfolio risks. Using derivatives for nonhedging purposes presents greater risk of loss than derivatives used for hedging purposes.

Derivative mortgage-backed securities (such as principal-only ("POs"), interest-only ("IOs") or inverse floating rate securities) are particularly exposed to call and extension risks. Small changes in mortgage prepayments can significantly impact the cash flow and the market value of these securities. In general, the risk of faster than anticipated prepayments adversely affects IOs, super floaters and premium priced mortgage-backed securities. The risk of slower than anticipated prepayments generally adversely affects POs, floating-rate securities subject to interest rate caps, support tranches and discount priced mortgage-backed securities. In addition, particular derivative securities may be leveraged such that their exposure (i.e., price sensitivity) to interest rate and/or prepayment risk is magnified.

Some floating-rate derivative debt securities can present more complex types of derivative and interest rate risks. For example, range floaters are subject to the risk that the coupon will be reduced below market rates if a designated interest rate floats outside of a specified interest rate band or collar. Dual index or yield curve floaters are subject to lower prices in the event of an unfavorable change in the spread between two designated interest rates.

***Risks of Foreign Investments.*** The Funds may make foreign investments. Foreign investments involve special risks that are not typically associated with U.S. dollar denominated or quoted securities of U.S. issuers. Foreign investments may be affected by changes in currency rates, changes in foreign or U.S. laws or restrictions applicable to such investments and changes in exchange control regulations (*e.g*., currency blockage). A decline in the exchange rate of the currency (*i.e*., weakening of the currency against the U.S. dollar) in which a portfolio security is quoted or denominated relative to the U.S. dollar would reduce the value of the portfolio security. In addition, if the currency in which a Fund receives dividends, interest or other payments declines in value against the U.S. dollar before such income is distributed as dividends to shareholders or converted to U.S. dollars, the Fund may have to sell portfolio securities to obtain sufficient cash to pay such dividends.

Certain foreign markets may rely heavily on particular industries or foreign capital and are more vulnerable to diplomatic developments, the imposition of economic sanctions against a particular country or countries, organizations, entities and/or individuals, changes in international trading patterns, trade barriers, and other protectionist or retaliatory measures. International trade barriers or economic sanctions against foreign countries, organizations, entities and/or individuals may adversely affect a Fund's foreign holdings or exposures. The type and severity of sanctions and other similar measures, including counter sanctions and other retaliatory actions, that may be imposed could vary broadly in scope, and their impact is impossible to predict. These types of measures may include, but are not limited to, banning a sanctioned country from global payment systems that facilitate cross-border payments, restricting the settlement of securities transactions by certain investors, and freezing the assets of particular countries, entities, or persons. The imposition of sanctions and other similar

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measures could, among other things, cause a decline in the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country, downgrades in the credit ratings of the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country, devaluation of the sanctioned country's currency, and increased market volatility and disruption in the sanctioned country and throughout the world. Sanctions and other similar measures could limit or prevent a Fund from buying and selling securities (in the sanctioned country and other markets), significantly delay or prevent the settlement of securities transactions, and significantly impact a Fund's liquidity and performance.

Brokerage commissions, custodial services and other costs relating to investment in international securities markets generally are more expensive than in the United States. In addition, clearance and settlement procedures may be different in foreign countries and, in certain markets, such procedures have been unable to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, thus making it difficult to conduct such transactions.

Foreign issuers are not generally subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards comparable to those applicable to U.S. issuers. There may be less publicly available information about a foreign issuer than a U.S. issuer. In addition, there is generally less government regulation of foreign markets, companies and securities dealers than in the United States, and the legal remedies for investors may be more limited than the remedies available in the United States. Foreign securities markets may have substantially less volume than U.S. securities markets and securities of many foreign issuers are less liquid and more volatile than securities of comparable domestic issuers. Furthermore, with respect to certain foreign countries, there is a possibility of nationalization, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, imposition of withholding or other taxes on dividend or interest payments (or, in some cases, capital gains distributions), limitations on the removal of funds or other assets from such countries, and risks of political or social instability or diplomatic developments which could adversely affect investments in those countries.

Certain foreign investments may become less liquid in response to social, political or market developments or adverse investor perceptions, or become illiquid after purchase by the Fund, particularly during periods of market turmoil. Certain foreign investments may become illiquid when, for instance, there are few, if any, interested buyers and sellers or when dealers are unwilling to make a market for certain securities. When a Fund holds illiquid investments, its portfolio may be harder to value, especially in changing markets.

If a Fund focuses its investments in one or a few countries and currencies, the Fund may be subjected to greater risks than if a Fund's assets were not geographically focused.

***Risks of Sovereign Debt.*** Investment in sovereign debt obligations by a Fund involves risks not present in debt obligations of corporate issuers. The issuer of the debt or the governmental authorities that control the repayment of the debt may be unable or unwilling to repay principal or interest when due in accordance with the terms of such debt, and a Fund may have limited recourse to compel payment in the event of a default. Periods of economic uncertainty may result in the volatility of market prices of sovereign debt, and in turn a Fund's NAV, to a greater extent than the volatility inherent in debt obligations of U.S. issuers.

A sovereign debtor's willingness or ability to repay principal and pay interest in a timely manner may be affected by, among other factors, its cash flow situation, the extent of its foreign currency reserves, the availability of sufficient foreign exchange on the date a payment is due, the relative size of the debt service burden to the economy as a whole, the sovereign debtor's policy toward international lenders, and the political constraints to which a sovereign debtor may be subject.

***Risks of Emerging Countries.*** The Funds may invest in securities of issuers located in, or otherwise economically tied to, emerging countries. The risks of foreign investment are heightened when the issuer is located in an emerging country. Emerging countries are generally located in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Eastern and Central Europe, and Central and South America. A Fund's purchase and sale of portfolio securities in certain emerging countries may be constrained by limitations relating to daily changes in the prices of listed

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securities, periodic trading or settlement volume and/or limitations on aggregate holdings of foreign investors. Such limitations may be computed based on the aggregate trading volume by or holdings of a Fund, the Investment Adviser, its affiliates and their respective clients and other service providers. A Fund may not be able to sell securities in circumstances where price, trading or settlement volume limitations have been reached.

Foreign investment in the securities markets of certain emerging countries is restricted or controlled to varying degrees which may limit investment in such countries or increase the administrative costs of such investments. For example, certain Asian countries require governmental approval prior to investments by foreign persons or limit investment by foreign persons to only a specified percentage of an issuer's outstanding securities or a specific class of securities which may have less advantageous terms (including price) than securities of the issuer available for purchase by nationals. In addition, certain countries may restrict or prohibit investment opportunities in issuers or industries deemed important to national interests. Such restrictions may affect the market price, liquidity and rights of securities that may be purchased by a Fund. The repatriation of investment income, capital or the proceeds of securities sales from certain emerging countries is subject to restrictions such as the need for governmental consents, which may make it difficult for a Fund to invest in such emerging countries. A Fund could be adversely affected by delays in, or a refusal to grant, any required governmental approval for such repatriation. In situations where a country restricts direct investment in securities (which may occur in certain Asian and other countries), a Fund may invest in such countries through other investment funds in such countries.

Emerging market countries may have more or less government regulation and generally do not impose as extensive and frequent accounting, auditing, financial and other reporting requirements as the securities markets of more developed countries. The degree of cooperation between issuers in emerging and frontier market countries with foreign and U.S. financial regulators may vary significantly. Accordingly, regulators may not have sufficient access to audit and oversee issuers, and there could be less information available about issuers in certain emerging market countries. As a result, the Investment Adviser's ability to evaluate local companies or their potential impact on the Fund's performance could be inhibited.

Many emerging countries have experienced currency devaluations and substantial (and, in some cases, extremely high) rates of inflation. Other emerging countries have experienced economic recessions. These circumstances have had a negative effect on the economies and securities markets of those emerging countries. Economies in emerging countries generally are dependent heavily upon commodity prices and international trade and, accordingly, have been and may continue to be affected adversely by the economies of their trading partners, trade barriers, exchange controls, managed adjustments in relative currency values and other protectionist measures imposed or negotiated by the countries with which they trade.

Many emerging countries are subject to a substantial degree of economic, political and social instability. Governments of some emerging countries are authoritarian in nature or have been installed or removed as a result of military coups, while governments in other emerging countries have periodically used force to suppress civil dissent. Disparities of wealth, the pace and success of democratization, and ethnic, religious and racial disaffection, among other factors, have also led to social unrest, violence and/or labor unrest in some emerging countries. Unanticipated political or social developments may result in sudden and significant investment losses. Investing in emerging countries involves greater risk of loss due to expropriation, nationalization, confiscation of assets and property or the imposition of restrictions on foreign investments and on repatriation of capital invested. As an example, in the past some Eastern European governments have expropriated substantial amounts of private property, and many claims of the property owners have never been fully settled. There is no assurance that similar expropriations will not occur in other countries.

The Fund's investment in emerging countries may also be subject to withholding or other taxes, which may be significant and may reduce the return to the Fund from an investment in issuers in such countries.

Settlement procedures in emerging countries are frequently less developed and reliable than those in the United States and may involve a Fund's delivery of securities before receipt of payment for their sale. In

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addition, significant delays may occur in certain markets in registering the transfer of securities. Settlement or registration problems may make it more difficult for a Fund to value its portfolio securities and could cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities, to have a portion of its assets uninvested or to incur losses due to the failure of a counterparty to pay for securities the Fund has delivered or the Fund's inability to complete its contractual obligations because of theft or other reasons.

The creditworthiness of the local securities firms used by a Fund in emerging countries may not be as sound as the creditworthiness of firms used in more developed countries. As a result, the Fund may be subject to a greater risk of loss if a securities firm defaults in the performance of its responsibilities.

The small size and inexperience of the securities markets in certain emerging countries and the limited volume of trading in securities in those countries may make a Fund's investments in such countries less liquid and more volatile than investments in countries with more developed securities markets (such as the United States, Japan and most Western European countries). A Fund's investments in emerging countries are subject to the risk that the liquidity of a particular investment, or investments generally, in such countries will shrink or disappear suddenly and without warning as a result of adverse economic, market or political conditions or adverse investor perceptions, whether or not accurate. Because of the lack of sufficient market liquidity, a Fund may incur losses because it will be required to effect sales at a disadvantageous time and then only at a substantial drop in price. Investments in emerging countries may be more difficult to value precisely because of the characteristics discussed above and lower trading volumes.

A Fund's use of foreign currency management techniques in emerging countries may be limited. Due to the limited market for these instruments in emerging countries, all or a significant portion of a Fund's currency exposure in emerging countries may not be covered by those techniques.

Both Funds are limited with respect to how much they may invest in emerging countries debt. For purposes of applying a Fund's respective limitation, "emerging market countries" include but are not limited to those considered to be developing by the World Bank. Generally, the Investment Adviser has broad discretion to identify other countries that it considers to qualify as emerging market countries. Sovereign debt consists of debt securities issued by governments or any of their agencies, political subdivisions or instrumentalities. Sovereign debt may also include nominal and real inflation-linked securities. In determining whether an issuer of corporate debt is in an emerging market country, the Investment Adviser will ordinarily do so by identifying the issuer's "country of risk." The issuer's "country of risk" is determined based on a number of criteria, including its country of domicile, the primary stock exchange on which it trades, the location from which the majority of its revenue comes, and its reporting currency. Although the Investment Adviser will generally rely on an issuer's "country of risk" as determined by Bloomberg, it is not required to do so, as long as the issuer is otherwise tied economically to an emerging market country. The Investment Adviser may (but is not required to) deem an issuer to be otherwise tied to an emerging market country if it derives at least 50% of its revenues and/or profits from goods produced, sales made or services provided in one or more emerging markets countries, measured at the time of purchase.

A Fund may invest directly in the domestic bond markets in Mainland China through the Mutual Bond Market Access between Mainland China and Hong Kong ("Bond Connect"). Investing through Bond Connect is subject to a number of distinct operational and regulatory risks in addition to risks typically associated with investments in emerging market countries, which may affect a Fund's performance. Bond Connect's order, clearance, and settlement procedures and systems are relatively untested and subject to change, which could pose risks to a Fund. Furthermore, the custody arrangements for investments made through Bond Connect may affect a Fund's ability to enforce its rights as the beneficial owner of these investments.

***Foreign Custody Risk.*** A Fund that invests in foreign securities may hold such securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund's custodian (each a "Foreign Custodian"). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In

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some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on a Fund's ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries.

***Risks of Illiquid Investments.*** Each Fund may not acquire any "illiquid investment" if, immediately after the acquisition, the Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments that are assets. An "illiquid investment" is an investment that a Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. In determining whether an investment is an illiquid investment, the Investment Adviser will take into account actual or estimated daily transaction volume of an investment, group of related investments or asset class and other relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations. In addition, in determining the liquidity of an investment, the Investment Adviser must determine whether trading varying portions of a position in a particular portfolio investment or asset class, in sizes that a Fund would reasonably anticipate trading, is reasonably expected to significantly affect its liquidity, and if so, the Fund must take this determination into account when classifying the liquidity of that investment or asset class.

Investments purchased by a Fund that are liquid at the time of purchase may subsequently become illiquid. If one or more investments in a Fund's portfolio become illiquid, the Fund may exceed the 15% limitation in illiquid investments. In the event that changes in the portfolio or other external events cause the Fund to exceed this limit, the Fund must take steps to bring its illiquid investments that are assets to or below 15% of its net assets within a reasonable period of time. This requirement would not force a Fund to liquidate any portfolio instrument where the Fund would suffer a loss on the sale of that instrument.

In cases where no clear indication of the value of a Fund's portfolio instruments is available, the portfolio instruments will be valued at their fair value according to the valuation procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. These cases include, among others, situations where a security or other asset or liability does not have a price source, or the secondary markets on which an investment has previously been traded are no longer viable, due to its lack of liquidity.

***Risks of Structured Investment Vehicles.*** Structured Investment Vehicles ("SIVs") are legal entities that are sponsored by banks, broker-dealers or other financial firms specifically created for the purpose of issuing particular securities or instruments. SIVs are often leveraged and securities issued by SIVs may have differing credit preferences. Investments in SIVs present counterparty risks, although they may be subject to a guarantee or other financial support by the sponsoring entity. Investments in SIVs may be more volatile, less liquid and more difficult to price accurately than other types of investments.

***Temporary Investment Risks.*** Each Fund may, for temporary defensive purposes (and to the extent that it is permitted to invest in the following), invest up to 100% of its total assets in:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• U.S. Government Securities

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Commercial paper rated at least A-2 by S&P, P-2 by Moody's or having a comparable credit rating by another NRSRO (or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality)

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Certificates of deposit

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Bankers' acceptances

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Repurchase agreements

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Non-convertible preferred stocks and non-convertible corporate bonds with a remaining maturity of less than one year

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• ETFs

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Other investment companies

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Cash items

When a Fund's assets are invested in such instruments, a Fund may not be achieving its investment objective.

***Risks of Short Selling.*** A Fund may engage in short selling. In these transactions, the Fund sells a security it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the security, then must borrow the security to make delivery to the buyer. A Fund is obligated to replace the security borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The price at such time may be more or less than the price at which the security was sold by the Fund, which may result in a loss or gain, respectively. Unlike purchasing a security, where potential losses are limited to the purchase price and there is no upside limit on potential gain, short sales involve no cap on maximum losses, while gains are limited to the price of the security at the time of the short sale.

A Fund may, during the term of any short sale, withdraw the cash proceeds of such short sale and use these cash proceeds to purchase additional securities or for any other Funds purposes. Because cash proceeds are Funds assets which are typically used to satisfy the collateral requirements for the short sale, the reinvestment of these cash proceeds may require the Fund to post as collateral other securities that it owns. If a Fund reinvests the cash proceeds, the Fund might be required to post an amount greater than its net assets (but less than its total assets) as collateral. For these or other reasons, a Fund might be required to liquidate long and short positions at times or in amounts that may be disadvantageous to the Fund.

A Fund may make short sales against the box, in which a Fund enters into a short sale of a security which it owns or has the right to obtain at no additional cost.

The SEC and financial industry regulatory authorities in other countries have imposed temporary prohibitions and restrictions on certain types of short sale transactions. These prohibitions and restrictions, or the imposition of other regulatory requirements on short selling in the future, could inhibit the ability of the Investment Adviser to sell securities short on behalf of a Fund.

**D. PORTFOLIO SECURITIES AND TECHNIQUES** 

This section provides further information on certain types of securities and investment techniques that may be used by a Fund, including their associated risks.

A Fund may purchase other types of securities or instruments similar to those described in this section if otherwise consistent with a Fund's investment objective and policies. Further information is provided in the SAI, which is available upon request.

The Investment Adviser is subject to registration and regulation as a "commodity pool operator" ("CPO") under the Commodity Exchange Act ("CEA") with respect to its service as investment adviser to the Bond Fund.

***U.S. Government Securities.*** A Fund may invest in U.S. Government Securities. U.S. Government Securities include U.S. Treasury obligations and obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. U.S. Government Securities may be supported by (i) the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury; (ii) the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; (iii) the discretionary authority of the U.S. government to purchase certain obligations of the issuer; or (iv) only the credit of the issuer. U.S. Government Securities also include Treasury receipts, zero coupon bonds and other stripped U.S. Government Securities where the interest and principal components are traded independently. U.S. Government Securities may also include Treasury inflation-protected securities whose principal value is periodically adjusted according to the rate of inflation.

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U.S. Treasury obligations include, among other things, the separately traded principal and interest components of securities guaranteed or issued by the U.S. Treasury if such components are traded independently under the Separate Trading of Registered Interest and Principal of Securities program ("STRIPS").

U.S. Government Securities are deemed to include (i) securities for which the payment of principal and interest is backed by an irrevocable letter of credit issued by the U.S. government, its agencies, authorities or instrumentalities; and (ii) participations in loans made to foreign governments or their agencies that are so guaranteed. Certain of these participations may be regarded as illiquid.

U.S. Government Securities have historically involved little risk of loss of principal if held to maturity. However, no assurance can be given that the U.S. government will be able or willing to repay the principal or interest when due, or provide financial support to U.S. government agencies, authorities, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises that issue U.S. Government Securities if it is not obligated to do so by law.

***Custodial Receipts and Trust Certificates.*** A Fund may invest in custodial receipts and trust certificates representing interests in securities held by a custodian or trustee. The securities so held may include U.S. Government Securities, Municipal Securities or other types of securities in which a Fund may invest. The custodial receipts or trust certificates may evidence ownership of future interest payments, principal payments or both on the underlying securities, or, in some cases, the payment obligation of a third party that has entered into an interest rate swap or other arrangement with the custodian or trustee. For certain securities laws purposes, custodial receipts and trust certificates may not be considered obligations of the U.S. government or other issuer of the securities held by the custodian or trustee. If for tax purposes a Fund is not considered to be the owner of the underlying securities held in the custodial or trust account, a Fund may suffer adverse tax consequences. As a holder of custodial receipts and trust certificates, a Fund will bear its proportionate share of the fees and expenses charged to the custodial account or trust. A Fund may also invest in separately issued interests in custodial receipts and trust certificates.

***Mortgage-Backed Securities.*** A Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities. Mortgage-backed securities represent direct or indirect participations in, or are collateralized by and payable from, mortgage loans secured by real property. Mortgage-backed securities can be backed by either fixed rate mortgage loans or adjustable rate mortgage loans, and may be issued by either a governmental or non-governmental entity. The value of some mortgage-backed securities may be particularly sensitive to changes in prevailing interest rates. The value of these securities may also fluctuate in response to the market's perception of the creditworthiness of the issuers. Early repayment of principal on mortgage- or asset-backed securities may expose a Fund to the risk of earning a lower rate of return upon reinvestment of principal.

A Fund may invest in privately-issued mortgage pass-through securities that represent interests in pools of mortgage loans that are issued by trusts formed by originators of and institutional investors in mortgage loans (or represent interests in custodial arrangements administered by such institutions). These originators and institutions include commercial banks, savings and loans associations, credit unions, savings banks, mortgage bankers, insurance companies, investment banks or special purpose subsidiaries of the foregoing. The pools underlying privately-issued mortgage pass-through securities consist of mortgage loans secured by mortgages or deeds of trust creating a first lien on commercial, residential, residential multi-family and mixed residential/commercial properties. These mortgage-backed securities typically do not have the same credit standing as U.S. government guaranteed mortgage-backed securities.

Privately-issued mortgage pass-through securities generally offer a higher yield than similar securities issued by a government entity because of the absence of any direct or indirect government or agency payment guarantees. However, timely payment of interest and principal on mortgage loans in these pools may be supported by various other forms of insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, pool and hazard insurance, subordination and letters of credit. Such insurance and guarantees may be issued by private insurers, banks and mortgage poolers. There is no assurance that private guarantors or insurers, if any, will meet their

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obligations. Mortgage-backed securities without insurance or guarantees may also be purchased by a Fund if they have the required rating from an NRSRO. Some mortgage-backed securities issued by private organizations may not be readily marketable, may be more difficult to value accurately and may be more volatile than similar securities issued by a government entity.

Mortgage-backed securities may include multiple class securities, including collateralized mortgage obligations ("CMOs") and Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit ("REMIC") pass-through or participation certificates. A REMIC is a CMO that qualifies for special tax treatment under the Code and invests in certain mortgages principally secured by interests in real property and other permitted investments. CMOs provide an investor with a specified interest in the cash flow from a pool of underlying mortgages or of other mortgage-backed securities. CMOs are issued in multiple classes each with a specified fixed or floating interest rate and a final scheduled distribution date. In many cases, payments of principal are applied to the CMO classes in the order of their respective stated maturities, so that no principal payments will be made on a CMO class until all other classes having an earlier stated maturity date are paid in full.

Sometimes, however, CMO classes are "parallel pay," i.e., payments of principal are made to two or more classes concurrently. In some cases, CMOs may have the characteristics of a stripped mortgage-backed security whose price can be highly volatile. CMOs may exhibit more or less price volatility and interest rate risk than other types of mortgage-backed securities, and under certain interest rate and payment scenarios, a Fund may fail to recoup fully its investment in certain of these securities regardless of their credit quality.

To the extent a Fund concentrates its investments in pools of mortgage-backed securities sponsored by the same sponsor or serviced by the same servicer, it may be subject to additional risks. Servicers of mortgage-related pools collect payments on the underlying mortgage assets for pass-through to the pool on a periodic basis. Upon insolvency of the servicer, the pool may be at risk with respect to collections received by the servicer but not yet delivered to the pool.

Mortgaged-backed securities also include stripped mortgage-backed securities ("SMBS"), which are derivative multiple class mortgage-backed securities. SMBS are usually structured with two different classes: one that receives substantially all of the interest payments and the other that receives substantially all of the principal payments from a pool of mortgage loans. The market value of SMBS consisting entirely of principal payments generally is unusually volatile in response to changes in interest rates. The yields on SMBS that receive all or most of the interest from mortgage loans are generally higher than prevailing market yields on other mortgage-backed securities because their cash flow patterns are more volatile and there is a greater risk that the initial investment will not be fully recouped. Throughout 2008, the market for mortgage-backed securities began experiencing substantially, often dramatically, lower valuations and greatly reduced liquidity. Markets for other asset-backed securities have also been affected. These instruments are increasingly subject to liquidity constraints, price volatility, credit downgrades and unexpected increases in default rates and, therefore, may be more difficult to value and more difficult to dispose of than previously. These events may have an adverse effect on a Fund to the extent they invest in mortgage-backed or other fixed income securities or instruments affected by the volatility in the fixed income markets.

***Asset-Backed Securities***. A Fund may invest in asset-backed securities. Asset-backed securities are securities whose principal and interest payments are collateralized by pools of assets such as auto loans, credit card receivables, leases, installment contracts and personal property. Asset-backed securities may also include home equity line of credit loans and other second-lien mortgages. Asset-backed securities are often subject to more rapid repayment than their stated maturity date would indicate as a result of the pass-through of prepayments of principal on the underlying loans. During periods of declining interest rates, prepayment of loans underlying asset-backed securities can be expected to accelerate. Accordingly, a Fund's ability to maintain positions in such securities will be affected by reductions in the principal amount of such securities resulting from prepayments, and its ability to reinvest the returns of principal at comparable yields is subject to generally prevailing interest rates at that time. Asset-backed securities present credit risks that are not presented by

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Mortgage-backed securities. This is because asset-backed securities generally do not have the benefit of a security interest in collateral that is comparable to mortgage assets. Some asset-backed securities have only a subordinated claim or security interest in collateral. If the issuer of an asset-backed security defaults on its payment obligations, there is the possibility that, in some cases, a Fund will be unable to possess and sell the underlying collateral and that a Fund's recoveries on repossessed collateral may not be available to support payments on the securities. In the event of a default, a Fund may suffer a loss if it cannot sell collateral quickly and receive the amount it is owed. The value of some asset-backed securities may be particularly sensitive to changes in the prevailing interest rates. There is no guarantee that private guarantors or insurers of an asset-backed security, if any, will meet their obligations. Asset-backed securities may also be subject to increased volatility and may become illiquid and more difficult to value even when there is no default or threat of default due to the market's perception of the creditworthiness of the issuers and market conditions impacting asset-backed securities more generally.

***Municipal Securities.*** A Fund may invest in securities and instruments issued by state and local government issuers. Municipal Securities in which a Fund may invest consist of bonds, notes, commercial paper and other instruments (including participation interests in such securities) issued by or on behalf of the states, territories and possessions of the United States (including the District of Columbia) and their political subdivisions, agencies or instrumentalities. Such securities may pay fixed, variable or floating rates of interest.

Municipal Securities include both "general" and "revenue" bonds and may be issued to obtain funds for various purposes. General obligations are secured by the issuer's pledge of its full faith, credit and taxing power. Revenue obligations are payable only from the revenues derived from a particular facility or class of facilities.

Municipal Securities are often issued to obtain funds for various public purposes, including the construction of a wide range of public facilities such as bridges, highways, housing, hospitals, mass transportation, schools, streets and water and sewer works. Other purposes for which Municipal Securities may be issued include refunding outstanding obligations, obtaining funds for general operating expenses, and obtaining funds to lend to other public institutions and facilities. Municipal Securities in which a Fund may invest include private activity bonds, pre-refunded municipal securities and auction rate securities. Dividends paid by a Fund based on investments in Municipal Securities will be taxable.

The obligations of the issuer to pay the principal of and interest on a Municipal Security are subject to the provisions of bankruptcy, insolvency and other laws affecting the rights and remedies of creditors, such as the Federal Bankruptcy Act, and laws, if any, that may be enacted by Congress or state legislatures extending the time for payment of principal or interest or imposing other constraints upon the enforcement of such obligations. There is also the possibility that, as a result of litigation or other conditions, the power or ability of the issuer to pay when due the principal of or interest on a Municipal Security may be materially affected.

In addition, Municipal Securities include municipal leases, certificates of participation and "moral obligation" bonds. A municipal lease is an obligation issued by a state or local government to acquire equipment or facilities. Certificates of participation represent interests in municipal leases or other instruments, such as installment purchase agreements. Moral obligation bonds are supported by a moral commitment but not a legal obligation of a state or local government. Municipal leases, certificates of participation and moral obligation bonds frequently involve special risks not normally associated with general obligation or revenue bonds. In particular, these instruments permit governmental issuers to acquire property and equipment without meeting constitutional and statutory requirements for the issuance of debt. If, however, the governmental issuer does not periodically appropriate money to enable it to meet its payment obligations under these instruments, it cannot be legally compelled to do so. If a default occurs, it is likely that a Fund would be unable to obtain another acceptable source of payment. Some municipal leases, certificates of participation and moral obligation bonds may be illiquid.

Municipal Securities may also be in the form of a tender option bond, which is a Municipal Security (generally held pursuant to a custodial arrangement) having a relatively long maturity and bearing interest at a

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fixed rate substantially higher than prevailing short-term, tax-exempt rates. The bond is typically issued with the agreement of a third party, such as a bank, broker-dealer or other financial institution, which grants the security holders the option, at periodic intervals, to tender their securities to the institution. After payment of a fee to the financial institution that provides this option, the security holder effectively holds a demand obligation that bears interest at the prevailing short-term, tax-exempt rate. An institution may not be obligated to accept tendered bonds in the event of certain defaults or a significant downgrading in the credit rating assigned to the issuer of the bond. The tender option will be taken into account in determining the maturity of the tender option bonds and a Fund's duration. Certain tender option bonds may be illiquid.

Municipal Securities may be backed by letters of credit or other forms of credit enhancement issued by domestic or foreign banks or by other financial institutions. The deterioration of the credit quality of these banks and financial institutions could, therefore, cause a loss to a Fund that invests in such Municipal Securities. Letters of credit and other obligations of foreign banks and financial institutions may involve risks in addition to those of domestic obligations because of less publicly available financial and other information, less securities regulation, potential imposition of foreign withholding and other taxes, war, expropriation or other adverse governmental actions. Foreign banks and their foreign branches are not regulated by U.S. banking authorities, and are generally not bound by the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards applicable to U.S. banks.

A Fund may invest in Municipal Securities issued by municipalities, including U.S. territories, commonwealths and possessions, that may be, or may become, subject to significant financial difficulties. Factors contributing to such difficulties may include: lower property tax collections as a result of lower home values, lower sales tax revenue as a result of reduced consumer spending, lower income tax revenue as a result of higher unemployment rates, and budgetary constraints of local, state and federal governments upon which issuers of municipal securities may be relying for funding. Such securities may be considered below investment grade or may be subject to future credit downgrades due to concerns over potential default, insolvency or bankruptcy on the part of their issuers or any credit support provider. During the recent economic downturn, several municipalities have, in fact, filed for bankruptcy protection or have indicated that they may seek bankruptcy protection in the future. A credit downgrade or other adverse news about an issuer or any credit support provider could impact the market value and liquidity of the securities and consequently could negatively affect the performance of a Fund that holds such securities.

***Brady Bonds and Similar Instruments.*** Both Funds may invest in debt obligations commonly referred to as "Brady Bonds." Brady Bonds are created through the exchange of existing commercial bank loans to foreign borrowers for new obligations in connection with debt restructurings under a plan introduced by former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Nicholas F. Brady (the "Brady Plan").

Brady Bonds involve various risk factors including the history of defaults with respect to commercial bank loans by public and private entities of countries issuing Brady Bonds. There can be no assurance that Brady Bonds in which a Fund may invest will not be subject to restructuring arrangements or to requests for new credit, which may cause a Fund to suffer a loss of interest or principal on its holdings.

In addition, both Funds may invest in other interests issued by entities organized and operated for the purpose of restructuring the investment characteristics of instruments issued by emerging country issuers. These types of restructuring involve the deposit with or purchase by an entity of specific instruments and the issuance by that entity of one or more classes of securities backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying instruments. Certain issuers of such structured securities may be deemed to be "investment companies" as defined in the Investment Company Act. As a result, a Fund's investment in such securities may be limited by certain investment restrictions contained in the Investment Company Act.

***Corporate Debt Obligations, Trust Preferred Securities and Convertible Securities.*** A Fund may invest in corporate debt obligations, trust preferred securities and convertible securities. Corporate debt obligations include bonds, notes, debentures, commercial paper and other obligations of corporations to pay interest and repay

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principal. A trust preferred security is a long dated bond (for example, 30 years) with preferred features. The preferred features are that payment of interest can be deferred for a specified period without initiating a default event. The securities are generally senior in claim to standard preferred stock but junior to other bondholders. A Fund may also invest in other short-term obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. corporations, non-U.S. corporations or other entities.

Convertible securities are preferred stock or debt obligations that are convertible into common stock. Convertible securities generally offer lower interest or dividend yields than non-convertible securities of similar quality. Convertible securities have both equity and fixed income risk characteristics. Like all fixed income securities, the value of convertible securities is susceptible to the risk of market losses attributable to changes in interest rates. Generally, the market value of convertible securities tends to decline as interest rates increase and, conversely, to increase as interest rates decline. However, when the market price of the common stock underlying a convertible security exceeds the conversion price of the convertible security, the convertible security tends to reflect the market price of the underlying common stock. As the market price of the underlying common stock declines, the convertible security, like a fixed income security, tends to trade increasingly on a yield basis, and thus may not decline in price to the same extent as the underlying common stock.

***Bank Obligations.*** A Fund may invest in obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. or foreign banks. Bank obligations, including without limitation, time deposits, bankers' acceptances and certificates of deposit, may be general obligations of the parent bank or may be limited to the issuing branch by the terms of the specific obligations or by government regulations. Banks are subject to extensive but different governmental regulations which may limit both the amount and types of loans which may be made and interest rates which may be charged. In addition, the profitability of the banking industry is largely dependent upon the availability and cost of funds for the purpose of financing lending operations under prevailing money market conditions. General economic conditions as well as exposure to credit losses arising from possible financial difficulties of borrowers play an important part in the operation of this industry.

***Foreign Currency Transactions.*** The Funds may, to the extent consistent with their investment policies, purchase or sell foreign currencies on a cash basis or through forward contracts. A forward contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency at a future date at a price set at the time of the contract.

A Fund may engage in foreign currency transactions for hedging purposes and to seek to protect against anticipated changes in future foreign currency exchange rates. Both Funds may also enter into such transactions to seek to increase total return, which presents additional risk.

The Funds may also engage in cross-hedging by using forward contracts in a currency different from that in which the hedged security is denominated or quoted. A Fund may hold foreign currency received in connection with investments in foreign securities when, in the judgment of the Investment Adviser, it would be beneficial to convert such currency into U.S. dollars at a later date (e.g., the Investment Adviser may anticipate the foreign currency to appreciate against the U.S. dollar).

The Funds may, from time to time, engage in non-deliverable forward transactions to manage currency risk or to gain exposure to a currency without purchasing securities denominated in that currency. A non-deliverable forward is a transaction that represents an agreement between a Fund and a counterparty (usually a commercial bank) to pay the other party the amount that it would cost based on current market rates as of the termination date to buy or sell a specified (notional) amount of a particular currency at an agreed upon foreign exchange rate on an agreed upon future date. If the counterparty defaults, a Fund will have contractual remedies pursuant to the agreement related to the transaction, but the Fund may be delayed or prevented from obtaining payments owed to it pursuant to non-deliverable forward transactions. Such non-deliverable forward transactions will be settled in cash.

Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time, causing, along with other factors, a Fund's NAV to fluctuate (when the Fund's NAV fluctuates, the value of your shares may go up or

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down). Currency exchange rates also can be affected unpredictably by the intervention of U.S. or foreign governments or central banks, or the failure to intervene, or by currency controls or political developments in the United States or abroad.

Certain forward foreign currency exchange contracts and other currency transactions are not exchange traded or cleared. The market in such forward foreign currency exchange contracts, currency swaps and other privately negotiated currency instruments offers less protection against defaults by the other party to such instruments than is available for currency instruments traded on an exchange. Such contracts are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the contract will default on its obligations. Since these contracts are not guaranteed by an exchange or clearinghouse, a default on a contract would deprive a Fund of unrealized profits, transaction costs or the benefits of a currency hedge or could force the Fund to cover its purchase or sale commitments, if any, at the current market price.

A Fund is not required to post cash collateral with its counterparties in certain foreign currency transactions. Accordingly, a Fund may remain more fully invested (and more of the Fund's assets may be subject to investment and market risk) than if it were required to post cash collateral with its counterparties (which is the case with certain transactions). Where a Fund's counterparties are not required to post cash collateral with a Fund, a Fund will be subject to additional counterparty risk.

***Collateralized Loan Obligations.*** A Fund may invest in CLOs. A CLO is a trust typically collateralized by a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans. CLOs may charge management and other administrative fees.

The cashflows from the trust are split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. The riskiest portion is the "equity" tranche which bears the bulk of defaults from the bonds or loans in the trust and serves to protect the other, more senior tranches from default in all but the most severe circumstances. Because it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CLO trust typically has higher ratings and lower yields than its underlying securities, and can be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the equity tranche, CLO tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of protecting tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CLO securities as a class.

The risks of an investment in a CLO depend largely on the type of the collateral securities and the class of the CLO in which a Fund invests. Normally, CLOs are privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, investments in CLOs may be characterized by a Fund as illiquid investments. However, an active dealer market may exist for CLOs that qualify under the Rule 144A "safe harbor" from the registration requirements of the Securities Act for resales of certain securities to qualified institutional buyers, and such securities may be classified as liquid investments.

***Structured Securities and Inverse Floaters.*** A Fund may invest in structured securities. Structured securities are securities whose value is determined by reference to changes in the value of specific currencies, securities, interest rates, commodities, indices or other financial indicators (the "Reference") or the relative change in two or more References. Investments in structured securities may provide exposure to certain securities or markets in situations where regulatory or other restrictions prevent direct investments in such issuers or markets.

The interest rate or the principal amount payable upon maturity or redemption may be increased or decreased depending upon changes in the applicable Reference. Structured securities may be positively or negatively indexed, so that appreciation of the Reference may produce an increase or decrease in the interest rate or value of the security at maturity. In addition, changes in the interest rates or the value of the security at maturity may be a multiple of changes in the value of the Reference, effectively leveraging a Fund's investments so that small changes in the value of the reference may result in disproportionate gains or losses to a Fund.

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Consequently, structured securities may present a greater degree of market risk than many types of securities and may be more volatile, less liquid and more difficult to price accurately than less complex securities. Structured securities are also subject to the risk that the issuer of the structured securities may fail to perform its contractual obligations. Certain issuers of structured products may be deemed to be investment companies as defined in the Investment Company Act. As a result, a Fund's investments in structured securities may be subject to the limits applicable to investments in other investment companies.

Structured securities may also include credit linked notes. Credit linked notes are securities with embedded credit default swaps. An investor holding a credit linked note generally receives a fixed or floating coupon and the note's par value upon maturity, unless the referred credit defaults or declares bankruptcy, in which case the investor receives the amount recovered. In effect, investors holding credit linked notes receive a higher yield in exchange for assuming the risk of a specified credit event.

Structured securities may also include inverse floating rate debt securities ("inverse floaters"). The interest rate on inverse floaters resets in the opposite direction from the market rate of interest to which the inverse floater is indexed. An inverse floater may be considered to be leveraged to the extent that its interest rate varies by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in the index rate of interest. The higher the degree of leverage of an inverse floater, the greater the volatility of its market value.

***Floating and Variable Rate Obligations.*** A Fund may purchase floating and variable rate obligations. The value of these obligations is generally more stable than that of a fixed rate obligation in response to changes in interest rate levels. The issuers or financial intermediaries providing demand features may support their ability to purchase the obligations by obtaining credit with liquidity supports. These may include lines of credit, which are conditional commitments to lend, and letters of credit, which will ordinarily be irrevocable both of which may be issued by domestic banks or foreign banks. A Fund may purchase variable or floating rate obligations from the issuers or may purchase certificates of participation, a type of floating or variable rate obligation, which are interests in a pool of debt obligations held by a bank or other financial institutions.

Floating and variable rate obligations may be transferable among financial institutions, but may not have the liquidity of conventional debt securities and are often subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale. Floating and variable rate obligations are not currently listed on any securities exchange or automatic quotation system. As a result, no active market may exist for some floating and variable rate obligations. To the extent a secondary market exists for other floating and variable rate obligations, such market may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads, and extended trade settlement periods. The lack of a highly liquid secondary market for floating and variable rate obligations may have an adverse effect on the value of such obligations and may make it more difficult to value the obligations for purposes of calculating their respective net asset value.

For floating and variable rate obligations, there may be a lag between an actual change in the underlying interest rate benchmark and the reset time for an interest payment of such an obligation, which could harm or benefit a Fund, depending on the interest rate environment or other circumstances. In a rising interest rate environment, for example, a floating or variable rate obligation that does not reset immediately would prevent a Fund from taking full advantage of rising interest rates in a timely manner. However, in a declining interest rate environment, a Fund may benefit from a lag due to an obligation's interest rate payment not being immediately impacted by a decline in interest rates.

Certain floating and variable rate obligations have an interest rate floor feature, which prevents the interest rate payable by the security from dropping below a specified level as compared to a reference interest rate (the "reference rate"), such as the SOFR, Term SOFR or another rate determined using SOFR values. Such a floor protects a Fund from losses resulting from a decrease in the reference rate below the specified level. However, if the reference rate is below the floor, there will be a lag between a rise in the reference rate and a rise in the interest rate payable by the obligation, and a Fund may not benefit from increasing interest rates for a significant amount of time.

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***Zero Coupon, Deferred Interest, Pay-In-Kind and Capital Appreciation Bonds.*** A Fund may invest in zero coupon bonds, deferred interest, pay-in-kind and capital appreciation bonds. These bonds are issued at a discount from their face value because interest payments are typically postponed until maturity. Pay-in-kind securities are securities that have interest payable by the delivery of additional securities. The market prices of these securities generally are more volatile than the market prices of interest-bearing securities and are likely to respond to a greater degree to changes in interest rates than interest-bearing securities having similar maturities and credit quality.

***Mortgage Dollar Rolls.*** A Fund may enter into mortgage dollar rolls. A mortgage dollar roll involves the sale by a Fund of securities for delivery in the current month. A Fund simultaneously contracts with the same counterparty to repurchase substantially similar (same type, coupon and maturity) but not identical securities on a specified future date. During the roll period, a Fund loses the right to receive principal and interest paid on the securities sold. However, a Fund benefits to the extent of any difference between (a) the price received for the securities sold and (b) the lower forward price for the future purchase and/or fee income plus the interest earned on the cash proceeds of the securities sold. Unless the benefits of a mortgage dollar roll exceed the income, capital appreciation and gain or loss due to mortgage prepayments that would have been realized on the securities sold as part of the roll, the use of this technique will diminish a Fund's performance.

Successful use of mortgage dollar rolls depends upon an Investment Adviser's ability to predict correctly interest rates and mortgage prepayments. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its prediction, a Fund may experience a loss. A Fund does not currently intend to enter into mortgage dollar rolls for financing and does not treat them as borrowings.

***Options on Securities, Securities Indices and Foreign Currencies.*** A put option gives the purchaser of the option the right to sell, and the writer (seller) of the option the obligation to buy, the underlying instrument during the option period. A call option gives the purchaser of the option the right to buy, and the writer (seller) of the option the obligation to sell, the underlying instrument during the option period. A Fund may purchase and write (sell) put and call options on any securities in which a Fund may invest or on any securities index consisting of securities in which it may invest. A Fund may also, to the extent consistent with its investment policies, purchase and write (sell) put and call options on foreign currencies.

The writing and purchase of options is a highly specialized activity which involves special investment risks. Options may be used for either hedging or cross-hedging purposes, or to seek to increase total return (which presents additional risk). The successful use of options depends in part on the ability of the Investment Adviser to anticipate future price fluctuations and the degree of correlation between the options and securities (or currency) markets. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of changes in market prices or determination of the correlation between the instruments or indices on which options are written and purchased and the instruments in a Fund's investment portfolio, a Fund may incur losses that it would not otherwise incur. The use of options can also increase a Fund's transaction costs. Options written or purchased by a Fund may be traded on either U.S. or foreign exchanges or over-the-counter. Foreign and over-the-counter options will present greater possibility of loss because of their greater illiquidity and credit risks.

***Yield Curve Options.*** A Fund may enter into options on the yield "spread" or differential between two securities. Such transactions are referred to as "yield curve" options. In contrast to other types of options, a yield curve option is based on the difference between the yields of designated securities, rather than the prices of the individual securities, and is settled through cash payments. Accordingly, a yield curve option is profitable to the holder if this differential widens (in the case of a call) or narrows (in the case of a put), regardless of whether the yields of the underlying securities increase or decrease.

The trading of yield curve options is subject to all of the risks associated with the trading of other types of options. In addition, such options present a risk of loss even if the yield of one of the underlying securities remains constant, or if the spread moves in a direction or to an extent which was not anticipated.

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***Futures Contracts and Options and Swaps on Futures Contracts.*** Futures contracts are standardized, exchange-traded contracts that provide for the sale or purchase of a specified financial instrument or currency at a future time at a specified price. An option on a futures contract gives the purchaser the right (and the writer of the option the obligation) to assume a position in a futures contract at a specified exercise price within a specified period of time. A swap on a futures contract provides an investor with the ability to gain economic exposure to a particular futures market. A futures contract may be based on particular securities, foreign currencies, securities indices and other financial instruments and indices. A Fund may engage in futures transactions on U.S. and foreign exchanges.

A Fund may, to the extent consistent with its investment policies, purchase and sell futures contracts, purchase and write call and put options on futures contracts, and enter into swaps on futures contracts, in order to seek to increase total return or to hedge against changes in interest rates, securities prices, or currency exchange rates, or to otherwise manage its term structure, sector selection and duration in accordance with its investment objective and policies. A Fund may also enter into closing purchase and sale transactions with respect to such contracts and options.

Futures contracts and related options and swaps present the following risks:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• While a Fund may benefit from the use of futures and options and swaps on futures, unanticipated changes in
interest rates, securities prices or currency exchange rates may result in poorer overall performance than if a Fund had not entered into any futures contracts, options transactions or swaps.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Because perfect correlation between a futures position and a portfolio position that is intended to be protected
is impossible to achieve, the desired protection may not be obtained and a Fund may be exposed to additional risk of loss.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The loss incurred by a Fund in entering into futures contracts and in writing call options and entering into
swaps on futures is potentially unlimited and may exceed the amount of the premium received.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of a Fund's NAV.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• As a result of the low margin deposits normally required in futures trading, a relatively small price movement in
a futures contract may result in substantial losses to a Fund.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Futures contracts and options and swaps on futures may be illiquid, and exchanges may limit fluctuations in
futures contract prices during a single day.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Foreign exchanges may not provide the same protection as U.S. exchanges.

***When-Issued Securities and Forward Commitments.*** A Fund may purchase when-issued securities and make contracts to purchase or sell securities for a fixed price at a future date beyond customary settlement time. When-issued securities are securities that have been authorized, but not yet issued. When-issued securities are purchased in order to secure what is considered to be an advantageous price or yield to a Fund at the time of entering into the transaction. A forward commitment involves entering into a contract to purchase or sell securities for a fixed price at a future date beyond the customary settlement period.

The purchase of securities on a when-issued or forward commitment basis involves a risk of loss if the value of the security to be purchased declines before the settlement date. Conversely, the sale of securities on a forward commitment basis involves the risk that the value of the securities sold may increase before the settlement date. Although a Fund will generally purchase securities on a when-issued or forward commitment basis with the intention of acquiring the securities for its portfolio, a Fund may dispose of when-issued securities or forward commitments prior to settlement if the Investment Adviser deems it appropriate.

***Repurchase Agreements.*** Repurchase agreements involve the purchase of securities subject to the seller's agreement to repurchase them at a mutually agreed upon date and price. A Fund may enter into repurchase agreements with counterparties approved by the Investment Adviser pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees that

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furnish collateral at least equal in value or market price to the amount of their repurchase obligations. The collateral may consist of any type of security in which a Fund is eligible to invest directly. Repurchase agreements involving obligations other than U.S. Government Securities may be subject to additional risks.

If the other party or "seller" defaults, a Fund might suffer a loss to the extent that the proceeds from the sale of the underlying securities and other collateral held by a Fund are less than the repurchase price and a Fund's costs associated with delay and enforcement of the repurchase agreement. In addition, in the event of bankruptcy of the seller, a Fund could suffer additional losses if a court determines that a Fund's interest in the collateral is not enforceable.

A Fund, together with other registered investment companies having advisory agreements with the Investment Adviser or any of their affiliates, may transfer uninvested cash balances into a single joint account, the daily aggregate balance of which will be invested in one or more repurchase agreements.

***Borrowings and Reverse Repurchase Agreements.*** A Fund can borrow money from banks and other financial institutions, and may enter into reverse repurchase agreements in amounts not exceeding one-third of a Fund's total assets (including the amount borrowed or received). Borrowings and reverse repurchase agreements involve the use of leverage and subject a Fund to the risks associated with leverage, including exposure to potential gains and losses in excess of the amount invested.

***Interest Rate Swaps, Mortgage Swaps, Credit Swaps, Currency Swaps, Total Return Swaps, Equity Swaps, Options on Swaps and Interest Rate Caps, Floors and Collars.*** A Fund may enter into some or all of the following swap transactions and option agreements, including interest rate swaps, mortgage swaps, credit swaps, currency swaps, total return swaps, options on swaps and interest rate caps, floors and collars. Interest rate swaps involve the exchange by a Fund with another party of their respective commitments to pay or receive interest, such as an exchange of fixed-rate payments for floating rate payments. Mortgage swaps are similar to interest rate swaps in that they represent commitments to pay and receive interest. The notional principal amount, however, is tied to a reference pool or pools of mortgages.

Credit swaps involve the receipt of floating or fixed rate payments in exchange for assuming potential credit losses on an underlying security or pool of securities. Credit swaps give one party to a transaction (the buyer of the credit swap) the right to dispose of or acquire an asset (or group of assets or exposure to the performance of an index), or the right to receive a payment from the other party, upon the occurrence of specified credit events. Currency swaps involve the exchange of the parties' respective rights to make or receive payments in specified currencies. Total return swaps give a party the right to receive the appreciation in the value of a specified security, index or other instrument in return for a fee paid to the counterparty, which will typically be based on an agreed upon interest rate. If the underlying asset in a total return swap declines in value over the term of the swap, the party may also be required to pay the dollar value of that decline to the counterparty. Equity swaps allow the parties to a swap agreement to exchange the dividend income or other components of return on an equity investment (for example, a group of equity securities or an index) for another payment stream. An equity swap may be used by a Fund to invest in a market without owning or taking physical custody of securities in circumstances in which direct investment may be restricted for legal reasons or is otherwise deemed impractical or disadvantageous.

A Fund may also purchase and write (sell) options contracts on swaps, commonly referred to as swaptions. A swaption is an option to enter into a swap agreement. Like other types of options, the buyer of a swaption pays a non-refundable premium for the option and obtains the right, but not the obligation, to enter into an underlying swap or to modify the terms of an existing swap on agreed-upon terms. The seller of a swaption, in exchange for the premium, becomes obligated (if the option is exercised) to enter into or modify an underlying swap on agreed-upon terms, which generally entails a greater risk of loss than a Fund incurs in buying a swaption. The purchase of an interest rate cap entitles the purchaser, to the extent that a specified index exceeds a predetermined interest rate, to receive payment of interest on a notional principal amount from the party selling

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such interest rate cap. The purchase of an interest rate floor entitles the purchaser, to the extent that a specified index falls below a predetermined interest rate, to receive payments of interest on a notional principal amount from the party selling the interest rate floor. An interest rate collar is the combination of a cap and a floor that preserves a certain return within a predetermined range of interest rates.

A Fund may enter into the transactions described above for hedging purposes or to seek to increase total return. As an example, when a Fund is the buyer of a credit default swap (commonly known as buying protection), it may make periodic payments to the seller of the credit default swap to obtain protection against a credit default on a specified underlying asset (or group of assets). If a default occurs, the seller of a credit default swap may be required to pay a Fund the notional amount of the credit default swap on a specified security (or group of securities). On the other hand, when a Fund is a seller of a credit default swap (commonly known as selling protection), in addition to the credit exposure a Fund has on the other assets held in its portfolio, a Fund is also subject to the credit exposure on the notional amount of the swap since, in the event of a credit default, a Fund may be required to pay the notional amount of the credit default swap on a specified security (or group of securities) to the buyer of the credit default swap. A Fund will be the seller of a credit default swap only when the credit of the underlying asset is deemed by the Investment Adviser to meet a Fund's minimum credit criteria at the time the swap is first entered into.

When a Fund writes (sells) credit swaps on individual securities or instruments, a Fund must identify on its books liquid assets equal to the full notional amount of the swaps while the positions are open.

The use of interest rate, mortgage, credit, currency and total return and equity swaps, options on swaps, and interest rate caps, floors and collars is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its forecasts of market values, interest rates and currency exchange rates, or in its evaluation of the creditworthiness of swap counterparties and the issuers of the underlying assets, the investment performance of a Fund would be less favorable than it would have been if these investment techniques were not used.

Currently, certain standardized swap transactions are subject to mandatory central clearing and exchange trading. Although central clearing and exchange trading are expected to decrease counterparty risk and increase liquidity compared to bilaterally negotiated swaps, central clearing and exchange trading do not eliminate counterparty risk or illiquidity risk entirely. Depending on the size of a Fund and other factors, the margin required under the rules of a clearinghouse and by a clearing member may be in excess of the collateral required to be posted by a Fund to support its obligations under a similar bilateral, uncleared swap. However, certain applicable regulators have adopted rules imposing certain margin requirements, including minimums, on uncleared swaps which may result in a Fund and its counterparties posting higher amounts for uncleared swaps.

***Other Investment Companies.*** A Fund may invest in securities of other investment companies, including ETFs and money market funds, subject to statutory limitations prescribed by the Investment Company Act or rules, regulations or exemptive relief thereunder. These statutory limitations include in certain circumstances a prohibition on any Funds acquiring more than 3% of the voting shares of any other investment company, and a prohibition on investing more than 5% of a Fund's total assets in securities of any one investment company or more than 10% of total assets in securities of all investment companies.

Subject to applicable law and/or pursuant to an exemptive order obtained from the SEC or under an exemptive rule adopted by the SEC, a Fund may invest in certain other investment companies (including ETFs and money market funds) and business development companies beyond the statutory limits described above or otherwise provided that certain conditions are met. Some of those investment companies may be funds for which the Investment Adviser or any of their affiliates serves as investment adviser, administrator or distributor.

Additionally, to the extent that any Funds serves as an "acquired fund" to another Goldman Sachs Funds or unaffiliated investment company, a Fund's ability to invest in other investment companies and private funds may

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be limited and, under these circumstances, a Fund's investments in other investment companies and private funds will be consistent with applicable law and/or exemptive rules adopted by or exemptive orders obtained from the SEC. For example, to the extent a Fund serves as an acquired fund in a fund of funds arrangement in reliance on Rule 12d1-4 under the Investment Company Act, a Fund would be prohibited from purchasing or otherwise acquiring the securities of an investment company or private fund if, after such purchase or acquisition, the aggregate value of a Fund's investments in such investment companies and private funds would exceed 10% of the value of a Fund's total assets, subject to limited exceptions (including for investments in money market funds).

The use of ETFs is generally intended to help a Fund match the total return of the particular market segments or indices represented by those ETFs, although that may not be the result. Most ETFs are passively managed investment companies whose shares are purchased and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF generally represents a portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market segment or index. An investment in an ETF generally presents the same primary risks as an investment in a conventional fund (*i.e*., one that is not exchange-traded) that has the same investment objectives, strategies and policies. In addition, an ETF may fail to accurately track the market segment or index that underlies its investment objective. The price of an ETF can fluctuate, and a Fund could lose money investing in an ETF. Moreover, ETFs are subject to the following risks that do not apply to conventional funds: (i) the market price of the ETF's shares may trade at a premium or a discount to their NAV; (ii) an active trading market for an ETF's shares may not develop or be maintained; and (iii) there is no assurance that the requirements of the exchange necessary to maintain the listing of an ETF will continue to be met or remain unchanged.

A Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management fees and other expenses paid by such other investment companies, in addition to the fees and expenses regularly borne by a Fund. Although a Fund does not expect to do so in the foreseeable future, a Fund is authorized to invest substantially all of its assets in a single open-end investment company or series thereof that has substantially the same investment objective, policies and fundamental restrictions as a Fund.

***Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities.*** Non-investment grade fixed-income securities and unrated securities of comparable credit quality (commonly known as "junk bonds") are considered speculative. In some cases, these obligations may be highly speculative and have poor prospects for reaching investment grade standing. Non-investment grade fixed income securities are subject to the increased risk of an issuer's inability to meet principal and interest obligations. These securities, also referred to as high yield securities, may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific issuer developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of the junk bond markets generally and less liquidity.

Non-investment grade fixed income securities are also issued in connection with a corporate reorganization or restructuring or as part of a merger, acquisition, takeover or similar event. They are also issued by less established companies seeking to expand. Such issuers are often highly leveraged and generally less able than more established or less leveraged entities to make scheduled payments of principal and interest in the event of adverse developments or business conditions. Non-investment grade securities are also issued by governmental bodies that may have difficulty in making all scheduled interest and principal payments.

The market value of non-investment grade fixed income securities tends to reflect individual corporate or municipal developments to a greater extent than that of higher rated securities which react primarily to fluctuations in the general level of interest rates. As a result, a Fund's ability to achieve its investment objectives may depend to a greater extent on the Investment Adviser's judgment concerning the creditworthiness of issuers than funds which invest in higher-rated securities. Issuers of non-investment grade fixed income securities may not be able to make use of more traditional methods of financing and their ability to service debt obligations may be affected more adversely than issuers of higher-rated securities by economic downturns, specific corporate or financial developments or the issuer's inability to meet specific projected business forecasts. Negative publicity about the junk bond market and investor perceptions regarding lower rated securities, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may depress the prices for such securities.

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A holder's risk of loss from default is significantly greater for non-investment grade fixed income securities than is the case for holders of other debt securities because such non-investment grade securities are generally unsecured and are often subordinated to the rights of other creditors of the issuers of such securities. Investment by a Fund in defaulted securities poses additional risk of loss should nonpayment of principal and interest continue in respect of such securities. Even if such securities are held to maturity, recovery by a Fund of its initial investment and any anticipated income or appreciation is uncertain.

The secondary market for non-investment grade fixed income securities is concentrated in relatively few market makers and is dominated by institutional investors, including mutual funds, insurance companies and other financial institutions. Accordingly, the secondary market for such securities is not as liquid as, and is more volatile than, the secondary market for higher-rated securities. In addition, market trading volume for high yield fixed income securities is generally lower and the secondary market for such securities could shrink or disappear suddenly and without warning as a result of adverse market or economic conditions, independent of any specific adverse changes in the condition of a particular issuer. The lack of sufficient market liquidity may cause a Fund to incur losses because it will be required to effect sales at a disadvantageous time and then only at a substantial drop in price. These factors may have an adverse effect on the market price and a Fund's ability to dispose of particular portfolio investments. A less liquid secondary market also may make it more difficult for a Fund to obtain precise valuations of the high yield securities in its portfolio.

Credit ratings issued by credit rating agencies are designed to evaluate the safety of principal and interest payments of rated securities. They do not, however, evaluate the market value risk of non-investment grade securities and, therefore, may not fully reflect the true risks of an investment. In addition, credit rating agencies may or may not make timely changes in a rating to reflect changes in the economy or in the conditions of the issuer that affect the market value of the security. Consequently, credit ratings are used only as a preliminary indicator of investment quality.

***Downgraded Securities.*** After its purchase, a portfolio security may be assigned a lower rating or cease to be rated, which may affect the market value and liquidity of the security. If this occurs, a Fund may continue to hold the security if the Investment Adviser believes it is in the best interest of a Fund and its shareholders.

***Loan-Related Investments.*** The Funds may invest in loan-related investments such as loan participations and assignments. A loan participation is an interest in a loan to a U.S. or foreign company or other borrower (the "borrower") which is administered and sold by a financial intermediary. A Fund may only invest in loans to issuers in whose obligations it may otherwise invest. Loan interests may take the form of a direct or co-lending relationship with the borrower, an assignment of an interest in the loan by a co-lender or another participant, or a participation in the seller's share of the loan. When a Fund acts as co-lender in connection with a loan interest or when it acquires certain interests, a Fund will have direct recourse against the borrower if the borrower fails to pay scheduled principal and interest. In cases where a Fund lacks direct recourse, it will look to an agent for the lenders (the "agent lender") to enforce appropriate credit remedies against the borrower. In these cases, a Fund may be subject to delays, expenses and risks that are greater than those that would have been involved if a Fund had purchased a direct obligation (such as commercial paper) of such borrower.

An assignment typically succeeds to all the rights and obligations of the assigning institution and becomes a lender under the credit agreement with respect to the debt obligation; however, the purchaser's rights can be more restricted than those of the assigning institution, and, in any event, a Fund may not be able to unilaterally enforce all rights and remedies under the loan and with regard to any associated collateral. A participation typically results in a contractual relationship only with the institution participating out the interest, not with the borrower. In purchasing participations, a Fund generally will have no right to enforce compliance by the borrower with the terms of the loan agreement against the borrower, and a Fund may not directly benefit from the collateral supporting the debt obligation in which it has purchased the participation. As a result, a Fund will be exposed to the credit risk of both the borrower and the institution selling the participation. Investors in loans, such as a Fund, may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.

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The market for loan obligations may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. Because transactions in many loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, a Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet a Fund's redemption obligations (to the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions) for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, a Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from its credit facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. During periods of heightened redemption activity (to the extent the Fund engages in cash redemptions) or distressed market conditions, a Fund may seek to obtain expedited trade settlement, which will generally incur additional costs (although expedited trade settlement will not always be available).

Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a borrower, are typically secured with specific collateral and have a claim on the assets of the borrower that is senior to that held by subordinated debt holders and stockholders of the borrower. The proceeds of Senior Loans primarily are used to finance leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, mergers, acquisitions, stock repurchases, refinancings and to finance internal growth and for other corporate purposes. Senior Loans typically have a stated term of between five and nine years, and have rates of interest which typically are redetermined daily, monthly, quarterly or semi-annually by reference to a base lending rate, plus a premium or credit spread. Longer interest rate reset periods generally increase fluctuations in a Fund's net asset value as a result of changes in market interest rates. As a result, as short-term interest rates increase, interest payable to a Fund from its investments in Senior Loans should increase, and as short-term interest rates decrease, interest payable to a Fund from its investments in Senior Loans should decrease. Although Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a borrower, Senior Loans may become subordinated to other debt holders and creditors (including, under certain circumstances, upon the consent from less than 100% of the holders of the Senior Loans). Senior Loans that are subordinated to other debt holders and creditors will be subject to the risks generally associated with investments in second lien and more junior loans. Second Lien Loans have the same characteristics as Senior Loans except that such loans are subordinated or unsecured and thus lower in priority of payment to Senior Loans. Accordingly, the risks associated with Second Lien Loans are higher than the risk of loans with first priority over the collateral. In the event of default on a Second Lien Loan, the first priority lien holder has first claim to the underlying collateral of the loan. It is possible that no collateral value would remain for the second priority lien holder and therefore result in a loss of investment to a Fund. Second Lien Loans typically have adjustable floating rate interest payments.

Generally, loans have the benefit of restrictive covenants that limit the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets, impose other obligations and/or release or transfer the specific collateral securing the loan. To the extent a loan does not have certain covenants (or has less restrictive covenants), an investment in the loan will be particularly sensitive to the risks associated with loan investments. In addition, to the extent a loan is modified or restructured (including, under certain circumstances, without the consent of, or upon the consent from less than 100% of, the holders of the loan), an investment in the loan may be materially and adversely affected. Under these circumstances, a Fund may incur expenses enforcing or defending its claims against the borrower and/or other debt holders and creditors.

***Preferred Stock, Warrants and Stock Purchase Rights.*** A Fund may invest in preferred stock, warrants and stock purchase rights (or "rights"). Preferred stocks are securities that represent an ownership interest providing the holder with claims on the issuer's earnings and assets before common stock owners but after bond owners. Unlike debt securities, the obligations of an issuer of preferred stock, including dividend and other payment obligations, may not typically be accelerated by the holders of such preferred stock on the occurrence of an event of default or other non-compliance by the issuer of the preferred stock.

Warrants and other rights are options to buy a stated number of shares of common stock at a specified price at any time during the life of the warrant or right. The holders of warrants and rights have no voting rights, receive no dividends and have no rights with respect to the assets of the issuer.

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***Equity Investments.*** After its purchase, a portfolio investment (such as a convertible debt obligation) may convert to an equity security. Alternatively, a Fund may acquire equity securities in connection with a restructuring or other similar event related to one or more of its investments. If this occurs, a Fund may continue to hold the investment (or make additional purchases of that equity investment) if the Investment Adviser believes it is in the best interest of a Fund and its shareholders.

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**Exhibit C** 

**SHAREHOLDER GUIDE** 

For the purpose of this section, "the Fund" refers to each Acquiring Fund and "the Trust" refers to the Acquiring Fund Trust. The following section will provide you with answers to some of the most frequently asked questions regarding buying and selling the Fund's shares.

**BUYING AND SELLING SHARES** 

Shares of the Fund may be acquired or redeemed directly from the Fund at NAV only in Creation Units or multiples thereof. Only an Authorized Participant (as defined in the Creations and Redemptions section below) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. Once created, Shares of the Fund generally trade in the secondary market in amounts less than a Creation Unit.

Shares of the Fund are listed for trading on a national securities exchange during the trading day. Shares can be bought and sold throughout the trading day at market price like shares of other publicly traded companies. However, there can be no guarantee that an active trading market will develop or be maintained, or that the Fund Shares listing will continue or remain unchanged. The Trust does not impose any minimum investment for Shares of the Fund purchased on an exchange. Buying or selling the Fund's Shares involves certain costs that apply to all securities transactions. When buying or selling Shares of the Fund through a financial intermediary, you may incur a brokerage commission or other charges determined by your financial intermediary. Due to these brokerage costs, if any, frequent trading may detract significantly from investment returns. In addition, you may also incur the cost of the spread (the difference between the bid price and the ask price). The commission is frequently a fixed amount and may be a significant cost for investors seeking to buy or sell small amounts of Shares. The spread varies over time for Shares of the Fund based on its trading volume and market liquidity, and is generally less if the Fund has more trading volume and market liquidity and more if the Fund has less trading volume and market liquidity.

The Fund's primary listing exchange is the Exchange. The Exchange is open for trading Monday through Friday and is closed on the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

A "business day" with respect to the Fund is each day the New York Stock Exchange, the Exchange, and the Trust are open and includes any day that the Fund is required to be open under Section 22(e) of the Investment Company Act. Orders from Authorized Participants to create or redeem Creation Units will only be accepted on a business day. On days when the Exchange closes earlier than normal, the Fund may require orders to create or redeem Creation Units to be placed earlier in the day. See the SAI for more information.

The Trust's Board has not adopted a policy of monitoring for frequent purchases and redemptions of Fund Shares ("frequent trading") that appear to attempt to take advantage of potential arbitrage opportunities presented by a lag between a change in the value of the Fund's portfolio securities after the close of the primary markets for the Fund's portfolio securities and the reflection of that change in the Fund's NAV ("market timing"). The Trust believes this is appropriate because ETFs, such as the Fund, are intended to be attractive to arbitrageurs, as trading activity is critical to ensuring that the market price of Fund Shares remains at or close to NAV. Since the Fund issues and redeems Creation Units at NAV plus applicable transaction fees, and the Fund's Shares may be purchased and sold on the Exchange at prevailing market prices, the risks of frequent trading are limited.

Section 12(d)(1) of the Investment Company Act restricts investments by registered investment companies and companies relying on Sections 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act in the securities of other investment companies. Registered investment companies are permitted to invest in the Fund beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1), subject to certain terms and conditions, including that such investment companies enter into an agreement with the Trust.

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The Fund and the Distributor will have the sole right to accept orders to purchase Shares and reserve the right to reject any purchase order in whole or in part.

**PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES** 

GSAM and/or the Distributor (upon direction of the Fund) may make payments to broker-dealers, registered investment advisers or other financial intermediaries (each, a "Financial Intermediary") related to activities that are designed to make registered representatives, other professionals and individual investors more knowledgeable about the Fund or for other activities, such as participation in marketing activities and presentations, educational training programs, the support or purchase of technology platforms/software and/or reporting systems. GSAM and/or the Distributor (upon direction of the Fund) may also make payments to Financial Intermediaries for certain printing, publishing and mailing costs associated with the Fund or materials relating to exchange-traded funds in general and/or for the provision of analytical or other data to GSAM or its affiliates relating to marketing of the Fund mailing costs associated with the Fund or materials relating to exchange-traded funds in general and/or for the provision of analytical or other data to GSAM or its affiliates relating to the sales of Fund Shares. In addition, GSAM and/or the Distributor may make payments to Financial Intermediaries that make Fund Shares available to their clients or for otherwise promoting the Fund, including through provision of consultative services to GSAM or its affiliates relating to marketing of the Fund and/or sale of Fund Shares. Such payments, which may be significant to the Financial Intermediary, are not made by the Fund. Rather, such payments are made by GSAM and/or the Distributor from their own resources, which may come directly or indirectly in part from management fees paid by the Fund. Payments of this type are sometimes referred to as marketing support or revenue-sharing payments. A Financial Intermediary may make decisions about which investment options it recommends or makes available, or the level of services provided, to its customers based on the marketing support payments it is eligible to receive. Therefore, such payments to a Financial Intermediary create conflicts of interest between the Financial Intermediary and its customers and may cause the Financial Intermediary to recommend the Fund over another investment. More information regarding these payments is contained in the SAI. A shareholder should contact his or her Financial Intermediary's salesperson or other investment professional for more information regarding any such payments the Financial Intermediary firm may receive from GSAM and/or the Distributor.

**NET ASSET VALUE** 

The Fund generally calculates its NAV as follows:

NAV= (Value of Assets of the Fund) – (Liabilities of the Fund) <br> Number of Outstanding Shares of the Fund

The Fund's NAV per share is generally calculated by the Fund's provider of administrative services on each business day as of the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) or such other times as the New York Stock Exchange or the Exchange may officially close. The Fund's investments for which market quotations are readily available are valued at market value on the basis of quotations provided by pricing sources. If accurate quotations are not readily available, if the Fund's provider of administrative services is unable for other reasons to facilitate pricing of individual securities or calculate the Fund's NAV, or if the Investment Adviser believes that such quotations do not accurately reflect fair value, the fair value of the Fund's investments may be determined in good faith under valuation procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Thus, such pricing may be based on subjective judgments and it is possible that the prices resulting from such valuation procedures may differ materially from the value realized on a sale. Cases where there is no clear indication of the value of the Fund's investments include, among others, situations where a security or other asset or liability does not have a price source or a price is unavailable.

Equity securities listed on an exchange are generally valued at the last available sale price on the exchange on which they are principally traded.

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Fixed income securities are generally valued on the basis of prices (including evaluated prices) and quotations provided by pricing services or securities dealers. Pricing services may use matrix pricing or valuation models, which utilize certain inputs and assumptions, including, but not limited to, yield or price with respect to comparable fixed income securities, to determine current value. Pricing services generally value fixed income securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional round lot size, but the Fund may hold or transact in such securities in smaller odd lot sizes. Odd lots may trade at lower prices than institutional round lots.

Investments in other open-end registered investment companies (if any), excluding investments in ETFs, are valued based on the NAV of those open-end registered investment companies (which may use fair value pricing as discussed in their prospectuses). Investments in ETFs will generally be valued at the last sale price or official closing price on the exchange on which they are principally traded.

In addition, the Investment Adviser, consistent with its procedures and applicable regulatory guidance, may (but need not) determine to make an adjustment to the previous closing prices of securities in light of significant events, to reflect what it believes to be the fair value of the securities at the time of determining the Fund's NAV. Significant events that could affect a large number of securities in a particular market may include, but are not limited to: situations relating to one or more single issuers in a market sector; significant fluctuations in U.S. or foreign markets; market dislocations; market disruptions or unscheduled market closings; equipment failures; natural or man-made disasters or acts of God; armed conflicts; governmental actions or other developments; as well as the same or similar events which may affect specific issuers or the securities markets even though not tied directly to the securities markets. Other significant events that could relate to a single issuer may include, but are not limited to: corporate actions such as reorganizations, mergers and buy-outs; corporate announcements, including those relating to earnings, products and regulatory news; significant litigation; ratings downgrades; bankruptcies; and trading limits or suspensions.

Fair valuation involves the risk that the values used by the Fund to price its investments may be different from those used by other investment companies and investors to price the same investments.

Foreign securities may trade in their local markets on days the Fund is closed. As a result, if the Fund holds foreign securities, its NAV may be impacted on days when investors may not purchase or sell Fund Shares on the secondary market or purchase or redeem Creation Units through the Fund.

The Fund relies on various sources to calculate its NAV. The ability of the Fund's provider of administrative services to calculate the NAV per share of the Fund is subject to operational risks associated with processing or human errors, systems or technology failures, cyber attacks and errors caused by third party service providers, data sources, or trading counterparties. Such failures may result in delays in the calculation of the Fund's NAV and/or the inability to calculate NAV over extended time periods. The Fund may be unable to recover any losses associated with such failures. In addition, if the third party service providers and/or data sources upon which the Fund directly or indirectly relies to calculate its NAV or price individual securities are unavailable or otherwise unable to calculate the NAV correctly, it may be necessary for alternative procedures to be utilized to price the securities at the time of determining the Fund's NAV.

**BOOK ENTRY** 

DTC serves as securities depository for the Shares. (The Shares may be held only in book-entry form; stock certificates will not be issued.) DTC, or its nominee, is the record or registered owner of all outstanding Shares. Beneficial ownership of Shares will be shown on the records of DTC or its participants (described below). Beneficial owners of Shares are not entitled to have Shares registered in their names, will not receive or be entitled to receive physical delivery of certificates in definitive form and are not considered the registered holder thereof. Accordingly, to exercise any rights of a holder of Shares, each beneficial owner must rely on the procedures of: (i) DTC; (ii) "DTC Participants," *i.e.*, securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and certain other organizations, some of whom (and/or their representatives) own DTC; and (iii) "Indirect Participants," *i.e.*, brokers, dealers, banks and trust companies that clear through or maintain a

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custodial relationship with a DTC Participant, either directly or indirectly, through which such beneficial owner holds its interests. The Trust understands that under existing industry practice, in the event the Trust requests any action of holders of Shares, or a beneficial owner desires to take any action that DTC, as the record owner of all outstanding Shares, is entitled to take, DTC would authorize the DTC Participants to take such action and that the DTC Participants would authorize the Indirect Participants and beneficial owners acting through such DTC Participants to take such action and would otherwise act upon the instructions of beneficial owners owning through them. As described above, the Trust recognizes DTC or its nominee as the owner of all Shares for all purposes.

**CREATIONS AND REDEMPTIONS** 

Prior to trading in the secondary market, Shares of the Fund are "created" at NAV by market makers, large investors and institutions only in block-size Creation Units or multiples thereof. Each "creator" or "Authorized Participant" enters into an authorized participant agreement with the Fund's Distributor.

A creation transaction, which is subject to acceptance by BNY, as the Trust's transfer agent, generally takes place when an Authorized Participant deposits into the Fund a designated portfolio of securities (including any portion of such securities for which cash may be substituted) and a specified amount of cash in exchange for a specified number of Creation Units.

Similarly, Shares can be redeemed only in Creation Units, generally for a designated portfolio of securities (including any portion of such securities for which cash may be substituted) held by the Fund and a specified amount of cash. Except when aggregated in Creation Units, Shares are not redeemable by the Fund.

The prices at which creations and redemptions occur are based on the next calculation of NAV after a creation or redemption order is received in an acceptable form under the authorized participant agreement.

Please note the following with respect to the price at which transactions are processed:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• NAV per Share is generally calculated by the Fund's fund accounting agent on each business day as of
the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) or such other times as the New York Stock Exchange or the Exchange may officially close. Fund Shares will generally not be priced on any day the New York
Stock Exchange is closed.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Trust reserves the right to reprocess creation and redemption transactions that were processed at a NAV that
is subsequently adjusted, and to recover amounts from (or distribute amounts to) Authorized Participants accordingly based on the official closing NAV, as adjusted.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The Trust reserves the right to advance the time by which creation and redemption orders must be received for
same business day credit, as otherwise permitted by the SEC.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Consistent with industry practice, investment transactions not settling on the same day are recorded and factored
into the Fund's NAV on the business day following trade date (T+1). The use of T+1 accounting generally does not, but may, result in a NAV that differs materially from the NAV that would result if all transactions were reflected on their trade
dates.

***Note: The time at which transactions and Shares are priced and the time by which orders must be received may be changed in case of an emergency or if regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange is stopped at a time other than its regularly scheduled closing time. In the event the New York Stock Exchange does not open for business, the Trust may, but is not required to, open the Fund for creation and redemption transactions if the Federal Reserve wire payment system is open. To learn whether the Fund is open for business during this situation, please call the appropriate phone number located on the back cover of the Information Statement/Prospectus.***

Only an Authorized Participant may create or redeem Creation Units directly with the Fund.

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In the event of a system failure or other interruption, including disruptions at market makers or Authorized Participants, orders to purchase or redeem Creation Units either may not be executed according to the Fund's instructions or may not be executed at all, or the Fund may not be able to place or change orders.

To the extent the Fund engages in in-kind transactions, the Fund intends to comply with the U.S. federal securities laws in accepting securities for deposit and satisfying redemptions with redemption securities by, among other means, assuring that any securities accepted for deposit and any securities used to satisfy redemption requests will be sold in transactions that would be exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"). Further, an Authorized Participant that is not a "qualified institutional buyer," as such term is defined under Rule 144A of the Securities Act, will not be able to receive restricted securities eligible for resale under Rule 144A.

Creations and redemptions must be made through a firm that is either a member of the Continuous Net Settlement System of the National Securities Clearing Corporation or a DTC Participant and has executed an agreement with the Distributor with respect to creations and redemptions of Creation Unit aggregations. Information about the procedures regarding creation and redemption of Creation Units (including the cut-off times for receipt of creation and redemption orders) and the applicable transaction fees is included in the Fund's SAI.

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**Exhibit D** 

**INTERESTS OF CERTAIN PERSONS** 

As of the date of this Information Statement/Prospectus, the Acquiring Fund was not operational and, therefore, had no shareholders. As of March 31, 2026, the following shareholders were shown in the Acquired Fund Trust's records as owning more than 5% of a class of an Acquired Fund's shares. Except as listed below, the Acquired Fund Trust does not know of any persons who own of record or beneficially 5% or more of any class of an Acquired Fund's shares.

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs<br>Bond Fund** | **Name/Address** | **Percentage of<br>Shares** |
| Class A | National Financial Services LLC<br> National Financial Services LLC<br> FEBO Customers<br> Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds Dept 4th Floor<br> 499 Washington Blvd<br> Jersey City, NJ 07310-1995 | 13.04% |
|  | Charles Schwab & Company<br> Charles Schwab & Co Inc<br> Special Custody Acct For<br> Benefit of Customers<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds<br> 211 Main St<br> San Francisco, CA 94105-1901 | 7.20% |
|  | Edward Jones<br> Edward D Jones & Co<br> For The Benefit of Customers<br> 12555 Manchester Rd<br> Saint Louis, MO 63131-3710 | 43.58% |
| Class C | UBS Financial Services Inc<br> UBS WM USA<br> SPEC CDY A/C EBOC UBSFSI<br> 1000 Harbor Blvd<br> Weehawken, NJ 07086-6761 | 6.29% |
|  | Raymond James & Associates<br> Raymond James<br> Omnibus For Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Fund Reconciliation 14G<br> 880 Carillon Parkway<br> St Petersburg, FL 33716-1102 | 5.02% |
|  | Stifel Nicolaus<br> Stifel Nicolaus & Co<br> Exclusive Benefit of Customers<br> 501 N Broadway<br> Saint Louis, MO 63102-2188 | 13.93% |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs<br>Bond Fund** | **Name/Address** | **Percentage of<br>Shares** |
|  | Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC.<br> Wells Fargo Clearing Services LLC<br> Special Custody Acct For The<br> Exclusive Benefit of Customer<br> 2801 Market St<br> Saint Louis, MO 63103-2523 | 15.28% |
|  | Ameriprise Financial Services Inc<br> American Enterprise Investment Svc<br> 707 2nd Ave S<br> Minneapolis, MN 55402-2405 | 25.49% |
|  | Pershing LLC<br> Pershing LLC<br> PO Box 2052<br> Jersey City NJ 07303-2052 | 12.45% |
| Class R | Mid Atlantic Clearing And<br> Mid Atlantic Trust Company FBO<br> Equity Building Services LLC 401(K)<br> 1251 Waterfront Place, Suite 525<br> Pittsburgh, PA 15222-4228 | 12.75% |
|  | GWFS Equities Inc<br> Empower Trust Company LLC<br> FBO PlanPremier Rtmt Plans Omnibus<br> 8515 E Orchard Rd # 2T2<br> Greenwood Village, CO 80111-5002 | 12.13% |
|  | GWFS Equities Inc<br> Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance<br> 1295 State Street MIP M200-INVST<br> Springfield, MA 01111-0001 | 60.25% |
| Class R6 | National Financial Services LLC<br> National Financial Services LLC<br> For The Exclusive Benefit of Our Customers<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds Dept 4th Floor<br> 499 Washington Blvd<br> Jersey City, NJ 07310-1995 | 46.46% |
|  | VALIC Financial Advisors Inc<br> VRSCO<br> FBO VTC CUST TTEE FBO<br> COOP SCHL DIST OF GTR ST LOUIS 403B<br> 2727-A Allen Parkway, 4-D1<br> Houston, TX 77019-2107 | 5.48% |
|  | Empower Financial Services, Inc.<br> Empower Trust FBO<br> Employee Benefits Clients 401k<br> 8515 E Orchard Rd 2T2<br> Greenwood Village, CO 80111-5002 | 6.65% |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs<br>Bond Fund** | **Name/Address** | **Percentage of<br>Shares** |
|  | VALIC Financial Advisors Inc<br> VRSCO<br> FBO VTC CUST TTEE FBO<br> Minneapolis Public Schools 403B<br> 2727-A Allen Parkway, 4-D1<br> Houston, TX 77019-2107 | 7.25% |
|  | Empower Financial Services, Inc.<br> Empower Trust FBO<br> Employee Benefit Clients 401k<br> 8515 E Orchard Rd 2T2<br> Greenwood Village, CO 80111-5002 | 5.72% |
| Institutional<br>Class | Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC<br> Wells Fargo Clearing Services LLC<br> Special Custody Acct for the Exclusive Benefit of Customer<br> 2801 Market St<br> Saint Louis, MO 63103-2523 | 7.44% |
|  | Voya Institutional Plan Services LLC<br> Voya Institutional TR CO AS TTEE<br> Custodian for Core Market Solutions<br> 30 Braintree Hill Office Park<br> Braintree, MA 02184-8747 | 22.88% |
|  | National Financial Services LLC<br> National Financial Services LLC<br> FEBO Customers<br> Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds Dept 4th Flr<br> 499 Washington Blvd<br> Jersey City NJ 07310-1995 | 15.89% |
|  | TIAA CREF Individual &<br> TIAA Trust, N.A. SS Cust/Ttee of Retirement Plans<br> RECORDKEPT BY TIAA<br> ATTN: Fund Operations<br> 8500 Andrew Carnegie Blvd<br> Charlotte, NC 28262-8500 | 6.65% |
|  | Pershing LLC<br> Pershing LLC<br> PO Box 2052<br> Jersey City, NJ 07303-2052 | 33.85% |
| Investor Class | LPL Financial Corporation<br> LPL Financial<br> Omnibus Customer Account<br> ATTN: Mutual Fund Trading<br> 4707 Executive Dr<br> San Diego, CA 92121-3091 | 27.54% |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs<br>Bond Fund** | **Name/Address** | **Percentage of<br>Shares** |
|  | Raymond James & Associates<br> Raymond James<br> Omnibus For Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Fund Reconciliation 14G<br> 880 Carillon Parkway<br> St Petersburg, FL 33716-1102 | 31.51% |
|  | National Financial Services LLC<br> National Financial Services LLC<br> FEBO Customers<br> Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds Dept 4th Flr<br> 499 Washington Blvd<br> Jersey City, NJ 07310-1995 | 7.32% |
|  | Ameriprise Financial Services Inc<br> American Enterprise Investment Svc<br> 707 2nd Ave S<br> Minneapolis, MN 55402-2405 | 29.17% |
| Class P | Goldman Sachs & Co<br> Goldman Sachs & Co<br> C/O Mutual Fund OPS<br> 222 S Main St<br> Salt Lake City, UT 84101-2174 | 100.00% |
| Service Class | Cetera Advisor Networks LLC<br> Ascensus Trust Company FBO<br> Sanjay Kandoth MD PC 401(K) P/S PLA<br> P.O. Box 10758<br> Fargo, ND 58106-0758 | 100.00% |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs<br>Income Fund** | **Name/Address** | **Percentage of<br>Shares** |
| Class A | LPL Financial Corporation<br> LPL Financial<br> Omnibus Customer Account<br> ATTN: Mutual Fund Trading<br> 4707 Executive Dr<br> San Diego, CA 92121-3091 | 19.91% |
|  | National Financial Services LLC<br> National Financial Services LLC<br> FEBO Customers<br> Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds Dept 4th Floor<br> 499 Washington Blvd<br> Jersey City, NJ 07310-1995 | 28.89% |
|  | Charles Schwab & Company<br> Charles Schwab & Co Inc<br> Special Custody A/C FBO Customers<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds<br> 211 Main St<br> San Francisco, CA 94105-1901 | 12.38% |
|  | Ameriprise Financial Services Inc<br> American Enterprise Investment Svc<br> 707 2nd Ave S<br> Minneapolis, MN 55402-2405 | 27.00% |
| Class C | Ameriprise Financial Services Inc<br> American Enterprise Investment Svc<br> 707 2nd Ave S<br> Minneapolis, MN 55402-2405 | 94.97% |
| Class R6 | Empower Financial Services, Inc.<br> Empower Trust FBO<br> Employee Benefits Clients 401k<br> 8515 E Orchard Rd 2T2<br> Greenwood Village, CO 80111-5002 | 92.70% |
|  | Ascensus Broker Dealer Services LLC<br> Ascensus Trust Company FBO<br> Guyer Group 401(K) Plan<br> P.O. Box 10758<br> Fargo, ND 58106-0758 | 6.41% |
| Institutional Class | National Financial Services LLC<br> FEBO Customers Mutual Funds<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds Department 4th Floor<br> 499 Washington Boulevard<br> Jersey City, NJ 07310-1995 | 72.06% |
|  | Charles Schwab & Co Inc<br> Charles Schwab & Co Inc<br> Spec Custody Acct FBO Customers<br> ATTN: Mutual Funds<br> 211 Main St<br> San Francisco, CA 94105-1901 | 17.45% |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Goldman Sachs<br>Income Fund** | **Name/Address** | **Percentage of<br>Shares** |
|  | Pershing LLC<br> Pershing LLC<br> PO Box 2052<br> Jersey City, NJ 07303-2052 | 9.65% |
| Investor Class | LPL Financial Corporation<br> LPL Financial<br> Omnibus Customer Account<br> ATTN: Mutual Fund Trading<br> 4707 Executive Dr<br> San Diego, CA 92121-3091 | 8.16% |
|  | Ameriprise Financial Services Inc<br> American Enterprise Investment Svc<br> 707 2nd Ave S<br> Minneapolis, MN 55402-2405 | 88.59% |
| Class P | Goldman Sachs & Co<br> Goldman Sachs & Co<br> C/O Mutual Fund Ops<br> 222 S Main St<br> Salt Lake City, UT 84101-2174 | 100.00% |

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\* Entity owned more than 25% of the outstanding shares of the Acquired Fund. A shareholder owning of record or beneficially more than 25% of the Acquired Fund's outstanding shares may be considered a control person and could have a more significant effect on matters presented at a shareholders' meeting than votes of other shareholders. 

As of March 31, 2026, the Trustees and Officers of the Acquired Fund Trust as a group owned less than 1% of the outstanding shares of beneficial interest of each class of an Acquired Fund.

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**The information in this Statement of Additional Information is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This Statement of Additional Information is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.** 

**PRELIMINARY STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL** 

**INFORMATION** 

**SUBJECT TO COMPLETION** 

**PART B** 

**STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION** 

**FORM N-14** 

**May [**●**], 2026** 

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **FUND** | **PRINCIPAL U.S. LISTING**<br> **EXCHANGE** | **PRINCIPAL U.S. LISTING**<br> **EXCHANGE** | **TICKER**<br> **SYMBOL** | **TICKER**<br> **SYMBOL** |
|  GOLDMAN SACHS CORE PLUS BOND ETF |  | NYSE Arca, Inc. |  | GCPB |
|  GOLDMAN SACHS INCOME ETF |  | NYSE Arca, Inc. |  | GINC |

---

**(Portfolios of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust)** 

Goldman Sachs ETF Trust

200 West Street

New York, New York 10282

This Statement of Additional Information (the "SAI") is not a prospectus. This SAI should be read in conjunction with the combined Information Statement/Prospectus, dated May [●], 2026, which relates to the shares of the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF to be issued in exchange for shares of the Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Income Fund, respectively (the "Reorganizations"). To obtain a copy of the Information Statement/Prospectus free of charge, please call 1-800-621-2550 or write to Goldman Sachs Funds, P.O. Box 06050, Chicago, IL 60606-6306.

GSAM<sup>®</sup> is a registered service mark of Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC.

The date of this SAI is May [●], 2026.

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---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Table of Contents** | **Page** | **Page** |
|  [Documents Incorporated by Reference](#sai144724_1) |  | 3 |
|  [Supplemental Financial Information](#sai144724_2) |  | 4 |
|  [Acquiring Funds' Statement of Additional Information](#sai144724_3) |  | 5 |

---

------

**DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE** 

This SAI consists of these introductory pages; the following documents, each of which was filed electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commission and is incorporated by reference herein; the supplemental financial information; and the Statement of Additional Information of the Acquiring Funds that follows:

(i) The Information Statement/Prospectus dated May [●], 2026;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(ii) The current [prospectuses](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/../../../ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312525166437/d939817d485bpos.htm) for the Acquired Funds dated July 29, 2025, and [statement of additional information](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312526061676/d34388d497.htm) for the Acquired Funds dated July 29, 2025 (as
supplemented February 20, 2026), and the [supplement](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312526007342/d784551d497.htm) dated January 8, 2026 with respect to the Goldman Sachs Income Fund (Accession Number: 0001193125-26-007343).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(iii) The most recent [Form N-CSRS](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/../../../ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312525306725/d10339dncsrs.htm) of the Acquired Funds, including the unaudited financial statement for the semi-annual period ended September 30, 2025.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(iv) The most recent [Form-NCSR](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/../../../ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312525135877/d931546dncsr.htm) of the Acquired Funds, including the audited financial statement for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025.

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**SUPPLEMENTAL FINANCIAL INFORMATION (UNAUDITED)** 

A table showing the fees of each Acquired Fund and the corresponding Acquiring Fund, and the fees and expenses of each Acquiring Fund on a pro forma basis after giving effect to the Reorganization, is included in the "The Funds' Fees and Expenses and Supplemental Financial Information – Fees and Expenses of the Funds" section of the Information Statement/Prospectus.

The Reorganizations will not result in a material change to an Acquired Fund's investment portfolio due to the investment restrictions of the corresponding Acquiring Fund. In particular, each security held by an Acquired Fund is eligible to be held by the corresponding Acquiring Fund. As a result, a schedule of investments of each Acquired Fund modified to show the effects of such change is not required and is not included.

There are no material differences in accounting and valuation policies of the Acquired Funds as compared to those of the Acquiring Funds with respect to the securities and investments held by the Funds.

The Acquiring Funds have been organized solely in connection with the Reorganizations to acquire all of the assets and liabilities of the corresponding Acquired Funds and continue the business of the Acquired Funds. Therefore, after the Reorganizations, each Acquired Fund will remain the "accounting survivor." This means that the Acquiring Fund will continue to show the historical investment performance and returns of the corresponding Acquired Fund (even after conversion of the Acquired Fund).

------

**STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION** 

**DATED MAY [**●**], 2026** 

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **FUND** | **PRINCIPAL U.S. LISTING**<br>**EXCHANGE** | **TICKER**<br> **SYMBOL** |
|  GOLDMAN SACHS CORE PLUS BOND ETF | NYSE Arca, Inc. | GSPB |
|  GOLDMAN SACHS INCOME ETF | NYSE Arca, Inc. | GINC |

---

**(Portfolios of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust)** 

Goldman Sachs ETF Trust

200 West Street

New York, New York 10282

This Statement of Additional Information (the "SAI") is not a prospectus. This SAI should be read in conjunction with the prospectus for the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF (each a "Fund", and together, the "Funds"), dated May [●], 2026, as it may be further amended and/or supplemented from time to time (the "Prospectus"). The Prospectus may be obtained without charge from Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC by calling 1-800-621-2550 or writing to Goldman Sachs Funds, 71 South Wacker Drive, Suite 1200, Chicago, Illinois 60606.

It is currently contemplated that, before each Fund commences operations, the assets of another investment companies advised by the Investment Adviser (as defined below), Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Income Fund (each, a "predecessor fund", and together, the "predecessor funds"), will be transferred to the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF, respectively, in tax-free reorganizations.

[The audited financial statements and related report of \[ \], independent registered public accounting firm for the predecessor funds, contained in the predecessor funds' filing on Form N-CSR for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, are incorporated herein by reference in the section titled "FINANCIAL STATEMENTS."](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/../../../ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312525135877/d931546dncsr.htm) No other portions of the predecessor funds' filing on Form N-CSR are incorporated by reference herein. Each predecessor fund's financial information and each Fund's financial information (when available) may be obtained upon request and without charge by calling Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC toll-free at 1-800-621-2550.

GSAM<sup>®</sup> is a registered service mark of Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC.

------

**TABLE OF CONTENTS** 

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
|  | **Page** |
|  [INTRODUCTION](#sai144724_10) | 8 |
|  [EXCHANGE LISTING AND TRADING](#sai144724_11) | 8 |
|  [INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES](#sai144724_12) | 8 |
|  [DESCRIPTION OF INVESTMENT SECURITIES AND PRACTICES](#sai144724_13) | 11 |
|  [INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS](#sai144724_14) | 53 |
|  [TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS](#sai144724_15) | 55 |
|  [MANAGEMENT SERVICES](#sai144724_16) | 74 |
|  [POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST](#sai144724_17) | 77 |
|  [CREATIONS AND REDEMPTIONS](#sai144724_18) | 91 |
|  [BOOK ENTRY ONLY SYSTEM](#sai144724_19) | 96 |
|  [PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE](#sai144724_20) | 97 |
|  [DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE](#sai144724_21) | 99 |
|  [SHARES OF THE TRUST](#sai144724_22) | 100 |
|  [TAXATION](#sai144724_23) | 102 |
|  [FINANCIAL STATEMENTS](#sai144724_24) | 106 |
|  [PROXY VOTING](#sai144724_25) | 107 |
|  [PAYMENTS TO OTHERS (INCLUDING INTERMEDIARIES)](#sai144724_26) | 108 |
|  [OTHER INFORMATION](#sai144724_27) | 109 |
|  [CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF SECURITIES](#sai144724_28) | 110 |
|  [APPENDIX A DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES RATINGS](#sai144724_29) | A-1 |
|  [APPENDIX B GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT'S PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES SUMMARY](#sai144724_30) | B-1 |

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------

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT, L.P.**<br> Investment Adviser<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, New York 10282 | **ALPS DISTRIBUTORS, INC.**<br> Distributor<br> 1290 Broadway, Suite 1000<br> Denver, Colorado 80203 |
| **THE BANK OF NEW YORK**<br> Transfer Agent<br> 240 Greenwich Street<br> New York, New York 10286 |  |

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**Toll-free (in U.S.) 1-800-621-2550 (for Shareholders/Authorized Participants) or 1-800-292-4726 (for Financial Advisors).** 

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**INTRODUCTION** 

Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (the "Trust") is an open-end management investment company. The Trust is organized as a Delaware statutory trust and was established by an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated December 16, 2009. The following series of the Trust are described in this SAI: Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF. The Funds are actively managed and do not seek to track a specified index.

The Trustees of the Trust have authority under the Declaration of Trust to create and classify Shares of the Trust into separate series. Pursuant thereto, the Trustees have created the Funds and other series. Additional series may be added in the future from time to time. See "Shares of the Trust."

Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. ("GSAM" or the "Investment Adviser"), an affiliate of Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC ("Goldman Sachs"), serves as the Investment Adviser to the Funds. In addition, ALPS Distributors, Inc. ("ALPS" or the "Distributor") serves as the Funds' distributor, and The Bank of New York ("BNY" or the "Transfer Agent") serves as the Funds' transfer agent. The Funds' custodian is BNY, which also provides administrative services to the Funds.

The following information relates to and supplements the description of each Fund's investment policies contained in the Prospectus. See the Prospectus for a more complete description of the Funds' investment objectives and policies. Investing in a Fund entails certain risks, and there is no assurance that a Fund will achieve its investment objective. Capitalized terms used but not defined herein have the same meaning as in the Prospectus.

**EXCHANGE LISTING AND TRADING** 

A discussion of exchange listing and trading matters associated with an investment in the Funds is contained in the "Shareholder Guide" section of the Prospectus. The discussion below supplements, and should be read in conjunction with, such section of the Prospectus.

The Shares of the Funds are anticipated to be approved for listing and trading on NYSE Arca, Inc. (the "Exchange"), subject to notice of issuance. The Shares trade on the Exchange at prices that may differ from their net asset value ("NAV"). There can be no assurance that the Funds will continue to meet the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of Shares.

The Exchange may, but is not required to, remove the Shares of a Fund from listing if: (1) following the initial twelve-month period beginning upon the commencement of trading of the Fund, there are fewer than 50 beneficial holders of the Shares; (2) the Exchange becomes aware that the Fund is no longer eligible to operate in reliance on Rule 6c-11 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Investment Company Act" or the "Act"); (3) the Fund no longer complies with certain listing exchange rules; or (4) such other event shall occur or condition exists that, in the opinion of the Exchange, makes further dealings on the Exchange inadvisable. In addition, the Exchange will remove the Shares of the Fund from listing and trading upon termination of the Trust or a Fund.

As in the case of other publicly-traded securities, when you buy or sell shares through a broker, you will incur a brokerage commission determined by that broker.

In order to provide additional information regarding the indicative value of Shares of each Fund, the Exchange or a market data vendor may disseminate through the facilities of the Consolidated Tape Association, or through other widely disseminated means an "intra-day indicative value" ("IIV") for each Fund as calculated by an information provider or market data vendor. The Trust, GSAM, and their affiliates, are not responsible for any aspect of the calculation or dissemination of the IIVs and make no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the IIVs.

The IIV does not necessarily reflect the precise composition of the current portfolio of securities held by a Fund at a particular point in time or the best possible valuation of the current portfolio. Therefore, the IIV should not be viewed as a "real-time" update of a Fund's NAV, which is computed only once a day. The IIV is generally determined by using both current market quotations and/or price quotations obtained from broker-dealers that may trade in the portfolio securities held by a Fund. The quotations of certain Fund holdings may not be updated during U.S. trading hours if such holdings do not trade in the United States.

The Trust reserves the right to adjust the Share prices of a Fund in the future to maintain convenient trading ranges for investors. Any adjustments would be accomplished through stock splits or reverse stock splits, which would have no effect on the net assets of a Fund or an investor's equity interest in the Fund.

The base and trading currencies of the Funds are the U.S. dollar. The base currency is the currency in which a Fund's NAV per Share is calculated and the trading currency is the currency in which Shares of the Fund are listed and traded on the Exchange.

**INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES** 

Each Fund has a distinct investment objective and policies. The investment objective of the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF is to seek long-term capital appreciation. The investment objective of the Goldman Sachs Income ETF is to seek a high level of current income, and secondarily, capital appreciation. There can be no assurance that a Fund's investment objective will be achieved. Each Fund is a diversified open-end management company as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Act"). The investment objective and policies of a Fund, and the associated risks of a Fund, are discussed in the Prospectus, which should be read carefully before an investment is made. All investment objectives and investment policies not specifically designated as fundamental may be changed without shareholder approval. However, shareholders will be provided with sixty (60) days' notice in the manner prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") before any change in a Fund's policy to invest at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase ("Net Assets")) in the particular type of investment suggested by its name.

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The Funds offer and issue Shares at its NAV per Share only in aggregations of a specified number of shares ("Creation Units"), generally in exchange for a basket of securities and/or instruments (the "Deposit Securities") together with a deposit of a specified cash payment (the "Cash Component"), if any. Shares are redeemable by a Fund only in Creation Units and generally in exchange for securities and/or instruments together with a specified cash payment. Shares trade in the secondary market and elsewhere at market prices that may be at, above or below NAV. Creation Units typically are a specified number of Shares.

Each Fund is an ETF, which is a fund that trades like other publicly-traded securities and is actively managed and does not seek to replicate the performance of a specified index.

The investment objective and policies of each Fund are similar to other funds advised by the adviser or its affiliates. However, the investment results of each Fund may be higher or lower than other similar funds, and there is no guarantee that the investment results of each Fund will be comparable to, any other of these funds. A new fund or a fund with fewer assets under management may be more significantly affected by purchases and redemptions of its Creation Units than a fund with relatively greater assets under management would be affected by purchases and redemptions of its shares. As compared to a larger fund, a new or smaller fund is more likely to sell a comparatively large portion of its portfolio to meet significant Creation Unit redemptions, or invest a comparatively large amount of cash to facilitate Creation Unit purchases, in each case when the fund otherwise would not seek to do so. Such transactions may cause funds to make investment decisions at inopportune times or prices or miss attractive investment opportunities. Such transactions may also accelerate the realization of taxable income if sales of securities resulted in gains and the fund redeems Creation Units for cash, or otherwise cause a fund to perform differently than intended. While such risks may apply to funds of any size, such risks are heightened in funds with fewer assets under management. In addition, new funds may not be able to fully implement their investment strategy immediately upon commencing investment operations, which could reduce investment performance.

A Fund may charge creation/redemption transaction fees for each creation and redemption. In all cases, transaction fees will be limited in accordance with the requirements of the SEC applicable to management investment companies offering redeemable securities. See the "CREATIONS AND REDEMPTIONS" section below.

The Investment Adviser is subject to registration and regulation as a commodity pool operator ("CPO") under the Commodity Exchange Act ("CEA") with respect to its service as investment adviser to the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF. The following discussion supplements the information in the Funds' Prospectus.

**Additional Information about the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF** 

The Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF is designed for investors seeking a total return consisting of capital appreciation and income. Such investors also prefer liquidity, experienced professional management and administration and a sophisticated investment process. The Fund may be appropriate as part of a balanced investment strategy consisting of stocks, bonds and cash or as a complement to positions in other types of fixed income investments.

The Fund's benchmark index is the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index (the "Bond Index"). The Bond Index currently includes U.S. Government Securities and fixed-rate, publicly issued, U.S. dollar-denominated fixed income securities rated at least Baa by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's"), or if a Moody's rating is unavailable, the comparable S&P Global Ratings ("S&P") rating is used. The securities currently included in the Bond Index have at least one year remaining to maturity; and are issued by the following types of issuers, with each category receiving a different weighting in the Bond Index: U.S. Treasury; agencies, authorities or instrumentalities of the U.S. Government; issuers of Mortgage-Backed Securities; utilities; industrial issuers; financial institutions; foreign issuers; and issuers of asset-backed securities. In pursuing its investment objectives, the Fund uses the Bond Index as its performance benchmark, but will not attempt to replicate the Bond Index. The Fund may, therefore, invest in securities that are not included in the Bond Index. The Bond Index is a trademark of Bloomberg. Inclusion of a security in the Bond Index does not imply an opinion by Bloomberg as to its attractiveness or appropriateness for investment. Although Bloomberg obtains factual information used in connection with the Bond Index from sources which it considers reliable, Bloomberg claims no responsibility for the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of such information and has no liability to any person for any loss arising from results obtained from the use of the Bond Index data.

A number of investment strategies will be used to attempt to achieve the Fund's investment objective, including market sector selection, determination of yield curve exposure, and issuer selection. In addition, the Investment Adviser will attempt to take advantage of pricing inefficiencies in the fixed income markets. Market sector selection is the underweighting or overweighting of one or more of the five market sectors (i.e., U.S. Treasuries, U.S. Government agencies, corporate securities, Mortgage-Backed Securities and asset-backed securities) in which the Fund primarily invests. The decision to overweight or underweight a given market sector is based on expectations of future yield spreads among different sectors. Yield curve exposure strategy consists of overweighting or underweighting different maturity sectors to take advantage of the shape of the yield curve. Issuer selection is the purchase and sale of corporate securities based on a corporation's current and expected credit standing. To take advantage of price discrepancies between securities resulting from supply and demand imbalances or other technical factors, the Fund may simultaneously purchase and sell comparable, but not identical, securities. The Investment Adviser will usually have access to the research of, and proprietary technical models developed by, Goldman Sachs and will apply quantitative and qualitative analysis in determining the appropriate allocations among the categories of issuers and types of securities.

<u>A Sophisticated Investment Process</u>. The Fund will attempt to control their exposure to interest rate risk, including overall market exposure and the spread risk of particular sectors and securities, through active portfolio management techniques. The Fund's investment processes start with a review of trends for the overall economy as well as for different sectors of the fixed income securities markets. Goldman Sachs' portfolio managers

------

then analyze yield spreads, implied volatility and the shape of the yield curve. In planning the Fund's portfolio investment strategies, the Investment Adviser is able to draw upon the economic and fixed income research resources of Goldman Sachs. In determining the Fund's investment strategy and making market timing decisions, the Investment Adviser will have access to input from Goldman Sachs' economists, fixed income analysts and mortgage specialists.

**Additional Information about the Goldman Sachs Income ETF** 

The Goldman Sachs Income ETF invests in a multi-sector portfolio of U.S. and foreign investment grade and non-investment grade fixed income investments of varying maturities. The Fund's investment sectors include, but are not limited to: (a) government securities, (b) corporate debt securities, (c) commercial and residential Mortgage-Backed Securities, (d) asset-backed securities (including collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs")) and (e) emerging countries debt denominated in both U.S. dollars and foreign currencies. The Fund may not have exposure to all of these investment sectors, and the Fund's exposure to any one investment sector may vary over time.

The Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its Net Assets in fixed income securities. Fixed income securities include U.S. Government securities (such as U.S. Treasury securities or Treasury inflation protected securities), non-U.S. sovereign debt, agency securities, corporate debt securities, Mortgage-Backed Securities, asset-backed securities (including CLOs), custodial receipts, municipal securities, loan participations and loan assignments and convertible securities. The Fund's investments in loan participations and loan assignments may include, but are not limited to: (a) senior secured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Senior Loans"), (b) second lien or other subordinated or unsecured floating rate and fixed rate loans or debt ("Second Lien Loans") and (c) other types of secured or unsecured loans with fixed, floating or variable interest rates. The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity.

Non-investment grade fixed income securities are securities rated BB+, Ba1 or below by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization ("NRSRO"), or, if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality.

The Fund may invest up to 35% of its total assets measured at the time of purchase ("Total Assets") in sovereign and corporate debt securities and other instruments of issuers in emerging market countries ("emerging countries debt"). Such investments may include sovereign debt issued by emerging countries that have sovereign ratings below investment grade or that are unrated. The Fund's investments may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.

The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Total Assets in privately issued corporate debt securities and other obligations issued by private companies, including privately issued credit obligations and related instruments, and up to an additional 10% of its Total Assets in equity investments, including preferred securities and dividend paying common stocks.

The Fund may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. The Fund also intends to invest in other derivative instruments. Derivatives are instruments that have a value based on another instrument, exchange rate, interest rate or index. The Fund's investments in derivatives may include, in addition to forward foreign currency exchange contracts, futures contracts (including interest rate futures and treasury and sovereign bond futures), options (including options on futures contracts, swaps, bonds, stocks and indexes), swaps (including credit default, index, basis, total return, volatility, interest rate and currency swaps), and other forward contracts. The Fund may use derivatives instead of buying and selling bonds to manage duration, to gain exposure or to short individual securities or to gain exposure to a credit or asset backed index. The Fund may gain exposure to Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities through several methods, including by utilizing to-be-announced ("TBA") agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. TBA agreements for Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are standardized contracts for future delivery of fixed-rate mortgage pass-through securities in which the exact mortgage pools to be delivered are not specified until shortly before settlement. A reverse repurchase agreement enables the Fund to gain exposure to specified pools of Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities by purchasing them on a forward settling basis and using the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement to settle the trade.

The Fund may implement short positions and may do so by using swaps, options or futures, TBA agreements in Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities, or through short sales of any instrument that the Fund may purchase for investment. For example, the Fund may enter into a futures contract pursuant to which it agrees to sell an asset (that it does not currently own) at a specified price at a specified point in the future. This gives the Fund a short position with respect to that asset. The Fund will benefit to the extent the asset decreases in value (and will be harmed to the extent the asset increases in value) between the time it enters into the futures contract and the agreed date of sale. Alternatively, the Fund may sell an instrument (e.g., a bond, or a futures contract) it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the instrument, and then borrow the instrument to make delivery to the buyer. In these transactions, the Fund is obligated to replace the instrument borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The Fund uses short positions and derivatives for both investment and hedging purposes.

The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to fixed income investments through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including ETFs.

The Fund's target average duration range under normal interest rate conditions is expected to be between 0 and 8 years, and over the last five years ended June 30, 2025, the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index has ranged between 5.96 and 6.78 years. "Duration" is a measure of a debt security's price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of the Fund (or an individual debt security), the more sensitive its market price to changes in interest rates. For example, if market interest rates increase by 1%, the market price of a debt security with a positive duration of 3 years will generally decrease by approximately 3%. Conversely, a 1% decline in market interest rates will generally result in an increase of approximately 3% of that security's market price.

The Investment Adviser employs a fundamental investment process that may integrate environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors alongside traditional fundamental factors. No one factor or consideration is determinative in the fundamental investment process.

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**DESCRIPTION OF INVESTMENT SECURITIES AND PRACTICES** 

The investment securities and practices and related risks applicable to the Fund (which, for the remainder of this section, refers to one or more of the Funds offered in this SAI) are presented below in alphabetical order, and not in the order of importance or potential exposure.

**Asset-Backed Securities** 

Asset-backed securities represent participations in, or are secured by and payable from, assets such as motor vehicle installment sales, installment loan contracts, leases of various types of real and personal property, receivables from revolving credit (credit card) agreements and other categories of receivables. Such assets are securitized through the use of trusts and special purpose corporations. Payments or distributions of principal and interest may be guaranteed up to certain amounts and for a certain time period by a letter of credit or a pool insurance policy issued by a financial institution unaffiliated with the trust or corporation, or other credit enhancements may be present.

Each Fund may invest in asset-backed securities. During periods of declining interest rates, prepayment of loans underlying asset-backed securities can be expected to accelerate. Accordingly, a Fund's ability to maintain positions in such securities will be affected by reductions in the principal amount of such securities resulting from prepayments, and its ability to reinvest the returns of principal at comparable yields is subject to generally prevailing interest rates at that time. To the extent that a Fund invests in asset-backed securities, the values of a Fund's portfolio securities will vary with changes in market interest rates generally and the differentials in yields among various kinds of asset-backed securities.

Asset-backed securities present certain additional risks because asset-backed securities generally do not have the benefit of a security interest in collateral that is comparable to mortgage assets. Credit card receivables are generally unsecured and the debtors on such receivables are entitled to the protection of a number of state and federal consumer credit laws, many of which give such debtors the right to set-off certain amounts owed on the credit cards, thereby reducing the balance due. Automobile receivables generally are secured, but by automobiles rather than residential real property. Most issuers of automobile receivables permit the loan servicers to retain possession of the underlying obligations. If the servicer were to sell these obligations to another party, there is a risk that the purchaser would acquire an interest superior to that of the holders of the asset-backed securities. In addition, because of the large number of vehicles involved in a typical issuance and technical requirements under state laws, the trustee for the holders of the automobile receivables may not have a proper security interest in the underlying automobiles. Therefore, if the issuer of an asset-backed security defaults on its payment obligations, there is the possibility that, in some cases, a Fund will be unable to possess and sell the underlying collateral and that a Fund's recoveries on repossessed collateral may not be available to support payments on these securities.

**Bank Obligations** 

The Funds may each invest in obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. and foreign banks. Bank obligations, including without limitation time deposits, bankers' acceptances and certificates of deposit, may be general obligations of the parent bank or may be obligations only of the issuing branch pursuant to the terms of the specific obligations or government regulation.

Banks are subject to extensive but different governmental regulations which may limit both the amount and types of loans which may be made and interest rates which may be charged. Foreign banks are subject to different regulations and are generally permitted to engage in a wider variety of activities than U.S. banks. In addition, the profitability of the banking industry is largely dependent upon the availability and cost of funds for the purpose of financing lending operations under prevailing money market conditions. General economic conditions as well as exposure to credit losses arising from possible financial difficulties of borrowers play an important part in the operations of this industry.

Certificates of deposit are certificates evidencing the obligation of a bank to repay funds deposited with it for a specified period of time at a specified rate. Certificates of deposit are negotiable instruments and are similar to saving deposits but have a definite maturity and are evidenced by a certificate instead of a passbook entry. Banks are required to keep reserves against all certificates of deposit. Fixed time deposits are bank obligations payable at a stated maturity date and bearing interest at a fixed rate. Fixed time deposits may be withdrawn on the demand by the investor, but may be subject to early withdrawal penalties which vary depending upon market conditions and the remaining maturity of the obligation. The Funds may invest in deposits in U.S. and European banks which satisfy the standards set forth above.

**Collateralized Loan Obligations and Other Collateralized Debt Obligations** 

The Funds may invest in collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs") and other similarly structured investments. A CLO is an asset-backed security whose underlying collateral is a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign floating rate and fixed rate senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans. In addition to the normal risks associated with loan- and credit-related securities discussed elsewhere in the Prospectus (e.g., loan-related investments risk, interest rate risk and default risk), investments in CLOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to, the risk that: (i) distributions from the collateral may not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) a Fund may invest in tranches of CLOs that are subordinate to other tranches; (iv) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents could lead to disputes among investors regarding the characterization of proceeds; and (v) the CLO's manager may perform poorly. CLOs may charge management and other administrative fees, which are in addition to those of a Fund.

CLOs issue classes or "tranches" that offer various maturity, risk and yield characteristics. Losses caused by defaults on underlying assets are borne first by the holders of subordinate tranches. Tranches are categorized as senior, mezzanine and subordinated/equity, according to their degree of risk. If there are defaults or the CLO's collateral otherwise underperforms, scheduled payments to senior tranches take precedence over those of mezzanine tranches, and scheduled payments to mezzanine tranches take precedence over those of subordinated/equity tranches. The riskiest portion is the "equity" tranche which bears the bulk of defaults from the collateral and serves to protect the other, more senior tranches from default

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in all but the most severe circumstances. Because it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CLO trust typically has higher ratings and lower yields than its underlying collateral and may be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the equity and mezzanine tranches, more senior tranches of CLOs can experience losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of more subordinate tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CLO securities as a class. The Funds' investments in CLOs principally consist of senior tranches and, to a lesser extent, mezzanine tranches.

Typically, CLOs are privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, investments in CLOs may have limited independent pricing transparency. However, an active dealer market may exist for CLOs that qualify under the Rule 144A "safe harbor" from the registration requirements of the Securities Act for resales of certain securities to qualified institutional buyers. These and other factors discussed in the section below, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in CLOs.

The Funds may also invest in collateralized debt obligations ("CDOs"), which are structured similarly to CLOs, but are backed by pools of assets that are debt securities (rather than being limited only to loans), typically including bonds, other structured finance securities (including other asset-backed securities and other CDOs) and/or synthetic instruments. Like CLOs, the risks of an investment in a CDO depend largely on the type and quality of the collateral securities and the tranche of the CDO in which a Fund invests. CDOs collateralized by pools of asset-backed securities carry the same risks as investments in asset-backed securities directly, including losses with respect to the collateral underlying those asset-backed securities. In addition, certain CDOs may not hold their underlying collateral directly, but rather, use derivatives such as swaps to create "synthetic" exposure to the collateral pool. Such CDOs entail the risks associated with derivative instruments.

**Combined Transactions** 

Each of the Funds may enter into multiple transactions, including multiple options transactions, multiple futures transactions, multiple currency transactions (as applicable) (including forward currency contracts) and multiple interest rate and other swap transactions and any combination of futures, options, currency and swap transactions ("component" transactions) as part of a single or combined strategy when, in the opinion of the Investment Adviser, it is in the best interests of a Fund to do so. A combined transaction will usually contain elements of risk that are present in each of its component transactions. Although combined transactions are normally entered into based on the Investment Adviser's judgment that the combined strategies will reduce risk or otherwise more effectively achieve the desired portfolio management goal, it is possible that the combination will instead increase such risks or hinder achievement of the portfolio management objective.

**Commercial Paper and Other Short-Term Corporate Obligations** 

Each Fund may invest in commercial paper and other short-term obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. corporations, non-U.S. corporations or other entities. Commercial paper represents short-term unsecured promissory notes issued in bearer form by banks or bank holding companies, corporations and finance companies.

**Convertible Securities** 

The Funds may invest in convertible securities. Convertible securities are bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stocks or other securities that may be converted into or exchanged for a specified amount of common stock (or other securities) of the same or different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. A convertible security entitles the holder to receive interest that is generally paid or accrued on debt or a dividend that is paid or accrued on preferred stock until the convertible security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged. Convertible securities have unique investment characteristics, in that they generally (i) have higher yields than common stocks, but lower yields than comparable non-convertible securities, (ii) are less subject to fluctuation in value than the underlying common stock due to their fixed income characteristics and (iii) provide the potential for capital appreciation if the market price of the underlying common stock increases.

The value of a convertible security is a function of its "investment value" (determined by its yield in comparison with the yields of other securities of comparable maturity and quality that do not have a conversion privilege) and its "conversion value" (the security's worth, at market value, if converted into the underlying common stock). The investment value of a convertible security is influenced by changes in interest rates, with investment value normally declining as interest rates increase and increasing as interest rates decline. The credit standing of the issuer and other factors may also have an effect on the convertible security's investment value. The conversion value of a convertible security is determined by the market price of the underlying common stock. If the conversion value is low relative to the investment value, the price of the convertible security is governed principally by its investment value. To the extent the market price of the underlying common stock approaches or exceeds the conversion price, the price of the convertible security will be increasingly influenced by its conversion value. A convertible security generally will sell at a premium over its conversion value by the extent to which investors place value on the right to acquire the underlying common stock while holding a fixed income security.

A convertible security may be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer at a price established in the convertible security's governing instrument. If a convertible security held by a Fund is called for redemption, the Fund will be required to convert the security into the underlying common stock, sell it to a third party, or permit the issuer to redeem the security. Any of these actions could have an adverse effect on a Fund's ability to achieve its investment objective, which, in turn, could result in losses to the Fund. To the extent that a Fund holds a convertible security, or a security that is otherwise converted or exchanged for common stock *(e.g*., as a result of a restructuring), the Fund may, consistent with its investment objective, hold such common stock in its portfolio.

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**Corporate Debt Obligations** 

Each Fund may invest in corporate debt obligations, including obligations of industrial, utility and financial issuers. Corporate debt obligations include bonds, notes, debentures and other obligations of corporations to pay interest and repay principal. Corporate debt obligations are subject to the risk of an issuer's inability to meet principal and interest payments on the obligations and may also be subject to price volatility due to such factors as market interest rates, market perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer and general market liquidity.

Corporate debt obligations rated BBB or Baa are considered medium-grade obligations with speculative characteristics, and adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances may weaken their issuers' capacity to pay interest and repay principal. Medium to lower rated and comparable non-rated securities tend to offer higher yields than higher rated securities with the same maturities because the historical financial condition of the issuers of such securities may not have been as strong as that of other issuers. The price of corporate debt obligations will generally fluctuate in response to fluctuations in supply and demand for similarly rated securities. In addition, the price of corporate debt obligations will generally fluctuate in response to interest rate levels. Fluctuations in the prices of portfolio securities subsequent to their acquisition will not affect cash income from such securities but will be reflected in each Fund's NAV. Because medium to lower rated securities generally involve greater risks of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities, investors should consider carefully the relative risks associated with investment in securities which carry medium to lower ratings and in comparable unrated securities. In addition to the risk of default, there are the related costs of recovery on defaulted issues.

The Investment Adviser will attempt to reduce these risks through portfolio diversification and by analysis of each issuer and its ability to make timely payments of income and principal, as well as broad economic trends and corporate developments. The Investment Adviser employs its own credit research and analysis, which includes a study of an issuer's existing debt, capital structure, ability to service debt and pay dividends, sensitivity to economic conditions, operating history and current earnings trend. The Investment Adviser continually monitors the investments in a Fund's portfolio and evaluates whether to dispose of or to retain corporate debt obligations whose credit ratings or credit quality may have changed. If after its purchase, a portfolio security is assigned a lower rating or ceases to be rated, a Fund may continue to hold the security if the Investment Adviser believes it is in the best interest of the Fund and its shareholders.

**Custodial Receipts and Trust Certificates** 

Each Fund may invest in custodial receipts and trust certificates, which may be underwritten by securities dealers or banks, representing interests in securities held by a custodian or trustee. The securities so held may include U.S. Government Securities (as defined below), municipal securities or other types of securities in which a Fund may invest. The custodial receipts or trust certificates are underwritten by securities dealers or banks and may evidence ownership of future interest payments, principal payments or both on the underlying securities, or, in some cases, the payment obligation of a third party that has entered into an interest rate swap or other arrangement with the custodian or trustee. For purposes of certain securities laws, custodial receipts and trust certificates may not be considered obligations of the U.S. Government or other issuer of the securities held by the custodian or trustee. As a holder of custodial receipts and trust certificates, a Fund will bear its proportionate share of the fees and expenses charged to the custodial account or trust. Each Fund may also invest in separately issued interests in custodial receipts and trust certificates.

Although under the terms of a custodial receipt or trust certificate a Fund would typically be authorized to assert its rights directly against the issuer of the underlying obligation, the Fund could be required to assert through the custodian bank or trustee those rights as may exist against the underlying issuers. Thus, in the event an underlying issuer fails to pay principal and/or interest when due, a Fund may be subject to delays, expenses and risks that are greater than those that would have been involved if the Fund had purchased a direct obligation of the issuer. In addition, in the event that the trust or custodial account in which the underlying securities have been deposited is determined to be an association taxable as a corporation, instead of a non-taxable entity, the yield on the underlying securities would be reduced in recognition of any taxes paid.

Certain custodial receipts and trust certificates may be synthetic or derivative instruments that have interest rates that reset inversely to changing short-term rates and/or have embedded interest rate floors and caps that require the issuer to pay an adjusted interest rate if market rates fall below or rise above a specified rate. Because some of these instruments represent relatively recent innovations, and the trading market for these instruments is less developed than the markets for traditional types of instruments, it is uncertain how these instruments will perform under different economic and interest-rate scenarios. Also, because these instruments may be leveraged, their market values may be more volatile than other types of fixed income instruments and may present greater potential for capital gain or loss. The possibility of default by an issuer or the issuer's credit provider may be greater for these derivative instruments than for other types of instruments. In some cases, it may be difficult to determine the fair value of a derivative instrument because of a lack of reliable objective information and an established secondary market for some instruments may not exist. In many cases, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") has not ruled on the tax treatment of the interest or payments received on the derivative instruments and, accordingly, purchases of such instruments are based on the opinion of counsel to the sponsors of the instruments.

**Derivatives and Similar Instruments** 

The Funds may invest in derivatives and similar instruments discussed elsewhere in this SAI. The use of derivatives and similar instruments may pose risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, currencies or other assets and instruments and may result in losses due to adverse market movements. Pursuant to Rule 18f-4 under the Act, a Fund's use of derivatives and other transactions that create future payment or delivery obligations is subject to a value-at-risk ("VaR") leverage limit and reporting and certain other requirements if the Fund is a fund that does not qualify as a "limited derivatives user" under Rule 18f-4 ("Full Compliance Fund"). The Trust has also adopted and implemented a derivatives risk management program (the "DRMP") to, among other things, manage the risks associated with the use of derivatives and these other transactions for series of the Trust that are Full Compliance Funds. The Board of Trustees has approved the designation of personnel from GSAM to administer the DRMP for the Full Compliance Funds. With respect to series of the Trust that qualify as "limited derivatives users" under Rule 18f-4 (each, an "LDU Fund"), the Trust has adopted and implemented policies and procedures to manage an LDU Fund's derivatives risks. An LDU Fund is also subject to the derivatives exposure threshold set forth in Rule 18f-4.

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Similar to bank borrowings, derivatives and similar instruments may result in leverage. Borrowing and the use of derivatives and similar instruments may magnify the potential for gains and losses in excess of the initial amount invested. Mutual funds can borrow money from banks and other financial institutions, subject to certain asset coverage limits. The amount of indebtedness from bank borrowings may not exceed one-third of a Fund's total assets (including the amount borrowed). If a Fund uses reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions, including certain tender option bonds, the Fund must either aggregate the amount of indebtedness associated with the reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions with the aggregate amount of indebtedness associated with any bank borrowings, if applicable, when calculating a Fund's asset coverage ratio or treat all such transactions as derivatives transactions subject to the leverage limits under Rule 18f-4.

In addition, under Rule 18f-4, a Fund is permitted to invest in a security on a when-issued or forward-settling basis, or with a non-standard settlement cycle, and the transaction will be deemed not to involve a "senior security," provided that (i) the Fund intends to physically settle the transaction and (ii) the transaction will settle within 35 days of its trade date). A Fund may otherwise engage in such transactions that do not meet these conditions so long as the Fund treats any such transaction as a "derivatives transaction" for purposes of compliance with Rule 18f-4. Furthermore, under Rule 18f-4, a Fund will be permitted to enter into an unfunded commitment agreement, and such unfunded commitment agreement will not be subject to the limits on borrowings as described above, if the Fund reasonably believes, at the time it enters into such agreement, that it will have sufficient cash and cash equivalents to meet its obligations with respect to all such agreements as they come due.

These requirements may limit the ability of a Fund to use derivatives, short sales, reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing transactions, delayed-settlement securities and unfunded commitment agreements as part of its investment strategies.

From time to time, a Fund may enter into derivatives or other similar transactions that require the Fund to pledge margin or collateral to a counterparty or clearing member through a margin/collateral account for and on behalf of the counterparty or clearing member. For operational, cost, regulatory or other reasons, when setting up these arrangements, a Fund may be required to use a margin/collateral account model or naming convention that may not be the most protective option available in the case of a default or bankruptcy by a counterparty or clearing member or that may delay or impair the Fund from fully exercising its rights under the arrangement. In the event of default or bankruptcy by a counterparty or clearing member, the margin or collateral may be subject to legal proceedings and a Fund may be delayed in taking possession of any margin or collateral to which the Fund is legally entitled.

**Distressed Debt** 

The Funds may invest in the securities and other obligations of financially troubled companies, including stressed, distressed and bankrupt issuers and debt obligations that are in covenant or payment default. In addition, investments of a Fund may become distressed or bankrupt following the Fund's initial acquisition of the security. Historically, economic downturns or increases in interest rates have, under certain circumstances, resulted in a higher occurrence of default by the issuers of these instruments. Such investments generally trade significantly below par and are considered speculative. The repayment of defaulted obligations is subject to significant uncertainties. Defaulted obligations might be repaid only after lengthy workout or bankruptcy proceedings, during which the issuer might not make any interest or other payments. Typically, such workout or bankruptcy proceedings result in only partial recovery of cash payments or an exchange of the defaulted obligation for other debt or equity securities of the issuer or its affiliates, which may in turn be speculative.

In any investment involving stressed and distressed debt obligations, there exists the risk that the transaction involving such debt obligations will be unsuccessful, take considerable time or will result in a distribution of cash or a new security or obligation in exchange for the stressed and distressed debt obligations, the value of which may be less than the Fund's purchase price of such debt obligations. Furthermore, if an anticipated transaction does not occur, a Fund may be required to sell its investment at a loss.

Distressed investments may require active participation by the Investment Adviser in the restructuring of a Fund's investment or other actions intended to protect a Fund's investment; however, there may be situations where the Investment Adviser may determine to not so participate due to regulatory, tax or other considerations. In addition, a Fund may participate on creditors' committees to negotiate with the management of financially troubled issuers of securities held by the Fund. Such participation may subject a Fund to additional expenses (including legal fees) and may make a Fund an "insider" of the issuer for purposes of the federal securities laws. This may result in increased litigation risks to a Fund or may restrict the Investment Adviser's ability to dispose of the security.

There are a number of significant risks inherent in the bankruptcy process. Many events in a bankruptcy are the product of contested matters and adversary proceedings and are beyond the control of the creditors. A bankruptcy filing by an issuer may adversely and permanently affect the issuer, and if the proceeding is converted to a liquidation, the value of the issuer may not equal the liquidation value that was believed to exist at the time of the investment. The duration of a bankruptcy proceeding is difficult to predict, and a creditor's return on investment can be adversely affected by delays until the plan of reorganization ultimately becomes effective. The administrative costs in connection with a bankruptcy proceeding are frequently high and would be paid out of the debtor's estate prior to any return to creditors. Because the standards for classification of claims under bankruptcy law are vague, there exists the risk that the Fund's influence with respect to the class of securities or other obligations it owns can be lost by increases in the number and amount of claims in the same class or by different classification and treatment. In the early stages of the bankruptcy process it is often difficult to estimate the extent of, or even to identify, any contingent claims that might be made. In addition, certain claims that have priority by law (for example, claims for taxes) may be substantial.

These and other factors discussed in the section below, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in securities and other obligations of financially troubled companies.

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**Dividend-Paying Investments** 

A Fund's investments in dividend-paying securities could cause the Fund to underperform other funds that invest in similar asset classes but employ a different investment style. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, can fall out of favor with the market, causing such securities to underperform securities that do not pay dividends. Depending upon market conditions and political and legislative responses to such conditions, dividend-paying securities that meet a Fund's investment criteria may not be widely available and/or may be highly concentrated in only a few market sectors. The adoption of new legislation could further limit or restrict the ability of issuers to pay dividends. To the extent that dividend-paying securities are concentrated in only a few market sectors, a Fund may be subject to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions or developments that may be particular to a sector to a greater extent than if its investments were diversified across different sectors. In addition, issuers that have paid regular dividends or distributions to shareholders may not continue to do so at the same level or at all in the future. A sharp rise in interest rates or an economic downturn could cause an issuer to abruptly reduce or eliminate its dividend. This may limit the ability of the Fund to produce current income.

**Equity Investments** 

The Income ETF (with respect to up to 10% of its Total Assets) may purchase equity investments. In addition, after its purchase, a portfolio investment (such as a convertible debt obligation) may convert to an equity security. The Fund may also acquire equity securities in connection with a restructuring or other event related to one or more of its investments. If this occurs, the Fund may continue to hold the investment (or make additional purchases of that equity investment) if the Investment Adviser believes it is in the best interest of the Fund and its shareholders.

**Floating Rate Loans and Other Variable and Floating Rate Securities** 

The interest rates payable on certain securities in which a Fund may invest are not fixed and may fluctuate based upon changes in market rates. Variable and floating rate obligations are debt instruments issued by companies or other entities with interest rates that reset periodically (typically, daily, monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually) in response to changes in the market rate of interest on which the interest rate is based. Moreover, such obligations may fluctuate in value in response to interest rate changes if there is a delay between changes in market interest rates and the interest reset date for the obligation. The value of these obligations is generally more stable than that of a fixed rate obligation in response to changes in interest rate levels, but they may decline in value if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as interest rates in general. Conversely, floating rate securities will not generally increase in value if interest rates decline.

Floating rate loans consist generally of obligations of companies or other entities (e.g., a U.S. or foreign bank, insurance company or finance company) (collectively, "borrowers") incurred for a variety of purposes. Floating rate loans may be acquired by direct investment as a lender or as an assignment of the portion of a floating rate loan previously attributable to a different lender.

Floating rate loans may be obligations of borrowers who are highly leveraged. Floating rate loans may be structured to include both term loans, which are generally fully funded at the time of the making of the loan, and revolving credit facilities, which would require additional investments upon the borrower's demand. A revolving credit facility may require a purchaser to increase its investment in a floating rate loan at a time when it would not otherwise have done so, even if the borrower's condition makes it unlikely that the amount will ever be repaid.

A floating rate loan offered as part of the original lending syndicate typically is purchased at par value. As part of the original lending syndicate, a purchaser generally earns a yield equal to the stated interest rate. In addition, members of the original syndicate typically are paid a commitment fee. In secondary market trading, floating rate loans may be purchased or sold above, at, or below par, which can result in a yield that is below, equal to, or above the stated interest rate, respectively. At certain times when reduced opportunities exist for investing in new syndicated floating rate loans, floating rate loans may be available only through the secondary market. There can be no assurance that an adequate supply of floating rate loans will be available for purchase.

Historically, floating rate loans have not been registered with the SEC or any state securities commission or listed on any securities exchange. As a result, the amount of public information available about a specific floating rate loan historically has been less extensive than if the floating rate loan were registered or exchange-traded. As a result, no active market may exist for some floating rate loans.

Purchasers of floating rate loans and other forms of debt obligations depend primarily upon the creditworthiness of the borrower for payment of interest and repayment of principal. If scheduled interest or principal payments are not made, the value of the obligation may be adversely affected. Floating rate loans and other debt obligations that are fully secured provide more protections than unsecured obligations in the event of failure to make scheduled interest or principal payments. Indebtedness of borrowers whose creditworthiness is poor involves substantially greater risks and may be highly speculative. Borrowers that are in bankruptcy or restructuring may never pay off their indebtedness, or may pay only a small fraction of the amount owed. Some floating rate loans and other debt obligations are not rated by any NRSRO. In connection with the restructuring of a floating rate loan or other debt obligation outside of bankruptcy court in a negotiated work-out or in the context of bankruptcy proceedings, equity securities or junior debt obligations may be received in exchange for all or a portion of an interest in the obligation.

From time to time, Goldman Sachs and its affiliates may borrow money from various banks in connection with their business activities. These banks also may sell floating rate loans to a Fund or acquire floating rate loans from the Fund, or may be intermediate participants with respect to floating rate loans owned by the Fund. These banks also may act as agents for floating rate loans that the Fund owns.

*Agents.* Floating rate loans typically are originated, negotiated, and structured by a bank, insurance company, finance company, or other financial institution (the "agent") for a lending syndicate of financial institutions. The borrower and the lender or lending syndicate enter into a loan agreement. In addition, an institution (typically, but not always, the agent) holds any collateral on behalf of the lenders.

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In a typical floating rate loan, the agent administers the terms of the loan agreement and is responsible for the collection of principal and interest and fee payments from the borrower and the apportionment of these payments to all lenders that are parties to the loan agreement. Purchasers will rely on the agent to use appropriate creditor remedies against the borrower. Typically, under loan agreements, the agent is given broad discretion in monitoring the borrower's performance and is obligated to use the same care it would use in the management of its own property. Upon an event of default, the agent typically will enforce the loan agreement after instruction from the lenders. The borrower compensates the agent for these services. This compensation may include special fees paid on structuring and funding the floating rate loan and other fees paid on a continuing basis. The typical practice of an agent or a lender in relying exclusively or primarily on reports from the borrower may involve a risk of fraud by the borrower.

If an agent becomes insolvent, or has a receiver, conservator, or similar official appointed for it by the appropriate bank or other regulatory authority, or becomes a debtor in a bankruptcy proceeding, the agent's appointment may be terminated, and a successor agent would be appointed. If an appropriate regulator or court determines that assets held by the agent for the benefit of the purchasers of floating rate loans are subject to the claims of the agent's general or secured creditors, the purchasers might incur certain costs and delays in realizing payment on a floating rate loan or suffer a loss of principal and/or interest. Furthermore, in the event of the borrower's bankruptcy or insolvency, the borrower's obligation to repay a floating rate loan may be subject to certain defenses that the borrower can assert as a result of improper conduct by the agent.

*Assignments*. The Core Plus Bond ETF may purchase an assignment of a portion of a floating rate loan from an agent or from another group of investors. The purchase of an assignment typically succeeds to all the rights and obligations under the original loan agreement; however, assignments may also be arranged through private negotiations between potential assignees and potential assignors, and the rights and obligations acquired by the purchaser of an assignment may differ from, and be more limited than, those held by the assigning agent or investor.

*Loan Participation Interests*. Purchasers of participation interests do not have any direct contractual relationship with the borrower. Purchasers rely on the lender who sold the participation interest not only for the enforcement of the purchaser's rights against the borrower but also for the receipt and processing of payments due under the floating rate loan. For additional information, see the section "Loans and Loan Participations" below.

*Liquidity.* Floating rate loans may be transferable among financial institutions, but may not have the liquidity of conventional debt securities and are often subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale. Floating rate loans are not currently listed on any securities exchange or automatic quotation system. As a result, no active market may exist for some floating rate loans. To the extent a secondary market exists for other floating rate loans, such market may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads, and extended trade settlement periods. The lack of a highly liquid secondary market for floating rate loans may have an adverse effect on the value of such loans and may make it more difficult to value the loans for purposes of calculating their respective NAV. These and other factors discussed in the section below, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in floating rate loans and other variable and floating rate securities.

*Extended Trade Settlement Periods.* Because transactions in many floating rate loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, a Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of floating rate loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet a Fund's redemption obligations for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from its credit facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations.

*Collateral.* Most floating rate loans are secured by specific collateral of the borrower and are senior to most other securities or obligations of the borrower. The collateral typically has a market value, at the time the floating rate loan is made, that equals or exceeds the principal amount of the floating rate loan. The value of the collateral may decline, be insufficient to meet the obligations of the borrower, or be difficult to liquidate. As a result, a floating rate loan may not be fully collateralized and can decline significantly in value.

Floating rate loan collateral may consist of various types of assets or interests, including working capital assets, such as accounts receivable or inventory; tangible or intangible assets; or assets or other types of guarantees of affiliates of the borrower.

Generally, floating rate loans are secured unless (i) the purchaser's security interest in the collateral is invalidated for any reason by a court, or (ii) the collateral is fully released with the consent of the agent bank and lenders or under the terms of a loan agreement as the creditworthiness of the borrower improves. Collateral impairment is the risk that the value of the collateral for a floating rate loan will be insufficient in the event that a borrower defaults. Although the terms of a floating rate loan generally require that the collateral at issuance have a value at least equal to 100% of the amount of such floating rate loan, the value of the collateral may decline subsequent to the purchase of a floating rate loan. In most loan agreements there is no formal requirement to pledge additional collateral. There is no guarantee that the sale of collateral would allow a borrower to meet its obligations should the borrower be unable to repay principal or pay interest or that the collateral could be sold quickly or easily.

In addition, most borrowers pay their debts from the cash flow they generate. If the borrower's cash flow is insufficient to pay its debts as they come due, the borrower may seek to restructure its debts rather than sell collateral.

Borrowers may try to restructure their debts by filing for protection under the federal bankruptcy laws or negotiating a work-out. If a borrower becomes involved in bankruptcy proceedings, access to the collateral may be limited by bankruptcy and other laws. In the event that a court decides that access to the collateral is limited or void, it is unlikely that purchasers could recover the full amount of the principal and interest due.

There may be temporary periods when the principal asset held by a borrower is the stock of a related company, which may not legally be pledged to secure a floating rate loan. On occasions when such stock cannot be pledged, the floating rate loan will be temporarily unsecured until the stock can be pledged or is exchanged for, or replaced by, other assets.

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Some floating rate loans are unsecured. The claims of holders under unsecured loans are subordinated to claims of creditors holding secured indebtedness and possibly also to claims of other creditors holding unsecured debt. Unsecured loans have a greater risk of default than secured loans, particularly during periods of deteriorating economic conditions. If the borrower defaults on an unsecured floating rate loan, there is no specific collateral on which the purchaser can foreclose.

*Floating Interest Rates.* The rate of interest payable on floating rate loans and other floating or variable rate obligations is the sum of a base lending rate plus a specified spread. Base lending rates are generally the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), a term SOFR rate published by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited (CBA) calculated using certain derivatives markets ("Term SOFR") or another rate determined using SOFR, the Prime Rate of a designated U.S. bank, the Federal Funds Rate, or another base lending rate used by commercial lenders. A borrower usually has the right to select the base lending rate and to change the base lending rate at specified intervals. The applicable spread may be fixed at time of issuance or may adjust upward or downward to reflect changes in credit quality of the borrower.

The interest rate on SOFR- and Term SOFR-based floating rate loans/obligations is reset periodically at intervals ranging from 30 to 180 days, while the interest rate on Prime Rate- or Federal Funds Rate-based floating rate loans/obligations floats daily as those rates change. Investment in floating rate loans/obligations with longer interest rate reset periods can increase fluctuations in the floating rate loans' values when interest rates change.

The yield on a floating rate loan/obligation will primarily depend on the terms of the underlying floating rate loan/obligation and the base lending rate chosen by the borrower. The relationship between SOFR, Term SOFR, the Prime Rate, and the Federal Funds Rate will vary as market conditions change.

*Maturity.* Floating rate loans typically will have a stated term of five to nine years. However, because floating rate loans are frequently prepaid, their average maturity is expected to be two to three years. The degree to which borrowers prepay floating rate loans, whether as a contractual requirement or at their election, may be affected by general business conditions, the borrower's financial condition, and competitive conditions among lenders. Prepayments cannot be predicted with accuracy. Prepayments of principal to the purchaser of a floating rate loan may result in the principal's being reinvested in floating rate loans with lower yields.

*Supply of Floating Rate Loans.* The legislation of state or federal regulators that regulate certain financial institutions may impose additional requirements or restrictions on the ability of such institutions to make loans, particularly with respect to highly leveraged transactions. The supply of floating rate loans may be limited from time to time due to a lack of sellers in the market for existing floating rate loans or the number of new floating rate loans currently being issued. As a result, the floating rate loans available for purchase may be lower quality or higher priced.

*Restrictive Covenants.* A borrower must comply with various restrictive covenants contained in the loan agreement. In addition to requiring the scheduled payment of interest and principal, these covenants may include restrictions on dividend payments and other distributions to stockholders, provisions requiring the borrower to maintain specific financial ratios, and limits on total debt. The loan agreement may also contain a covenant requiring the borrower to prepay the floating rate loan with any free cash flow. A breach of a covenant that is not waived by the agent (or by the lenders directly) is normally an event of default, which provides the agent or the lenders the right to call the outstanding floating rate loan.

*Fees.* Purchasers of floating rate loans may receive and/or pay certain fees. These fees are in addition to interest payments received and may include facility fees, commitment fees, commissions, and prepayment penalty fees. When a purchaser buys a floating rate loan, it may receive a facility fee; and when it sells a floating rate loan, it may pay a facility fee. A purchaser may receive a commitment fee based on the undrawn portion of the underlying line of credit portion of a floating rate loan or a prepayment penalty fee on the prepayment of a floating rate loan. A purchaser may also receive other fees, including covenant waiver fees and covenant modification fees.

*Other Types of Floating Rate Debt Obligations.* Floating rate debt obligations include other forms of indebtedness of borrowers such as notes and bonds, obligations with fixed rate interest payments in conjunction with a right to receive floating rate interest payments, and shares of other investment companies. These instruments are generally subject to the same risks as floating rate loans but are often more widely issued and traded.

*Inverse Floating Rate Debt Obligations*. Each Fund may invest in "leveraged" inverse floating rate debt instruments ("inverse floaters"), including "leveraged inverse floaters." The interest rate on inverse floaters resets in the opposite direction from the market rate of interest to which the inverse floater is indexed. An inverse floater may be considered to be leveraged to the extent that its interest rate varies by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in the index rate of interest. The higher the degree of leverage inherent in inverse floaters is associated with greater volatility in their market values. Accordingly, the duration of an inverse floater may exceed its stated final maturity.

**Foreign Investments** 

The Funds may invest in securities of foreign issuers, including securities quoted or denominated in a currency other than U.S. dollars. Investments in foreign securities may offer potential benefits not available from investments solely in U.S. dollar-denominated or quoted securities of domestic issuers. Such benefits may include the opportunity to invest in foreign issuers that appear, in the opinion of the Investment Adviser, to offer the potential for better long term growth of capital and income than investments in U.S. securities, the opportunity to invest in foreign countries with economic policies or business cycles different from those of the United States and the opportunity to reduce fluctuations in portfolio value by taking advantage of foreign securities markets that do not necessarily move in a manner parallel to U.S. markets. Investing in the securities of foreign issuers also involves, however, certain special risks, including those discussed in the Funds' Prospectus and those set forth below, which are not typically associated with investing in U.S. dollar-denominated securities or quoted securities of U.S. issuers. Many of these risks are more pronounced for investments in emerging economies.

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With respect to investments in certain foreign countries, there exist certain economic, political and social risks, including the risk of adverse political developments, nationalization, military unrest, social instability, war and terrorism, confiscation without fair compensation, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, limitations on the movement of funds and other assets between different countries, or diplomatic developments, any of which could adversely affect a Fund's investments in those countries. Governments in certain foreign countries continue to participate to a significant degree, through ownership interest or regulation, in their respective economies. Action by these governments could have a significant effect on market prices of securities and dividend payments.

Many countries throughout the world are dependent on a healthy U.S. economy and are adversely affected when the U.S. economy weakens or its markets decline. Additionally, many foreign country economies are heavily dependent on international trade and are adversely affected by protective trade barriers and economic conditions of their trading partners. Protectionist trade legislation enacted by those trading partners could have a significant adverse effect on the securities markets of those countries. Individual foreign economies may differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as growth of gross national product, rate of inflation, capital reinvestment, resource self-sufficiency and balance of payments position.

From time to time, certain of the companies in which a Fund may invest may operate in, or have dealings with, countries subject to sanctions or embargos imposed by the U.S. Government and the United Nations and/or countries identified by the U.S. Government as state sponsors of terrorism. For example, the United Nations Security Council has imposed certain sanctions relating to Iran and Sudan and both countries are embargoed countries by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

In addition, from time to time, certain of the companies in which a Fund may invest may engage in, or have dealings with countries or companies that engage in, activities that may not be considered socially and/or environmentally responsible. Such activities may relate to human rights issues (such as patterns of human rights abuses or violations, persecution or discrimination), impacts to local communities in which companies operate and environmental sustainability. For a description of the Investment Adviser's approach to responsible and sustainable investing, please see GSAM's Statement on Responsible and Sustainable Investing at <u>https://www.gsam.com/content/dam/gsam/pdfs/common/en/public/miscellaneous/ GSAM_statement_on_respon_sustainable_investing.pdf.</u>

As a result, a company may suffer damage to its reputation if it is identified as a company which engages in, or has dealings with countries or companies that engage in, the above referenced activities. As an investor in such companies, a Fund would be indirectly subject to those risks.

The Investment Adviser is committed to complying fully with sanctions in effect as of the date of this Statement of Additional Information and any other applicable sanctions that may be enacted in the future with respect to Sudan or any other country.

Investments in foreign securities often involve currencies of foreign countries. Accordingly, a Fund that invests in foreign securities may be affected favorably or unfavorably by changes in currency rates and in exchange control regulations and may incur costs in connection with conversions between various currencies. The Funds may be subject to currency exposure independent of their securities positions. To the extent that a Fund is fully invested in foreign securities while also maintaining net currency positions, it may be exposed to greater combined risk.

Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. They generally are determined by the forces of supply and demand in the foreign exchange markets and the relative merits of investments in different countries, actual or anticipated changes in interest rates and other complex factors, as seen from an international perspective. Currency exchange rates also can be affected unpredictably by intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign governments or central banks or by currency controls or political developments in the United States or abroad. To the extent that a portion of a Fund's total assets, adjusted to reflect the Fund's net position after giving effect to currency transactions, is denominated or quoted in the currencies of foreign countries, the Fund will be more susceptible to the risk of adverse economic and political developments within those countries. A Fund's net currency positions may expose it to risks independent of its securities positions.

Because foreign issuers generally are not subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies, there may be less publicly available information about a foreign company than about a U.S. company. Volume and liquidity in most foreign securities markets are less than in the United States and securities of many foreign companies are less liquid and more volatile than securities of comparable U.S. companies. The securities of foreign issuers may be listed on foreign securities exchanges or traded in foreign over-the-counter markets. Fixed commissions on foreign securities exchanges are generally higher than negotiated commissions on U.S. exchanges, although each Fund endeavors to achieve the most favorable net results on its portfolio transactions. There is generally less government supervision and regulation of foreign securities exchanges, brokers, dealers and listed and unlisted companies than in the United States, and the legal remedies for investors may be more limited than the remedies available in the United States. For example, there may be no comparable provisions under certain foreign laws to insider trading and similar investor protections that apply with respect to securities transactions consummated in the United States. Mail service between the United States and foreign countries may be slower or less reliable than within the United States, thus increasing the risk of delayed settlement of portfolio transactions or loss of certificates for portfolio securities.

Foreign markets also have different clearance and settlement procedures, and in certain markets there have been times when settlements have been unable to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, making it difficult to conduct such transactions. Such delays in settlement could result in temporary periods when some of the assets of a Fund are uninvested and no return is earned on such assets. The inability of a Fund to make intended security purchases due to settlement problems could cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. Inability to dispose of portfolio securities due to settlement problems could result either in losses to the Fund due to subsequent declines in value of the portfolio securities, or, if the Fund has entered into a contract to sell the securities, in possible liability to the purchaser.

These and other factors discussed in the section below, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in securities of foreign issuers.

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The Funds may invest in foreign securities which take the form of sponsored and unsponsored American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs"), Global Depositary Receipts ("GDRs"), European Depositary Receipts ("EDRs"), Global Depositary Notes ("GDNs") or other similar instruments representing securities of foreign issuers (together, "Depositary Receipts"). ADRs represent the right to receive securities of foreign issuers deposited in a domestic bank or a correspondent bank. ADRs are traded on domestic exchanges or in the U.S. over-the-counter market and, generally, are in registered form. EDRs and GDRs are receipts evidencing an arrangement with a non-U.S. bank similar to that for ADRs and are designed for use in the non-U.S. securities markets. EDRs and GDRs are not necessarily quoted in the same currency as the underlying security. GDNs are issued by a bank or other depository and evidence ownership of a debt security denominated in local currency. GDNs generally mirror the terms (e.g., interest rate, maturity date, credit rating, etc.) of particular local currency-denominated bonds, though they are traded, settled and paid in U.S. dollars.

To the extent the Fund acquires Depositary Receipts through banks which do not have a contractual relationship with the foreign issuer of the security underlying the Depositary Receipts to issue and service such unsponsored Depositary Receipts, there is an increased possibility that the Fund will not become aware of and be able to respond to corporate actions such as stock splits or rights offerings involving the foreign issuer in a timely manner. In addition, the lack of information may result in inefficiencies in the valuation of such instruments. Investment in Depositary Receipts does not eliminate all the risks inherent in investing in securities of non-U.S. issuers. The market value of Depositary Receipts is dependent upon the market value of the underlying securities and fluctuations in the relative value of the currencies in which the Depositary Receipts and the underlying securities are quoted. In addition, the issuers of Depositary Receipts may discontinue issuing new Depositary Receipts and withdraw existing Depositary Receipts at anytime, which may result in costs and delays in the distribution of the underlying assets to the Fund and may negatively impact the Fund's performance. However, by investing in Depositary Receipts, such as ADRs and GDNs, which are quoted in U.S. dollars, the Fund may avoid currency risks during the settlement period for purchases and sales.

<u>Foreign Government Obligations</u>. Foreign government obligations include securities, instruments and obligations issued or guaranteed by a foreign government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. Investment in foreign government obligations can involve a high degree of risk. The governmental entity that controls the repayment of foreign government obligations may not be able or willing to repay the principal and/or interest when due in accordance with the terms of such debt. A governmental entity's willingness or ability to repay principal and interest due in a timely manner may be affected by, among other factors, its cash flow situation, the extent of its foreign reserves, the availability of sufficient foreign exchange on the date a payment is due, the relative size of the debt service burden to the economy as a whole, the governmental entity's policy towards the International Monetary Fund and the political constraints to which a governmental entity may be subject. Governmental entities may also be dependent on expected disbursements from foreign governments, multilateral agencies and others abroad to reduce principal and interest on their debt. The commitment on the part of these governments, agencies and others to make such disbursements may be conditioned on a governmental entity's implementation of economic reforms and/or economic performance and the timely service of such debtor's obligations. Failure to implement such reforms, achieve such levels of economic performance or repay principal or interest when due may result in the cancellation of such third parties' commitments to lend funds to the governmental entity, which may further impair such debtor's ability or willingness to service its debts in a timely manner. Consequently, governmental entities may default on their debt. Holders of foreign government obligations (including a Fund) may be requested to participate in the rescheduling of such debt and to extend further loans to governmental agencies.

**Futures Contracts and Options on Futures Contracts** 

Each Fund may purchase and sell various kinds of futures contracts, and may also purchase and write call and put options on any of such futures contracts. A Fund may also enter into closing purchase and sale transactions with respect to any of such contracts and options. The futures contracts may be based on various securities (such as U.S. Government Securities), securities indices, foreign currencies and any other financial instruments and indices. Financial futures contracts used by each of the Funds may include interest rate futures contracts.

A Fund may engage in futures and related options transactions in order to seek to increase total return or to hedge against changes in interest rates, securities prices or, if a Fund invests in foreign securities, currency exchange rates, or to otherwise manage its term structure, sector selection and duration in accordance with its investment objective and policies. Each Fund may also enter into closing purchase and sale transactions with respect to such contracts and options.

Futures contracts entered into by a Fund have historically been traded on U.S. exchanges or boards of trade that are licensed and regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") or, with respect to certain funds, on foreign exchanges. More recently, certain futures may also be traded either over-the-counter or on trading facilities such as derivatives transaction execution facilities, exempt boards of trade or electronic trading facilities that are licensed and/or regulated to varying degrees by the CFTC. Also, certain single stock futures and narrow based security index futures may be traded either over-the-counter or on trading facilities such as contract markets, derivatives transaction execution facilities and electronic trading facilities that are licensed and/or regulated to varying degrees by both the CFTC and the SEC or on foreign exchanges.

Neither the CFTC, National Futures Association ("NFA"), SEC nor any domestic exchange regulates activities of any foreign exchange or boards of trade, including the execution, delivery and clearing of transactions, or has the power to compel enforcement of the rules of a foreign exchange or board of trade or any applicable foreign law. This is true even if the exchange is formally linked to a domestic market so that a position taken on the market may be liquidated by a transaction on another market. Moreover, such laws or regulations will vary depending on the foreign country in which the foreign futures or foreign options transaction occurs. For these reasons, a Fund's investments in foreign futures or foreign options transactions may not be provided the same protections in respect of transactions on United States exchanges. In particular, persons who trade foreign futures or foreign options contracts may not be afforded certain of the protective measures provided by the CEA, the CFTC's regulations and the rules of the NFA and any domestic exchange, including the right to use reparations proceedings before the CFTC and arbitration proceedings provided by the NFA or any domestic futures exchange. Similarly, these persons may not have the protection of the U.S. securities laws.

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*Futures Contracts*. A futures contract may generally be described as an agreement between two parties to buy and sell particular financial instruments or currencies for an agreed price during a designated month (or to deliver the final cash settlement price, in the case of a contract relating to an index or otherwise not calling for physical delivery at the end of trading in the contract).

When interest rates are rising or securities prices are falling, a Fund can seek through the sale of futures contracts to offset a decline in the value of its current portfolio securities. When interest rates are falling or securities prices are rising, a Fund, through the purchase of futures contracts, can attempt to secure better rates or prices than might later be available in the market when it effects anticipated purchases. The Funds may purchase and sell futures contracts on a specified currency in order to seek to increase total return or to protect against changes in currency exchange rates. For example, a Fund can purchase futures contracts on foreign currency to establish the price in U.S. dollars of a security quoted or denominated in such currency that such Fund has acquired or expects to acquire. In addition, the Funds may enter into futures transactions to seek a closer correlation between a Fund's overall currency exposures and the currency exposures of a Fund's performance benchmark.

Positions taken in the futures market are not normally held to maturity, but are instead liquidated through offsetting transactions which may result in a profit or a loss. While a Fund will usually liquidate futures contracts on securities or currency in this manner, the Fund may instead make or take delivery of the underlying securities or currency whenever it appears economically advantageous for the Fund to do so. A clearing corporation associated with the exchange on which futures on securities or currency are traded guarantees that, if still open, the sale or purchase will be performed on the settlement date.

*Hedging Strategies Using Futures Contracts*. When a Fund uses futures contracts for hedging purposes, the Fund often seeks to establish with more certainty than would otherwise be possible the effective price or rate of return on portfolio securities (or securities that the Fund proposes to acquire) or the exchange rate of currencies in which portfolio securities are quoted or denominated. A Fund may, for example, take a "short" position in the futures market by selling futures contracts to seek to hedge against an anticipated rise in interest rates or a decline in market prices or foreign currency rates that would adversely affect the U.S. dollar value of the Fund's portfolio securities. Such futures contracts may include contracts for the future delivery of securities held by a Fund or securities with characteristics similar to those of a Fund's portfolio securities. Similarly, the Funds may each sell futures contracts on any currencies in which its portfolio securities are quoted or denominated, or sell futures contracts on one currency to seek to hedge against fluctuations in the value of securities quoted or denominated in a different currency if there is an established historical pattern of correlation between the two currencies. If, in the opinion of the Investment Adviser, there is a sufficient degree of correlation between price trends for a Fund's portfolio securities and futures contracts based on other financial instruments, securities indices or other indices, the Funds may also enter into such futures contracts as part of a hedging strategy. Although under some circumstances prices of securities in a Fund's portfolio may be more or less volatile than prices of such futures contracts, the Investment Adviser will attempt to estimate the extent of this volatility difference based on historical patterns and compensate for any such differential by having a Fund enter into a greater or lesser number of futures contracts or by attempting to achieve only a partial hedge against price changes affecting a Fund's portfolio securities. When hedging of this character is successful, any depreciation in the value of portfolio securities will be substantially offset by appreciation in the value of the futures position. On the other hand, any unanticipated appreciation in the value of a Fund's portfolio securities would be substantially offset by a decline in the value of the futures position.

On other occasions, a Fund may take a "long" position by purchasing such futures contracts. This may be done, for example, when a Fund anticipates the subsequent purchase of particular securities when it has the necessary cash, but expects the prices or currency exchange rates then available in the applicable market to be less favorable than prices or rates that are currently available.

*Options on Futures Contracts*. The acquisition of put and call options on futures contracts will give a Fund the right (but not the obligation), for a specified price, to sell or to purchase, respectively, the underlying futures contract at any time during the option period. As the purchaser of an option on a futures contract, a Fund obtains the benefit of the futures position if prices move in a favorable direction but limits its risk of loss in the event of an unfavorable price movement to the loss of the premium and transaction costs.

The writing of a call option on a futures contract generates a premium which may partially offset a decline in the value of a Fund's assets. By writing a call option, a Fund becomes obligated, in exchange for the premium, to sell a futures contract if the option is exercised, which may have a value higher than the exercise price. The writing of a put option on a futures contract generates a premium, which may partially offset an increase in the price of securities that a Fund intends to purchase. However, a Fund becomes obligated (upon the exercise of the option) to purchase a futures contract if the option is exercised, which may have a value lower than the exercise price. Thus, the loss incurred by a Fund in writing options on futures is potentially unlimited and may exceed the amount of the premium received. A Fund will incur transaction costs in connection with the writing of options on futures.

The holder or writer of an option on a futures contract may terminate its position by selling or purchasing an offsetting option on the same financial instrument. There is no guarantee that such closing transactions can be effected. A Fund's ability to establish and close out positions on such options will be subject to the development and maintenance of a liquid market.

*Other Considerations*. A Fund will engage in transactions in futures contracts and related options transactions only to the extent such transactions are consistent with the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") for maintaining its qualification as a regulated investment company for federal income tax purposes. Transactions in futures contracts and options on futures involve brokerage costs and require posting margin.

While transactions in futures contracts and options on futures may reduce certain risks, such transactions themselves entail certain other risks. Thus, unanticipated changes in interest rates, securities prices or currency exchange rates may result in a poorer overall performance for a Fund than if it had not entered into any futures contracts or options transactions. When futures contracts and options are used for hedging purposes, perfect correlation between a Fund's futures positions and portfolio positions may be impossible to achieve, particularly where futures contracts based on individual equity or corporate fixed income securities are currently not available. In the event of an imperfect correlation between a futures position and a portfolio position which is intended to be protected, the desired protection may not be obtained and a Fund may be exposed to risk of loss.

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In addition, it is not possible for a Fund to hedge fully or perfectly against currency fluctuations affecting the value of securities quoted or denominated in foreign currencies because the value of such securities is likely to fluctuate as a result of independent factors unrelated to currency fluctuations. The profitability of a Fund's trading in futures depends upon the ability of the Investment Adviser to analyze correctly the futures markets.

**High Yield Securities** 

The Funds may invest in bonds rated BB+ or below by S&P or Ba1 or below by Moody's (or comparable rated and unrated securities). These bonds are commonly referred to as "junk bonds," are non-investment grade, and are considered speculative. The ability of issuers of high yield securities to make principal and interest payments may be questionable because such issuers are often less creditworthy or are highly leveraged and are generally less able than more established or less leveraged entities to make scheduled payments of principal and interest. High yield securities are also issued by governmental issuers that may have difficulty in making all scheduled interest and principal payments. In some cases, high yield securities may be highly speculative, have poor prospects for reaching investment grade standing and be in default. As a result, investment in such bonds will entail greater risks than those associated with investments in investment grade bonds (i.e., bonds rated AAA, AA, A or BBB by S&P or Aaa, Aa, A or Baa by Moody's). Analysis of the creditworthiness of issuers of high yield securities may be more complex than for issuers of higher quality debt securities, and the ability of a Fund to achieve its investment objective may, to the extent of its investments in high yield securities, be more dependent upon such creditworthiness analysis than would be the case if the Fund were investing in higher quality securities. See Appendix A for a description of the corporate bond and preferred stock ratings by S&P, Moody's, Fitch Ratings, Inc. ("Fitch") and DBRS, Inc.

The market values of high yield securities tend to reflect individual corporate or municipal developments to a greater extent than do those of higher rated securities, which react primarily to fluctuations in the general level of interest rates. Issuers of high yield securities that are highly leveraged may not be able to make use of more traditional methods of financing. Their ability to service debt obligations may be more adversely affected by economic downturns or their inability to meet specific projected business forecasts than would be the case for issuers of higher-rated securities. Negative publicity about the junk bond market and investor perceptions regarding lower-rated securities, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may depress the prices for such high yield securities. In the lower quality segments of the fixed income securities market, changes in perceptions of issuers' creditworthiness tend to occur more frequently and in a more pronounced manner than do changes in higher quality segments of the fixed income securities market, resulting in greater yield and price volatility. Another factor which causes fluctuations in the prices of high yield securities is the supply and demand for similarly rated securities. In addition, the prices of investments fluctuate in response to the general level of interest rates. Fluctuations in the prices of portfolio securities subsequent to their acquisition will not affect cash income from such securities but will be reflected in the NAV of a Fund.

The risk of loss from default for the holders of high yield securities is significantly greater than is the case for holders of other debt securities because such high yield securities are generally unsecured and are often subordinated to the rights of other creditors of the issuers of such securities. Investment by a Fund in already defaulted securities poses an additional risk of loss should nonpayment of principal and interest continue in respect of such securities. Even if such securities are held to maturity, recovery by a Fund of its initial investment and any anticipated income or appreciation is uncertain. In addition, a Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent that it is required to seek recovery relating to the default in the payment of principal or interest on such securities or otherwise protect its interests. A Fund may be required to liquidate other portfolio securities to satisfy annual distribution obligations of the Fund in respect of accrued interest income on securities which are subsequently written off, even though the Fund has not received any cash payments of such interest.

The secondary market for high yield securities is concentrated in relatively few markets and is dominated by institutional investors, including mutual funds, insurance companies and other financial institutions. Accordingly, the secondary market for such securities may not be as liquid as and may be more volatile than the secondary market for higher-rated securities. In addition, the trading volume for high yield securities is generally lower than that of higher rated securities. The secondary market for high yield securities could contract under adverse market or economic conditions independent of any specific adverse changes in the condition of a particular issuer. These factors may have an adverse effect on the ability of the Funds to dispose of particular portfolio investments when needed to meet its redemption requests or other liquidity needs. The Investment Adviser could find it difficult to sell these investments or may be able to sell the investments only at prices lower than if such investments were widely traded. Prices realized upon the sale of such lower rated or unrated securities, under these circumstances, may be less than the prices used in calculating the NAVs of the Funds. A less liquid secondary market also may make it more difficult for the Funds to obtain precise valuations of the high yield securities in its portfolios.

The adoption of new legislation could adversely affect the secondary market for high yield securities and the financial condition of issuers of these securities. The form of any future legislation, and the probability of such legislation being enacted, is uncertain.

Non-investment grade or high yield securities also present risks based on payment expectations. High yield securities frequently contain "call" or buy-back features which permit the issuer to call or repurchase the security from its holder. If an issuer exercises such a "call option" and redeems the security, a Fund may have to replace such security with a lower-yielding security, resulting in a decreased return for investors. In addition, if a Fund experiences net redemptions of its shares, it may be forced to sell its higher-rated securities, resulting in a decline in the overall credit quality of its portfolio and increasing its exposure to the risks of high yield securities.

Credit ratings issued by credit rating agencies are designed to evaluate the safety of principal and interest payments of rated securities. They do not, however, evaluate the market value risk of high yield securities and, therefore, may not fully reflect the true risks of an investment. In addition, credit rating agencies may or may not make timely changes in a rating to reflect changes in the economy or in the conditions of the issuer

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that affect the market value of the security. Consequently, credit ratings are used only as a preliminary indicator of investment quality. Investments in non-investment grade and comparable unrated obligations will be more dependent on the Investment Adviser's credit analysis than would be the case with investments in investment-grade debt obligations. The Investment Adviser employs its own credit research and analysis, which includes a study of an issuer's existing debt, capital structure, ability to service debt and to pay dividends, sensitivity to economic conditions, operating history and current earnings trend. The Investment Adviser continually monitors the investments in the Funds' portfolios and evaluates whether to dispose of or to retain non-investment grade and comparable unrated securities whose credit ratings or credit quality may have changed. If after its purchase, a portfolio security is assigned a lower rating or ceases to be rated, a Fund may continue to hold the security if the Investment Adviser believes it is in the best interest of the Fund and its shareholders.

An economic downturn could severely affect the ability of highly leveraged issuers of junk bond investments to service their debt obligations or to repay their obligations upon maturity. Factors having an adverse impact on the market value of junk bonds will have an adverse effect on a Fund's NAV to the extent it invests in such investments. In addition, a Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent it is required to seek recovery upon a default in payment of principal or interest on its portfolio holdings.

These and other factors discussed in the section below, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in high yield securities.

**Illiquid Investments** 

Pursuant to Rule 22e-4 under the Act, a Fund may not acquire any "illiquid investment" if, immediately after the acquisition, a Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments that are assets. An "illiquid investment" is any investment that a Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. The Trust has implemented a liquidity risk management program and related procedures to categorize each Fund's portfolio investments and identify illiquid investments pursuant to Rule 22e-4, and the Trustees have approved the designation of the Investment Adviser to administer the Trust's liquidity risk management program and related procedures. In determining whether an investment is an illiquid investment, the Investment Adviser will take into account actual or estimated daily transaction volume of an investment, group of related investments or asset class and other relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations. In addition, in determining the liquidity of an investment, the Investment Adviser must determine whether trading varying portions of a position in a particular portfolio investment or asset class, in sizes that a Fund would reasonably anticipate trading, is reasonably expected to significantly affect its liquidity, and if so, a Fund must take this determination into account when classifying the liquidity of that investment or asset class.

In addition to actual or estimated daily transaction volume of an investment, group of related investments or asset class and other relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations, the following factors, among others, will generally impact the classification of an investment as an "illiquid investment": (i) any investment that is placed on the Investment Adviser's restricted trading list; and (ii) any investment that is delisted or for which there is a trading halt at the close of the trading day on the primary listing exchange at the time of classification (and in respect of which no active secondary market exists). Investments purchased by a Fund that are liquid at the time of purchase may subsequently become illiquid due to these and other events and circumstances. If one or more investments in a Fund's portfolio become illiquid, a Fund may exceed the 15% limitation in illiquid investments. In the event that changes in the portfolio or other external events cause a Fund to exceed this limit, a Fund must take steps to bring its illiquid investments that are assets to or below 15% of its net assets within a reasonable period of time. This requirement would not force a Fund to liquidate any portfolio instrument where the Fund would suffer a loss on the sale of that instrument.

**Interest Rate Swaps, Mortgage Swaps, Credit Swaps, Currency Swaps, Total Return Swaps, Equity Swaps, Options on Swaps and Interest Rate Swaps, Caps, Floors and Collars** 

Each Fund may enter into interest rate, credit and total return swaps. Each Fund may also enter into interest rate caps, floors and collars. In addition, each Fund may enter into mortgage swaps and currency swaps. The Income Fund ETF may enter into equity swap contracts. Each Fund may also purchase and write (sell) options contracts on swaps, commonly referred to as swaptions.

Each Fund may enter into swap transactions for hedging purposes or to seek to increase total return. As examples, a Fund may enter into swap transactions for the purpose of attempting to obtain or preserve a particular return or spread at a lower cost than obtaining a return or spread through purchases and/or sales of instruments in other markets, to protect against currency fluctuations, as a duration management technique, to protect against any increase in the price of securities the Fund anticipates purchasing at a later date, or to gain exposure to certain markets in an economical way.

In a standard "swap" transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns, differentials in rates of return or some other amount earned or realized on particular predetermined investments or instruments, which may be adjusted for an interest factor. The gross returns to be exchanged or "swapped" between the parties are generally calculated with respect to a "notional amount," i.e., the return on or increase in value of a particular dollar amount invested at a particular interest rate, in a particular foreign currency or security, or in a "basket" of securities representing a particular index. Bilateral swap agreements are two party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors. Cleared swaps are transacted through FCMs that are members of central clearinghouses with the clearinghouse serving as a central counterparty similar to transactions in futures contracts. Funds post initial and variation margin by making payments to their clearing member FCMs.

Interest rate swaps involve the exchange by a Fund with another party of their respective commitments to pay or receive payments for floating rate payments based on interest rates at specified intervals in the future. Two types of interest rate swaps include "fixed-for-floating rate swaps" and "basis swaps." Fixed-for-floating rate swaps involve the exchange of payments based on a fixed interest rate for payments based on a floating interest rate index. By contrast, basis swaps involve the exchange of payments based on two different floating interest rate indices. Mortgage swaps are similar to interest rate swaps in that they represent commitments to pay and receive interest. The notional principal amount, however, is tied to a reference pool or pools of mortgages.

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Credit default swaps (also referred to as credit swaps) involve the exchange of a floating or fixed rate payment in return for assuming potential credit losses of an underlying security or pool of securities. Loan credit default swaps are similar to credit default swaps on bonds, except that the underlying protection is sold on secured loans of a reference entity rather than a broader category of bonds or loans. Loan credit default swaps may be on single names or on baskets of loans, both tranched and untranched.

The Funds may obtain exposure to Senior Loans through the use of derivative instruments including loan credit default swaps. Investments in loan credit default swaps involve many of the risks associated with investments in derivatives more generally. Currency swaps involve the exchange of the parties' respective rights to make or receive payments in specified currencies. Total return swaps are contracts that obligate a party to pay or receive interest in exchange for payment by the other party of the total return generated by a security, a basket of securities, an index, or an index component. Equity swap contracts may be structured in different ways. For example, an equity swap contract may be structured as a total return swap, where a counterparty may agree to pay a Fund the amount, if any, by which the notional amount of the equity swap contract would have increased in value had it been invested in particular stocks (or a group of stocks), plus the dividends that would have been received on those stocks. In other cases, the counterparty and a Fund may each agree to pay the other the difference between the relative investment performances that would have been achieved if the notional amount of the equity swap contract had been invested in different stocks (or a group of stocks).

A swaption is an option to enter into a swap agreement. Like other types of options, the buyer of a swaption pays a non-refundable premium for the option and obtains the right, but not the obligation, to enter into or modify an underlying swap or to modify the terms of an existing swap on agreed-upon terms. The seller of a swaption, in exchange for the premium, becomes obligated (if the option is exercised) to enter into or modify an underlying swap on agreed-upon terms, which generally entails a greater risk of loss than incurred in buying a swaption. The purchase of an interest rate cap entitles the purchaser, to the extent that a specified index exceeds a predetermined interest rate, to receive payment of interest on a notional principal amount from the party selling such interest rate cap. The purchase of an interest rate floor entitles the purchaser, to the extent that a specified index falls below a predetermined interest rate, to receive payments of interest on a notional principal amount from the party selling the interest rate floor. An interest rate collar is the combination of a cap and a floor that preserves a certain return within a predetermined range of interest rates.

A great deal of flexibility may be possible in the way swap transactions are structured. However, generally a Fund will enter into interest rate, total return, credit, mortgage and equity swaps on a net basis, which means that the two payment streams are netted out, with the Fund receiving or paying, as the case may be, only the net amount of the two payments. Interest rate, total return, credit, mortgage and equity swaps do not normally involve the delivery of securities, other underlying assets or principal. Accordingly, the risk of loss with respect to interest rate, total return, credit, mortgage and equity swaps is normally limited to the net amount of payments that a Fund is contractually obligated to make. If the other party to an interest rate, total return, credit, mortgage or equity swap defaults, a Fund's risk of loss consists of the net amount of interest payments that the Fund is contractually entitled to receive, if any.

In contrast, currency swaps usually involve the delivery of a gross payment stream in one designated currency in exchange for a gross payment stream in another designated currency. Therefore, the entire payment stream under a currency swap is subject to the risk that the other party to the swap will default on its contractual delivery obligations. A credit swap may have as reference obligations one or more securities that may, or may not, be currently held by a Fund. The protection "buyer" in a credit swap is generally obligated to pay the protection "seller" an upfront or a periodic stream of payments over the term of the swap provided that no credit event, such as a default, on a reference obligation has occurred. If a credit event occurs, the seller generally must pay the buyer the "par value" (full notional value) of the swap in exchange for an equal face amount of deliverable obligations of the reference entity described in the swap, or the seller may be required to deliver the related net cash amount, if the swap is cash settled. Each Fund may be either the protection buyer or seller in the transaction. If the Fund is a buyer and no credit event occurs, the Fund may recover nothing if the swap is held through its termination date. However, if a credit event occurs, the buyer generally may elect to receive the full notional value of the swap in exchange for an equal face amount of deliverable obligations of the reference entity whose value may have significantly decreased. As a seller, a Fund generally receives an upfront payment or a rate of income throughout the term of the swap provided that there is no credit event. As the seller, a Fund would effectively add leverage to its portfolio because, in addition to its total net assets, a Fund would be subject to investment exposure on the notional amount of the swap. If a credit event occurs, the value of any deliverable obligation received by the Fund as seller, coupled with the upfront or periodic payments previously received, may be less than the full notional value it pays to the buyer, resulting in a loss of value to the Fund.

As a result of recent regulatory developments, certain standardized swaps are currently subject to mandatory central clearing and some of these cleared swaps must be traded on an exchange or swap execution facility ("SEF"). A SEF is a trading platform in which multiple market participants can execute swap transactions by accepting bids and offers made by multiple other participants on the platform. Transactions executed on a SEF may increase market transparency and liquidity but may cause a Fund to incur increased expenses to execute swaps. Central clearing should decrease counterparty risk and increase liquidity compared to bilateral swaps because central clearing interposes the central clearinghouse as the counterparty to each participant's swap. However, central clearing does not eliminate counterparty risk or liquidity risk entirely. In addition, depending on the size of a Fund and other factors, the margin required under the rules of a clearinghouse and by a clearing member may be in excess of the collateral required to be posted by the Fund to support its obligations under a similar bilateral swap. However, the CFTC and other applicable regulators have adopted rules imposing certain margin requirements, including minimums, on uncleared swaps which may result in a Fund and its counterparties posting higher margin amounts for uncleared swaps. Requiring margin on uncleared swaps may reduce, but not eliminate, counterparty credit risk.

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The use of swaps and swaptions, as well as interest rate caps, floors and collars, is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The use of a swap requires an understanding not only of the referenced asset, reference rate, or index but also of the swap itself, without the benefit of observing the performance of the swap under all possible market conditions. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its forecasts of market values, credit quality, interest rates and currency exchange rates, the investment performance of a Fund would be less favorable than it would have been if these investment instruments were not used.

In addition, these transactions can involve greater risks than if a Fund had invested in the reference obligation directly because, in addition to general market risks, swaps are subject to liquidity risk, counterparty risk, credit risk and pricing risk. Regulators also may impose limits on an entity's or group of entities' positions in certain swaps. However, certain risks are reduced (but not eliminated) if the Fund invests in cleared swaps. Bilateral swap agreements are two party contracts that may have terms of greater than seven days. Moreover, a Fund bears the risk of loss of the amount expected to be received under a swap agreement in the event of the default or bankruptcy of a swap counterparty. Many swaps are complex and often valued subjectively. Swaps and other derivatives may also be subject to pricing or "basis" risk, which exists when the price of a particular derivative diverges from the price of corresponding cash market instruments. Under certain market conditions it may not be economically feasible to imitate a transaction or liquidate a position in time to avoid a loss or take advantage of an opportunity. If a swap transaction is particularly large or if the relevant market is illiquid, it may not be possible to initiate a transaction or liquidate a position at an advantageous time or price, which may result in significant losses.

Certain rules also require centralized reporting of detailed information about many types of cleared and uncleared swaps. This information is available to regulators and, to a more limited extent and on an anonymous basis, to the public. Reporting of swap data may result in greater market transparency, which may be beneficial to funds that use swaps to implement trading strategies. However, these rules place potential additional administrative obligations on these funds, and the safeguards established to protect anonymity may not function as expected.

The swap market has grown substantially in recent years with a large number of banks and investment banking firms acting both as principals and as agents utilizing standardized swap documentation. As a result, the swap market has become relatively liquid in comparison with the markets for other similar instruments which are traded in the interbank market. These and other factors discussed in the section above, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in swaps.

**Investing in Central and South American Countries** 

A portion of the portfolio of the Income ETF may be invested in issuers located in Central and South American countries. Securities markets in Central and South American countries may experience greater volatility than in other emerging countries. In addition, many of the region's economies have become highly dependent upon foreign credit and loans from external sources to fuel their state-sponsored economic plans.

A number of Central and South American countries are among the largest emerging country debtors. There have been moratoria on, and reschedulings of, repayment with respect to these debts. Such events can restrict the flexibility of these debtor nations in the international markets and result in the imposition of onerous conditions on their economies.

Many of the currencies of Central and South American countries have experienced steady devaluation relative to the U.S. dollar, and major devaluations have historically occurred in certain countries. Any devaluations in the currencies in which a Fund's portfolio securities are denominated may have a detrimental impact on the Fund. There is also a risk that certain Central and South American countries may restrict the free conversion of their currencies into other currencies. Some Central and South American countries may have managed currencies which are not free floating against the U.S. dollar. This type of system can lead to sudden and large adjustments in the currency that, in turn, can have a disruptive and negative effect on foreign investors. Certain Central and South American currencies may not be internationally traded and it would be difficult for a Fund to engage in foreign currency transactions designed to protect the value of the Funds' interests in securities denominated in such currencies.

The emergence of the Central and South American economies and securities markets will require continued economic and fiscal discipline that has been lacking at times in the past, as well as stable political and social conditions. Governments of many Central and South American countries have exercised and continue to exercise substantial influence over many aspects of the private sector. The political history of certain Central and South American countries has been characterized by political uncertainty, intervention by the military in civilian and economic spheres and political corruption. Now democracy is beginning to become well established in some countries. Domestic economies have been deregulated, state-owned companies privatized, and foreign trade restrictions relaxed. Such developments, if they do not continue, could reverse favorable trends toward market and economic reform, privatization and removal of trade barriers. Social inequality and poverty may contribute to political and economic instability in this region.

International economic conditions, particularly those in the United States, as well as world prices for oil and other commodities may also influence the recovery of the Central and South American economies. Because commodities such as oil, gas, minerals and metals represent a significant percentage of the region's exports, the economies of Central and South American countries are particularly sensitive to fluctuations in commodity prices. As a result, the economies in many of these countries can experience significant volatility.

Certain Central and South American countries have entered into regional trade agreements that would, among other things, reduce barriers among countries, increase competition among companies and reduce government subsidies in certain industries. No assurance can be given that these changes will result in the economic stability intended. There is a possibility that these trade arrangements will not be implemented, will be implemented but not completed or will be completed but then partially or completely unwound. It is also possible that a significant participant could choose to abandon a trade agreement, which could diminish its credibility and influence.

Any of these occurrences could have adverse effects on the markets of both participating and non-participating countries, including share appreciation or depreciation of participant's national currencies and a significant increase in exchange rate volatility, a resurgence in economic protectionism, an undermining of confidence in the Central and South American markets, an undermining of Central and South American economic stability, the collapse or slowdown of the drive toward Central and South American economic unity, and/or reversion of the attempts to lower government debt and inflation rates that were introduced in anticipation of such trade agreements.

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Such developments could have an adverse impact on the Funds' investments in Central and South America generally or in specific countries participating in such trade agreements.

**Investing in Emerging Countries** 

<u>Market Characteristics</u>. Of the Funds' investments in foreign securities, 15% of the Core Plus Bond ETF's and 35% of the Income ETF's total assets may be invested in emerging countries.

Investment in debt securities of emerging country issuers involves special risks. The development of a market for such securities is a relatively recent phenomenon and debt securities of most emerging country issuers are less liquid and are generally subject to greater price volatility than securities of issuers in the United States and other developed countries. In certain countries, there may be fewer publicly traded securities, and the market may be dominated by a few issuers or sectors. The markets for securities of emerging countries may have substantially less volume than the market for similar securities in the United States and may not be able to absorb, without price disruptions, a significant increase in trading volume or trade size. Additionally, market making and arbitrage activities are generally less extensive in such markets, which may contribute to increased volatility and reduced liquidity of such markets. The less liquid the market, the more difficult it may be for a Fund to price accurately its portfolio securities or to dispose of such securities at the times determined to be appropriate. The risks associated with reduced liquidity may be particularly acute to the extent that a Fund needs cash to meet redemption requests, to pay dividends and other distributions or to pay its expenses.

Issuers and securities markets in such countries are not subject to as stringent, extensive and frequent accounting, auditing, financial and other reporting requirements or as comprehensive government regulations as are issuers and securities markets in the U.S., and the degree of cooperation between issuers in emerging and frontier market countries with foreign and U.S. financial regulators may vary significantly. In particular, the assets and profits appearing on the financial statements of emerging country issuers may not reflect their financial position or results of operations in the same manner as financial statements for U.S. issuers. Substantially less information may be publicly available about emerging country issuers than is available about issuers in the United States. In addition, U.S. regulators may not have sufficient access to adequately audit and oversee issuers. For example, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the "PCAOB") is responsible for inspecting and auditing the accounting practices and products of U.S.-listed companies, regardless of the issuer's domicile. However, certain emerging market countries do not provide sufficient access to the PCAOB to conduct its inspections and audits. As a result, U.S. investors, including the Funds, may be subject to risks associated with less stringent accounting oversight.

Each Fund's purchase and sale of portfolio securities in certain emerging countries may be constrained by limitations as to daily changes in the prices of listed securities, periodic trading or settlement volume and/or limitations on aggregate holdings of foreign investors. Such limitations may be computed based on the aggregate trading volume by or holdings of a Fund, the Investment Adviser, its affiliates and their respective clients and other service providers. Each Fund may not be able to sell securities in circumstances where price, trading or settlement volume limitations have been reached.

Securities markets of emerging countries may also have less efficient clearance and settlement procedures than U.S. markets, making it difficult to conduct and complete transactions. Delays in the settlement could result in temporary periods when a portion of a Fund's assets is uninvested and no return is earned thereon. Inability to make intended security purchases could cause a Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. Inability to dispose of portfolio securities could result either in losses to a Fund due to subsequent declines in value of the portfolio security or, if a Fund has entered into a contract to sell the security, could result in possible liability of a Fund to the purchaser. In addition, emerging market countries are often characterized by limited reliable access to capital.

Transaction costs, including brokerage commissions and dealer mark-ups, in emerging countries may be higher than in the U.S. and other developed securities markets. As legal systems in emerging countries develop, foreign investors may be adversely affected by new or amended laws and regulations. In circumstances where adequate laws exist, it may not be possible to obtain swift and equitable enforcement of the law.

Custodial and/or settlement systems in emerging and frontier market countries may not be fully developed. To the extent a Fund invests in emerging markets, Fund assets that are traded in such markets and will have been entrusted to such sub-custodians in those markets may be exposed to risks for which the sub-custodian will have no liability.

With respect to investments in certain emerging countries, antiquated legal systems may have an adverse impact on the Funds. For example, while the potential liability of a shareholder of a U.S. corporation with respect to acts of the corporation is generally limited to the amount of the shareholder's investment, the notion of limited liability is less clear in certain emerging market countries. Similarly, the rights of investors in emerging market companies may be more limited than those of investors of U.S. corporations, and it may be more difficult for shareholders to bring derivative litigation. Moreover, the legal remedies for investors in emerging markets may be more limited than the remedies available in the United States, and the ability of U.S. authorities (e.g., SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice) to bring actions against bad actors may be limited. In addition, emerging countries may have less established accounting and financial reporting systems than those in more developed markets.

<u>Economic, Political and Social Factors</u>. Emerging countries may be subject to a greater degree of economic, political and social instability than the United States, Japan and most Western European countries, and unanticipated political and social developments may affect the value of a Fund's investments in emerging countries and the availability to the Fund of additional investments in such countries. Moreover, political and economic structures in many emerging countries may be undergoing significant evolution and rapid development. Instability may result from, among other things: (i) authoritarian governments or military involvement in political and economic decision-making, including changes or attempted

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changes in government through extra-constitutional means; (ii) popular unrest associated with demands for improved economic, political and social conditions; (iii) internal insurgencies; (iv) hostile relations with neighboring countries; (v) ethnic, religious and racial disaffection and conflict; and (vi) the absence of developed legal structures governing foreign private property. Many emerging countries have experienced in the past, and continue to experience, high rates of inflation. In certain countries, inflation has at times accelerated rapidly to hyperinflationary levels, creating a negative interest rate environment and sharply eroding the value of outstanding financial assets in those countries. The economies of many emerging countries are heavily dependent upon international trade and are accordingly affected by protective trade barriers and the economic conditions of their trading partners. In addition, the economies of some emerging countries may differ unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as growth of gross domestic product, rate of inflation, capital reinvestment, resources, self-sufficiency and balance of payments position.

Each Fund may seek investment opportunities within former "Eastern bloc" countries. Most of these countries had a centrally planned, socialist economy for a substantial period of time. The governments of some of these countries have more recently been implementing reforms directed at political and economic liberalization, including efforts to decentralize the economic decision-making process and move towards a market economy. However, business entities in many of these countries do not have an extended history of operating in a market-oriented economy, and the ultimate impact of these countries' attempts to move toward more market-oriented economies is currently unclear. Any change in the leadership or policies of these countries may halt the expansion of or reverse the liberalization of foreign investment policies now occurring and adversely affect existing investment opportunities. In addition, Eastern European markets are particularly sensitive to social, economic and currency events in Western Europe and Russia. Russia may attempt to assert its influence in the region through military measures.

In addition, because of ongoing regional armed conflict in Europe, including a large-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia in February 2022, Russia has been the subject of economic sanctions imposed by countries throughout the world, including the United States. Such sanctions have included, among other things, freezing the assets of particular entities and persons. The imposition of sanctions and other similar measures could, among other things, cause a decline in the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by Russia or companies located in or economically tied to Russia, downgrades in the credit ratings of Russian securities or those of companies located in or economically tied to Russia, devaluation of Russia's currency, and increased market volatility and disruption in Russia and throughout the world. Sanctions and other similar measures, including banning Russia from global payments systems that facilitate cross-border payments, could limit or prevent the Fund from buying and selling securities (in Russia and other markets), significantly delay or prevent the settlement of securities transactions, and significantly impact the Fund's liquidity and performance. Sanctions could also result in Russia taking counter measures or retaliatory actions which may further impair the value and liquidity of Russian securities. Moreover, disruptions caused by Russian military action or other actions (including cyberattacks and espionage) or resulting actual and threatened responses to such activity, including cyberattacks on the Russian government, Russian companies or Russian individuals, including politicians, may impact Russia's economy and Russian issuers of securities in which the Fund invests.

<u>Restrictions on Investment and Repatriation</u>. Certain emerging countries require governmental approval prior to investments by foreign persons or limit investments by foreign persons to only a specified percentage of an issuer's outstanding securities or a specific class of securities which may have less advantageous terms (including price) than securities of the issuer available for purchase by nationals. The repatriation of investment income, capital or the proceeds of securities sales from certain emerging countries is subject to certain governmental consents, which may make it difficult for a Fund to invest in such emerging countries. Each Fund could be adversely affected by delays in, or a refusal to grant, any required governmental approval for such repatriation. Even where there is no outright restriction on repatriation of capital, the mechanics of repatriation may affect the operation of a Fund.

<u>Emerging Country Government Obligations</u>. Emerging country governmental entities are among the largest debtors to commercial banks, foreign governments, international financial organizations and other financial institutions. Certain emerging country governmental entities have not been able to make payments of interest on or principal of debt obligations as those payments have come due. Obligations arising from past restructuring agreements may affect the economic performance and political and social stability of those entities.

The ability of emerging country governmental entities to make timely payments on their obligations is likely to be influenced strongly by the entity's balance of payments, including export performance, and its access to international credits and investments. An emerging country whose exports are concentrated in a few commodities could be vulnerable to a decline in the international prices of one or more of those commodities. Increased protectionism on the part of an emerging country's trading partners could also adversely affect the country's exports and tarnish its trade account surplus, if any. To the extent that emerging countries receive payment for their exports in currencies other than dollars or non-emerging country currencies, the emerging country governmental entity's ability to make debt payments denominated in dollars or non-emerging market currencies could be affected.

To the extent that an emerging country cannot generate a trade surplus, it must depend on continuing loans from foreign governments, multilateral organizations or private commercial banks, aid payments from foreign governments and on inflows of foreign investment. The access of emerging countries to these forms of external funding may not be certain, and a withdrawal of external funding could adversely affect the capacity of emerging country governmental entities to make payments on their obligations. In addition, the cost of servicing emerging country debt obligations can be affected by a change in international interest rates because the majority of these obligations carry interest rates that are adjusted periodically based upon international rates.

Another factor bearing on the ability of emerging countries to repay debt obligations is the level of international reserves of a country. Fluctuations in the level of these reserves affect the amount of foreign exchange readily available for external debt payments and thus could have a bearing on the capacity of emerging countries to make payments on these debt obligations.

As a result of the foregoing or other factors, a governmental obligor, especially in an emerging country, may default on its obligations. If such an event occurs, a Fund may have limited legal recourse against the issuer and/or guarantor. Remedies must, in some cases, be pursued in the courts of the defaulting party itself, and the ability of the holder of foreign government obligations to obtain recourse may be subject to the political climate in the relevant country. In addition, no assurance can be given that the holders of commercial bank debt will not contest payments to the holders of other foreign government obligations in the event of default under the commercial bank loan agreements.

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<u>Brady Bonds</u>. Certain foreign debt obligations commonly referred to as "Brady Bonds" are created through the exchange of existing commercial bank loans to foreign borrowers for new obligations in connection with debt restructurings under a plan introduced by former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Nicholas F. Brady (the "Brady Plan").

Brady Bonds may be collateralized or uncollateralized and issued in various currencies (although most are dollar-denominated) and they are actively traded in the over-the-counter secondary market. Certain Brady Bonds are collateralized in full as to principal due at maturity by zero coupon obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities having the same maturity ("Collateralized Brady Bonds"). Brady Bonds are not, however, considered to be U.S. Government Securities.

Dollar-denominated, Collateralized Brady Bonds may be fixed rate bonds or floating rate bonds. Interest payments on Brady Bonds are often collateralized by cash or securities in an amount that, in the case of fixed rate bonds, is equal to at least one year of rolling interest payments or, in the case of floating rate bonds, initially is equal to at least one year's rolling interest payments based on the applicable interest rate at that time and is adjusted at regular intervals thereafter. Certain Brady Bonds are entitled to "value recovery payments" in certain circumstances, which in effect constitute supplemental interest payments but generally are not collateralized. Brady Bonds are often viewed as having three or four valuation components: (i) collateralized repayment of principal at final maturity; (ii) collateralized interest payments; (iii) uncollateralized interest payments; and (iv) any uncollateralized repayment of principal at maturity (these uncollateralized amounts constitute the "residual risk"). In the event of a default with respect to Collateralized Brady Bonds as a result of which the payment obligations of the issuer are accelerated, the U.S. Treasury zero coupon obligations held as collateral for the payment of principal will not be distributed to investors, nor will such obligations be sold and the proceeds distributed. The collateral will be held by the collateral agent to the scheduled maturity of the defaulted Brady Bonds, which will continue to be outstanding, at which time the face amount of the collateral will equal the principal payments which would have been due on the Brady Bonds in the normal course. In addition, in light of the residual risk of Brady Bonds and, among other factors, the history of defaults with respect to commercial bank loans by public and private entities of countries issuing Brady Bonds, investments in Brady Bonds should be viewed as speculative.

<u>Restructured Investments</u>. Included among the issuers of emerging country debt securities are entities organized and operated solely for the purpose of restructuring the investment characteristics of various securities. These entities are often organized by investment banking firms which receive fees in connection with establishing each entity and arranging for the placement of its securities. This type of restructuring involves the deposit with or purchase by an entity, such as a corporation or trust, or specified instruments, such as Brady Bonds, and the issuance by the entity of one or more classes of securities ("Restructured Investments") backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying instruments. The cash flow on the underlying instruments may be apportioned among the newly issued Restructured Investments to create securities with different investment characteristics such as varying maturities, payment priorities or investment rate provisions. Because Restructured Investments of the type in which the Fund may invest typically involve no credit enhancement, their credit risk will generally be equivalent to that of the underlying instruments.

The Funds are permitted to invest in a class of Restructured Investments that is either subordinated or unsubordinated to the right of payment of another class. Subordinated Restructured Investments typically have higher yields and present greater risks than unsubordinated Restructured Investments. Although a Fund's purchases of subordinated Restructured Investments would have a similar economic effect to that of borrowing against the underlying securities, such purchases will not be deemed to be borrowing for purposes of the limitations placed on the extent of the Funds' assets that may be used for borrowing.

Certain issuers of Restructured Investments may be deemed to be "investment companies" as defined in the Act. As a result, the Funds' investments in these Restructured Investments may be limited by the restrictions contained in the Act. Restructured Investments are typically sold in private placement transactions, and there currently is no active trading market for most Restructured Investments.

<u>Forward Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts</u>. Each Fund may enter into forward foreign currency exchange contracts for hedging purposes and to seek to increase total return. A forward foreign currency exchange contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency at a future date, which may be any fixed number of days from the date of the contract agreed upon by the parties, at a price set at the time of the contract. These contracts are traded in the interbank market and are conducted directly between currency traders (usually large commercial banks) and their customers. A forward contract generally has no deposit requirement, and no commissions are generally charged at any stage for trades.

At the maturity of a forward contract, a Fund may either accept or make delivery of the currency specified in the contract or, at or prior to maturity, enter into a closing purchase transaction involving the purchase or sale of an offsetting contract. Closing purchase transactions with respect to forward contracts are usually effected with the currency trader who is a party to the original forward contract.

The Funds may, from time to time, engage in non-deliverable forward transactions to manage currency risk or to gain exposure to a currency without purchasing securities denominated in that currency. A non-deliverable forward is a transaction that represents an agreement between Fund and a counterparty (usually a commercial bank) to pay the other party the amount that it would have cost based on current market rates as of the termination date to buy or sell a specified (notional) amount of a particular currency at an agreed upon foreign exchange rate on an agreed upon future date. If the counterparty defaults, the Fund will have contractual remedies pursuant to the agreement related to the transaction, but the Fund may be delayed or prevented from obtaining payments owed to it pursuant to non-deliverable forward transactions. Such non-deliverable forward transactions will be settled in cash.

The Funds may enter into forward foreign currency exchange contracts for hedging purposes in several circumstances. First, when a Fund enters into a contract for the purchase or sale of a security quoted or denominated in a foreign currency, or when a Fund anticipates the receipt in a foreign currency of a dividend or interest payment on such a security which it holds, a Fund may desire to "lock in" the U.S. dollar price of the

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security or the U.S. dollar equivalent of such dividend or interest payment, as the case may be. By entering into a forward contract for the purchase or sale, for a fixed amount of U.S. dollars, of the amount of foreign currency involved in the underlying transactions, a Fund may attempt to protect itself against an adverse change in the relationship between the U.S. dollar and the subject foreign currency during the period between the date on which the security is purchased or sold, or on which the dividend or interest payment is declared, and the date on which such payments are made or received.

Additionally, when the Investment Adviser believes that the currency of a particular foreign country may suffer a substantial decline against the U.S. dollar, it may enter into a forward contract to sell, for a fixed amount of U.S. dollars, the amount of foreign currency approximating the value of some or all of a Fund's portfolio securities quoted or denominated in such foreign currency. The precise matching of the forward contract amounts and the value of the securities involved will not generally be possible because the future value of such securities in foreign currencies will change as a consequence of market movements in the value of those securities between the date on which the contract is entered into and the date it matures. Using forward contracts to protect the value of a Fund's portfolio securities against a decline in the value of a currency does not eliminate fluctuations in the underlying prices of the securities. It simply establishes a rate of exchange which a Fund can achieve at some future point in time. The precise projection of short-term currency market movements is not possible, and short-term hedging provides a means of fixing the U.S. dollar value of only a portion of a Fund's foreign assets.

The Funds may engage in cross-hedging by using forward contracts in one currency to hedge against fluctuations in the value of securities denominated or quoted in a different currency if the Investment Adviser determines that there is a pattern of correlation between the two currencies. In addition, the Funds may enter into foreign currency transactions to seek a closer correlation between a Fund's overall currency exposures and the currency exposures of a Fund's performance benchmark.

Each Fund is not required to post cash collateral with its non-U.S. counterparties in certain foreign currency transactions. Accordingly, a Fund may remain more fully invested (and more of the Fund's assets may be subject to investment and market risk) than if it were required to post collateral with its counterparties (which is the case with U.S. counterparties). Because a Fund's non-U.S. counterparties are not required to post cash collateral with the Fund, the Fund will be subject to additional counterparty risk.

While the Funds may enter into forward contracts to seek to reduce currency exchange rate risks, transactions in such contracts involve certain other risks. Thus, while the Funds may benefit from such transactions, unanticipated changes in currency prices may result in a poorer overall performance for a Fund than if it had not engaged in any such transactions. Moreover, there may be imperfect correlation between a Fund's portfolio holdings of securities quoted or denominated in a particular currency and forward contracts entered into by a Fund. Such imperfect correlation may cause the Fund to sustain losses which will prevent the Fund from achieving a complete hedge or expose the Fund to risk of foreign exchange loss.

Certain forward foreign currency exchange contracts and other currency transactions are not exchange traded or cleared. Markets for trading such forward foreign currency contracts offer less protection against defaults than is available when trading in currency instruments on an exchange. Such forward contracts are subject to the risk that the counterparty to the contract will default on its obligations. Because these contracts are not guaranteed by an exchange or clearinghouse, a default on a contract would deprive Fund of unrealized profits, transaction costs or the benefits of a currency hedge or force the Fund to cover its purchase or sale commitments, if any, at the current market price. In addition, the institutions that deal in forward currency contracts are not required to continue to make markets in the currencies they trade and these markets can experience periods of illiquidity. Each Fund will not enter into forward foreign currency exchange contracts, unless the credit quality of the unsecured senior debt or the claims-paying ability of the counterparty is considered to be investment grade by the Investment Adviser. To the extent that a substantial portion of a Fund's total assets, adjusted to reflect the Fund's net position after giving effect to currency transactions, is denominated or quoted in the currencies of foreign countries, the Fund will be more susceptible to the risk of adverse economic and political developments within those countries.

These and other factors discussed in the section above, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in issuers of emerging country securities.

**Investing in Europe** 

Certain of the Funds may operate in euros and/or may hold euros and/or euro-denominated bonds and other obligations. The euro requires participation of multiple sovereign states forming the Euro zone and is therefore sensitive to the credit, general economic and political position of each such state, including each state's actual and intended ongoing engagement with and/or support for the other sovereign states then forming the EU, in particular those within the Euro zone. Changes in these factors might materially adversely impact the value of securities that a Fund has invested in.

European countries can be significantly affected by the tight fiscal and monetary controls that the European Economic and Monetary Union ("EMU") imposes for membership. Europe's economies are diverse, its governments are decentralized, and its cultures vary widely. Several EU countries, including Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain and Portugal have faced budget issues, some of which may have negative long-term effects for the economies of those countries and other EU countries. There is continued concern about national-level support for the euro and the accompanying coordination of fiscal and wage policy among EMU member countries. Member countries are required to maintain tight control over inflation, public debt, and budget deficit to qualify for membership in the EMU. These requirements can severely limit the ability of EMU member countries to implement monetary policy to address regional economic conditions.

Geopolitical developments in Europe have caused, or may in the future cause, significant volatility in financial markets. For example, on January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom withdrew from the EU ("Brexit"). Effective May 1, 2021, the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement ("TCA") governs certain aspects of the EU's and United Kingdom's relationship. However, many aspects of the UK-EU trade relationship remain subject to further negotiation. The impact of Brexit on the United Kingdom and European economies and the broader global economy could be

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significant, resulting in increased volatility and illiquidity, currency fluctuations, impacts on arrangements for trading and on other existing cross-border cooperation arrangements (whether economic, tax, fiscal, legal, regulatory or otherwise), and in potentially lower growth for companies in the United Kingdom, Europe and globally, which could have an adverse effect on the value of the Fund's investments. The longer term economic, legal, political, regulatory and social framework between the United Kingdom and the EU remains unclear and may lead to ongoing political, regulatory and economic uncertainty in both the United Kingdom and in wider European markets. Brexit could lead to legal and tax uncertainty and potentially divergent national laws and regulations as the United Kingdom determines which EU laws to replace or replicate. Due to political uncertainty, it is not possible to anticipate the form or nature of the future trading relationship between the United Kingdom and the EU. The extent of the impact of Brexit and the resulting economic arrangements in the United Kingdom and in global markets as well as any associated adverse consequences remain unclear, and the uncertainty may have a significant negative effect on the value of the Fund's investments.

Other economic challenges facing the region include high levels of public debt, significant rates of unemployment, aging populations, and heavy regulation in certain economic sectors. European policy makers have taken unprecedented steps to respond to the economic crisis and to boost growth in the region, which has increased the risk that regulatory uncertainty could negatively affect the value of a Fund's investments.

Certain countries have applied to become new member countries of the EU, and these candidate countries' accessions may become more controversial to the existing EU members. Some member states may repudiate certain candidate countries joining the EU upon concerns about the possible economic, immigration and cultural implications. Also, Russia may be opposed to the expansion of the EU to members of the former Soviet bloc and may, at times, take actions that could negatively impact EU economic activity.

**Loans and Loan Participations** 

The Funds may invest in loans and loan participations. A loan participation is an interest in a loan to a U.S. or foreign company or other borrower which is administered and sold by a financial intermediary. In a typical corporate loan syndication, a number of lenders, usually banks (co-lenders), lend a corporate borrower a specified sum pursuant to the terms and conditions of a loan agreement. One of the co-lenders usually agrees to act as the agent bank with respect to the loan.

Participation interests acquired by the Funds may take the form of a direct or co-lending relationship with the corporate borrower, an assignment of an interest in the loan by a co-lender or another participant, or a participation in the seller's share of the loan. The participation by a Fund in a lender's portion of a loan typically will result in the Fund having a contractual relationship only with such lender, not with the business entity borrowing the funds (the "Borrower"). As a result, the Fund may have the right to receive payments of principal, interest and any fees to which it is entitled only from the lender selling the participation and only upon receipt by such lender of payments from the Borrower. Such indebtedness may be secured or unsecured. Under the terms of the loan participation, a Fund may be regarded as a creditor of the agent bank (rather than of the underlying corporate borrower), so that the Fund may also be subject to the risk that the agent bank may become insolvent. Loan participations typically represent direct participations in a loan to a Borrower, and generally are offered by banks or other financial institutions or lending syndicates. A Fund may participate in such syndicates, or can buy part of a loan, becoming a part lender. The participation interests in which the Funds may invest may not be rated by any NRSRO. The secondary market, if any, for loan participations may be limited.

When a Fund acts as co-lender in connection with a participation interest or when a Fund acquires certain participation interests, the Fund may have direct recourse against the borrower if the borrower fails to pay scheduled principal and interest. In cases where a Fund lacks direct recourse, it will look to the agent bank to enforce appropriate credit remedies against the borrower. In these cases, a Fund may be subject to delays, expenses and risks that are greater than those that would have been involved if the Fund had purchased a direct obligation (such as commercial paper) of such borrower. For example, in the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of the corporate borrower, a loan participation may be subject to certain defenses by the borrower as a result of improper conduct by the agent bank.

For purposes of certain investment limitations pertaining to diversification of a Fund's portfolio investments, the issuer of a loan participation will be the underlying borrower. However, in cases where a Fund does not have recourse directly against the borrower, both the borrower and each agent bank and co-lender interposed between the Fund and the borrower will be deemed issuers of a loan participation.

Generally, loans have the benefit of restrictive covenants that limit the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets, impose other obligations and/or release or transfer the specific collateral securing the loan. To the extent a loan does not have certain covenants (or has less restrictive covenants), an investment in the loan will be particularly sensitive to the risks associated with loan investments. In addition, to the extent a loan is modified or restructured (including, under certain circumstances, without the consent of, or upon the consent from less than 100% of, the holders of the loan), an investment in the loan may be materially and adversely affected. Under these circumstances, a Fund may incur expenses enforcing or defending its claims against the borrower and/or other debt holders and creditors.

<u>Senior Loans</u>. The Funds may invest in Senior Loans. Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a business entity (the "Borrower"), are typically secured with specific collateral and have a claim on the assets of the Borrower that is senior to that held by subordinated debt holders and stockholders of the Borrower. The proceeds of Senior Loans primarily are used to finance leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, mergers, acquisitions, stock repurchases, refinancings and to finance internal growth and for other corporate purposes. Senior Loans typically have rates of interest which are redetermined daily, monthly, quarterly or semi-annually by reference to a base lending rate, plus a premium or credit spread. These base lending rates are primarily SOFR or Term SOFR and secondarily the prime rate offered by one or more major U.S. banks and the certificate of deposit rate or other base lending rates used by commercial lenders. Some loans may continue to temporarily use synthetic LIBOR or may have previously used LIBOR.

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Senior Loans typically have a stated term of between five and nine years, and have rates of interest which typically are redetermined daily, monthly, quarterly or semi-annually. Longer interest rate reset periods would generally increase fluctuations in Fund's NAV as a result of changes in market interest rates. The Funds are not subject to any restrictions with respect to the maturity of Senior Loans held in their portfolios. As a result, as short-term interest rates increase, interest payable to the Funds from their investments in Senior Loans should increase, and as short-term interest rates decrease, interest payable to the Funds from their investments in Senior Loans should decrease. Because of prepayments, the Investment Adviser expects the average lives of the Senior Loans in which each of the Funds invest to be shorter than the stated maturity.

Senior Loans are subject to the risk of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal. Such non-payment would result in a reduction of income to a Fund, a reduction in the value of the investment and a potential decrease in the Fund's NAV. There can be no assurance that the liquidation of any collateral securing a Senior Loan would satisfy the Borrower's obligation in the event of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal payments, or that such collateral could be readily liquidated. In the event of bankruptcy of a Borrower, the Funds could experience delays or limitations with respect to their ability to realize the benefits of the collateral securing a Senior Loan. The collateral securing a Senior Loan may lose all or substantially all of its value in the event of the bankruptcy of a Borrower. Some Senior Loans are subject to the risk that a court, pursuant to fraudulent conveyance or other similar laws, could subordinate such Senior Loans to presently existing or future indebtedness of the Borrower or take other action detrimental to the holders of Senior Loans including, in certain circumstances, invalidating such Senior Loans or causing interest previously paid to be refunded to the Borrower. If interest were required to be refunded, it could negatively affect a Fund's performance.

Many Senior Loans in which a Fund may invest may not be rated by a rating agency, will not be registered with the SEC or any state securities commission, and will not be listed on any national securities exchange. The amount of public information available with respect to Senior Loans will generally be less extensive than that available for registered or exchange-listed securities. In evaluating the creditworthiness of Borrowers, the Investment Adviser will consider, and may rely in part, on analyses performed by others. Borrowers may have outstanding debt obligations that are rated below investment grade by a rating agency. Although Senior Loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a borrower, Senior Loans may become subordinated to other debt holders and creditors (including, under certain circumstances, upon the consent from less than 100% of the holders of the Senior Loans). Senior Loans that are subordinated to other debt holders and creditors will be subject to the risks generally associated with investments in second lien and more junior loans. Many of the Senior Loans in which a Fund may invest will have been assigned below investment grade ratings by independent rating agencies. In the event Senior Loans are not rated, they are likely to be the equivalent of below investment grade quality. Because of the protective features of Senior Loans, the Investment Adviser believes that Senior Loans tend to have more favorable loss recovery rates as compared to more junior types of below investment grade debt obligations. The Investment Adviser does not view ratings as the determinative factor in its investment decisions and rely more upon their credit analysis abilities than upon ratings. Investors in loans, such as a Fund, may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.

No active trading market may exist for some Senior Loans, and some loans may be subject to restrictions on resale. A secondary market may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods, which may impair the ability to realize full value and thus cause a material decline in the NAV of a Fund. Because transactions in many Senior Loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, a Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of Senior Loans for a period after the sale of the Senior Loans. In addition, a Fund may not be able to readily dispose of its Senior Loans at prices that approximate those at which the Fund could sell such loans if they were more widely-traded and, as a result of the relative illiquidity of the trading markets for Senior Loans, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from its credit facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations, including redemption obligations. During periods of limited supply and liquidity of Senior Loans, the Fund's yield may be lower.

When interest rates decline, the value of a Fund invested in fixed rate obligations can be expected to rise. Conversely, when interest rates rise, the value of a Fund invested in fixed rate obligations can be expected to decline. Although changes in prevailing interest rates can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the value of Senior Loans (due to the fact that floating rates on Senior Loans only reset periodically), the value of Senior Loans is substantially less sensitive to changes in market interest rates than fixed rate instruments. As a result, to the extent a Fund invests in floating-rate Senior Loans, the Fund's portfolio may be less volatile and less sensitive to changes in market interest rates than if the Fund invested in fixed rate obligations. Similarly, a sudden and significant increase in market interest rates may cause a decline in the value of these investments and in a Fund's NAV. Other factors (including, but not limited to, rating downgrades, credit deterioration, a large downward movement in stock prices, a disparity in supply and demand of certain securities or market conditions that reduce liquidity) can reduce the value of Senior Loans and other debt obligations, impairing the NAV of the Funds.

A Fund may purchase and retain in its portfolio a Senior Loan where the Borrower has experienced, or may be perceived to be likely to experience, credit problems, including involvement in or recent emergence from bankruptcy reorganization proceedings or other forms of debt restructuring. Such investments may provide opportunities for enhanced income as well as capital appreciation, although they also will be subject to greater risk of loss. At times, in connection with the restructuring of a Senior Loan either outside of bankruptcy court or in the context of bankruptcy court proceedings, a Fund may determine or be required to accept equity securities or junior credit securities in exchange for all or a portion of a Senior Loan.

The Funds may also purchase Senior Loans on a direct assignment basis. If Fund purchases a Senior Loan on direct assignment, it typically succeeds to all the rights and obligations under the loan agreement of the assigning lender and becomes a lender under the loan agreement with the same rights and obligations as the assigning lender. Investments in Senior Loans on a direct assignment basis may involve additional risks to the Funds. For example, if such loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become part owner of any collateral, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and disposing of the collateral.

Loans and other types of direct indebtedness may not be readily marketable and may be subject to restrictions on resale. In some cases, negotiations involved in disposing of indebtedness may require weeks to complete. Consequently, some indebtedness may be difficult or impossible to dispose of readily at what the Investment Adviser believes to be a fair price. In addition, valuation of less readily marketable indebtedness involves a greater degree of judgment in determining the NAV of the Funds than if that valuation were based on available market quotations, and could result

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in significant variations in a Fund's daily share price. At the same time, some loan interests are regularly traded among certain financial institutions. As the market for different types of indebtedness develops, the liquidity of the market for these instruments is expected to improve. Investments in loans and loan participations are considered to be debt obligations for purposes of a Fund's investment restriction relating to the lending of funds or assets by the Fund.

These and other factors discussed in the section above, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in loans and loan participations.

<u>Second Lien Loans.</u> Each Fund may invest in Second Lien Loans, which have the same characteristics as Senior Loans except that such loans are second in lien property rather than first. Second Lien Loans typically have adjustable floating rate interest payments. Accordingly, the risks associated with Second Lien Loans are higher than the risk of loans with first priority over the collateral. In the event of default on a Second Lien Loan, the first priority lien holder has first claim to the underlying collateral of the loan. It is possible that no collateral value would remain for the second priority lien holder and therefore result in a loss of investment to a Fund.

This risk is generally higher for subordinated unsecured loans or debt, which are not backed by a security interest in any specific collateral. Second Lien Loans generally have greater price volatility than Senior Loans and may be less liquid. There is also a possibility that originators will not be able to sell participations in Second Lien Loans, which would create greater credit risk exposure for the holders of such loans. Second Lien Loans share the same risks as other below investment grade securities.

**MMD Rate Locks** 

The Funds may purchase and sell Municipal Market Data AAA Cash Curve forward contracts, also known as "MMD rate locks." A Fund may use these transactions for hedging purposes or, to the extent consistent with its investment policies, to enhance income or gain or to increase the Fund's yield, for example, during periods of steep interest rate yield curves (i.e., wide differences between short term and long term interest rates).

An MMD rate lock permits a Fund to lock in a specified municipal interest rate for a portion of its portfolio to preserve a return on a particular investment, as a duration management technique, or to protect against any increase in the price of securities to be purchased at a later date. By using an MMD rate lock, a Fund can create a synthetic long or short position, allowing the Fund to select the most attractive part of the yield curve. An MMD rate lock is a forward contract between a Fund and an MMD rate lock provider pursuant to which the parties agree to make payments to each other on a notional amount, contingent upon whether the Municipal Market Data AAA General Obligations Scale is above or below a specified level on the expiration date of the contract. In connection with investments in MMD rate locks, there is a risk that municipal yields will move in the opposite direction than that anticipated by a Fund, which would cause the Fund to make payments to its counterparty in the transaction that could adversely affect the Fund's performance.

**Mortgage Dollar Rolls** 

The Funds may enter into mortgage dollar rolls in which a Fund sells securities for delivery in the current month and simultaneously contracts with the same counterparty to repurchase similar, but not identical securities on a specified future date. During the roll period, a Fund loses the right to receive principal and interest paid on the securities sold. However, a Fund would benefit to the extent of any difference between the price received for the securities sold and the lower forward price for the future purchase or fee income plus the interest earned on the cash proceeds of the securities sold until the settlement date of the forward purchase. All cash proceeds will be invested in instruments that are permissible investments for the applicable Fund.

For financial reporting and tax purposes, the Funds treat mortgage dollar rolls as two separate transactions; one involving the purchase of a security and a separate transaction involving a sale. The Funds do not currently intend to enter into mortgage dollar rolls for financing and does not treat them as borrowings.

Mortgage dollar rolls involve certain risks including the following: if the broker-dealer to whom a Fund sells the security becomes insolvent, a Fund's right to purchase or repurchase the mortgage-related securities subject to the mortgage dollar roll may be restricted. Also, the instrument which a Fund is required to repurchase may be worth less than an instrument which a Fund originally held. Successful use of mortgage dollar rolls will depend upon the Investment Adviser's ability to manage a Fund's interest rate and mortgage prepayments exposure. For these reasons, there is no assurance that mortgage dollar rolls can be successfully employed. The use of this technique may diminish the investment performance of a Fund compared with what such performance would have been without the use of mortgage dollar rolls.

**Mortgage Loans and Mortgage-Backed Securities** 

The Funds may each invest in mortgage loans, mortgage pass-through securities and other securities representing an interest in or collateralized by adjustable and fixed-rate mortgage loans, including collateralized mortgage obligations, real estate mortgage investment conduits ("REMICs") and stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities, as described below ("Mortgage-Backed Securities").

Mortgage-Backed Securities are subject to both call risk and extension risk. Because of these risks, these securities can have significantly greater price and yield volatility than traditional fixed income securities.

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<u>General Characteristics of Mortgage Backed Securities</u> 

In general, each mortgage pool underlying Mortgage-Backed Securities consists of mortgage loans evidenced by promissory notes secured by first mortgages or first deeds of trust or other similar security instruments creating a first lien on owner occupied and non-owner occupied one-unit to four-unit residential properties, multi-family (i.e., five-units or more) properties, agricultural properties, commercial properties and mixed use properties (the "Mortgaged Properties"). The Mortgaged Properties may consist of detached individual dwelling units, multi-family dwelling units, individual condominiums, townhouses, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, row houses, individual units in planned unit developments, other attached dwelling units ("Residential Mortgaged Properties") or commercial properties, such as office properties, retail properties, hospitality properties, industrial properties, healthcare related properties or other types of income producing real property ("Commercial Mortgaged Properties"). Residential Mortgaged Properties may also include residential investment properties and second homes. In addition, the Mortgage-Backed Securities which are residential mortgage-backed securities may also consist of mortgage loans evidenced by promissory notes secured entirely or in part by second priority mortgage liens on Residential Mortgaged Properties.

The investment characteristics of adjustable and fixed rate Mortgage-Backed Securities differ from those of traditional fixed income securities. The major differences include the payment of interest and principal on Mortgage-Backed Securities on a more frequent (usually monthly) schedule, and the possibility that principal may be prepaid at any time due to prepayments on the underlying mortgage loans or other assets. These differences can result in significantly greater price and yield volatility than is the case with traditional fixed income securities. As a result, if a Fund purchases Mortgage-Backed Securities at a premium, a faster than expected prepayment rate will reduce both the market value and the yield to maturity from their anticipated levels. A prepayment rate that is slower than expected will have the opposite effect, increasing yield to maturity and market value. Conversely, if a Fund purchases Mortgage-Backed Securities at a discount, faster than expected prepayments will increase, while slower than expected prepayments will reduce yield to maturity and market value. To the extent that a Fund invests in Mortgage-Backed Securities, the Investment Adviser may seek to manage these potential risks by investing in a variety of Mortgage-Backed Securities and by using certain hedging techniques.

Prepayments on a pool of mortgage loans are influenced by changes in current interest rates and a variety of economic, geographic, social and other factors (such as changes in mortgagor housing needs, job transfers, unemployment, mortgagor equity in the mortgage properties and servicing decisions). The timing and level of prepayments cannot be predicted. A predominant factor affecting the prepayment rate on a pool of mortgage loans is the difference between the interest rates on outstanding mortgage loans and prevailing mortgage loan interest rates (giving consideration to the cost of any refinancing). Generally, prepayments on mortgage loans will increase during a period of falling mortgage interest rates and decrease during a period of rising mortgage interest rates. Accordingly, the amounts of prepayments available for reinvestment by a Fund are likely to be greater during a period of declining mortgage interest rates. If general interest rates decline, such prepayments are likely to be reinvested at lower interest rates than a Fund was earning on the Mortgage-Backed Securities that were prepaid. Due to these factors, Mortgage-Backed Securities may be less effective than U.S. Treasury and other types of debt securities of similar maturity at maintaining yields during periods of declining interest rates. Because a Fund's investments in Mortgage-Backed Securities are interest-rate sensitive, a Fund's performance will depend in part upon the ability of a Fund to anticipate and respond to fluctuations in market interest rates and to utilize appropriate strategies to maximize returns to a Fund while attempting to minimize the associated risks to its investment capital. Prepayments may have a disproportionate effect on certain Mortgage-Backed Securities and other multiple class pass-through securities, which are discussed below.

The rate of interest paid on Mortgage-Backed Securities is normally lower than the rate of interest paid on the mortgages included in the underlying pool due to (among other things) the fees paid to any servicer, special servicer and trustee for the trust fund which holds the mortgage pool, other costs and expenses of such trust fund, fees paid to any guarantor, such as Ginnie Mae (as defined below) or to any credit enhancers, mortgage pool insurers, bond insurers and/or hedge providers, and due to any yield retained by the issuer. Actual yield to the holder may vary from the coupon rate, even if adjustable, if the Mortgage-Backed Securities are purchased or traded in the secondary market at a premium or discount. In addition, there is normally some delay between the time the issuer receives mortgage payments from the servicer and the time the issuer (or the trustee of the trust fund which holds the mortgage pool) makes the payments on the Mortgage-Backed Securities, and this delay reduces the effective yield to the holder of such securities.

The issuers of certain mortgage-backed obligations may elect to have the pool of mortgage loans (or indirect interests in mortgage loans) underlying the securities treated as a REMIC, which is subject to special federal income tax rules. A description of the types of mortgage loans and Mortgage-Backed Securities in which a Fund may invest is provided below. The descriptions are general and summary in nature, and do not detail every possible variation of the types of securities that are permissible investments for a Fund.

Delinquencies, defaults and losses on residential mortgage loans may increase substantially over certain periods, which may affect the performance of the Mortgage-Backed Securities in which a Fund may invest. Mortgage loans backing non-agency Mortgage-Backed Securities are more sensitive to economic factors that could affect the ability of borrowers to pay their obligations under the mortgage loans backing these securities. In addition, housing prices and appraisal values in many states and localities over certain periods have declined or stopped appreciating. A sustained decline or an extended flattening of those values may result in additional increases in delinquencies and losses on Mortgage-Backed Securities generally (including the Mortgaged-Backed Securities that the Funds may invest in as described above).

Adverse changes in market conditions and regulatory climate may reduce the cash flow which a Fund, to the extent it invests in Mortgage-Backed Securities or other asset-backed securities, receives from such securities and increase the incidence and severity of credit events and losses in respect of such securities. In the event that interest rate spreads for Mortgage-Backed Securities and other asset-backed securities widen following the purchase of such assets by a Fund, the market value of such securities is likely to decline and, in the case of a substantial spread widening, could decline by a substantial amount. Furthermore, adverse changes in market conditions may result in reduced liquidity in the market for Mortgage-Backed Securities and other asset-backed securities (including the Mortgage-Backed Securities and other asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest) and an unwillingness by banks, financial institutions and investors to extend credit to servicers, originators and other participants in the market for Mortgage-Backed and other asset-backed securities. As a result, the liquidity and/or the market value of any Mortgage-Backed or asset-backed securities that are owned by a Fund may experience declines after they are purchased by a Fund.

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<u>General Regulatory Considerations of Mortgage-Backed Securities</u> 

The unprecedented disruption in the mortgage- and asset-backed securities markets in 2008-2009 resulted in significant downward price pressures as well as foreclosures and defaults in residential and commercial real estate. As a result of these events, the liquidity of the mortgage- and asset-backed securities markets was negatively impacted during that time. Following the market dislocation, the U.S. Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act"), which imposed a new regulatory framework over the U.S. financial services industry and the consumer credit markets in general. Among its other provisions, the Dodd-Frank Act creates a liquidation framework under which the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC"), may be appointed as receiver following a "systemic risk determination" by the Secretary of Treasury (in consultation with the President) for the resolution of certain nonbank financial companies and other entities, defined as "covered financial companies", and commonly referred to as "systemically important entities", in the event such a company is in default or in danger of default and the resolution of such a company under other applicable law would have serious adverse effects on financial stability in the United States, and also for the resolution of certain of their subsidiaries. No assurances can be given that this new liquidation framework would not apply to the originators of asset-backed securities, including Mortgage-Backed Securities, or their respective subsidiaries, including the issuers and depositors of such securities, although the expectation embedded in the Dodd-Frank Act is that the framework will be invoked only very rarely. Guidance from the FDIC indicates that such new framework will largely be exercised in a manner consistent with the existing bankruptcy laws, which is the insolvency regime that would otherwise apply to the sponsors, depositors and issuing entities with respect to asset-backed securities, including Mortgage-Backed Securities. The application of such liquidation framework to such entities could result in decreases or delays in amounts paid on, and hence the market value of, the Mortgage-Backed or asset-backed securities that may be owned by a Fund.

<u>Certain General Characteristics of Mortgage Loans</u> 

<u>Adjustable Rate Mortgage Loans ("ARMs")</u>. The Funds may invest in ARMs. ARMs generally provide for a fixed initial mortgage interest rate for a specified period of time. Thereafter, the interest rates (the "Mortgage Interest Rates") may be subject to periodic adjustment based on changes in the applicable index rate (the "Index Rate"). The adjusted rate would be equal to the Index Rate plus a fixed percentage spread over the Index Rate established for each ARM at the time of its origination. ARMs allow a Fund to participate in increases in interest rates through periodic increases in the securities coupon rates. During periods of declining interest rates, coupon rates may readjust downward resulting in lower yields to a Fund.

Adjustable interest rates can cause payment increases that some mortgagors may find difficult to make. However, certain ARMs may provide that the Mortgage Interest Rate may not be adjusted to a rate above an applicable lifetime maximum rate or below an applicable lifetime minimum rate for such ARM. Certain ARMs may also be subject to limitations on the maximum amount by which the Mortgage Interest Rate may adjust for any single adjustment period (the "Maximum Adjustment"). Other ARMs ("Negatively Amortizing ARMs") may provide instead or as well for limitations on changes in the monthly payment on such ARMs. Limitations on monthly payments can result in monthly payments which are greater or less than the amount necessary to amortize a Negatively Amortizing ARM by its maturity at the Mortgage Interest Rate in effect in any particular month. In the event that a monthly payment is not sufficient to pay the interest accruing on a Negatively Amortizing ARM, any such excess interest is added to the principal balance of the loan, causing negative amortization, and will be repaid through future monthly payments. It may take borrowers under Negatively Amortizing ARMs longer periods of time to build up equity and may increase the likelihood of default by such borrowers. In the event that a monthly payment exceeds the sum of the interest accrued at the applicable Mortgage Interest Rate and the principal payment which would have been necessary to amortize the outstanding principal balance over the remaining term of the loan, the excess (or "accelerated amortization") further reduces the principal balance of the ARM. Negatively Amortizing ARMs do not provide for the extension of their original maturity to accommodate changes in their Mortgage Interest Rate. As a result, unless there is a periodic recalculation of the payment amount (which there generally is), the final payment may be substantially larger than the other payments. After the expiration of the initial fixed rate period and upon the periodic recalculation of the payment to cause timely amortization of the related mortgage loan, the monthly payment on such mortgage loan may increase substantially which may, in turn, increase the risk of the borrower defaulting in respect of such mortgage loan. These limitations on periodic increases in interest rates and on changes in monthly payments protect borrowers from unlimited interest rate and payment increases, but may result in increased credit exposure and prepayment risks for lenders. When interest due on a mortgage loan is added to the principal balance of such mortgage loan, the related mortgaged property provides proportionately less security for the repayment of such mortgage loan. Therefore, if the related borrower defaults on such mortgage loan, there is a greater likelihood that a loss will be incurred upon any liquidation of the mortgaged property which secures such mortgage loan.

ARMs also have the risk of prepayment. The rate of principal prepayments with respect to ARMs has fluctuated in recent years. The value of Mortgage-Backed Securities collateralized by ARMs is less likely to rise during periods of declining interest rates than the value of fixed-rate securities during such periods. Accordingly, ARMs may be subject to a greater rate of principal repayments in a declining interest rate environment resulting in lower yields to a Fund. For example, if prevailing interest rates fall significantly, ARMs could be subject to higher prepayment rates (than if prevailing interest rates remain constant or increase) because the availability of low fixed-rate mortgages may encourage mortgagors to refinance their ARMs to "lock-in" a fixed-rate mortgage. On the other hand, during periods of rising interest rates, the value of ARMs will lag behind changes in the market rate. ARMs are also typically subject to maximum increases and decreases in the interest rate adjustment which can be made on any one adjustment date, in any one year, or during the life of the security. In the event of dramatic increases or decreases in prevailing market interest rates, the value of a Fund's investment in ARMs may fluctuate more substantially because these limits may prevent the security from fully adjusting its interest rate to the prevailing market rates. As with fixed-rate mortgages, ARM prepayment rates vary in both stable and changing interest rate environments.

There are two main categories of indices which provide the basis for rate adjustments on ARMs: those based on U.S. Treasury securities and those derived from a calculated measure, such as a cost of funds index or a moving average of mortgage rates. Indices commonly used for this purpose include the one-year, three-year and five-year constant maturity Treasury rates, the three-month Treasury bill rate, the 180-day Treasury bill rate, rates on longer-term Treasury securities, the 11th District Federal Home Loan Bank Cost of Funds, the National Median Cost of Funds, the one-

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month, three-month, six-month or one-year SOFR or another rate determined using SOFR, the prime rate of a specific bank, or commercial paper rates. Some indices, such as the one-year constant maturity Treasury rate, closely mirror changes in market interest rate levels. Others, such as the 11th District Federal Home Loan Bank Cost of Funds index, tend to lag behind changes in market rate levels and tend to be somewhat less volatile. The degree of volatility in the market value of ARMs in a Fund's portfolio and, therefore, in the NAV of a Fund's shares, will be a function of the length of the interest rate reset periods and the degree of volatility in the applicable indices.

<u>Fixed-Rate Mortgage Loans</u>. Generally, fixed-rate mortgage loans included in mortgage pools (the "Fixed-Rate Mortgage Loans") will bear simple interest at fixed annual rates and have original terms to maturity ranging from 5 to 40 years. Fixed-Rate Mortgage Loans generally provide for monthly payments of principal and interest in substantially equal installments for the term of the mortgage note in sufficient amounts to fully amortize principal by maturity, although certain Fixed-Rate Mortgage Loans provide for a large final "balloon" payment upon maturity.

<u>Certain Legal Considerations of Mortgage Loans</u>. The following is a discussion of certain legal and regulatory aspects of the mortgage loans in which a Fund may invest. This discussion is not exhaustive, and does not address all of the legal or regulatory aspects affecting mortgage loans. These regulations may impair the ability of a mortgage lender to enforce its rights under the mortgage documents. These regulations may also adversely affect a Fund's investments in Mortgage-Backed Securities (including those issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities) by delaying the Fund's receipt of payments derived from principal or interest on mortgage loans affected by such regulations.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1. <u>Foreclosure</u>. A foreclosure of a defaulted mortgage loan may be delayed due to compliance with statutory
notice or service of process provisions, difficulties in locating necessary parties or legal challenges to the mortgagee's right to foreclose. Depending upon market conditions, the ultimate proceeds of the sale of foreclosed property may not
equal the amounts owed on the Mortgage-Backed Securities. Furthermore, courts in some cases have imposed general equitable principles upon foreclosure generally designed to relieve the borrower from the legal effect of default and have required
lenders to undertake affirmative and expensive actions to determine the causes for the default and the likelihood of loan reinstatement.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2. <u>Rights of Redemption</u>. In some states, after foreclosure of a mortgage loan, the borrower and foreclosed
junior lienors are given a statutory period in which to redeem the property, which right may diminish the mortgagee's ability to sell the property.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3. <u>Legislative Limitations</u>. In addition to anti-deficiency and related legislation, numerous other federal
and state statutory provisions, including the federal bankruptcy laws and state laws affording relief to debtors, may interfere with or affect the ability of a secured mortgage lender to enforce its security interest. For example, a bankruptcy court
may grant the debtor a reasonable time to cure a default on a mortgage loan, including a payment default. The court in certain instances may also reduce the monthly payments due under such mortgage loan, change the rate of interest, reduce the
principal balance of the loan to the then-current appraised value of the related mortgaged property, alter the mortgage loan repayment schedule and grant priority of certain liens over the lien of the mortgage loan. If a court relieves a
borrower's obligation to repay amounts otherwise due on a mortgage loan, the mortgage loan servicer will not be required to advance such amounts, and any loss may be borne by the holders of securities backed by such loans. In addition,
numerous federal and state consumer protection laws impose penalties for failure to comply with specific requirements in connection with origination and servicing of mortgage loans.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;4. <u>"Due-on-Sale" Provisions</u>. Fixed-rate mortgage loans may contain a so-called "due-on-sale" clause permitting acceleration of the
maturity of the mortgage loan if the borrower transfers the property. The Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act of 1982 sets forth nine specific instances in which no mortgage lender covered by that Act
may exercise a "due-on-sale" clause upon a transfer of property. The inability to enforce a "due-on-sale" clause or the lack of such a clause in mortgage loan documents may result in a mortgage loan being assumed by a purchaser of the property that
bears an interest rate below the current market rate.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5. <u>Usury Laws</u>. Some states prohibit charging interest on mortgage loans in excess of statutory limits. If
such limits are exceeded, substantial penalties may be incurred and, in some cases, enforceability of the obligation to pay principal and interest may be affected.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6. <u>Governmental Action, Legislation and Regulation</u>. Legislative, regulatory and enforcement actions seeking
to prevent or restrict foreclosures or providing forbearance relief to borrowers of residential mortgage loans may adversely affect the value of Mortgage-Backed Securities (e.g., the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act).
Legislative or regulatory initiatives by federal, state or local legislative bodies or administrative agencies, if enacted or adopted, could delay foreclosure or the exercise of other remedies, provide new defenses to foreclosure, or otherwise
impair the ability of the loan servicer to foreclose or realize on a defaulted residential mortgage loan included in a pool of residential mortgage loans backing such residential Mortgage-Backed Securities. While the nature or extent of limitations
on foreclosure or exercise of other remedies that may be enacted cannot be predicted, any such governmental actions that interfere with the foreclosure process or are designed to protect customers could increase the costs of such foreclosures or
exercise of other remedies in respect of residential mortgage loans which collateralize Mortgage-Backed Securities held by a Fund, delay the timing or reduce the amount of recoveries on defaulted residential mortgage loans which collateralize
Mortgage-Backed Securities held by a Fund, and consequently, could adversely impact the yields and distributions a Fund may receive in respect of its ownership of Mortgage-Backed Securities collateralized by residential mortgage loans.

<u>Government Guaranteed Mortgage-Backed Securities</u>. There are several types of government guaranteed Mortgage-Backed Securities currently available, including guaranteed mortgage pass-through certificates and multiple class securities, which include guaranteed Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit Certificates ("REMIC Certificates"), other collateralized mortgage obligations and stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities. Each Fund is permitted to invest in other types of Mortgage-Backed Securities that may be available in the future, to the extent consistent with its investment policies and objective.

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Each Fund's investments in Mortgage-Backed Securities may include securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or one of its agencies, authorities, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, such as the Government National Mortgage Association ("Ginnie Mae"), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Ginnie Mae securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, which means that the U.S. Government guarantees that the interest and principal will be paid when due. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac securities are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have the ability to borrow from the U.S. Treasury, and as a result, they have historically been viewed by the market as high quality securities with low credit risks. From time to time, proposals have been introduced before Congress for the purpose of restricting or eliminating federal sponsorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Trust cannot predict what legislation, if any, may be proposed in the future in Congress as regards such sponsorship or which proposals, if any, might be enacted. Such proposals, if enacted, might materially and adversely affect the availability of government guaranteed Mortgage-Backed Securities and the liquidity and value of a Fund's portfolio.

There is risk that the U.S. Government will not provide financial support to its agencies, authorities, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. A Fund may purchase U.S. Government Securities that are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, such as those issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The maximum potential liability of the issuers of some U.S. Government Securities held by a Fund may greatly exceed such issuers' current resources, including such issuers' legal right to support from the U.S. Treasury. It is possible that these issuers will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.

Below is a general discussion of certain types of guaranteed Mortgage-Backed Securities in which the Fund may invest.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• <u>Ginnie Mae Certificates</u>. Ginnie Mae is a wholly-owned corporate instrumentality of the United States.
Ginnie Mae is authorized to guarantee the timely payment of the principal of and interest on certificates that are based on and backed by a pool of mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration ("FHA"), or guaranteed by
the Veterans Administration ("VA"), or by pools of other eligible mortgage loans. In order to meet its obligations under any guaranty, Ginnie Mae is authorized to borrow from the U.S. Treasury in an unlimited amount. The National Housing
Act provides that the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government is pledged to the timely payment of principal and interest by Ginnie Mae of amounts due on Ginnie Mae certificates.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• <u>Fannie Mae Certificates</u>. Fannie Mae is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered under an act of the
U.S. Congress. Generally, Fannie Mae Certificates are issued and guaranteed by Fannie Mae and represent an undivided interest in a pool of mortgage loans (a "Pool") formed by Fannie Mae. A Pool consists of residential mortgage loans
either previously owned by Fannie Mae or purchased by it in connection with the formation of the Pool. The mortgage loans may be either conventional mortgage loans (i.e., not insured or guaranteed by any U.S. Government agency) or mortgage loans
that are either insured by the FHA or guaranteed by the VA. However, the mortgage loans in Fannie Mae Pools are primarily conventional mortgage loans. The lenders originating and servicing the mortgage loans are subject to certain eligibility
requirements established by Fannie Mae. Fannie Mae has certain contractual responsibilities. With respect to each Pool, Fannie Mae is obligated to distribute scheduled installments of principal and interest after Fannie Mae's servicing and
guaranty fee, whether or not received, to Certificate holders. Fannie Mae also is obligated to distribute to holders of Certificates an amount equal to the full principal balance of any foreclosed mortgage loan, whether or not such principal balance
is actually recovered. The obligations of Fannie Mae under its guaranty of the Fannie Mae Certificates are obligations solely of Fannie Mae. See "Certain Additional Information with Respect to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae" below.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• <u>Freddie Mac Certificates</u>. Freddie Mac is a publicly held U.S. Government sponsored enterprise. A
principal activity of Freddie Mac currently is the purchase of first lien, conventional, residential and multifamily mortgage loans and participation interests in such mortgage loans and their resale in the form of mortgage securities, primarily
Freddie Mac Certificates. A Freddie Mac Certificate represents a pro rata interest in a group of mortgage loans or participations in mortgage loans (a "Freddie Mac Certificate group") purchased by Freddie Mac. Freddie Mac guarantees to
each registered holder of a Freddie Mac Certificate the timely payment of interest at the rate provided for by such Freddie Mac Certificate (whether or not received on the underlying loans). Freddie Mac also guarantees to each registered Certificate
holder ultimate collection of all principal of the related mortgage loans, without any offset or deduction, but does not, generally, guarantee the timely payment of scheduled principal. The obligations of Freddie Mac under its guaranty of Freddie
Mac Certificates are obligations solely of Freddie Mac. See "Certain Additional Information with Respect to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae" below.

The mortgage loans underlying the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae Certificates consist of adjustable rate or fixed-rate mortgage loans with original terms to maturity of up to forty years. These mortgage loans are usually secured by first liens on one-to-four-family residential properties or multi-family projects. Each mortgage loan must meet the applicable standards set forth in the law creating Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. A Freddie Mac Certificate group may include whole loans, participation interests in whole loans, undivided interests in whole loans and participations comprising another Freddie Mac Certificate group.

Under the direction of FHFA (as defined below), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have entered into a joint initiative to develop a common securitization platform ("CSP") for the issuance of a uniform Mortgage-Backed Security ("UMBS") (the "Single Security Initiative"), which would generally align the characteristics of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Certificates. The Single Security Initiative is intended to maximize liquidity for both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Mortgage-Backed Securities in the "to-be-announced" market. The CSP began issuing UMBS in June 2019. While the initial effects of the issuance of UMBS on the market for mortgage-related securities have been relatively minimal, the long-term effects are still uncertain.

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<u>Conventional Mortgage Loans</u>. The conventional mortgage loans underlying the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae Certificates consist of adjustable rate or fixed-rate mortgage loans normally with original terms to maturity of between five and thirty years. Substantially all of these mortgage loans are secured by first liens on one- to four-family residential properties or multi-family projects. Each mortgage loan must meet the applicable standards set forth in the law creating Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. A Freddie Mac Certificate group may include whole loans, participation interests in whole loans, undivided interests in whole loans and participations comprising another Freddie Mac Certificate group.

<u>Certain Additional Information with Respect to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae</u>. The volatility and disruption that impacted the capital and credit markets during late 2008 and into 2009 have led to increased market concerns about Freddie Mac's and Fannie Mae's ability to withstand future credit losses associated with securities held in their investment portfolios, and on which they provide guarantees, without the direct support of the federal government. On September 6, 2008, both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were placed under the conservatorship of the Federal Housing Finance Agency ("FHFA"). Under the plan of conservatorship, the FHFA has assumed control of, and generally has the power to direct, the operations of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, and is empowered to exercise all powers collectively held by their respective shareholders, directors and officers, including the power to (1) take over the assets of and operate Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae with all the powers of the shareholders, the directors, and the officers of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae and conduct all business of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae; (2) collect all obligations and money due to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae; (3) perform all functions of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae which are consistent with the conservator's appointment; (4) preserve and conserve the assets and property of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae; and (5) contract for assistance in fulfilling any function, activity, action or duty of the conservator. In addition, in connection with the actions taken by the FHFA, the U.S. Treasury entered into certain preferred stock purchase agreements with each of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae which established the U.S. Treasury as the holder of a new class of senior preferred stock in each of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, which stock was issued in connection with financial contributions from the U.S. Treasury to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. The conditions attached to the financial contribution made by the U.S. Treasury to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae and the issuance of this senior preferred stock placed significant restrictions on the activities of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae must obtain the consent of the U.S. Treasury to, among other things, (i) make any payment to purchase or redeem its capital stock or pay any dividend other than in respect of the senior preferred stock issued to the U.S. Treasury, (ii) issue capital stock of any kind, (iii) terminate the conservatorship of the FHFA except in connection with a receivership, or (iv) increase its debt beyond certain specified levels. In addition, significant restrictions were placed on the maximum size of each of Freddie Mac's and Fannie Mae's respective portfolios of mortgages and Mortgage-Backed Securities, and the purchase agreements entered into by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae provide that the maximum size of their portfolios of these assets must decrease by a specified percentage each year. On June 16, 2010, FHFA ordered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's stock de-listed from the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE") after the price of common stock in Fannie Mae fell below the NYSE minimum average closing price of $1 for more than 30 days.

The FHFA and the White House have made public statements regarding plans to consider ending the conservatorships of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In the event that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are taken out of conservatorship, it is unclear how the capital structure of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would be constructed and what effects, if any, there may be on Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's creditworthiness and guarantees of certain Mortgage-Backed Securities. It is also unclear whether the Treasury would continue to enforce its rights or perform its obligations under the senior preferred stock programs. Should Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's conservatorship end, there could be an adverse impact on the value of their securities, which could cause losses to a Fund.

<u>Privately Issued Mortgage-Backed Securities</u>. The Funds (may invest in privately issued Mortgage-Backed Securities. Privately issued Mortgage-Backed Securities are generally backed by pools of conventional (i.e., non-government guaranteed or insured) mortgage loans. The seller or servicer of the underlying mortgage obligations will generally make representations and warranties to certificate-holders as to certain characteristics of the mortgage loans and as to the accuracy of certain information furnished to the trustee in respect of each such mortgage loan. Upon a breach of any representation or warranty that materially and adversely affects the interests of the related certificate-holders in a mortgage loan, the seller or servicer generally will be obligated either to cure the breach in all material respects, to repurchase the mortgage loan or, if the related agreement so provides, to substitute in its place a mortgage loan pursuant to the conditions set forth therein. Such a repurchase or substitution obligation may constitute the sole remedy available to the related certificate-holders or the trustee for the material breach of any such representation or warranty by the seller or servicer.

**Mortgage Pass-Through Securities** 

To the extent consistent with their investment policies, the Funds (may invest in both government guaranteed and privately issued mortgage pass-through securities ("Mortgage Pass-Throughs") that are fixed or adjustable rate Mortgage-Backed Securities which provide for monthly payments that are a "pass-through" of the monthly interest and principal payments (including any prepayments) made by the individual borrowers on the pooled mortgage loans, net of any fees or other amounts paid to any guarantor, administrator and/or servicer of the underlying mortgage loans. The seller or servicer of the underlying mortgage obligations will generally make representations and warranties to certificate-holders as to certain characteristics of the mortgage loans and as to the accuracy of certain information furnished to the trustee in respect of each such mortgage loan. Upon a breach of any representation or warranty that materially and adversely affects the interests of the related certificate-holders in a mortgage loan, the seller or servicer generally may be obligated either to cure the breach in all material respects, to repurchase the mortgage loan or, if the related agreement so provides, to substitute in its place a mortgage loan pursuant to the conditions set forth therein. Such a repurchase or substitution obligation may constitute the sole remedy available to the related certificate-holders or the trustee for the material breach of any such representation or warranty by the seller or servicer.

The following discussion describes certain aspects of only a few of the wide variety of structures of Mortgage Pass-Throughs that are available or may be issued.

<u>General Description of Certificates</u>. Mortgage Pass-Throughs may be issued in one or more classes of senior certificates and one or more classes of subordinate certificates. Each such class may bear a different pass-through rate. Generally, each certificate will evidence the specified interest of the holder thereof in the payments of principal or interest or both in respect of the mortgage pool comprising part of the trust fund for such certificates.

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Any class of certificates may also be divided into subclasses entitled to varying amounts of principal and interest. If a REMIC election has been made, certificates of such subclasses may be entitled to payments on the basis of a stated principal balance and stated interest rate, and payments among different subclasses may be made on a sequential, concurrent, pro rata or disproportionate basis, or any combination thereof. The stated interest rate on any such subclass of certificates may be a fixed rate or one which varies in direct or inverse relationship to an objective interest index.

Generally, each registered holder of a certificate will be entitled to receive its pro rata share of monthly distributions of all or a portion of principal of the underlying mortgage loans or of interest on the principal balances thereof, which accrues at the applicable mortgage pass-through rate, or both. The difference between the mortgage interest rate and the related mortgage pass-through rate (less the amount, if any, of retained yield) with respect to each mortgage loan will generally be paid to the servicer as a servicing fee. Because certain adjustable rate mortgage loans included in a mortgage pool may provide for deferred interest (i.e., negative amortization), the amount of interest actually paid by a mortgagor in any month may be less than the amount of interest accrued on the outstanding principal balance of the related mortgage loan during the relevant period at the applicable mortgage interest rate. In such event, the amount of interest that is treated as deferred interest will generally be added to the principal balance of the related mortgage loan and will be distributed pro rata to certificate-holders as principal of such mortgage loan when paid by the mortgagor in subsequent monthly payments or at maturity.

<u>Ratings</u>. The ratings assigned by a rating organization to Mortgage Pass-Throughs generally address the likelihood of the receipt of distributions on the underlying mortgage loans by the related certificate-holders under the agreements pursuant to which such certificates are issued. A rating organization's ratings normally take into consideration the credit quality of the related mortgage pool, including any credit support providers, structural and legal aspects associated with such certificates, and the extent to which the payment stream on such mortgage pool is adequate to make payments required by such certificates. A rating organization's ratings on such certificates do not, however, constitute a statement regarding frequency of prepayments on the related mortgage loans. In addition, the rating assigned by a rating organization to a certificate may not address the possibility that, in the event of the insolvency of the issuer of certificates where a subordinated interest was retained, the issuance and sale of the senior certificates may be recharacterized as a financing and, as a result of such recharacterization, payments on such certificates may be affected. A rating organization may downgrade or withdraw a rating assigned by it to any Mortgage Pass-Through at any time, and no assurance can be made that any ratings on any Mortgage Pass-Throughs included in a Fund will be maintained, or that if such ratings are assigned, they will not be downgraded or withdrawn by the assigning rating organization.

In the past, rating agencies have placed on credit watch or downgraded the ratings previously assigned to a large number of mortgage-backed securities (which may include certain of the Mortgage-Backed Securities in which a Fund may have invested or may in the future be invested), and may continue to do so in the future. In the event that any Mortgage-Backed Security held by a Fund is placed on credit watch or downgraded, the value of such Mortgage-Backed Security may decline and the Fund may consequently experience losses in respect of such Mortgage-Backed Security.

<u>Subordination; Shifting of Interest; Reserve Fund</u>. In order to achieve ratings on one or more classes of Mortgage Pass-Throughs, one or more classes of certificates may be subordinate certificates which provide that the rights of the subordinate certificate-holders to receive any or a specified portion of distributions with respect to the underlying mortgage loans may be subordinated to the rights of the senior certificate holders. If so structured, the subordination feature may be enhanced by distributing to the senior certificate-holders on certain distribution dates, as payment of principal, a specified percentage (which generally declines over time) of all principal payments received during the preceding prepayment period ("shifting interest credit enhancement"). This will have the effect of accelerating the amortization of the senior certificates while increasing the interest in the trust fund evidenced by the subordinate certificates. Increasing the interest of the subordinate certificates relative to that of the senior certificates is intended to preserve the availability of the subordination provided by the subordinate certificates. In addition, because the senior certificate-holders in a shifting interest credit enhancement structure are entitled to receive a percentage of principal prepayments which is greater than their proportionate interest in the trust fund, the rate of principal prepayments on the mortgage loans may have an even greater effect on the rate of principal payments and the amount of interest payments on, and the yield to maturity of, the senior certificates.

In addition to providing for a preferential right of the senior certificate-holders to receive current distributions from the mortgage pool, a reserve fund may be established relating to such certificates (the "Reserve Fund"). The Reserve Fund may be created with an initial cash deposit by the originator or servicer and augmented by the retention of distributions otherwise available to the subordinate certificate-holders or by excess servicing fees until the Reserve Fund reaches a specified amount.

The subordination feature, and any Reserve Fund, are intended to enhance the likelihood of timely receipt by senior certificate-holders of the full amount of scheduled monthly payments of principal and interest due to them and will protect the senior certificate-holders against certain losses; however, in certain circumstances the Reserve Fund could be depleted and temporary shortfalls could result. In the event that the Reserve Fund is depleted before the subordinated amount is reduced to zero, senior certificate-holders will nevertheless have a preferential right to receive

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current distributions from the mortgage pool to the extent of the then outstanding subordinated amount. Unless otherwise specified, until the subordinated amount is reduced to zero, on any distribution date any amount otherwise distributable to the subordinate certificates or, to the extent specified, in the Reserve Fund will generally be used to offset the amount of any losses realized with respect to the mortgage loans ("Realized Losses"). Realized Losses remaining after application of such amounts will generally be applied to reduce the ownership interest of the subordinate certificates in the mortgage pool. If the subordinated amount has been reduced to zero, Realized Losses generally will be allocated pro rata among all certificate-holders in proportion to their respective outstanding interests in the mortgage pool.

<u>Alternative Credit Enhancement</u>. As an alternative, or in addition to the credit enhancement afforded by subordination, credit enhancement for Mortgage Pass-Throughs may be provided through bond insurers, or at the mortgage loan-level through mortgage insurance, hazard insurance, or through the deposit of cash, certificates of deposit, letters of credit, a limited guaranty or by such other methods as are acceptable to a rating agency. In certain circumstances, such as where credit enhancement is provided by bond insurers, guarantees or letters of credit, the security is subject to credit risk because of its exposure to the credit risk of an external credit enhancement provider.

<u>Voluntary Advances</u>. Generally, in the event of delinquencies in payments on the mortgage loans underlying the Mortgage Pass-Throughs, the servicer may agree to make advances of cash for the benefit of certificate-holders, but generally will do so only to the extent that it determines such voluntary advances will be recoverable from future payments and collections on the mortgage loans or otherwise.

<u>Optional Termination</u>. Generally, the servicer may, at its option with respect to any certificates, repurchase all of the underlying mortgage loans remaining outstanding at such time if the aggregate outstanding principal balance of such mortgage loans is less than a specified percentage (generally 5-10%) of the aggregate outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loans as of the cut-off date specified with respect to such series.

<u>Multiple Class</u> <u>Mortgage-Backed Securities and Collateralized Mortgage Obligations</u>. Each Fund may invest in multiple class securities including collateralized mortgage obligations ("CMOs") and REMIC Certificates. These securities may be issued by U.S. Government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises such as Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac or by trusts formed by private originators of, or investors in, mortgage loans, including savings and loan associations, mortgage bankers, commercial banks, insurance companies, investment banks and special purpose subsidiaries of the foregoing. In general, CMOs are debt obligations of a legal entity that are collateralized by, and multiple class Mortgage-Backed Securities represent direct ownership interests in, a pool of mortgage loans or Mortgage-Backed Securities the payments on which are used to make payments on the CMOs or multiple class Mortgage-Backed Securities.

Fannie Mae REMIC Certificates are issued and guaranteed as to timely distribution of principal and interest by Fannie Mae. In addition, Fannie Mae will be obligated to distribute the principal balance of each class of REMIC Certificates in full, whether or not sufficient funds are otherwise available.

Freddie Mac guarantees the timely payment of interest on Freddie Mac REMIC Certificates and also guarantees the payment of principal as payments are required to be made on the underlying mortgage participation certificates ("PCs"). PCs represent undivided interests in specified level payment, residential mortgages or participations therein purchased by Freddie Mac and placed in a PC pool. With respect to principal payments on PCs, Freddie Mac generally guarantees ultimate collection of all principal of the related mortgage loans without offset or deduction but the receipt of the required payments may be delayed. Freddie Mac also guarantees timely payment of principal of certain PCs.

CMOs and guaranteed REMIC Certificates issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are types of multiple class Mortgage-Backed Securities. The REMIC Certificates represent beneficial ownership interests in a REMIC trust, generally consisting of mortgage loans or Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or Ginnie Mae guaranteed Mortgage-Backed Securities (the "Mortgage Assets"). The obligations of Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac under their respective guaranty of the REMIC Certificates are obligations solely of Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, respectively. See "Certain Additional Information with Respect to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae."

CMOs and REMIC Certificates are issued in multiple classes. Each class of CMOs or REMIC Certificates, often referred to as a "tranche," is issued at a specific adjustable or fixed interest rate and must be fully retired no later than its final distribution date. Principal prepayments on the mortgage loans or the Mortgage Assets underlying the CMOs or REMIC Certificates may cause some or all of the classes of CMOs or REMIC Certificates to be retired substantially earlier than their final distribution dates. Generally, interest is paid or accrues on all classes of CMOs or REMIC Certificates on a monthly basis.

The principal of and interest on the Mortgage Assets may be allocated among the several classes of CMOs or REMIC Certificates in various ways. In certain structures (known as "sequential pay" CMOs or REMIC Certificates), payments of principal, including any principal prepayments, on the Mortgage Assets generally are applied to the classes of CMOs or REMIC Certificates in the order of their respective final distribution dates. Thus, no payment of principal will be made on any class of sequential pay CMOs or REMIC Certificates until all other classes having an earlier final distribution date have been paid in full.

Additional structures of CMOs and REMIC Certificates include, among others, "parallel pay" CMOs and REMIC Certificates. Parallel pay CMOs or REMIC Certificates are those which are structured to apply principal payments and prepayments of the Mortgage Assets to two or more classes concurrently on a proportionate or disproportionate basis. These simultaneous payments are taken into account in calculating the final distribution date of each class.

A wide variety of REMIC Certificates may be issued in parallel pay or sequential pay structures. These securities include accrual certificates (also known as "Z-Bonds"), which only accrue interest at a specified rate until all other certificates having an earlier final distribution date have been retired and are converted thereafter to an interest-paying security, and planned amortization class ("PAC") certificates, which are parallel pay REMIC Certificates that generally require that specified amounts of principal be applied on each payment date to one or more classes or REMIC Certificates (the "PAC Certificates"), even though all other principal payments and prepayments of the Mortgage Assets are then required to

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be applied to one or more other classes of the PAC Certificates. The scheduled principal payments for the PAC Certificates generally have the highest priority on each payment date after interest due has been paid to all classes entitled to receive interest currently. Shortfalls, if any, are added to the amount payable on the next payment date. The PAC Certificate payment schedule is taken into account in calculating the final distribution date of each class of PAC. In order to create PAC tranches, one or more tranches generally must be created that absorb most of the volatility in the underlying mortgage assets. These tranches tend to have market prices and yields that are much more volatile than other PAC classes.

<u>Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities</u>. Commercial mortgage-backed securities ("CMBS") are a type of Mortgage Pass-Through that are primarily backed by a pool of commercial mortgage loans. The commercial mortgage loans are, in turn, generally secured by commercial mortgaged properties (such as office properties, retail properties, hospitality properties, industrial properties, healthcare related properties or other types of income producing real property). CMBS generally entitle the holders thereof to receive payments that depend primarily on the cash flow from a specified pool of commercial or multifamily mortgage loans. CMBS will be affected by payments, defaults, delinquencies and losses on the underlying mortgage loans. The underlying mortgage loans generally are secured by income producing properties such as office properties, retail properties, multifamily properties, manufactured housing, hospitality properties, industrial properties and self-storage properties. Because issuers of CMBS have no significant assets other than the underlying commercial real estate loans and because of the significant credit risks inherent in the underlying collateral, credit risk is a correspondingly important consideration with respect to the related CMBS. Certain of the mortgage loans underlying CMBS constituting part of the collateral interests may be delinquent, in default or in foreclosure.

Commercial real estate lending may expose a lender (and the related Mortgage-Backed Security) to a greater risk of loss than certain other forms of lending because it typically involves making larger loans to single borrowers or groups of related borrowers. In addition, in the case of certain commercial mortgage loans, repayment of loans secured by commercial and multifamily properties depends upon the ability of the related real estate project to generate income sufficient to pay debt service, operating expenses and leasing commissions and to make necessary repairs, tenant improvements and capital improvements, and in the case of loans that do not fully amortize over their terms, to retain sufficient value to permit the borrower to pay off the loan at maturity through a sale or refinancing of the mortgaged property. The net operating income from and value of any commercial property is subject to various risks, including changes in general or local economic conditions and/or specific industry segments; declines in real estate values; declines in rental or occupancy rates; increases in interest rates, real estate tax rates and other operating expenses; changes in governmental rules, regulations and fiscal policies; acts of God; terrorist threats and attacks and social unrest and civil disturbances. In addition, certain of the mortgaged properties securing the pools of commercial mortgage loans underlying CMBS may have a higher degree of geographic concentration in a few states or regions. The values of, and income generated by, CMBS may be adversely affected by changing interest rates and other developments impacting the commercial real estate market, such as population shifts and other demographic changes, increasing vacancies (potentially for extended periods) and reduced demand for commercial and office space as well as maintenance or tenant improvement costs and costs to convert properties for other uses. These developments could result from, among other things, changing tastes and preferences (such as for remote work arrangements) as well as cultural, technological, global or local economic and market developments. In addition, changing interest rate environments and associated changes in lending standards and higher refinancing rates may adversely affect the commercial real estate and CMBS markets. The occurrence of any of the foregoing developments would likely increase default risk for the properties and loans underlying these investments as well as impact the value of, and income generated by, these investments. Furthermore, any deterioration in the real estate market or economy or adverse events in such states or regions, may increase the rate of delinquency and default experience (and as a consequence, losses) with respect to mortgage loans related to properties in such state or region. Pools of mortgaged properties securing the commercial mortgage loans underlying CMBS may also have a higher degree of concentration in certain types of commercial properties. Accordingly, such pools of mortgage loans represent higher exposure to risks particular to those types of commercial properties. Certain pools of commercial mortgage loans underlying CMBS consist of a fewer number of mortgage loans with outstanding balances that are larger than average. If a mortgage pool includes mortgage loans with larger than average balances, any realized losses on such mortgage loans could be more severe, relative to the size of the pool, than would be the case if the aggregate balance of the pool were distributed among a larger number of mortgage loans. Certain borrowers or affiliates thereof relating to certain of the commercial mortgage loans underlying CMBS may have had a history of bankruptcy. Certain mortgaged properties securing the commercial mortgage loans underlying CMBS may have been exposed to environmental conditions or circumstances. The ratings in respect of certain of the CMBS comprising the Mortgage-Backed Securities may have been withdrawn, reduced or placed on credit watch since issuance. In addition, losses and/or appraisal reductions may be allocated to certain of such CMBS and certain of the collateral or the assets underlying such collateral may be delinquent and/or may default from time to time. These developments could also result in reduced liquidity for CMBS and other real estate-related investments.

CMBS held by a Fund may be subordinated to one or more other classes of securities of the same series for purposes of, among other things, establishing payment priorities and offsetting losses and other shortfalls with respect to the related underlying mortgage loans. Realized losses in respect of the mortgage loans included in the CMBS pool and trust expenses generally will be allocated to the most subordinated class of securities of the related series. Accordingly, to the extent any CMBS is or becomes the most subordinated class of securities of the related series, any delinquency or default on any underlying mortgage loan may result in shortfalls, realized loss allocations or extensions of its weighted average life and will have a more immediate and disproportionate effect on the related CMBS than on a related more senior class of CMBS of the same series. Further, even if a class is not the most subordinate class of securities, there can be no assurance that the subordination offered to such class will be sufficient on any date to offset all losses or expenses incurred by the underlying trust. CMBS are typically not guaranteed or insured, and distributions on such CMBS generally will depend solely upon the amount and timing of payments and other collections on the related underlying commercial mortgage loans.

<u>Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities</u>. The Funds may invest in stripped mortgage-backed securities ("SMBS"), which are derivative multiclass mortgage securities, issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities or non-governmental originators. SMBS are usually structured with two different classes: one that receives substantially all of the interest payments (the interest-only, or "IO" and/or the high coupon rate with relatively low principal amount, or "IOette"), and the other that receives substantially all of the principal payments (the principal-only, or "PO"), from a pool of mortgage loans.

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Certain SMBS may not be readily marketable. The market value of POs generally is unusually volatile in response to changes in interest rates. The yields on IOs and IOettes are generally higher than prevailing market yields on other Mortgage-Backed Securities because their cash flow patterns are more volatile and there is a greater risk that the initial investment will not be fully recouped. A Fund's investments in SMBS may require the Fund to sell certain of its portfolio securities to generate sufficient cash to satisfy certain income distribution requirements. These and other factors discussed in the section above, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in SMBS.

**Municipal Securities** 

The Funds may invest in Municipal Securities, the interest on which is exempt from regular federal income tax (i.e., excluded from gross income for federal income tax purposes but not necessarily exempt from the federal alternative minimum tax or from the income taxes of any state or local government). In addition, Municipal Securities include participation interests in such securities the interest on which is, in the opinion of bond counsel or counsel selected by the Investment Adviser, excluded from gross income for federal income tax purposes. The Funds may revise their definition of Municipal Securities in the future to include other types of securities that currently exist, the interest on which is or will be, in the opinion of such counsel, excluded from gross income for federal income tax purposes, provided that investing in such securities is consistent with each Fund's investment objective and policies. The Funds may also invest in taxable Municipal Securities.

The yields and market values of municipal securities are determined primarily by the general level of interest rates, the creditworthiness of the issuers of municipal securities and economic and political conditions affecting such issuers. The yields and market prices of municipal securities may be adversely affected by changes in tax rates and policies, which may have less effect on the market for taxable fixed income securities. Moreover, certain types of municipal securities, such as housing revenue bonds, involve prepayment risks which could affect the yield on such securities. The credit rating assigned to municipal securities may reflect the existence of guarantees, letters of credit or other credit enhancement features available to the issuers or holders of such municipal securities.

Dividends paid by the Funds that are derived from interest paid on both tax exempt and taxable Municipal Securities will be taxable to the Funds' shareholders.

Municipal Securities are often issued to obtain funds for various public purposes including refunding outstanding obligations, obtaining funds for general operating expenses, and obtaining funds to lend to other public institutions and facilities. Municipal Securities also include certain "private activity bonds" or industrial development bonds, which are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to provide financing aid to acquire sites or construct or equip facilities within a municipality for privately or publicly owned corporations.

Investments in municipal securities are subject to the risk that the issuer could default on its obligations. Such a default could result from the inadequacy of the sources or revenues from which interest and principal payments are to be made, including property tax collections, sales tax revenue, income tax revenue and local, state and federal government funding, or the assets collateralizing such obligations. Municipal securities and issuers of municipal securities may be more susceptible to downgrade, default, and bankruptcy as a result of recent periods of economic stress. Revenue bonds, including private activity bonds, are backed only by specific assets or revenue sources and not by the full faith and credit of the governmental issuer.

The two principal classifications of Municipal Securities are "general obligations" and "revenue obligations." General obligations are secured by the issuer's pledge of its full faith and credit for the payment of principal and interest, although the characteristics and enforcement of general obligations may vary according to the law applicable to the particular issuer. Revenue obligations, which include, but are not limited to, private activity bonds, resource recovery bonds, certificates of participation and certain municipal notes, are not backed by the credit and taxing authority of the issuer, and are payable solely from the revenues derived from a particular facility or class of facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a special excise or other specific revenue source. Nevertheless, the obligations of the issuer of a revenue obligation may be backed by a letter of credit, guarantee or insurance. General obligations and revenue obligations may be issued in a variety of forms, including commercial paper, fixed, variable and floating rate securities, tender option bonds, auction rate bonds, zero coupon bonds, deferred interest bonds and capital appreciation bonds. In addition to general obligations and revenue obligations, there is a variety of hybrid and special types of Municipal Securities. There are also numerous differences in the security of Municipal Securities both within and between these two principal classifications.

The Income ETF may own a large percentage of any one general assessment bond issuance. Therefore, the Funds may be adversely impacted if the issuing municipality fails to pay principal and/or interest on those bonds.

For the purpose of applying a Fund's investment restrictions, the identification of the issuer of a Municipal Security which is not a general obligation is made by the Investment Adviser based on the characteristics of the Municipal Security, the most important of which is the source of funds for the payment of principal and interest on such securities.

An entire issue of Municipal Securities may be purchased by one or a small number of institutional investors, including one or more Funds. Thus, the issue may not be said to be publicly offered. Unlike some securities that are not publicly offered, a secondary market exists for many Municipal Securities that were not publicly offered initially and such securities may be readily marketable.

The obligations of the issuer to pay the principal of and interest on a Municipal Security are subject to the provisions of bankruptcy, insolvency and other laws affecting the rights and remedies of creditors, such as the Federal Bankruptcy Code, and laws, if any, that may be enacted by Congress or state legislatures extending the time for payment of principal or interest or imposing other constraints upon the enforcement of such obligations. There is also the possibility that, as a result of litigation or other conditions, the power or ability of the issuer to pay when due principal of or interest on a Municipal Security may be materially affected.

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From time to time, proposals have been introduced before Congress for the purpose of restricting or eliminating the federal income tax exemption for interest on Municipal Securities. For example, under the Tax Reform Act of 1986, interest on certain private activity bonds must be included in an investor's federal alternative minimum taxable income. The Trust cannot predict what legislation, if any, may be proposed in the future in Congress as regards the federal income tax status of interest on Municipal Securities or which proposals, if any, might be enacted. Such proposals, if enacted, might materially and adversely affect the tax treatment of Municipal Securities and the Funds' liquidity and value.

**Special Risk Considerations Relating to New York Municipal Obligations.** The following section provides only a brief summary of the complex factors affecting the financial condition of New York ("New York" or, as used in this section, the "State"), that could, in turn, adversely affect a Fund's investments in New York's municipal obligations. This information is based on information publicly available from State authorities and other sources available prior to March 18, 2026, and has not been independently verified. The economic and financial condition of New York may be affected by various financial, social, economic, public health, environmental and political factors. For example, the securities industry is more central to New York's economy than to the national economy, therefore any significant decline in stock market performance could adversely affect New York's income and employment levels. Furthermore, such financial, social, economic, public health, environmental and political factors can be very complex, may vary from year to year and can be the result of actions taken not only by New York and its agencies and instrumentalities, but also by entities, such as the federal government, that are not under the control of New York. Fund performance is directly tied to the ability of issuers in New York to continue to make principal and interest payments on their securities, which in turn depends on economic and other conditions within New York. In addition, economic and other conditions within New York may affect the State's localities, and their political subdivisions, instrumentalities, or authorities to the extent that such issuers are reliant upon appropriations from the State. There can be no assurances that New York will not face economic stress or that the economic environment will not worsen, which could adversely impact New York's financial condition and the ability of issuers of New York municipal securities to satisfy the obligations on their outstanding debt.

New York was adversely impacted by the health-related and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Efforts to respond to and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 impacted the New York and national economies and contributed to volatility in the markets. Prolonged inflationary pressures and changing interest rates could adversely affect New York's economy. It is not possible to predict the long-term economic environment as it relates to New York. A failure by New York to meet its debt obligations could lead to a significant decline in the value, liquidity and marketability of fund investments.

New York's unemployment rate was 4.5% as of November 2025.

The budget for fiscal year 2025-26 ("2025-26 Enacted Budget") was adopted in May 2025, and in October 2025, a mid-year update revised financial projections for fiscal year 2025-26. The mid-year update estimated that General Fund receipts were expected to total $117.7 billion in fiscal year 2025-26, a decrease of $1.6 billion from fiscal year 2024-2025. General Fund disbursements, including transfers to other funds, were expected to total $126.5 billion in fiscal year 2025-26, an increase of approximately $17.8 billion from fiscal year 2024-2025. Due to these and other revisions, the Division of Budget estimated that the General Fund would end fiscal year 2025-26 with a balance of $48.1 billion due to the projected opening General Fund balance of approximately $57.9 billion.

The State is a party to numerous legal proceedings, many of which normally occur in governmental operations and which, if decided against the State, might require the State to make significant future expenditures or impair future revenue sources. Because of the prospective nature of these proceedings, it is not presently possible to predict the ultimate outcome of such proceedings, estimate the potential impact on the ability of the State to make debt service payments, or determine what impact, if any, such proceedings may have on a Fund's investments in New York Municipal Obligations.

Constitutional and statutory amendments as well as budget developments may affect the ability of New York issuers to pay interest and principal on their obligations. The overall effect may depend upon whether a particular New York tax-exempt security is a general or limited obligation bond. It is possible that measures affecting the taxing or spending authority of New York or its political subdivisions may be approved or enacted in the future. As of March 31, 2025, the State had approximately $55.9 billion in state-supported debt, as defined under State law, outstanding.

New York City accounts for a significant portion of New York's population and personal income, and New York City's financial health could have a substantial impact on New York in many ways. New York City continues to require substantial assistance from New York and depends, in part, on state aid to be able to balance its budget and meet its obligations. If New York City is unable to generate revenues sufficient to fund its operations, New York City may seek to obtain additional resources from the state of New York, which may cause the state of New York to adjust its current or future funding priorities. New York could be negatively affected by adverse economic circumstances in New York City.

The ratings assigned to New York's general obligation bonds by Moody's, S&P and Fitch as of March 18, 2026 were Aa1, AA+, and AA+, respectively. It should be recognized that these ratings are not an absolute standard of quality, but rather general indicators. Such ratings reflect only the view of the originating rating agencies, from which an explanation of the significance of such ratings may be obtained. There is no assurance that these ratings will continue for any given period of time or that they will not be revised or withdrawn entirely by the rating agency if, in the judgment of such rating agency, circumstances so warrant. A downward revision or withdrawal of any such rating may have an adverse effect on the market prices of the securities issued by New York, which would in turn negatively impact the performance of a Fund.

<u>Municipal Leases, Certificates of Participation and Other Participation Interests</u>. The Funds may invest in municipal leases, certificates of participation and other participation interests. A municipal lease is an obligation in the form of a lease or installment purchase which is issued by a state or local government to acquire equipment and facilities. Income from such obligations is generally exempt from state and local taxes in the state of issuance. Municipal leases frequently involve special risks not normally associated with general obligations or revenue bonds. Leases and installment purchase or conditional sale contracts (which normally provide for title to the leased asset to pass eventually to the governmental issuer)

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have evolved as a means for governmental issuers to acquire property and equipment without meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements for the issuance of debt. The debt issuance limitations are deemed to be inapplicable because of the inclusion in many leases or contracts of "non-appropriation" clauses that relieve the governmental issuer of any obligation to make future payments under the lease or contract unless money is appropriated for such purpose by the appropriate legislative body on a yearly or other periodic basis. In addition, such leases or contracts may be subject to the temporary abatement of payments in the event the issuer is prevented from maintaining occupancy of the leased premises or utilizing the leased equipment. Although the obligations may be secured by the leased equipment or facilities, the disposition of the property in the event of non-appropriation or foreclosure might prove difficult, time consuming and costly, and result in a delay in recovering or the failure to fully recover a Fund's original investment. To the extent that a Fund invests in unrated municipal leases or participates in such leases, the credit quality rating and risk of cancellation of such unrated leases will be monitored on an ongoing basis.

Certificates of participation represent undivided interests in municipal leases, installment purchase agreements or other instruments. The certificates are typically issued by a trust or other entity which has received an assignment of the payments to be made by the state or political subdivision under such leases or installment purchase agreements.

The Funds may purchase participations in Municipal Securities held by a commercial bank or other financial institution. Such participations provide a Fund with the right to a pro rata undivided interest in the underlying Municipal Securities. In addition, such participations generally provide a Fund with the right to demand payment, on not more than seven days' notice, of all or any part of such Fund's participation interest in the underlying Municipal Securities, plus accrued interest.

<u>Municipal Notes</u>. Municipal Securities in the form of notes generally are used to provide for short-term capital needs, in anticipation of an issuer's receipt of other revenues or financing, and typically have maturities of up to three years. Such instruments may include tax anticipation notes, revenue anticipation notes, bond anticipation notes, tax and revenue anticipation notes and construction loan notes. Tax anticipation notes are issued to finance the working capital needs of governments. Generally, they are issued in anticipation of various tax revenues, such as income, sales, property, use and business taxes, and are payable from these specific future taxes. Revenue anticipation notes are issued in expectation of receipt of other kinds of revenue, such as federal revenues available under federal revenue sharing programs. Bond anticipation notes are issued to provide interim financing until long-term bond financing can be arranged. In most cases, the long-term bonds then provide the funds needed for repayment of the notes. Tax and revenue anticipation notes combine the funding sources of both tax anticipation notes and revenue anticipation notes. Construction loan notes are sold to provide construction financing. These notes are secured by mortgage notes insured by the FHA; however, the proceeds from the insurance may be less than the economic equivalent of the payment of principal and interest on the mortgage note if there has been a default. The obligations of an issuer of municipal notes are generally secured by the anticipated revenues from taxes, grants or bond financing. An investment in such instruments, however, presents a risk that the anticipated revenues will not be received or that such revenues will be insufficient to satisfy the issuer's payment obligations under the notes or that refinancing will be otherwise unavailable.

<u>Tax Exempt Commercial Paper</u>. Issues of commercial paper typically represent short-term, unsecured, negotiable promissory notes. These obligations are issued by state and local governments and their agencies to finance working capital needs of municipalities or to provide interim construction financing and are paid from general revenues of municipalities or are refinanced with long-term debt. In most cases, tax exempt commercial paper is backed by letters of credit, lending agreements, note repurchase agreements or other credit facility agreements offered by banks or other institutions.

<u>Pre-Refunded Municipal Securities</u>. The principal of and interest on pre-refunded Municipal Securities are no longer paid from the original revenue source for the securities. Instead, the source of such payments is typically an escrow fund consisting of U.S. Government Securities. The assets in the escrow fund are derived from the proceeds of refunding bonds issued by the same issuer as the pre-refunded Municipal Securities. Issuers of Municipal Securities use this advance refunding technique to obtain more favorable terms with respect to securities that are not yet subject to call or redemption by the issuer. For example, advance refunding enables an issuer to refinance debt at lower market interest rates, restructure debt to improve cash flow or eliminate restrictive covenants in the indenture or other governing instrument for the pre-refunded Municipal Securities. However, except for a change in the revenue source from which principal and interest payments are made, the pre-refunded Municipal Securities remain outstanding on their original terms until they mature or are redeemed by the issuer. Pre-refunded Municipal Securities are often purchased at a price which represents a premium over their face value.

<u>Private Activity Bonds</u>. The Funds may each invest in certain types of Municipal Securities, generally referred to as industrial development bonds (and referred to under current tax law as private activity bonds), which are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to obtain funds to provide privately operated housing facilities, airport, mass transit or port facilities, sewage disposal, solid waste disposal or hazardous waste treatment or disposal facilities and certain local facilities for water supply, gas or electricity. Other types of industrial development bonds, the proceeds of which are used for the construction, equipment, repair or improvement of privately operated industrial or commercial facilities, may constitute Municipal Securities, although the current federal tax laws place substantial limitations on the size of such issues. A Tax Exempt Fund's distributions of its interest income from private activity bonds may subject certain investors to the federal alternative minimum tax whereas a Fund's distributions of any tax exempt interest it receives from any source will be taxable for regular federal income tax purposes.

<u>Tender Option Bonds</u>. A tender option bond is a Municipal Security (generally held pursuant to a custodial arrangement) having a relatively long maturity and bearing interest at a fixed rate substantially higher than prevailing short-term, tax exempt rates. The bond is typically issued with the agreement of a third party, such as a bank, broker-dealer or other financial institution, which grants the security holders the option, at periodic intervals, to tender their securities to the institution and receive the face value thereof. As consideration for providing the option, the financial institution receives periodic fees equal to the difference between the bond's fixed coupon rate and the rate, as determined by a remarketing or similar agent at or near the commencement of such period, that would cause the securities, coupled with the tender option, to trade at par on the date of such determination. Thus, after payment of this fee, the security holder effectively holds a demand obligation that bears interest at the prevailing short-term, tax exempt rate. However, an institution will not be obligated to accept tendered bonds in the event of certain defaults or a significant downgrade in the credit rating assigned to the issuer of the bond.

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<u>Auction Rate Securities</u>. The Funds may invest in auction rate securities. Auction rate securities include auction rate Municipal Securities and auction rate preferred securities issued by closed-end investment companies that invest primarily in Municipal Securities (collectively, "auction rate securities"). Provided that the auction mechanism is successful, auction rate securities usually permit the holder to sell the securities in an auction at par value at specified intervals. The dividend is reset by "Dutch" auction in which bids are made by broker-dealers and other institutions for a certain amount of securities at a specified minimum yield. The dividend rate set by the auction is the lowest interest or dividend rate that covers all securities offered for sale. While this process is designed to permit auction rate securities to be traded at par value, there is some risk that an auction will fail due to insufficient demand for the securities. In certain market environments, auction failures may be more prevalent, which may adversely affect the liquidity and price of auction rate securities. Moreover, between auctions, there may be no secondary market for these securities, and sales conducted on a secondary market may not be on terms favorable to the seller. Thus, with respect to liquidity and price stability, auction rate securities may differ substantially from cash equivalents, notwithstanding the frequency of auctions and the credit quality of the security. A Fund will take the time remaining until the next scheduled auction date into account for the purpose of determining the auction rate securities' duration.

Dividends on auction rate preferred securities issued by a closed-end fund may be designated as exempt from federal income tax to the extent they are attributable to exempt income earned by the fund on the securities in its portfolio and distributed to holders of the preferred securities, provided that the preferred securities are treated as equity securities for federal income tax purposes and the closed-end fund complies with certain tests under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code").

A Fund's investments in auction rate securities of closed-end funds are subject to the limitations prescribed by the Act and certain state securities regulations. The Funds will indirectly bear their proportionate share of any management and other fees paid by such closed-end funds in addition to the advisory fees payable directly by the Funds.

<u>Insurance</u>. The Funds may invest in "insured" tax exempt Municipal Securities. Insured Municipal Securities are securities for which scheduled payments of interest and principal are guaranteed by a private (non-governmental) insurance company. The insurance only entitles a Fund to receive the face or par value of the securities held by the Fund. The insurance does not guarantee the market value of the Municipal Securities or the value of the Shares of a Fund.

The Funds may utilize new issue or secondary market insurance. A new issue insurance policy is purchased by a bond issuer who wishes to increase the credit rating of a security. By paying a premium and meeting the insurer's underwriting standards, the bond issuer is able to obtain a high credit rating (usually, Aaa from Moody's or AAA from Standard & Poor's) for the issued security. Such insurance is likely to increase the purchase price and resale value of the security. New issue insurance policies generally are non-cancelable and continue in force as long as the bonds are outstanding.

A secondary market insurance policy is purchased by an investor (such as a Fund) subsequent to a bond's original issuance and generally insures a particular bond for the remainder of its term. The Funds may purchase bonds which have already been insured under a secondary market insurance policy by a prior investor, or the Funds may directly purchase such a policy from insurers for bonds which are currently uninsured.

An insured Municipal Security acquired by a Fund will typically be covered by only one of the above types of policies. All of the insurance policies used by a Fund will be obtained only from insurance companies rated, at the time of purchase, A by Moody's or Standard & Poor's, or if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable quality. The Municipal Securities invested in by the Income ETF will not be subject to this requirement.

<u>Standby Commitments</u>. In order to enhance the liquidity of Municipal Securities, the Income ETF may acquire the right to sell a security to another party at a guaranteed price and date. Such a right to resell may be referred to as a "standby commitment" or liquidity put, depending on its characteristics. The aggregate price which a Fund pays for securities with standby commitments may be higher than the price which otherwise would be paid for the securities. Standby commitments may not be available or may not be available on satisfactory terms.

Standby commitments may involve letters of credit issued by domestic or foreign banks supporting the other party's ability to purchase the security from a Fund. The right to sell may be exercisable on demand or at specified intervals, and may form part of a security or be acquired separately by a Fund. In considering whether a security meets a Fund's quality standards, the particular Fund will look to the creditworthiness of the party providing the Fund with the right to sell as well as the quality of the security itself.

The Funds value Municipal Securities which are subject to standby commitments at amortized cost. The exercise price of the standby commitments is expected to approximate such amortized cost. No value is assigned to the standby commitments for purposes of determining a Fund's NAV. The cost of a standby commitment is carried as unrealized depreciation from the time of purchase until it is exercised or expires. Because the value of a standby commitment is dependent on the ability of the standby commitment writer to meet its obligation to repurchase, a Fund's policy is to enter into standby commitment transactions only with banks, brokers or dealers which present a minimal risk of default.

The Investment Adviser understands that the IRS has issued a favorable revenue ruling to the effect that, under specified circumstances, a registered investment company will be the owner of tax exempt municipal obligations acquired subject to a put option. The IRS has subsequently announced that it will not ordinarily issue advance ruling letters as to the identity of the true owner of property in cases involving the sale of securities or participation interests therein if the purchaser has the right to cause the security, or the participation interest therein, to be purchased by either the seller or a third party. The Funds intend to take the position that they are the owner of any Municipal Securities acquired subject to a standby commitment or acquired or held with certain other types of put rights and that tax exempt interest earned with respect to such Municipal Securities will be tax exempt in their hands. There is no assurance that standby commitments will be available to the Funds nor have the Funds assumed that such commitments would continue to be available under all market conditions.

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<u>Call Risk and Reinvestment Risk</u>. Municipal Securities may include "call" provisions which permit the issuers of such securities, at any time or after a specified period, to redeem the securities prior to their stated maturity. In the event that Municipal Securities held in a Fund's portfolio are called prior to the maturity, the Fund will be required to reinvest the proceeds on such securities at an earlier date and may be able to do so only at lower yields, thereby reducing the Fund's return on its portfolio securities.

<u>Tobacco Settlement Revenue Bonds</u>. The Bond Fund may invest a portion of its assets in tobacco settlement revenue bonds. Tobacco settlement revenue bonds are municipal obligations that are backed entirely by expected revenues to be derived from lawsuits involving tobacco related deaths and illnesses which were settled between certain states and American tobacco companies. Tobacco settlement revenue bonds are secured by an issuing state's proportionate share in the Master Settlement Agreement ("MSA"). The MSA is an agreement, reached out of court in November 1998 between 46 states and nearly all of the U.S. tobacco manufacturers. The MSA provides for annual payments in perpetuity by the manufacturers to the states in exchange for releasing all claims against the manufacturers and a pledge of no further litigation. Tobacco manufacturers pay into a master escrow trust based on their market share, and each state receives a fixed percentage of the payment as set forth in the MSA. A number of states have securitized the future flow of those payments by selling bonds pursuant to indentures or through distinct governmental entities created for such purpose. The principal and interest payments on the bonds are backed by the future revenue flow related to the MSA. Annual payments on the bonds, and thus risk to the Fund, are highly dependent on the receipt of future settlement payments to the state or its governmental entity.

The actual amount of future settlement payments is further dependent on many factors, including, but not limited to, annual domestic cigarette shipments, reduced cigarette consumption, increased taxes on cigarettes, inflation, financial capability of tobacco companies, continuing litigation and the possibility of tobacco manufacturer bankruptcy. The initial and annual payments made by the tobacco companies will be adjusted based on a number of factors, the most important of which is domestic cigarette consumption. If the volume of cigarettes shipped in the U.S. by manufacturers participating in the settlement decreases significantly, payments due from them will also decrease. Demand for cigarettes in the U.S. could continue to decline due to price increases needed to recoup the cost of payments by tobacco companies. Demand could also be affected by: anti-smoking campaigns, tax increases, reduced advertising, enforcement of laws prohibiting sales to minors; elimination of certain sales venues such as vending machines; and the spread of local ordinances restricting smoking in public places. As a result, payments made by tobacco manufacturers could be negatively impacted if the decrease in tobacco consumption is significantly greater than the forecasted decline. A market share loss by the MSA companies to non-MSA participating tobacco manufacturers would cause a downward adjustment in the payment amounts. A participating manufacturer filing for bankruptcy also could cause delays or reductions in bond payments. The MSA itself has been subject to legal challenges and has, to date, withstood those challenges.

**Options on Securities and Securities Indices and Foreign Currencies** 

<u>Writing and Purchasing Call and Put Options on Securities and Securities Indices</u>. Each Fund may write (sell) call and put options on any securities in which it may invest or any securities index consisting of securities in which it may invest. A Fund may write such options on securities that are listed on national domestic securities exchanges or foreign securities exchanges or traded in the over-the-counter market. A call option written by a Fund obligates that Fund to sell specified securities to the holder of the option at a specified price if the option is exercised on or before the expiration date. Depending upon the type of call option, the purchaser of a call option either (i) has the right to any appreciation in the value of the security over a fixed price (the "exercise price") on a certain date in the future (the "expiration date") or (ii) has the right to any appreciation in the value of the security over the exercise price at any time prior to the expiration of the option. If the purchaser exercises the option, a Fund pays the purchaser the difference between the price of the security and the exercise price of the option. The premium, the exercise price and the market value of the security determine the gain or loss realized by a Fund as the seller of the call option. A Fund can also repurchase the call option prior to the expiration date, ending its obligation. In this case, the cost of entering into closing purchase transactions will determine the gain or loss realized by the Fund. A Fund's purpose in writing call options is to realize greater income than would be realized on portfolio securities transactions alone. However, a Fund may forego the opportunity to profit from an increase in the market price of the underlying security.

A put option written by a Fund obligates the Fund to purchase specified securities from the option holder at a specified price if the option is exercised on or before the expiration date.

The purpose of writing such options is to generate additional income for the Fund. However, in return for the option premium, each Fund accepts the risk that it may be required to purchase the underlying securities at a price in excess of the securities' market value at the time of purchase.

A Fund may terminate its obligations under an exchange-traded call or put option by purchasing an option identical to the one it has written. Obligations under over-the-counter options may be terminated only by entering into an offsetting transaction with the counterparty to such option. Such purchases are referred to as "closing purchase transactions."

Each Fund may also write (sell) call and put options on any securities index consisting of securities in which it may invest. Options on securities indices are similar to options on securities, except that the exercise of securities index options requires cash settlement payments and does not involve the actual purchase or sale of securities. In addition, securities index options are designed to reflect price fluctuations in a group of securities or segment of the securities market rather than price fluctuations in a single security.

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The writing of options is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The use of options to seek to increase total return involves the risk of loss if the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of fluctuations in securities prices or interest rates. The successful use of options for hedging purposes also depends in part on the ability of the Investment Adviser to predict future price fluctuations and the degree of correlation between the options and securities markets. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of changes in securities prices or determination of the correlation between the securities indices on which options are written and purchased and the securities in a Fund's investment portfolio, the investment performance of the Fund will be less favorable than it would have been in the absence of such options transactions. The writing of options could increase a Fund's portfolio turnover rate and, therefore, associated brokerage commissions or spreads.

Each Fund may also purchase put and call options on any securities in which it may invest or any securities index consisting of securities in which it may invest. In addition, a Fund may enter into closing sale transactions in order to realize gains or minimize losses on options it had purchased.

A Fund may purchase call options in anticipation of an increase, or put options in anticipation of a decrease ("protective puts"), in the market value of securities or other instruments of the type in which it may invest. The purchase of a call option would entitle a Fund, in return for the premium paid, to purchase specified securities or other instruments at a specified price during the option period. A Fund would ordinarily realize a gain on the purchase of a call option if, during the option period, the value of such securities exceeded the sum of the exercise price, the premium paid and transaction costs; otherwise the Fund would realize either no gain or a loss on the purchase of the call option. The purchase of a put option would entitle a Fund, in exchange for the premium paid, to sell specified securities or other instruments at a specified price during the option period. The purchase of protective puts is designed to offset or hedge against a decline in the market value of a Fund's securities or other instruments. Put options may also be purchased by a Fund for the purpose of affirmatively benefiting from a decline in the price of securities or other instruments which it does not own. A Fund would ordinarily realize a gain if, during the option period, the value of the underlying securities or other instruments decreased below the exercise price sufficiently to cover the premium and transaction costs; otherwise the Fund would realize either no gain or a loss on the purchase of the put option. Gains and losses on the purchase of put options may be offset by countervailing changes in the value of the underlying portfolio securities or other instruments.

A Fund may purchase put and call options on securities indices for the same purposes as it may purchase options on securities. Options on securities indices are similar to options on securities, except that the exercise of securities index options requires cash payments and does not involve the actual purchase or sale of securities. In addition, securities index options are designed to reflect price fluctuations in a group of securities or segment of the securities market rather than price fluctuations in a single security.

<u>Writing and Purchasing Call and Put Options on Currency</u>. The Bonds may write put and call options and purchase put and call options on foreign currencies in an attempt to protect against declines in the U.S. dollar value of foreign portfolio securities and against increases in the U.S. dollar cost of foreign securities to be acquired. A Fund may also use options on currency to cross-hedge, which involves writing or purchasing options on one currency to seek to hedge against changes in exchange rates for a different currency with a pattern of correlation. As with other kinds of option transactions, however, the writing of an option on foreign currency will constitute only a partial hedge, up to the amount of the premium received. If an option that a Fund has written is exercised, the Fund could be required to purchase or sell foreign currencies at disadvantageous exchange rates, thereby incurring losses. The purchase of an option on foreign currency may constitute an effective hedge against exchange rate fluctuations; however, in the event of exchange rate movements adverse to a Fund's position, the Fund may forfeit the entire amount of the premium plus related transaction costs. Options on foreign currencies may be traded on U.S. and foreign exchanges or over-the-counter. In addition, the Funds may purchase call options on currency to seek to increase total return.

A currency call option written by a Fund obligates the Fund to sell specified currency to the holder of the option at a specified price if the option is exercised at any time before the expiration date. A currency put option written by a Fund obligates the Fund to purchase specified currency from the option holder at a specified price if the option is exercised at any time before the expiration date. The writing of currency options involves a risk that a Fund will, upon exercise of the option, be required to sell currency subject to a call at a price that is less than the currency's market value or be required to purchase currency subject to a put at a price that exceeds the currency's market value.

A Fund may terminate its obligations under a written call or put option by purchasing an option identical to the one written. Such purchases are referred to as "closing purchase transactions." A Fund may enter into closing sale transactions in order to realize gains or minimize losses on purchased options.

A Fund may purchase call options on foreign currency in anticipation of an increase in the U.S. dollar value of currency in which securities to be acquired by the Fund are denominated or quoted. The purchase of a call option would entitle a Fund, in return for the premium paid, to purchase specified currency at a specified price during the option period. A Fund would ordinarily realize a gain if, during the option period, the value of such currency exceeded the sum of the exercise price, the premium paid and transaction costs; otherwise, the Fund would realize either no gain or a loss on the purchase of the call option.

A Fund may purchase put options in anticipation of a decline in the U.S. dollar value of currency in which securities in its portfolio are denominated or quoted ("protective puts"). The purchase of a put option would entitle the Fund, in exchange for the premium paid, to sell specified currency at a specified price during the option period. The purchase of protective puts is usually designed to offset or hedge against a decline in the U.S. dollar value of a Fund's portfolio securities due to currency exchange rate fluctuations. A Fund would ordinarily realize a gain if, during the option period, the value of the underlying currency decreased below the exercise price sufficiently to more than cover the premium and transaction costs; otherwise, the Fund would realize either no gain or a loss on the purchase of the put option. Gains and losses on the purchase of protective put options would tend to be offset by countervailing changes in the value of the underlying currency.

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In addition to using options for the hedging purposes described above, the Funds may use options on currency to seek to increase total return. These Funds may write (sell) put and call options on any currency in an attempt to realize greater income than would be realized on portfolio securities transactions alone. However, in writing call options for additional income, the Funds may forego the opportunity to profit from an increase in the market value of the underlying currency. Also, when writing put options, the Funds accept, in return for the option premium, the risk that they may be required to purchase the underlying currency at a price in excess of the currency's market value at the time of purchase.

The Funds may purchase call options to seek to increase total return in anticipation of an increase in the market value of a currency. The Funds would ordinarily realize a gain if, during the option period, the value of such currency exceeded the sum of the exercise price, the premium paid and transaction costs. Otherwise the Funds would realize either no gain or a loss on the purchase of the call option. Put options may be purchased by the Funds for the purpose of benefiting from a decline in the value of currencies which they do not own. The Funds would ordinarily realize a gain if, during the option period, the value of the underlying currency decreased below the exercise price sufficiently to more than cover the premium and transaction costs. Otherwise, the Funds would realize either no gain or a loss on the purchase of the put option.

<u>Special Risks Associated with Options on Currency</u>. An exchange-traded option position may be closed out only on an options exchange that provides a secondary market for an option of the same series. Although the Funds will generally purchase or write only those options for which there appears to be an active secondary market, there is no assurance that a liquid secondary market on an exchange will exist for any particular option or at any particular time. For some options no secondary market on an exchange may exist. In such event, it might not be possible to effect closing transactions in particular options, with the result that a Fund would have to exercise its options in order to realize any profit and would incur transaction pursuant to the exercise of its options. If a Fund as an option writer is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction in a secondary market, it must sell the underlying currency (or security quoted or denominated in that currency) to the purchaser of the option if the option is exercised.

There is no assurance that higher-than-anticipated trading activity or other unforeseen events might not, at times, render certain of the facilities of the relevant clearinghouse inadequate, and thereby result in the institution by an exchange of special procedures which may interfere with the timely execution of customers' orders.

Each applicable Fund may purchase and write over-the-counter options. Trading in over-the-counter options is subject to the risk that the other party will be unable or unwilling to close out options purchased or written by a Fund.

The amount of the premiums that a Fund may pay or receive, may be adversely affected as new or existing institutions, including other investment companies, engage in or increase their option purchasing and writing activities.

<u>Yield Curve Options</u>. Each Fund may enter into options on the yield "spread" or differential between two securities. Such transactions are referred to as "yield curve" options. In contrast to other types of options, a yield curve option is based on the difference between the yields of designated securities, rather than the prices of the individual securities, and is settled through cash payments. Accordingly, a yield curve option is profitable to the holder if this differential widens (in the case of a call) or narrows (in the case of a put), regardless of whether the yields of the underlying securities increase or decrease.

A Fund may purchase or write yield curve options for the same purposes as other options on securities. For example, a Fund may purchase a call option on the yield spread between two securities if the Fund owns one of the securities and anticipates purchasing the other security and wants to hedge against an adverse change in the yield spread between the two securities. A Fund may also purchase or write yield curve options in an effort to increase current income if, in the judgment of the Investment Adviser, the Fund will be able to profit from movements in the spread between the yields of the underlying securities. The trading of yield curve options is subject to all of the risks associated with the trading of other types of options. In addition, however, such options present a risk of loss even if the yield of one of the underlying securities remains constant, or if the spread moves in a direction or to an extent which was not anticipated.

Yield curve options are traded over-the-counter and established trading markets for these options may not exist.

<u>Risks Associated with Options Transactions</u>. There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market on a domestic or foreign options exchange will exist for any particular exchange-traded option or at any particular time. If a Fund is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction with respect to options it has written, the Fund must sell the underlying securities to the purchasers of the options if the options are exercised. Similarly, if a Fund is unable to effect a closing sale transaction with respect to options it has purchased, it will have to exercise the options in order to realize any profit and will incur transaction costs upon the purchase or sale of underlying securities.

Reasons for the absence of a liquid secondary market on an exchange include, but are not limited to, the following: (i) there may be insufficient trading interest in certain options; (ii) restrictions may be imposed by an exchange on opening or closing transactions or both; (iii) trading halts, suspensions or other restrictions may be imposed with respect to particular classes or series of options; (iv) unusual or unforeseen circumstances may interrupt normal operations on an exchange; (v) the facilities of an exchange or the Options Clearing Corporation may not at all times be adequate to handle current trading volume; or (vi) one or more exchanges could, for economic or other reasons, decide or be compelled at some future date to discontinue the trading of options (or a particular class or series of options), in which event the secondary market on that exchange (or in that class or series of options) would cease to exist although outstanding options on that exchange that had been issued by the Options Clearing Corporation as a result of trades on that exchange would continue to be exercisable in accordance with their terms.

There can be no assurance that higher trading activity, order flow or other unforeseen events will not, at times, render certain of the facilities of the Options Clearing Corporation or various exchanges inadequate. Such events have, in the past, resulted in the institution by an exchange of special procedures, such as trading rotations, restrictions on certain types of order or trading halts or suspensions with respect to one or more options. These special procedures may limit liquidity.

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A Fund may purchase and sell both options that are traded on U.S. and foreign exchanges and options traded over-the-counter with broker-dealers and other types of institutions that make markets in these options. The ability to terminate over-the-counter options is more limited than with exchange-traded options and may involve the risk that the broker-dealers or financial institutions participating in such transactions will not fulfill their obligations.

Transactions by a Fund in options will be subject to limitations established by each of the exchanges, boards of trade or other trading facilities on which such options are traded governing the maximum number of options in each class which may be written or purchased by a single investor or group of investors acting in concert regardless of whether the options are written or purchased on the same or different exchanges, boards of trade or other trading facilities or are held in one or more accounts or through one or more brokers. Thus, the number of options which a Fund may write or purchase may be affected by options written or purchased by other investment advisory clients of the Investment Adviser. An exchange, board of trade or other trading facility may order the liquidation of positions found to be in excess of these limits, and it may impose certain other sanctions.

The writing and purchase of options is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The use of options to seek to increase total return involves the risk of loss if the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of fluctuations in securities prices or interest rates. The successful use of options for hedging purposes also depends in part on the ability of the Investment Adviser to manage future price fluctuations and the degree of correlation between the options and securities (or currency) markets. If the Investment Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of changes in securities prices or determination of the correlation between the securities or securities indices on which options are written and purchased and the securities in a Fund's investment portfolio, the Fund may incur losses that it would not otherwise incur. The writing of options could increase a Fund's portfolio turnover rate and, therefore, associated brokerage commissions or spreads.

**Pooled Investment Vehicles** 

Each Fund may invest in securities of pooled investment vehicles including ETFs and other investment companies. A Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management fees and other expenses paid by pooled investment vehicles in which it invests, in addition to the management fees (and other expenses) of the Fund. A Fund's investments in pooled investment vehicles are subject to statutory limitations prescribed by the Act, including in certain circumstances a prohibition on the Fund acquiring more than 3% of the voting shares of any other investment company, and a prohibition on investing more than 5% of the Fund's total assets in securities of any one investment company or more than 10% of its total assets in the securities of all investment companies.

Subject to applicable law and/or pursuant to an exemptive rule adopted by the SEC or an exemptive order obtained from the SEC, the Fund may invest in other investment companies, including ETFs and money market funds, beyond the statutory limits described above or otherwise provided that certain conditions are met. Some of those other investment companies may be funds for which the Investment Adviser, or any of its affiliates, serves as investment adviser, administrator and/or distributor. Although the Fund does not expect to do so in the foreseeable future, the Fund is authorized to invest substantially all of its assets in a single open-end investment company or series thereof that has substantially the same investment objective, policies and fundamental restrictions as the Fund. Additionally, if a Fund serves as an "acquired fund" of another Goldman Sachs Fund or unaffiliated investment company, the Fund's ability to invest in other investment companies and private funds may be limited and, under these circumstances, the Fund's investments in other investment companies and private funds will be consistent with applicable law and/or exemptive rules adopted by or exemptive orders obtained from the SEC. For example, to the extent the Fund serves as an acquired fund in a fund of funds arrangement in reliance on Rule 12d1-4 under the Act, the Fund would be prohibited from purchasing or otherwise acquiring the securities of an investment company or private fund if, after such purchase or acquisition, the aggregate value of the Fund's investments in such investment companies and private funds would exceed 10% of the value of the Fund's total assets, subject to limited exceptions (including for investments in money market funds).

The Funds may purchase shares of investment companies investing primarily in foreign securities, including "country funds." Country funds have portfolios consisting primarily of securities of issuers located in specified foreign countries or regions.

ETFs are shares of pooled investment vehicles issuing shares which are traded like traditional equity securities on a stock exchange. An ETF generally represents a portfolio of securities or other assets, which is often designed to track a particular market segment or index. An investment in an ETF, like one in any pooled investment vehicle, carries the risks of its underlying securities or other assets. An ETF may fail to accurately track the returns of the market segment or index that it is designed to track, and the price of an ETF's shares may fluctuate or lose money. In addition, because they, unlike other pooled investment vehicles, are traded on an exchange, ETFs are subject to the following risks: (i) the market price of the ETF's shares may trade at a premium or discount to the ETF's NAV; (ii) an active trading market for an ETF may not develop or be maintained; and (iii) there is no assurance that the requirements of the exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the ETF will continue to be met or remain unchanged. In the event substantial market or other disruptions affecting ETFs should occur in the future, the liquidity and value of a Fund's shares could also be substantially and adversely affected.

**Portfolio Maturity** 

Dollar-weighted average maturity is derived by multiplying the value of each investment by the time remaining to its maturity, adding these calculations, and then dividing the total by the value of a Fund's portfolio. An obligation's maturity is typically determined on a stated final maturity basis, although there are some exceptions. For example, if an issuer of an instrument takes advantage of a maturity-shortening device, such as a call, refunding, or redemption provision, the date on which the instrument is expected to be called, refunded, or redeemed may be considered to be its maturity date. There is no guarantee that the expected call, refund or redemption will occur and a Fund's average maturity may lengthen beyond the investment adviser's expectations should the expected call refund or redemption not occur. Similarly, in calculating its dollar-weighted average maturity, a Fund may determine the maturity of a variable or floating rate obligation according to the interest rate reset date, or the date principal can be recovered on demand, rather than the date of ultimate maturity.

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**Portfolio Turnover** 

Each Fund may engage in active short-term trading to benefit from price disparities among different issues of securities or among the markets for fixed-income securities, or for other reasons. As a result of active management, it is anticipated that the portfolio turnover rate of each Fund will vary from year to year, and may be affected by changes in the holdings of specific issuers, changes in country and currency weightings, cash requirements for redemption of shares and by requirements which enable the Funds to receive favorable tax treatment. The Funds are not restricted by policy with regard to portfolio turnover and will make changes in their investment portfolio from time to time as business and economic conditions as well as market prices may dictate.

**Preferred Stock, Warrants and Stock Purchase Rights** 

The Core Plus Bond ETF may invest in preferred stock and the Income ETF may invest in warrants and stock purchase rights ("rights") (in addition to those acquired in units or attached to other securities). Preferred stocks are securities that represent an ownership interest providing the holder with claims on the issuer's earnings and assets before common stock owners but after bond owners. Unlike debt securities, the obligations of an issuer of preferred stock, including dividend and other payment obligations, may not typically be accelerated by the holders of such preferred stock on the occurrence of an event of default (such as a covenant default or filing of a bankruptcy petition) or other non-compliance by the issuer with the terms of the preferred stock. Often, however, on the occurrence of any such event of default or non-compliance by the issuer, preferred stockholders will be entitled to gain representation on the issuer's board of directors or increase their existing board representation. In addition, preferred stockholders may be granted voting rights with respect to certain issues on the occurrence of any event of default.

Warrants and other rights are options to buy a stated number of shares of common stock at a specified price at any time during the life of the warrant. The holders of warrants and rights have no voting rights, receive no dividends and have no rights with respect to the assets of the issuer.

**Real Estate Investment Trusts** 

The Income ETF may invest in shares of real estate investment trusts ("REITs"). REITs are pooled investment vehicles which invest primarily in real estate or real estate related loans. REITs are generally classified as equity REITs, mortgage REITs or a combination of equity and mortgage REITs. Equity REITs invest the majority of their assets directly in real property and derive income primarily from the collection of rents. Equity REITs can also realize capital gains by selling properties that have appreciated in value. Mortgage REITs invest the majority of their assets in real estate mortgages and derive income from the collection of interest payments. Like regulated investment companies such as the Funds, REITs are not taxed on income distributed to shareholders provided they comply with certain requirements under the Code. A Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any expenses paid by REITs in which it invests in addition to the expenses paid by a Fund.

Investing in REITs involves certain unique risks. Equity REITs may be affected by changes in the value of the underlying property owned by such REITs, while mortgage REITs may be affected by the quality of any credit extended. REITs are dependent upon management skills, are not diversified (except to the extent the Code requires), and are subject to the risks of financing projects. REITs are subject to heavy cash flow dependency, default by borrowers, self-liquidation, and the possibilities of failing to qualify for the exemption from tax for distributed income under the Code and failing to maintain their exemptions from the Act. REITs (especially mortgage REITs) are also subject to interest rate risks.

**Repurchase Agreements** 

Each Fund may enter into repurchase agreements with counterparties approved by the Investment Adviser pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees that furnish collateral at least equal in value or market price to the amount of the repurchase obligation. The collateral may consist of any type of security in which a Fund is eligible to invest. Funds may also enter into repurchase agreements involving obligations other than U.S. Government Securities, which may be subject to additional risks. A repurchase agreement is an arrangement under which a Fund purchases securities and the seller agrees to repurchase the securities within a particular time and at a specified price. Custody of the securities is maintained by a Fund's custodian (or subcustodian). The repurchase price may be higher than the purchase price, the difference being income to a Fund, or the purchase and repurchase prices may be the same, with interest at a stated rate due to a Fund together with the repurchase price on repurchase. In either case, the income to a Fund is unrelated to the interest rate on the security subject to the repurchase agreement.

For purposes of the Act and generally for tax purposes, a repurchase agreement is deemed to be a loan from a Fund to the seller of the security. For other purposes, it is not always clear whether a court would consider the security purchased by a Fund subject to a repurchase agreement as being owned by a Fund or as being collateral for a loan by a Fund to the seller. In the event of commencement of bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings with respect to the seller of the security before repurchase of the security under a repurchase agreement, a Fund may encounter delay and incur costs before being able to sell the security. Such a delay may involve loss of interest or a decline in value of the security. If the court characterizes the transaction as a loan and a Fund has not perfected a security interest in the security, a Fund may be required to return the security to the seller's estate and be treated as an unsecured creditor of the seller. As an unsecured creditor, a Fund would be at risk of losing some or all of the principal and interest involved in the transaction.

Apart from the risk of bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings, there is also the risk that the seller may fail to repurchase the security. However, if the market value of the security subject to the repurchase agreement becomes less than the repurchase price (including accrued interest), a Fund will direct the seller of the security to deliver additional securities so that the market value of all securities subject to the repurchase agreement equals or exceeds the repurchase price. Certain repurchase agreements which provide for settlement in more than seven days can be liquidated before the nominal fixed term on seven days or less notice.

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Each Fund, together with other registered investment companies having management agreements with the Investment Adviser or its affiliates, may transfer uninvested cash balances into a single joint account, the daily aggregate balance of which will be invested in one or more repurchase agreements.

**Restricted Securities** 

Each Fund may purchase securities and other financial instruments that are not registered or that are offered in an exempt non-public offering ("Restricted Securities") under the 1933 Act, including securities eligible for resale to "qualified institutional buyers" pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act. The purchase price and subsequent valuation of Restricted Securities may reflect a discount from the price at which such securities trade when they are not restricted, because the restriction makes them less liquid. The amount of the discount from the prevailing market price is expected to vary depending upon the type of security, the character of the issuer, the party who will bear the expenses of registering the Restricted Securities and prevailing supply and demand conditions. These and other factors discussed in the section above, titled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in Restricted Securities.

**Reverse Repurchase Agreements** 

Each Fund may borrow money by entering into transactions called reverse repurchase agreements. Under these arrangements, a Fund will sell portfolio securities to dealers in U.S. Government Securities or members of the Federal Reserve System, with an agreement to repurchase the security on an agreed date, price and interest payment. These reverse repurchase agreements may involve foreign government securities. Borrowings may magnify the potential for gain or loss on amounts invested resulting in an increase in the speculative character of a Fund's outstanding shares.

Reverse repurchase agreements are a form of secured borrowing and subject the Fund to the risks associated with leverage, including exposure to potential gains and losses in excess of the amount invested. If the securities held by a Fund decline in value while these transactions are outstanding, the NAV of the Fund's outstanding shares will decline in value by proportionately more than the decline in value of the securities. In addition, reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the investment return earned by a Fund (from the investment of the proceeds) will be less than the interest expense of the transaction, that the market value of the securities sold by a Fund will decline below the price the Fund is obligated to pay to repurchase the securities, and that the other party may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all.

When a Fund enters into a reverse repurchase agreement, it is subject to the risk that the buyer under the agreement may file for bankruptcy, become insolvent or otherwise default on its obligations to the Fund. In the event of a default by the counterparty, there may be delays, costs and risks of loss involved in a Fund's exercising its rights under the agreement, or those rights may be limited by other contractual agreements or obligations or by applicable law. Such an insolvency may result in a loss equal to the amount by which the value of the securities or other assets sold by a Fund exceeds the repurchase price payable by the Fund; if the value of the purchased securities or other assets increases during such a delay, that loss may also be increased. In addition, a Fund may be unable to sell the instruments it acquires with the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement at a time when it would be advantageous to do so, or may be required to liquidate portfolio securities at a time when it would be disadvantageous to do so in order to make payments with respect to its obligations under a reverse repurchase agreement. This could adversely affect a Fund's strategy and result in lower fund returns. A Fund could lose money if it is unable to recover the securities or if the value of investments made by the Fund using the proceeds of the transaction is less than the value of securities.

**Risks of Qualified Financial Contracts** 

Regulations adopted by federal banking regulators under Dodd-Frank which took effect throughout 2019, require that certain qualified financial contracts ("QFCs") with counterparties that are part of U.S. or foreign global systemically important banking organizations be amended to include contractual restrictions on close-out and cross-default rights. QFCs include, but are not limited to, securities contracts, commodities contracts, forward contracts, repurchase agreements, securities lending agreements and swaps agreements, as well as related master agreements, security agreements, credit enhancements, and reimbursement obligations. If a covered counterparty of a Fund or certain of the covered counterparty's affiliates were to become subject to certain insolvency proceedings, the Fund may be temporarily unable to exercise certain default rights, and the QFC may be transferred to another entity. These requirements may impact a Fund's credit and counterparty risks.

**Short Sales** 

The Funds may engage in short sales. Short sales are transactions in which a Fund sells a security it does not own in anticipation of a decline in the market value of that security. To complete such a transaction, the Fund must borrow the security to make delivery to the buyer. Each Fund then is obligated to replace the security borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The price at such time may be more or less than the price at which the security was sold by a Fund. Until the security is replaced, a Fund is required to pay to the lender amounts equal to any dividend which accrues during the period of the loan. To borrow the security, a Fund also may be required to pay a premium, which would increase the cost of the security sold. There will also be other costs associated with short sales.

A Fund will incur a loss as a result of the short sale if the price of the security increases between the date of the short sale and the date on which the Fund replaces the borrowed security. Each Fund will realize a gain if the security declines in price between those dates. This result is the opposite of what one would expect from a cash purchase of a long position in a security. The amount of any gain will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of any premium or amounts in lieu of interest Fund may be required to pay in connection with a short sale, and will be also decreased by any transaction or other costs.

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Until Fund replaces a borrowed security in connection with a short sale, the Fund will fully-collateralize its position.

There is no guarantee that a Fund will be able to close out a short position at any particular time or at an acceptable price. During the time that the Fund is short a security, it is subject to the risk that the lender of the security will terminate the loan at a time when the Fund is unable to borrow the same security from another lender. If that occurs, a Fund may be "bought in" at the price required to purchase the security needed to close out the short position, which may be a disadvantageous price.

*Short Sales Against the Box*. Each of the Funds may engage in short sales against the box. As noted above, a short sale is made by selling a security the seller does not own. A short sale is "against the box" to the extent that the seller contemporaneously owns or has the right to obtain, at no added cost, securities identical to those sold short. A Fund may enter into a short sale against the box, for example, to lock in a sales price for a security the Fund does not wish to sell immediately. If a Fund sells securities short against the box, it may protect itself from loss if the price of the securities declines in the future, but will lose the opportunity to profit on such securities if the price rises. If the Fund effects a short sale of securities at a time when it has an unrealized gain on the securities, it may be required to recognize that gain as if it had actually sold the securities (as a "constructive sale") on the date it effects the short sale. However, such constructive sale treatment may not apply if the Fund closes out the short sale with securities other than the appreciated securities held at the time of the short sale and if certain other conditions are satisfied. Uncertainty regarding the tax consequences of effecting short sales may limit the extent to which a Fund may effect short sales.

**Structured Notes** 

The Funds may invest in structured notes. Structured notes are derivative debt securities, the interest rate and/or principal of which is determined by an unrelated indicator. The value of the principal of and/or interest on structured notes is determined by reference to changes in the return, interest rate or value at maturity of a specific asset, reference rate or index (the "reference instrument") or the relative change in two or more reference instruments. The terms of structured notes may provide that in certain circumstances no principal is due at maturity, which may result in a loss of invested capital. The interest rate or the principal amount payable upon maturity or redemption may also be increased or decreased, depending upon changes in the applicable reference instruments. Structured notes may be positively or negatively indexed, so that an increase in value of the reference instrument may produce an increase or a decrease in the interest rate or value of the structured note at maturity. In addition, changes in the interest rate or the value of the structured note at maturity may be calculated as a specified multiple of the change in the value of the reference instrument; therefore, the value of such note may be very volatile. Structured notes may entail a greater degree of market risk than other types of debt securities because the investor bears the risk of the reference instrument. Structured notes may also be more volatile, less liquid and more difficult to accurately price than less complex securities or more traditional debt securities.

**Temporary Investments** 

Each Fund may, for temporary defensive purposes(and to the extent that it is permitted to invest in the following), invest up to 100% of its total assets in: U.S. Government Securities; commercial paper rated at least A-2 by S&P, P-2 by Moody's or having a comparable credit rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization ("NRSRO") (or if unrated, determined by the Investment Adviser to be of comparable credit quality); certificates of deposit; bankers' acceptances; repurchase agreements; non-convertible preferred stocks and non-convertible corporate bonds with a remaining maturity of less than one year; ETFs and other investment companies; and cash items. When a Fund's assets are invested in such instruments, the Fund may not be achieving its investment objective.

**Trust Preferred Securities** 

Each Fund may invest in trust preferred securities. A trust preferred or capital security is a long dated bond (for example 30 years) with preferred features. The preferred features are that payment of interest can be deferred for a specified period without initiating a default event. From a bondholder's viewpoint, the securities are senior in claim to standard preferred but are junior to other bondholders. From the issuer's viewpoint, the securities are attractive because their interest is deductible for tax purposes like other types of debt instruments.

**U.S. Government Securities** 

Each Fund may invest in U.S. Government Securities. Some U.S. Government Securities (such as Treasury bills, notes and bonds, which differ only in their interest rates, maturities and times of issuance) are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. Others, such as obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. Government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, are supported either by (i) the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury, (ii) the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase certain obligations of the issuer or (iii) only the credit of the issuer. The U.S. Government is under no legal obligation, in general, to purchase the obligations of its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide financial support to U.S. Government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises in the future, and the U.S. Government may be unable to pay debts when due.

U.S. Government Securities include (to the extent consistent with the Act) securities for which the payment of principal and interest is backed by an irrevocable letter of credit issued by the U.S. Government, or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. U.S. Government Securities may also include (to the extent consistent with the Act) participations in loans made to foreign governments or their agencies that are guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. The secondary market for certain of these participations is extremely limited. These and other factors discussed in the section above, entitled "Illiquid Investments," may impact the liquidity of investments in these participations.

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A Fund may also purchase U.S. Government Securities in private placements and may also invest in separately traded principal and interest components of securities guaranteed or issued by the U.S. Treasury that are traded independently under the separate trading of registered interest and principal of securities program ("STRIPS"). A Fund may also invest in zero coupon U.S. Treasury Securities and in zero coupon securities issued by financial institutions which represent a proportionate interest in underlying U.S. Treasury Securities.

The high and rising national debt may adversely impact the U.S. economy and securities in which the Funds may invest. Moreover, the total amount of debt the Treasury is authorized to incur is subject to a statutory limit. Once the Treasury reaches the debt limit, Congress must raise, extend or otherwise modify the limit to enable the Treasury to incur additional debt to pay the obligations of the U.S. government, including principal and interest payments on certain U.S. Government Securities (such as Treasury bills, notes and bonds). Failure to, or potential failure to, increase the statutory debt limit could: increase the risk that the U.S. government defaults on payments on certain U.S. Government Securities; cause the credit rating of the U.S. government to be downgraded or increase volatility in both stock and bond markets; result in higher debt servicing payments by the U.S. government; reduce prices of Treasury securities; and/or increase the costs of certain kinds of debt.

<u>Inflation-Protected Securities</u>. The Funds may invest in IPS, including TIPS and CIPS, which are securities whose principal value is periodically adjusted according to the rate of inflation. The interest rate on IPS is fixed at issuance, but over the life of the bond this interest may be paid on an increasing or decreasing principal value that has been adjusted for inflation. Although repayment of the greater of the adjusted or original bond principal upon maturity is guaranteed, the market value of IPS is not guaranteed, and will fluctuate.

The values of IPS generally fluctuate in response to changes in real interest rates, which are in turn tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. If inflation were to rise at a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates will decline, leading to an increase in the value of IPS. In contrast, if nominal interest rates were to increase at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates will rise, leading to a decrease in the value of IPS. If inflation is lower than expected during the period the Fund holds IPS, the Fund may earn less on the IPS than on a conventional bond. If interest rates rise due to reasons other than inflation (for example, due to changes in the currency exchange rates), investors in IPS may not be protected to the extent that the increase is not reflected in the bonds' inflation measure. There can be no assurance that the inflation index for IPS will accurately measure the real rate of inflation in the prices of goods and services.

Any increase in principal value of IPS caused by an increase in the consumer price index is taxable in the year the increase occurs, even though a Fund holding IPS will not receive cash representing the increase at that time. As a result, the Fund could be required at times to liquidate other investments, including when it is not advantageous to do so, in order to satisfy its distribution requirements as a regulated investment company.

If a Fund invests in IPS, it will be required to treat as original issue discount any increase in the principal amount of the securities that occurs during the course of its taxable year. If a Fund purchases such IPS that are issued in stripped form, either as stripped bonds or coupons, it will be treated as if it had purchased a newly issued debt instrument having original issue discount.

Because a Fund is required to distribute substantially all of its net investment income (including accrued original issue discount), a Fund's investment in either zero coupon bonds or IPS may require it to distribute to shareholders an amount greater than the total cash income it actually receives. Accordingly, in order to make the required distributions, a Fund may be required to borrow or liquidate securities.

**When-Issued Securities and Forward Commitments** 

Each Fund may purchase securities on a when-issued basis or purchase or sell securities on a forward commitment basis beyond the customary settlement time. These transactions involve a commitment by a Fund to purchase or sell securities at a future date beyond the customary settlement time. The price of the underlying securities (usually expressed in terms of yield) and the date when the securities will be delivered and paid for (the settlement date) are fixed at the time the transaction is negotiated. In addition, rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") include mandatory margin requirements that require a Fund to post collateral in connection with its TBA transactions. There is no similar requirement applicable to a Fund's TBA counterparties. The required collateralization of TBA trades could increase the cost of TBA transactions to a Fund and impose added operational complexity. When-issued purchases and forward commitment transactions are negotiated directly with the other party, and such commitments are not traded on exchanges. A Fund will generally purchase securities on a when-issued basis or purchase or sell securities on a forward commitment basis only with the intention of completing the transaction and actually purchasing or selling the securities. If deemed advisable as a matter of investment strategy, however, a Fund may dispose of or negotiate a commitment after entering into it. A Fund may also sell securities it has committed to purchase before those securities are delivered to the Fund on the settlement date. A Fund may realize capital gains or losses in connection with these transactions. For purposes of determining a Fund's duration, the maturity of when-issued or forward commitment securities for fixed rate obligations will be calculated from the commitment date. Securities purchased or sold on a when-issued or forward commitment basis involve a risk of loss if the value of the security to be purchased declines prior to the settlement date or if the value of the security to be sold increases prior to the settlement date.

**Zero Coupon, Deferred Interest, Pay-in-Kind and Capital Appreciation Bonds** 

Each Fund may invest in zero coupon, deferred interest, pay-in-kind ("PIK") and capital appreciation bonds. Zero coupon, deferred interest and capital appreciation bonds are debt securities issued or sold at a discount from their face value and which do not entitle the holder to any periodic payment of interest prior to maturity or a specified date. The original issue discount varies depending on the time remaining until maturity or cash payment date, prevailing interest rates, the liquidity of the security and the perceived credit quality of the issuer. These securities also may take the form of debt securities that have been stripped of their unmatured interest coupons, the coupons themselves or receipts or certificates representing interests in such stripped debt obligations or coupons.

PIK securities may be debt obligations or preferred shares that provide the issuer with the option of paying interest or dividends on such obligations in cash or in the form of additional securities rather than cash. Similar to zero coupon bonds and deferred interest bonds, PIK securities are designed to give an issuer flexibility in managing cash flow. PIK securities that are debt securities can be either senior or subordinated debt and generally trade flat (i.e., without accrued interest). The trading price of PIK debt securities generally reflects the market value of the underlying debt plus an amount representing accrued interest since the last interest payment.

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The market prices of zero coupon, deferred interest, capital appreciation bonds and PIK securities generally are more volatile than the market prices of interest bearing securities and are likely to respond to a greater degree to changes in interest rates than interest bearing securities having similar maturities and credit quality. Moreover, zero coupon, deferred interest, capital appreciation and PIK securities involve the additional risk that, unlike securities that periodically pay interest to maturity, a Fund will realize no cash until a specified future payment date unless a portion of such securities is sold and, if the issuer of such securities defaults, a Fund may obtain no return at all on its investment. The valuation of such investments requires judgment regarding the collection of future payments. In addition, even though such securities do not provide for the payment of current interest in cash, a Fund is nonetheless required to accrue income on such investments for each taxable year and generally is required to distribute such accrued amounts (net of deductible expenses, if any) to avoid being subject to tax. Because no cash is generally received at the time of the accrual, a Fund may be required to liquidate other portfolio securities to obtain sufficient cash to satisfy federal tax distribution requirements applicable to the Fund. A portion of the discount with respect to stripped tax-exempt securities or their coupons may be taxable. See "TAXATION."

*Special Note Regarding Regulatory Changes and Other Market Events* 

Federal, state, and foreign governments, regulatory agencies, and self-regulatory organizations may take actions that affect the regulation of a Fund or the instruments in which a Fund invests, or the issuers of such instruments, in ways that are unforeseeable. Future legislation or regulation or other governmental actions could limit or preclude a Fund's ability to achieve its investment objective or otherwise adversely impact an investment in a Fund. Furthermore, worsened market conditions, including as a result of U.S. government shutdowns or the perceived creditworthiness of the United States, could have a negative impact on securities markets.

The Funds' investments, payment obligations and financing terms may be based on floating rates, such as the Euro Interbank Offered Rate ("EURIBOR"), the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), a term SOFR rate published by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited (CBA) calculated using certain derivatives markets ("Term SOFR") and other similar types of reference rates (each, a "Reference Rate"). The termination of certain Reference Rates presents risks to the Funds. It is not possible to exhaustively identify or predict the effect of any such changes, any establishment of alternative Reference Rates or any other reforms to Reference Rates that may be enacted in the United Kingdom, the United States or elsewhere. The elimination of a Reference Rate or any other changes or reforms to the determination or supervision of Reference Rates may affect the value, liquidity or return on certain Fund investments and may result in costs incurred in connection with closing out positions and entering into new trades, adversely impacting a Fund's overall financial condition or results of operations. The impact of any successor or substitute Reference Rate, if any, will vary on an investment-by-investment basis, and any differences may be material and/or create material economic mismatches, especially if investments are used for hedging or similar purposes. In addition, although certain Fund investments may provide for a successor or substitute Reference Rate (or terms governing how to determine a successor or substitute Reference Rate) if the Reference Rate becomes unavailable, certain Fund investments may not provide such a successor or substitute Reference Rate (or terms governing how to determine a successor or substitute Reference Rate). Accordingly, there may be disputes as to: (i) any successor or substitute Reference Rate; or (ii) the enforceability of any Fund investment that does not provide such a successor or substitute Reference Rate (or terms governing how to determine a successor or substitute Reference Rate). The Investment Adviser, Goldman Sachs and/or their affiliates may have discretion to determine a successor or substitute Reference Rate, including any price or other adjustments to account for differences between the successor or substitute Reference Rate and the previous rate. The successor or substitute Reference Rate and any adjustments selected may negatively impact a Fund's investments, performance or financial condition, including in ways unforeseen by the Investment Adviser, Goldman Sachs and/or their affiliates. In addition, any substitute Reference Rate and any pricing adjustments imposed by a regulator or by counterparties or otherwise may adversely affect a Fund's performance and/or NAV, and may expose a Fund to additional tax, accounting and regulatory risks.

In the aftermath of the 2007-2008 financial crisis, the financial sector experienced reduced liquidity in credit and other fixed income markets, and an unusually high degree of volatility, both domestically and internationally. While entire markets were impacted, issuers that had exposure to the real estate, mortgage and credit markets were particularly affected. The instability in the financial markets led the U.S. Government to take a number of unprecedented actions designed to support certain financial institutions and certain segments of the financial markets. For example, the Dodd-Frank Act, which was enacted in 2010, provides for broad regulation of financial institutions, consumer financial products and services, broker-dealers, over-the-counter derivatives, investment advisers, credit rating agencies and mortgage lending.

Governments or their agencies may also acquire distressed assets from financial institutions and acquire ownership interests in those institutions. The implications of government ownership and disposition of these assets are unclear, and such ownership or disposition may have positive or negative effects on the liquidity, valuation and performance of the Funds' portfolio holdings.

In addition, global economies and financial markets are becoming increasingly interconnected, and political, economic and other conditions and events (including, but not limited to, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics, and social unrest) in one country, region, or financial market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Furthermore, the occurrence of, among other events, natural or man-made disasters, severe weather or geological events, fires, floods, earthquakes, outbreaks of disease (such as COVID-19, avian influenza or H1N1/09), epidemics, pandemics, malicious acts, cyber-attacks, terrorist acts or the occurrence of climate change, may also adversely impact the performance of a Fund. Such events may result in, among other things, closing borders, exchange closures, health screenings, healthcare service delays, quarantines, cancellations, supply chain disruptions, lower consumer demand, market volatility and general uncertainty. In addition, international trade tensions may give rise to concerns about economic and geopolitical stability and have had and likely will continue to have an adverse impact on global economic conditions. Trade disputes between the United States and other countries may be an ongoing source of instability, potentially resulting in significant currency fluctuations, or have other adverse effects on international markets, international trade agreements, or other existing cross-border cooperation arrangements. Tariffs, trade restrictions, economic sanctions, export controls, or retaliatory measures, or the threat or potential of one or more such events and developments, may result in material adverse effects on the global economy and the Funds. Such events could adversely impact

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issuers, markets and economies over the short- and long-term, including in ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen. A Fund could be negatively impacted if the value of a portfolio holding were harmed by such political or economic conditions or events. Moreover, such negative political and economic conditions and events could disrupt the processes necessary for a Fund's operations. See "Special Note Regarding Operational, Cyber Security and Litigation Risks" for additional information on operational risks.

U.S. and global markets recently have experienced increased volatility, including as a result of the recent failures of certain U.S. and non-U.S. banks, which could be harmful to the Funds and issuers in which they invest. For example, if a bank in which a Fund or issuer has an account fails, any cash or other assets in bank accounts may be temporarily inaccessible or permanently lost by the Fund, or issuer. If a bank that provides a subscription line credit facility, asset-based facility, other credit facility and/or other services to an issuer fails, the issuer could be unable to draw funds under its credit facilities or obtain replacement credit facilities or other services from other lending institutions with similar terms. Even if banks used by issuers in which the Funds invest remain solvent, continued volatility in the banking sector could cause or intensify an economic recession, increase the costs of banking services or result in the issuers being unable to obtain or refinance indebtedness at all or on as favorable terms as could otherwise have been obtained. Conditions in the banking sector are evolving, and the scope of any potential impacts to the Funds and issuers, both from market conditions and also potential legislative or regulatory responses, are uncertain. Continued market volatility and uncertainty and/or a downturn in market and economic and financial conditions, as a result of developments in the banking industry or otherwise (including as a result of delayed access to cash or credit facilities), could have an adverse impact on the Funds and issuers in which they invest.

Pursuant to regulatory changes effective May 28, 2024, many U.S. securities transitioned to a "T+1" (trade date plus one day) settlement cycle. Securities trading in many non-U.S. markets (among other securities) are not impacted by these regulatory changes and typically have longer settlement cycles. As a result, there can be potential operational, settlement and other risks for a Fund with a significant portion of its assets invested in securities not subject to T+1 settlement. These risks include, but are not limited to, the need to maintain more cash and liquid securities (thereby creating cash drag on the portfolio) and a potential increase in custodial overdraft charges, in each case to facilitate settlement of Fund share redemptions on a T+1 basis.

*Special Note Regarding Operational, Cyber Security and Litigation Risks* 

An investment in a Fund may be negatively impacted because of the operational risks arising from factors such as processing errors and human errors, inadequate or failed internal or external processes, failures in systems and technology, changes in personnel, and errors caused by third-party service providers or trading counterparties. The use of certain investment strategies that involve manual or additional processing, such as over-the-counter derivatives, increases these risks. Although the Funds attempt to minimize such failures through controls and oversight, it is not possible to identify all of the operational risks that may affect a Fund or to develop processes and controls that completely eliminate or mitigate the occurrence of such failures. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

The Funds are also susceptible to operational and information security risks resulting from cyber-attacks. In general, cyber-attacks result from deliberate attacks, but other events may have effects similar to those caused by cyber-attacks. Cyber-attacks include, among others, stealing or corrupting confidential information and other data that is maintained online or digitally for financial gain, denial-of-service attacks on websites causing operational disruption, and the unauthorized release of confidential information and other data. Cyber-attacks affecting a Fund or its Investment Adviser, sub-adviser, custodian, Transfer Agent, intermediary or other third-party service provider may adversely impact the Fund and its shareholders. These cyber-attacks have the ability to cause significant disruptions and impact business operations; to result in financial losses; to prevent shareholders from transacting business; to interfere with the Fund's calculation of NAV and to lead to violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs and/or additional compliance costs. Similar to operational risk in general, the Fund and its service providers, including GSAM, have instituted risk management systems designed to minimize the risks associated with cyber security. However, there is a risk that these systems will not succeed (or that any remediation efforts will not be successful), especially because a Fund does not directly control the risk management systems of the service providers to the Fund, its trading counterparties or the issuers in which the Fund may invest. Moreover, there is a risk that cyber-attacks will not be detected.

The Funds may be subject to third-party litigation, which could give rise to legal liability. These matters involving the Funds may arise from their activities and investments and could have a materially adverse effect on the Funds, including the expense of defending against claims and paying any amounts pursuant to settlements or judgments. There can be no guarantee that these matters will not arise in the normal course of business. If the Funds were to be found liable in any suit or proceeding, any associated damages and/or penalties could have a materially adverse effect on the Funds' finances, in addition to being materially damaging to their reputation.

**INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS** 

The investment restrictions set forth below have been adopted by the Trust as fundamental policies that cannot be changed without the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined in the Act) of the Fund. The investment objective of each Fund and all other investment policies or practices of the Funds are considered by the Trust not to be fundamental and accordingly may be changed without shareholder approval. As defined in the Act, a "majority" of the outstanding voting securities of a Fund means the lesser of (i) 67% or more of the shares of a Fund present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares of a Fund are present or represented by proxy, or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of a Fund.

For the purposes of the following limitations (except for the asset coverage requirement with respect to borrowings, which is subject to different requirements under the Act), any limitation which involves a maximum percentage shall not be considered violated unless an excess over the percentage occurs immediately after, and is caused by, an acquisition or encumbrance of securities or assets of, or borrowings by, a Fund. With respect to each Fund's fundamental investment restrictions on borrowings, below, in the event that asset coverage (as defined in the Act) at any time falls below 300%, the Fund, within three days thereafter (not including Sundays and holidays) or such longer period as the SEC may prescribe by rules and regulations, will reduce the amount of its borrowings to the extent required so that the asset coverage of such borrowings will be at least 300%.

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**Fundamental Investment Restrictions** 

Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF<u> </u>

As a matter of fundamental policy, the Fund may not:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1) Invest more than 25% of its total assets in the securities of one or more issuers conducting their principal business activities in the same industry (excluding the U.S. Government or its agencies or instrumentalities). (For the purposes of this restriction, state and municipal governments and their agencies, authorities and instrumentalities are not deemed to be industries; telephone companies are considered to be a separate industry from water, gas or electric utilities; personal credit finance companies and business credit finance companies are deemed to be separate industries; and wholly-owned finance companies are considered to be in the industry of their parents if their activities are primarily related to financing the activities of their parents.) This restriction does not apply to investments in Municipal Securities which have been pre-refunded by the use of obligations of the U.S. Government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities. These Municipal Securities include (a) Municipal Securities, the interest on which is paid solely from revenues of similar projects such as hospitals, electric utility systems, multi-family housing, nursing homes, commercial facilities (including hotels), steel companies or life care facilities; (b) Municipal Securities whose issuers are in the same state; and (c) industrial development obligations.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(2) Borrow money, except (a) the Fund may borrow from banks (as defined in the Act) or through reverse repurchase agreements in amounts up to 33-1/3% of its total assets (including the amount borrowed); (b) the Fund may, to the extent permitted by applicable law, borrow up to an additional 5% of its total assets for temporary purposes; (c) the Fund may obtain such short-term credits as may be necessary for the clearance of purchases and sales of portfolio securities; (d) the Fund may purchase securities on margin to the extent permitted by applicable law; and (e) the Fund may engage in transactions in mortgage dollar rolls which are accounted for as financings.

The following interpretation applies to, but is not part of, this fundamental policy: In determining whether a particular investment in portfolio instruments or participation in portfolio transactions is subject to this borrowing policy, the accounting treatment of such instrument or participation shall be considered, but shall not by itself be determinative. Whether a particular instrument or transaction constitutes a borrowing shall be determined by the Board, after consideration of all of the relevant circumstances.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(3) Make loans, except through (a) the purchase of debt obligations in accordance with the Fund's investment objective and policies; (b) repurchase agreements with banks, brokers, dealers and other financial institutions; and (c) loans of securities as permitted by applicable law.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(4) Underwrite securities issued by others, except to the extent that the sale of portfolio securities by the Fund may be deemed to be an underwriting.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(5) Purchase, hold or deal in real estate (including real estate limited partnerships) or oil, gas or mineral leases, although the Fund may purchase and sell securities that are secured by real estate or interests therein, may purchase mortgage-related securities and may hold and sell real estate acquired by the Fund as a result of the ownership of securities.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(6) Invest in commodities or commodity contracts, except that the Fund may invest in currency and financial instruments and contracts that are commodities or commodity contracts.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(7) Issue senior securities to the extent such issuance would violate applicable law.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(8) Make any investment inconsistent with the Fund's classification as a diversified company under the Act.

<u>Goldman Sachs Income ETF</u> 

As a matter of fundamental policy, the Fund may not:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1) Invest more than 25% of its total assets in the securities of one or more issuers conducting their principal business activities in the same industry (for the purposes of this restriction, the U.S. Government, state and municipal governments and their agencies, authorities and instrumentalities are not deemed to be industries).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(2) Borrow money, except as permitted by the Act, or interpretations or modifications by the SEC, SEC staff or other authority with appropriate jurisdiction.

The following interpretation applies to, but is not part of, this fundamental policy: In determining whether a particular investment in portfolio instruments or participation in portfolio transactions is subject to this borrowing policy, the accounting treatment of such instrument or participation shall be considered, but shall not by itself be determinative. Whether a particular instrument or transaction constitutes a borrowing shall be determined by the Board, after consideration of all of the relevant circumstances.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(3) Make loans, except through (a) the purchase of debt obligations, loan interests and other interests or obligations in accordance with the Fund's investment objective and policies; (b) repurchase agreements with banks, brokers, dealers and other financial institutions; (c) loans of securities as permitted by applicable law or pursuant to an exemptive order granted under the Act; and (d) loans to affiliates of the Fund to the extent permitted by law.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(4) Underwrite securities issued by others, except to the extent that the sale of portfolio securities by the Fund may be deemed to be an underwriting.

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(5) Purchase, hold or deal in real estate, although the Fund may purchase and sell securities that are secured by real estate or interests therein or that reflect the return of an index of real estate values, securities of issuers which invest or deal in real estate, securities of real estate investment trusts and mortgage-related securities and may hold and sell real estate it has acquired as a result of the ownership of securities.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(6) Invest in physical commodities, except that the Fund may invest in currency and financial instruments and contracts in accordance with its investment objective and policies, including, without limitation, structured notes, futures contracts, swaps, options on commodities, currencies, swaps and futures, ETFs, investment pools and other instruments, regardless of whether such instrument is considered to be a commodity.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(7) Issue senior securities to the extent such issuance would violate applicable law.

With respect to the Income ETF, in applying fundamental investment restriction number (1) above to derivative transactions or instruments, including, but not limited to, futures, swaps, forwards, options and structured notes, the Fund will look to the industry of the reference asset(s) and not to the counterparty or issuer.

**TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS** 

**The Trust's Leadership Structure** 

The business and affairs of the Funds are managed under the direction of the Board of Trustees (the "Board"), subject to the laws of the State of Delaware and the Trust's Declaration of Trust. The Trustees are responsible for deciding matters of overall policy and reviewing the actions of the Trust's service providers. The officers of the Trust conduct and supervise the Funds' daily business operations. Trustees who are not deemed to be "interested persons" of the Trust as defined in the Act are referred to as "Independent Trustees." Trustees who are deemed to be "interested persons" of the Trust are referred to as "Interested Trustees." The Board is currently composed of twelve Independent Trustees and one Interested Trustee. The Board has selected an Independent Trustee to act as Chair, whose duties include presiding at meetings of the Board and its Committees, except as otherwise specified in the applicable Committee charter documents, and acting as a focal point to address significant issues that may arise between regularly scheduled Board and Committee meetings. In the performance of the Chair's duties, the Chair will consult with the other Independent Trustees and the Funds' officers and legal counsel, as appropriate. The Chair may perform other functions as requested by the Board from time to time.

The Board meets as often as necessary to discharge its responsibilities. Currently, the Board conducts regular meetings at least six times a year, and holds special in-person or telephonic meetings as necessary to address specific issues that require attention prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting. In addition, the Independent Trustees meet at least annually to review, among other things, investment management agreements, distribution (Rule 12b-1) and/or service plans and related agreements, transfer agency agreements and certain other agreements providing for the compensation of Goldman Sachs and/or its affiliates by the Funds, and to consider such other matters as they deem appropriate.

The Board has established four standing committees — Audit, Governance and Nominating, Compliance and Risk Oversight, and Contract Review Committees. The Board may establish other committees, or nominate one or more Trustees to examine particular issues related to the Board's oversight responsibilities, from time to time. Each Committee meets periodically to perform its delegated oversight functions and reports its findings and recommendations to the Board. For more information on the Committees, see the section "Standing Board Committees," below.

The Trustees have determined that the Trust's leadership structure is appropriate because it allows the Trustees to effectively perform their oversight responsibilities.

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**Trustees of the Trust** 

Information pertaining to the Trustees of the Trust as of April 28, 2026 is set forth below.

**Independent Trustees** 

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name, Address and Year<br>of Birth<sup>1</sup>** | **Position(s)**<br> **Held with**<br> **the Fund** | **Term of Office**<br> **and Length of**<br> **Time Served<sup>2</sup>** | **Number of<br>Portfolios in<br>Fund Complex<br>Overseen by<br>Trustee<sup>3</sup>** | **Other**<br> **Directorships**<br> **Held by**<br> **Trustee<sup>4</sup>** |
| Gregory G. Weaver<br> 1951 | Chair of the Board of Trustees | Since 2024 Mr. Weaver is retired. Formerly, he was Director, Verizon Communications Inc. (2015–2024); Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Deloitte & Touche LLP (a professional services firm) (2001–2005 and 2012–2014); and Member of the Board of Directors, Deloitte & Touche LLP (2006–2012).<br>Chair of the Board of Trustees—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 |  |
| Cheryl K. Beebe<br> 1955 | Trustee | Since 2021 Ms. Beebe is retired. She is Director, Packaging Corporation of America (2008–Present); Director, The Mosaic Company (2019–Present); and was formerly Director, HanesBrands Inc. (a multinational clothing company) (2020–2023); Director, Convergys Corporation (a global leader in customer experience outsourcing) (2015–2018); and formerly held the position of Executive Vice President, (2010–2014); and Chief Financial Officer, Ingredion, Inc. (a leading global ingredient solutions company) (2004–2014).<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 | Packaging Corporation of America (producer of container board); The Mosaic Company (producer of phosphate and potash fertilizer) |

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| Dwight L. Bush<br> 1957 | Trustee | Since 2024 | 371 |
| Kathryn A. Cassidy<br> 1954 | Trustee | Since 2024 Ms. Cassidy is retired. Formerly, she was Director, Vertical Aerospace Ltd. (an aerospace and technology company) (2021–2025). Ms. Cassidy was also Advisor to the Chairman (May 2014–December 2014); and Senior Vice President and Treasurer (2008–2014), General Electric Company & General Electric Capital Corporation (technology and financial services companies).<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 |

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| John G. Chou<br> 1956 | Trustee | Since 2024 | 371 |  |
| Joaquin Delgado<br> 1960 | Trustee | Since 2024 Dr. Delgado is retired. He is Director, Stepan Company (a specialty chemical manufacturer) (2011–Present); and was formerly Director, Hexion Inc. (a specialty chemical manufacturer) (2019–2022); Executive Vice President, Consumer Business Group of 3M Company (July 2016–July 2019); and Executive Vice President, Health Care Business Group of 3M Company (October 2012–July 2016). Previously, Dr. Delgado served as an Advisory Board Member of Goldman Sachs Trust and Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust (October 2019– January 2020).<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 | Stepan Company (a specialty chemical manufacturer) |

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| Eileen H. Dowling<br> 1962 | Trustee | Since 2024 | 371 |
| Lawrence Hughes<br> 1958 | Trustee | Since 2021 Mr. Hughes is retired. Formerly, he held senior management positions with BNY Mellon Wealth Management, a division of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (a financial services company) (1991–2015), most recently as Chief Executive Officer (2010–2015). Previously, Mr. Hughes served as an Advisory Board Member of Goldman Sachs Trust II (February 2016 – April 2016).<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 |

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| John F. Killian<br> 1954 | Trustee | Since 2021 | 371 | Consolidated Edison, Inc. (a utility holding company) |
| Steven D. Krichmar<br> 1958 | Trustee | Since 2021 Mr. Krichmar is retired. Formerly, he held senior management and governance positions with Putnam Investments, LLC, a financial services company (2001–2016). He was most recently Chief of Operations and a member of the Operating Committee of Putnam Investments, LLC and Principal Financial Officer of The Putnam Funds. Previously, Mr. Krichmar served as an Audit Partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and its predecessor company (1990 – 2001).<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 |  |

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| Michael Latham<br> 1965 | Trustee | Since 2015 | 371 |
| Lawrence W. Stranghoener<br> 1954 | Trustee | Since 2015 Mr. Stranghoener is retired. Formerly, he was Chairman, Kennametal, Inc. (a global manufacturer and distributor of tooling and industrial materials) (2003–2024); Director, Aleris Corporation and Aleris International, Inc. (a producer of aluminum rolled products) (2011–2020); and Interim Chief Executive Officer (2014), Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (2004–2014), Mosaic Company (a fertilizer manufacturing company).<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 |

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| Brian J. Wildman<br> 1963 | Trustee | Since 2026 | Mr. Wildman is currently an Independent Business Consultant (2025–Present). Formerly, he was President, Timothy Financial Counsel Inc. (a financial planning firm) (2019–2024); and Executive Vice President, Consumer Banking and Director (2016–2019) and Chief Risk Officer (2013–2016), MB Financial Bank.<br>Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371.0 |

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| | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Interested Trustee** | **Interested Trustee** | **Interested Trustee** | **Interested Trustee** | **Interested Trustee** |
| **Name, Address**<br> **and Year of Birth<sup>1</sup>** | **Position(s) Held**<br> **with the Trust** | **Term of Office and<br>Length of**<br> **Time Served<sup>2</sup>** | **Number of<br>Portfolios in<br>Fund Complex<br>Overseen by<br>Trustee<sup>3</sup>** | **Other**<br> **Directorships**<br> **Held by**<br> **Trustee<sup>4</sup>** |
| James A. McNamara\*<br> 1962 | President, Principal Executive Officer and Trustee | Since 2014 Advisory Director, Goldman Sachs (January 2018–Present); Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (January 2000–December 2017); Director of Institutional Fund Sales, GSAM (April 1998–December 2000); and Senior Vice President and Manager, Dreyfus Institutional Service Corporation (a financial services firm) (January 1993–April 1998).<br> President, Principal Executive Officer and Trustee—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; and Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. | 371 |  |

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\* Mr. McNamara is considered to be an "Interested Trustee" of the Trust because he holds positions with Goldman Sachs and owns securities issued by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Mr. McNamara holds comparable positions with certain other companies of which Goldman Sachs, GSAM or an affiliate thereof is the investment adviser, administrator and/or distributor. 

<sup>1</sup> Each Trustee may be contacted by writing to the Trustee, c/o Goldman Sachs, 200 West Street, New York, New York, 10282, Attn: Robert Griffith.

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<sup>2</sup> Subject to such policies as may be adopted by the Board from time-to-time, each Trustee holds office for an indefinite term, until the earliest of: (a) the election of his or her successor; (b) the date the Trustee resigns or is removed by the Board or shareholders, in accordance with the Trust's Declaration of Trust; or (c) the termination of the Trust. The Board has adopted policies which provide that each Independent Trustee shall retire as of June 30th following (a) his or her 75th birthday or (b) the 15th anniversary of the date he or she became a Trustee, whichever is earlier, unless a waiver of such requirements shall have been adopted by a majority of the other Trustees. These policies may be changed by the Trustees without shareholder vote. 

<sup>3</sup> The Goldman Sachs Fund Complex includes certain other companies listed above for each respective Trustee. As of April 28, 2026, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust consisted of 56 portfolios (47 of which offered shares to the public); Goldman Sachs Trust consisted of 82 portfolios (79 of which offered shares to the public); Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust consisted of 15 portfolios (10 of which offered shares to the public); Goldman Sachs Trust II consisted of 8 portfolios; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II consisted of 2 portfolios; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund consisted of one portfolio; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust consisted of 207 portfolios (177 of which offered shares to the public). 

<sup>4</sup> This column includes only directorships of companies required to report to the SEC under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (i.e., "public companies") or other investment companies registered under the Act.

The significance or relevance of a Trustee's particular experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills is considered by the Board on an individual basis. Experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills common to all Trustees include the ability to critically review, evaluate and discuss information provided to them and to interact effectively with the other Trustees and with representatives of the Investment Adviser and its affiliates, other service providers, legal counsel and the Funds' independent registered public accounting firm, the capacity to address financial and legal issues and exercise reasonable business judgment, and a commitment to the representation of the interests of a Fund and its shareholders. The Governance and Nominating Committee's charter contains certain other factors that are considered by the Governance and Nominating Committee in identifying and evaluating potential nominees to serve as Independent Trustees. Based on each Trustee's experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills, considered individually and with respect to the experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills of other Trustees, the Board has concluded that each Trustee should serve as a Trustee. Below is a brief discussion of the experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills of each individual Trustee that led the Board to conclude that such individual should serve as a Trustee.

**Gregory G. Weaver.** Mr. Weaver has served as a Trustee and Chair of the Board since 2024. He serves as a member of the Governing Council of the Independent Directors Council. Previously, Mr. Weaver served as a Director of Verizon Communications Inc., where he served as Chair of the Audit Committee (2015–2024). Mr. Weaver was also a partner with Deloitte & Touche LLP for 30 years. He was the firm's first chairman and chief executive officer from 2001–2005, and was elected to serve a second term (2012–2014). While serving as chairman at Deloitte & Touche LLP, Mr. Weaver led the audit and enterprise risk services practice, overseeing all operations, strategic positioning, audit quality, and talent matters. Mr. Weaver also served as a member of the firm's Board of Directors for six years where he served on the Governance Committee and Partner Earnings and Benefits Committee and was chairman of the Elected Leaders Committee and Strategic Investment Committee. Mr. Weaver is also a Board member and Audit Committee chair of the YMCA of Westfield, New Jersey. Mr. Weaver has also served as President of the Council of Boy Scouts of America in Long Rivers, Connecticut, President of A Better Chance in Glastonbury, Connecticut, as a member of the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council and as a board member of the Stan Ross Department of Accountancy, Baruch College. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Weaver is experienced with accounting, financial and investment matters.

**Cheryl K. Beebe.** Ms. Beebe has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2021 and was formerly Chair of the Board of Trustees from 2022 to 2024. Ms. Beebe is retired. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Packaging Corporation of America, a producer of container board, where she serves as Chair of the Audit Committee. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of The Mosaic Company, a producer of phosphate and potash fertilizer, and serves as Chair of the Audit Committee. Ms. Beebe was a member of the Board of Directors of HanesBrands Inc., a multinational clothing company, and a member of the Board of Directors of Convergys Corporation, a global leader in customer experience outsourcing, where she also served as Chair of the Audit Committee. Previously, she held several senior management positions at Ingredion, Inc. (formerly Corn Products International, Inc.), a leading global ingredient solutions company. Ms. Beebe also worked at Ingredion, Inc. and predecessor companies for 34 years, most recently as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. In that capacity, she was responsible for overseeing the company's controller, treasury, tax, investor relations, internal audit, financial planning, corporate communications, global supply chain functions and information technology. Further, she served on the Board of Trustees of Fairleigh Dickinson University, where she served as Chair of the Governance Committee. Based on the foregoing, Ms. Beebe is experienced with financial, accounting and investment matters.

**Dwight L. Bush.** The Honorable Dwight Bush has served as a Trustee since 2024. He also serves as President and CEO of D.L. Bush & Associates, a financial advisory and private investment firm. From 2014 to 2017, The Honorable Dwight Bush served as U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco. Prior to his service as U.S. Ambassador, he established and served as CEO of Urban Trust Bank and UTB Education Finance, LLC, an integrated provider of education credit services. The Honorable Dwight Bush was previously Vice President of Corporate Development for SLM Corporation (commonly known as Sallie Mae). Formerly, he served as a member of the Board of Directors of Santander Bank, N.A., JER Investors Trust, a specialty real estate finance company, as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of CASI Pharmaceuticals (formerly Entremed, Inc.) where he was Chairman of the Audit Committee, and as Director of MoneyLion, Inc., an operator of a data-driven, digital financial platform. The Honorable Dwight Bush also serves as a member of the Board of Directors for several philanthropic organizations, including the Middle East Investment Initiative and the Meridian International Center, and has served on the executive committee of Cornell University. He previously served on the Trust's Advisory Board. Based on the foregoing, The Honorable Dwight Bush is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**Kathryn A. Cassidy.** Ms. Cassidy has served as a Trustee since 2024. Previously, she was a member of the Board of Directors for Vertical Aerospace Ltd., a publicly traded aerospace and technology company (2021–2025), where she served as Chair of the Audit Committee. Ms. Cassidy also held several senior management positions at General Electric Company ("GE") and General Electric Capital Corporation ("GECapital") and its subsidiaries, where she worked for 35 years, most recently as Advisor to the Chairman of GECapital and Senior Vice President and Treasurer of GE and GECapital. As Senior Vice President and Treasurer, Ms. Cassidy led capital markets and treasury matters of multiple initial public offerings. Ms. Cassidy was responsible for managing global treasury operations, including global funding, hedging, derivative accounting and execution, cash and liquidity management, cash operations and treasury services, and global regulatory compliance and reporting for liquidity, derivatives, market risk and counterparty credit risk. Formerly, Ms. Cassidy served as a Director of buildOn, a not-for-profit organization, where she served as Chair of the Finance Committee. Based on the foregoing, Ms. Cassidy is experienced with financial and investment matters.

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**John G. Chou.** Mr. Chou has served as a Trustee since 2024. Mr. Chou is retired. Formerly, he held several executive and senior management positions at Cencora, Inc. ("Cencora") (formerly AmerisourceBergen Corporation) from 2002–2022, including Executive Vice President and Special Advisor to the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal & Business Officer, and Executive Vice President and General Counsel. As Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, Mr. Chou was responsible for managing Cencora's legal, regulatory, quality, privacy, global business resilience and enterprise risk management functions, among others. In addition, he previously held senior legal positions at Cigna Corporation, ARCO Chemical Europe, and Arco Chemical Company, and also practiced law at various law firms, including most recently as a member of Eckert Seamens Cherin & Mellott, LLC. Mr. Chou currently serves as the President of the Board of Trustees of Episcopal Community Services and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Committee of Seventy. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Chou is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**Joaquin Delgado.** Dr. Delgado has served as a Trustee since 2024. Dr. Delgado is a member of the Board of Directors for Stepan Company, a publicly traded specialty chemical manufacturer. Previously, Dr. Delgado was a member of the Board of Directors for Hexion Inc., a privately held specialty chemical manufacturer, and held several senior management positions at 3M Company, where he worked for over 30 years, most recently as Executive Vice President of 3M Company's Consumer Business Group. As Executive Vice President, Vice President, and General Manager at 3M Company, Dr. Delgado directed mergers and acquisitions worldwide, and was responsible for managing global operations in specialized markets such as semiconductors, consumer electronics, communications, medical and office supplies and software. Dr. Delgado also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Ballet Austin, a not-for-profit organization. Additionally, he formerly served as a member of the Board of Directors of MacPhail Center for Music, a not-for-profit organization. Dr. Delgado previously served on the Trust's Advisory Board. Based on the foregoing, Dr. Delgado is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**Eileen H. Dowling.** Ms. Dowling has served as a Trustee since 2024. Ms. Dowling worked at BlackRock for over 10 years, where she was a Managing Director and, most recently, a Senior Advisor. While at BlackRock, Ms. Dowling held several senior management positions responsible for clients, investment products and marketing, including Global Head of Consultant Relations, Global Head of Multinationals, Global Head of the Institutional Product Group and Global Head of Institutional Marketing. She also was a member of BlackRock's Global Operating Committee and Product Executive Committee. From 2007–2011, Ms. Dowling was a Managing Director and Global Head of Marketing at Credit Suisse Asset Management. Prior to that, over an 18-year period at Merrill Lynch, Ms. Dowling served in several roles in Investment Banking, Capital Markets and Research. Ms. Dowling currently serves as a Member of the Advisory Board and Finance Committee of New York University's Glucksman Ireland House. Based on the foregoing, Ms. Dowling is experienced with investment, financial and accounting matters.

**Lawrence Hughes.** Mr. Hughes has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2021. Mr. Hughes is retired. Previously, he held several senior management positions at BNY Mellon Wealth Management, a division of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation that provides wealth planning, investment management and banking services to individuals, families, family offices and charitable gift programs through a nationwide network of offices. Mr. Hughes worked at BNY Mellon Wealth Management for 24 years, most recently as Chief Executive Officer. In that capacity, he was ultimately responsible for the division's operations and played an active role in multiple acquisitions. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Hughes is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**John F. Killian.** Mr. Killian has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2021. Mr. Killian is retired. Mr. Killian is a member of the Board of Directors of Consolidated Edison, Inc., a utility holding company, where he serves as Chair of the Audit Committee and as a member of the Corporate Governance and Nominating, and Management Development and Compensation Committees. Formerly, he was a member of the Board of Directors of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, where he served as Chair of the Audit Committee and a member of the Compensation Committee. Previously, Mr. Killian worked for 31 years at Verizon Communications, Inc. and predecessor companies, most recently as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Killian is experienced with accounting, financial and investment matters.

**Steven D. Krichmar.** Mr. Krichmar has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2021. Mr. Krichmar is retired. He previously worked for fifteen years at Putnam Investments, LLC, a financial services company. Most recently, he served as Chief of Operations and a member of the Operating Committee of Putnam Investments, LLC. He was also involved in the governance of The Putnam Funds, serving as Principal Financial Officer. Before joining Putnam, Mr. Krichmar worked for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and its predecessor company for 20 years, most recently as Audit Partner and Investment Management Industry Leader (Assurance) for the northeast U.S. region. Currently, Mr. Krichmar is a member of the Board of Trustees of Boston Children's Hospital, where he serves as Chairman of the Audit & Compliance Committee, the Co-Chairman of the Finance Committee, a member of the Executive Committee and the Technology and Innovation Committee, and a member of the Physicians' Organization Board. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Controlled Risk Insurance Company of Vermont, Inc. (CRICO, A Risk Retention Group) and a member of the Audit and Finance Committees of the CRICO related entities, and a member of the University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School Board. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Krichmar is experienced with accounting, financial and investment matters.

**Michael Latham.** Mr. Latham has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2015. Mr. Latham is retired. Mr. Latham has been designated as the Board's "audit committee financial expert" given his extensive accounting and finance experience. Previously, Mr. Latham held several senior management positions for 15 years with the iShares exchange-traded fund business owned by BlackRock, Inc. and previously owned by Barclays Global Investors, most recently as Chairman and Global Head of the business. In that capacity he was one of the lead executives responsible for the growth of the business. He was also involved in governance of the iShares funds, serving initially as Principal Financial Officer and later as President and Principal Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Latham is a certified public accountant, and before joining Barclays Global Investors, he worked at Ernst and Young for over five years. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Latham is experienced with accounting, financial and investment matters.

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**Lawrence W. Stranghoener.** Mr. Stranghoener has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2015 and was formerly Chairman of the Board of Trustees from 2017 to 2022. Mr. Stranghoener is retired. Previously, he was Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kennametal, Inc., a global manufacturer and distributor of tooling and industrial materials, and a member of the Board of Directors of Aleris Corporation and Aleris International, Inc., which provided aluminum rolled products and extrusions, aluminum recycling, and specification alloy production, where he also served as Chair of the Audit Committee and as a member of the Compensation Committee. Mr. Stranghoener also held several senior management positions at Mosaic Company, a fertilizer manufacturing company, where he worked for 10 years, most recently as Interim Chief Executive Officer, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. As Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Mosaic Company, Mr. Stranghoener implemented public company processes, policies and performance standards to transition the company from private to public ownership and oversaw the company's controller, treasury, tax, investor relations, strategy and business development, and internal audit functions. He also led the integration of Mosaic Company with IMC Global, Inc. during their merger. Previously, Mr. Stranghoener served for three years as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Thrivent Financial, a non-profit, financial services organization and Techies.com, an internet-based professional services company. Mr. Stranghoener also held several senior management positions at Honeywell, Inc. where he worked for 17 years, most recently as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Stranghoener is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**Brian J. Wildman.** Mr. Wildman has served as a Trustee of the Trust since 2026. He is currently an independent business consultant. From 2019–2024, he was the President of Timothy Financial Counsel Inc., a financial planning firm. From 2016–2019, Mr. Wildman served as Executive Vice President, Consumer Banking and Director of MB Financial Bank. From 2013–2016, Mr. Wildman served as MB Financial Bank's Chief Risk Officer and was responsible for Risk Management. Prior to 2013, he was responsible for the MB Financial Bank's Wealth Management and Consumer Services groups. Prior to joining MB Financial Bank in 2003, he was First Vice President of Bank One and served in various management positions with its predecessor organization, American National Bank and Trust Company of Chicago, since 1988. Mr. Wildman was a member of the Board of Trustees of Missionary Furlough Homes from 2008–2022. Based on the foregoing, Mr. Wildman is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**James A. McNamara.** Mr. McNamara has served as a Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer of the Trust since 2014. Mr. McNamara is an Advisory Director to Goldman Sachs. Prior to retiring as Managing Director at Goldman Sachs in 2017, Mr. McNamara was head of Global Third Party Distribution at GSAM and was previously head of U.S. Third Party Distribution. Prior to that role, Mr. McNamara served as Director of Institutional Fund Sales. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Mr. McNamara was Vice President and Manager at Dreyfus Institutional Service Corporation. Based on the foregoing, Mr. McNamara is experienced with financial and investment matters.

**Officers of the Trust** 

Information pertaining to the officers of the Trust as of April 28, 2026 is set forth below.

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| James A. McNamara<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1962 | Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer | Since 2014 Advisory Director, Goldman Sachs (January 2018–Present); Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (January 2000–December 2017); Director of Institutional Fund Sales, GSAM (April 1998–December 2000); and Senior Vice President and Manager, Dreyfus Institutional Service Corporation (a financial services firm) (January 1993–April 1998).<br>Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| Joseph F. DiMaria<br> 30 Hudson Street<br> Jersey City, NJ 07302<br> 1968 | Treasurer, Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer | Since 2017 (Treasurer and Principal Financial Officer since 2019) Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (November 2015–Present) and Vice President – Mutual Fund Administration, Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (May 2010–October 2015).<br>Treasurer, Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (previously Assistant Treasurer (2017)); Goldman Sachs Trust (previously Assistant Treasurer (2016)); Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust (previously Assistant Treasurer (2016)); Goldman Sachs Trust II (previously Assistant Treasurer (2017)); Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Jessica Moran<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1984 | Chief Compliance Officer | Since 2023 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (April 2017–Present).<br>Chief Compliance Officer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Allison Fracchiolla<br> 30 Hudson Street<br> Jersey City, NJ 07302<br> 1983 | Assistant Treasurer | Since 2014 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (January 2013–Present).<br>Assistant Treasurer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| Kirsten Frivold Imohiosen<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1970 | Assistant Treasurer | Since 2019 Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (January 2018–Present); and Vice President, Goldman Sachs (May 1999–December 2017).<br>Assistant Treasurer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit II LLC; Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp.; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Steven Z. Indich<br> 30 Hudson Street<br> Jersey City, NJ 07302<br> 1969 | Assistant Treasurer | Since 2019 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (February 2010–Present).<br>Assistant Treasurer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit II LLC; Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp.; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Elaine Leung<br> 30 Hudson Street<br> Jersey City, NJ 07302<br> 1974 | Assistant Treasurer | Since 2023 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (January 2021–Present); and Associate, Goldman Sachs (March 2014–December 2020).<br>Assistant Treasurer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| Carol Liu<br> 30 Hudson Street<br> Jersey City, NJ 07302<br> 1975 | Assistant Treasurer | Since 2019 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (October 2017–Present); Tax Director, The Raine Group LLC (August 2015–October 2017); and Tax Director, Icon Investments LLC (January 2012–August 2015).<br>Assistant Treasurer— Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit II LLC; Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp.; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Anney Chi<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1983 | Vice President | Since 2022 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (2014–Present).<br>Vice President—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Ryan Seber<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1989 | Vice President | Since 2025 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (2017–Present).<br>Vice President—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| Alyson Shupe<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1986 | Vice President | Since 2024 Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (December 2023–Present); Head of Product Strategy (U.S. Advisor & Latin America), J.P. Morgan Asset Management (August 2018–December 2023).<br>Vice President—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |
| Michael Twohig<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1965 | Vice President | Since 2019 Vice President, Goldman Sachs (2014–Present).<br>Vice President—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| Caroline L. Kraus<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1977 | Chief Legal Officer | Since 2014 Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (January 2016–Present); Vice President, Goldman Sachs (August 2006–December 2015); Senior Counsel, Goldman Sachs (January 2020–Present); Associate General Counsel, Goldman Sachs (2012–December 2019); Assistant General Counsel, Goldman Sachs (August 2006–December 2011); and Associate, Weil, Gotshal & Manges, LLP (2002–2006).<br>Chief Legal Officer—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust; Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust; Goldman Sachs Trust II; Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II; Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund; Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit II LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Credit Corp.; Phillip Street Middle Market Lending Fund LLC; Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp. II; and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust.<br>Secretary—Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Middle Market Credit II LLC; Goldman Sachs Private Credit Corp.; Phillip Street Middle Market Lending Fund LLC; and Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp. II. |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name and Year of Birth** | **Position(s) Held with the Trust(s)** | **Term of Office and Length of Time**<br> **Served<sup>1</sup>** |
| Robert Griffith<br> 200 West Street<br> New York, NY 10282<br> 1974 | Secretary | Since 2022 Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (September 2022–Present); General Counsel, Exchange Traded Concepts, LLC (October 2021–September 2022); Vice President, Goldman Sachs (August 2011–October 2021); Associate General Counsel, Goldman Sachs (December 2014–Present); Assistant General Counsel, Goldman Sachs (August 2011–December 2014); Vice President and Counsel, Nomura Holding America, Inc. (2010–2011); and Associate, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP (2005–2010).<br>Secretary—Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (previously Assistant Secretary (2022)); Goldman Sachs Trust (previously Assistant Secretary (2022)); Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust (previously Assistant Secretary (2022)); Goldman Sachs Trust II (previously Assistant Secretary (2022)); Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II (previously Assistant Secretary (2022)); Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund (previously Assistant Secretary (2022)); and Innovator ETFs<sup>®</sup> Trust. |

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<sup>1</sup> Officers hold office at the pleasure of the Board of Trustees or until their successors are duly elected and qualified. Each officer holds comparable positions with certain other companies of which Goldman Sachs, GSAM or an affiliate thereof is the investment adviser, administrator and/or distributor. 

**Standing Board Committees** 

The Audit Committee oversees the audit process and provides assistance to the Board with respect to fund accounting, tax compliance and financial statement matters. In performing its responsibilities, the Audit Committee selects and recommends annually to the Board an independent registered public accounting firm to audit the books and records of the Trust for the ensuing year, and reviews with the firm the scope and results of each audit. All of the Independent Trustees serve on the Audit Committee, and Mr. Latham serves as the Chair of the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee met four times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2025.

The Governance and Nominating Committee has been established to: (i) assist the Board in matters involving fund governance, which includes making recommendations to the Board with respect to the effectiveness of the Board in carrying out its responsibilities in governing the Fund and overseeing its management; (ii) select and nominate candidates for appointment or election to serve as Independent Trustees; and (iii) advise the Board on ways to improve its effectiveness. All of the Independent Trustees serve on the Governance and Nominating Committee. As stated above, each Trustee holds office for an indefinite term until the occurrence of certain events. In filling Board vacancies, the Governance and Nominating Committee will consider nominees recommended by shareholders. Nominee recommendations should be submitted to the Trust at its mailing address stated in the Fund's Prospectus and should be directed to the attention of the Governance and Nominating Committee. The Governance and Nominating Committee met twice during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2025.

The Compliance and Risk Oversight Committee has been established for the purpose of overseeing the compliance and risk processes: (i) of the Funds; and (ii) insofar as they relate to services provided to the Funds, of the Funds' Investment Adviser, Distributor, administrator (if any), and Transfer Agent, except that compliance processes relating to the accounting and financial reporting processes, and certain related matters, are overseen by the Audit Committee. In addition, the Compliance and Risk Oversight Committee provides assistance to the full Board with respect to compliance and risk oversight matters. All of the Independent Trustees serve on the Compliance and Risk Oversight Committee. The Compliance Committee met five times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2025.

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The Contract Review Committee has been established for the purpose of overseeing the processes of the Board for reviewing and monitoring performance under the Fund's investment management, distribution, transfer agency, and certain other agreements with the Fund's Investment Adviser and its affiliates. The Contract Review Committee is also responsible for overseeing the Board's processes for considering and reviewing performance under the operation of the Fund's distribution, service, shareholder administration and other plans, and any agreements related to the plans. The Contract Review Committee also provides appropriate assistance to the Board in connection with the Board's approval, oversight and review of the Fund's other service providers including, without limitation, the Fund's custodian/accounting agent, sub-transfer agents, professional (legal and accounting) firms and printing firms. All of the Independent Trustees serve on the Contract Review Committee. The Contract Review Committee met six times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2025.

**Risk Oversight** 

The Board is responsible for the oversight of the activities of the Funds, including oversight of risk management. Day-to-day risk management with respect to the Funds is the responsibility of GSAM or other service providers (depending on the nature of the risk), subject to supervision by GSAM. The risks of the Funds include, but are not limited to, liquidity risk, investment risk, derivatives risk, compliance risk, manager selection risk, operational risk, reputational risk, credit risk and counterparty risk. Each of GSAM and the other service providers have their own independent interest in risk management and their policies and methods of risk management may differ from the Funds and each other's in the setting of priorities, the resources available or the effectiveness of relevant controls. As a result, the Board recognizes that it is not possible to identify all of the risks that may affect the Funds or to develop processes and controls to eliminate or mitigate their occurrence or effects, and that some risks are simply beyond the control of the Funds or GSAM, their respective affiliates or other service providers.

The Board effectuates its oversight role primarily through regular and special meetings of the Board and Board committees. In certain cases, risk management issues are specifically addressed in reports, presentations and discussions. For example, on an annual basis, GSAM (or personnel from GSAM) will provide the Board with written reports that address the operation, adequacy and effectiveness of the Trust's liquidity risk management and derivatives risk management programs, which are generally designed to assess and manage liquidity risk and, for Full Compliance Funds, derivatives risk. GSAM also has a risk management team that assists GSAM in managing investment risk. Representatives from the risk management team meet regularly with the Board to discuss their analysis and methodologies. In addition, investment risk is discussed in the context of regular presentations to the Board on Fund strategy. Other types of risk are addressed as part of presentations on related topics (e.g. compliance policies) or in the context of presentations focused specifically on one or more risks. The Board also receives reports from GSAM management on operational risks, reputational risks and counterparty risks relating to the Funds.

Board oversight of risk management is also performed by various Board committees. For example, the Audit Committee meets with both the Funds' independent registered public accounting firm and GSAM's internal audit group to review risk controls in place that support the Funds as well as test results, and the Compliance and Risk Oversight Committee meets with the CCO and representatives of GSAM's compliance and risk oversight groups to review testing results of the Funds' compliance policies and procedures and other compliance and risk issues. Board oversight of risk is also performed as needed between meetings through communications between GSAM and the Board. The Board may, at any time and in its discretion, change the manner in which it conducts risk oversight. The Board's oversight role does not make the Board a guarantor of the Funds' investments or activities.

**Trustee Ownership of Fund Shares** 

The following table shows the dollar range of shares beneficially owned by each Trustee in the Funds and other portfolios of the Goldman Sachs Fund Complex as of December 31, 2025.

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name of Trustee** | **Dollar Range of**<br>**Equity Securities<br>in the Funds<sup>1</sup>** | **Aggregate Dollar Range of**<br> **Equity Securities in All**<br> **Portfolios in Fund Complex**<br> **Overseen By Trustee** |
|  Gregory G. Weaver |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Cheryl K. Beebe |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Dwight L. Bush |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Kathryn A. Cassidy |  | Over $100,000 |
|  John G. Chou |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Joaquin Delgado |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Eileen H. Dowling |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Lawrence Hughes |  | Over $100,000 |
|  John F. Killian |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Steven D. Krichmar |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Michael Latham |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Lawrence W. Stranghoener |  | Over $100,000 |
|  Brian J. Wildman<sup>(2)</sup> |  |  |
|  James A. McNamara |  | Over $100,000 |

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<sup>1</sup> Includes the value of shares beneficially owned by each Trustee in the Funds. 

<sup>2</sup> Mr. Wildman began serving as Trustee effective April 1, 2026.

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As of the date of this SAI, the Funds had not commenced operations, and therefore the Trustees and Officers of the Trust did not own any of the outstanding shares of beneficial interest of the Funds.

**Board Compensation** 

Each Independent Trustee is compensated with a unitary annual fee for his or her services as a Trustee of the Trust and as a member of the Audit Committee, Compliance and Risk Oversight Committee, Contract Review Committee, and Governance and Nominating Committee. The Chair and Trustees designated as "audit committee financial experts" receive additional compensation for their services in such capacities. The Independent Trustees are also reimbursed for reasonable travel expenses incurred in connection with attending meetings. The Trust may also pay the reasonable incidental costs of a Trustee to attend training or other types of conferences relating to the investment company industry.

The following tables set forth certain information with respect to the compensation of each Trustee of the Trust for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025:

**Trustee Compensation** 

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name of Trustee** | **Goldman Sachs<br>Core Plus<br>Bond ETF\*** | **Goldman Sachs<br>Income ETF\*** |
|  Gregory G. Weaver |  |  |
|  Cheryl K. Beebe |  |  |
|  Dwight L. Bush |  |  |
|  Kathryn A. Cassidy |  |  |
|  John G. Chou |  |  |
|  Joaquin Delgado |  |  |
|  Eileen Dowling |  |  |
|  Lawrence Hughes |  |  |
|  John F. Killian |  |  |
|  Steven D. Krichmar |  |  |
|  Michael Latham |  |  |
|  Lawrence W. Stranghoener |  |  |
|  Brian J. Wildman |  |  |
|  James A. McNamara |  |  |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name of Trustee** | **Pension or<br>Retirement<br>Benefits<br>Accrued as Part<br>Of the Trust's<br>Expenses** | **Total<br>Compensation<br>From the Fund<br>Complex (including<br>the Funds)<sup>(5)</sup>** |
|  Gregory G. Weaver<sup>(1)</sup> | – $| 558000 |
|  Cheryl K. Beebe | – $| 398000 |
|  Dwight L. Bush | – $| 378000 |
|  Kathryn A. Cassidy<sup>(2)</sup> | – $| 443000 |
|  John G. Chou | – $| 378000 |
|  Joaquin Delgado | – $| 378000 |
|  Eileen Dowling | – $| 378000 |
|  Lawrence Hughes | – $| 378000 |
|  John F. Killian | – $| 378000 |
|  Steven D. Krichmar | – $| 378000 |
|  Michael Latham<sup>(2)</sup> | – $| 443000 |
|  Brian J. Wildman<sup>(3)</sup> | – |  |
|  Lawrence W. Stranghoener | – $| 378000 |
|  James A. McNamara<sup>(4)</sup> | – |  |

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\* The Funds had not commenced operations as of the date of this SAI. Under current compensation arrangements, it is not expected that the Trustees will receive compensation from the Fund for the current fiscal year.

<sup>1</sup> Includes compensation as Board Chair.

<sup>2</sup> Includes compensation as "audit committee financial expert," as defined in Item 3 of Form N-CSR.

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<sup>3</sup> Mr. Wildman began serving as Trustee effective April 1, 2026.

<sup>4</sup> Mr. McNamara is an Interested Trustee due to the positions he holds with Goldman Sachs, and as such, receives no compensation from the Funds or the Goldman Sachs Fund Complex.

<sup>5</sup> Represents fees paid to each Trustee during the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025 from the Goldman Sachs Fund Complex, which consists of Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund, Goldman Sachs Trust II, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust and Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II. 

**Miscellaneous** 

The Trust, its Investment Adviser and the Distributor have adopted codes of ethics under Rule 17j-1 of the Act that permit personnel subject to their particular codes of ethics to invest in securities, including securities that may be purchased or held by the Funds.

**MANAGEMENT SERVICES** 

As stated in the Funds' Prospectus, GSAM, 200 West Street, New York, New York 10282, serves as Investment Adviser to the Funds.

GSAM is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and an affiliate of Goldman Sachs. See "Service Providers" in the Funds' Prospectus for a description of the Investment Adviser's duties to the Funds.

Founded in 1869, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is a publicly-held financial holding company and a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm. Goldman Sachs is a leader in developing portfolio strategies and in many fields of investing and financing, participating in financial markets worldwide and serving individuals, institutions, corporations and governments. Goldman Sachs is also among the principal market sources for current and thorough information on companies, industrial sectors, markets, economies and currencies, and trades and makes markets in a wide range of equity and debt securities 24 hours a day. The firm is headquartered in New York with offices in countries throughout the world. It has trading professionals throughout the United States, as well as in London, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Seoul, Sao Paulo and other major financial centers around the world. The active participation of Goldman Sachs in the world's financial markets enhances its ability to identify attractive investments. Goldman Sachs has agreed to permit the Funds to use the name "Goldman Sachs" or a derivative thereof as part each Fund's name for as long as the Funds' management agreement (each, a "Management Agreement") is in effect.

Each Management Agreement provides that GSAM, in its capacity as Investment Adviser, may render similar services to others so long as the services under the Management Agreement are not impaired thereby. Each Fund's Management Agreement was most recently approved by the Trustees of the Trust, including a majority of the Trustees of the Trust who are not parties to such agreement or "interested persons" (as such term is defined in the Act) of any party thereto (the "non-interested Trustees"), on April 21-22, 2026. A discussion regarding the Board of Trustees' basis for approving the Management Agreement with respect to each Fund will be available in the Fund's Form N-CSR for the first fiscal period following its launch.

Each Management Agreement will remain in effect for an initial two-year period and will continue in effect with respect to the Fund from year to year thereafter provided such continuance is specifically approved at least annually as set forth in the Management Agreement

Each Management Agreement will terminate automatically if assigned (as defined in the Act). A Management Agreement is also terminable at any time without penalty by the Trustees of the Trust or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of a Fund on 60 days' written notice to the Investment Adviser or by the Investment Adviser on 60 days' written notice to the Trust.

Pursuant to the Management Agreement, the Investment Adviser is entitled to receive the fee set forth below, payable monthly based on each Fund's average daily net assets. Under the Management Agreement, the Investment Adviser is responsible for substantially all the expenses of each Fund, excluding payments under the Fund's 12b-1 plan (if any), interest, expenses, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses, brokerage fees, costs of holding shareholder meetings and litigation, indemnification and extraordinary expenses. The actual management fee rate of each Fund (based on the management fee of its predecessor fund) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025 is disclosed below, as well as the management fee payable by each Fund.

The actual rate may not correlate to the contractual rate of a predecessor fund as a result of these management fee waivers that may be in effect from time to time. The Investment Adviser may waive a portion of its management fee payable by a Fund in an amount equal to any management fees it earns as an investment adviser to any of the affiliated funds in which the Fund invests.

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| | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Fund** | **Contractual**<br>**Rate** | **Average Daily Net Assets** | **Actual Rate<br>for the Fiscal<br>Year Ended**<br>**March 31, 2025** |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | 0.40% | First $1 Billion | 0.41 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | 0.37% | Next $1<br>Billion | 0.41 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | 0.35% | Next $3<br>Billion | 0.41 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | 0.34% | Next $3 Billion | 0.41 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | 0.34% | Over $8 Billion | 0.41 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | 0.40% |  | 0.54% |

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The imposition of the Investment Adviser's fees will have the effect of reducing the total return to investors. From time to time, the Investment Adviser may waive receipt of its fees, which would have the effect of lowering a Fund's overall expense ratio and increasing total return to investors at the time such amounts are waived.

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The Investment Adviser may waive a portion of its management fee, including fees earned as the Investment Adviser to the any of affiliated funds in which a Fund invests, from time to time, and may discontinue or modify any such waiver in the future, consistent with the terms of any fee waiver arrangements in place. Any such waiver would be voluntary and may be terminated at any time. For the fiscal years ended March 31, 2025, March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023 the amounts of the fees incurred by each Fund (based on the fees incurred by the applicable predecessor fund under its Management Agreement) were as follows (with and without the fee limitations that were then in effect):

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Fund** | **2025**<br>**Without Fee<br>Limitations** | **With Fee<br>Limitations** |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | $1422792 | $1415152 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | $660285 | $641827 |
| **Fund** | **2024**<br>**Without Fee<br>Limitations** | **With Fee<br>Limitations** |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | $1355419 | $1351319 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | $425835 | $422943 |
| **Fund** | **2023**<br>**Without Fee<br>Limitations** | **With Fee<br>Limitations** |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | $1521563 | $1494838 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | $429982 | $428289 |

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In addition to providing advisory services, under each Fund's Management Agreement, the Investment Adviser also, to the extent such services are not required to be performed by others pursuant to the fund administration and accounting agreement, the custodian agreement, the transfer agency agreement, distribution agreement or such other agreements with service providers to the Fund that the Board has approved: (i) supervises all non-advisory operations of each Fund that it advises; (ii) provides personnel to perform such executive, administrative and clerical services as are reasonably necessary to provide effective administration of the Fund; (iii) arranges for: (a) the preparation of all required tax returns, (b) the preparation and submission of reports to existing shareholders, (c) the periodic updating of prospectuses and statements of additional information and (d) the preparation of reports to be filed with the SEC and other regulatory authorities; (iv) maintains each Fund's records; and (v) provides office space and all necessary office equipment and services.

**Portfolio Managers — Other Accounts Managed by the Portfolio Managers** 

The following table discloses accounts within each type of category listed below for which the portfolio managers are jointly and primarily responsible for day to day portfolio management as of March 31, 2025, unless otherwise noted.

For each portfolio manager listed below, the total number of accounts managed is a reflection of accounts within the strategy they oversee or manage. There are multiple portfolio managers involved with each account.

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| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
|  | **Number of Other Accounts Managed and Total Assets by Account<br>Type†** | **Number of Other Accounts Managed and Total Assets by Account<br>Type†** | **Number of Other Accounts Managed and Total Assets by Account<br>Type†** | **Number of Other Accounts Managed and Total Assets by Account<br>Type†** | **Number of Other Accounts Managed and Total Assets by Account<br>Type†** | **Number of Other Accounts Managed and Total Assets by Account<br>Type†** | **Number of Accounts and Total Assets for Which Advisory Fee is<br>Performance Based†** | **Number of Accounts and Total Assets for Which Advisory Fee is<br>Performance Based†** | **Number of Accounts and Total Assets for Which Advisory Fee is<br>Performance Based†** | **Number of Accounts and Total Assets for Which Advisory Fee is<br>Performance Based†** | **Number of Accounts and Total Assets for Which Advisory Fee is<br>Performance Based†** | **Number of Accounts and Total Assets for Which Advisory Fee is<br>Performance Based†** |
|  | **Registered**<br> **Investment**<br> **Companies** | **Registered**<br> **Investment**<br> **Companies** | **Other Pooled**<br> **Investment Vehicles** | **Other Pooled**<br> **Investment Vehicles** | **Other**<br> **Accounts** | **Other**<br> **Accounts** | **Registered**<br> **Investment**<br> **Companies** | **Registered**<br> **Investment**<br> **Companies** | **Other Pooled**<br> **Investment**<br> **Vehicles** | **Other Pooled**<br> **Investment**<br> **Vehicles** | **Other Accounts** | **Other Accounts** |
| **Name of<br>Portfolio<br>Manager<br>Portfolio** | **Number<br>of<br>Accounts** | **Assets<br>Managed** | **Number<br>of<br>Accounts** | **Assets<br>Managed** | **Number<br>of<br>Accounts** | **Assets<br>Managed** | **Number<br>of<br>Accounts** | **Assets<br>Managed** | **Number<br>of<br>Accounts** | **Assets<br>Managed** | **Number<br>of<br>Accounts** | **Assets<br>Managed** |
|  Lindsay Rosner | 103 | $488179 | 493 | $399599 | 49757 | $720342 | 0 | $0 | 6 | $762 | 7 | $4496 |
|  Simon Dangoor | 103 | $488179 | 493 | $399599 | 49757 | $720342 | 0 | $0 | 6 | $762 | 7 | $4496 |
|  Aakash Thombre | 103 | $488179 | 493 | $399599 | 49757 | $720342 | 0 | $0 | 6 | $762 | 7 | $4496 |
|  Benjamin Johnson | 103 | $488179 | 493 | $399599 | 49757 | $720342 | 0 | $0 | 6 | $762 | 7 | $4496 |
|  John McClain | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 |
|  Paul Seary | 29 | $8565 | 32 | $8912 | 2815 | $176344 | 0 | $0 | 3 | $336 | 2 | $2331 |
|  David Westbrook | 11 | $11630 | 15 | $13886 | 2004 | $111651 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 |
|  Todd Henry | 11 | $11630 | 15 | $13886 | 2004 | $111651 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 | 0 | $0 |

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† Footnotes:

<sup>1</sup> Asset information is in USD millions unless otherwise specified.

<sup>2</sup> "Other Pooled Investment Vehicles" includes private investment funds and SICAVs (a type of open-end investment company organized outside the U.S.).

<sup>3</sup> "Other Accounts" includes a separately managed account platform, advisory mutual fund platform, advisory relationships and others. For purposes of the above, a platform is included as a single account.

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<u>Conflicts of Interest</u>. The Investment Adviser's portfolio managers are often responsible for managing the Funds as well as other accounts, including proprietary accounts, separate accounts and other pooled investment vehicles, such as unregistered private funds. A portfolio manager may manage a separate account or other pooled investment vehicle which may have materially higher fee arrangements than the Funds and may also have a performance-based fee. The side-by-side management of these funds may raise potential conflicts of interest relating to cross trading, the allocation of investment opportunities and the aggregation and allocation of trades.

The Investment Adviser has a fiduciary responsibility to manage all client accounts in a fair and equitable manner. The Investment Adviser seeks to provide best execution of all securities transactions and aggregate and then allocate securities to client accounts in a fair and timely manner. To this end, the Investment Adviser has developed policies and procedures designed to mitigate and manage the potential conflicts of interest that may arise from side-by-side management. In addition, the Investment Adviser and the Funds have adopted policies limiting the circumstances under which cross-trades may be effected between the Funds and another client account. The Investment Adviser conducts periodic reviews of trades for consistency with these policies. For more information about conflicts of interests that may arise in connection with a portfolio manager's management of the Funds' investments and the investments of other accounts, see "Potential Conflicts of Interest."

**Portfolio Managers — Compensation** 

Compensation for portfolio managers of the Investment Adviser is comprised of a base salary and year-end discretionary variable compensation. The base salary is fixed from year to year. Year-end discretionary variable compensation is primarily a function of each portfolio manager's individual performance and his or her contribution to overall team performance; the performance of the Investment Adviser and Goldman Sachs; the team's net revenues for the past year which is primarily derived from advisory fees; and anticipated compensation levels among competitor firms. Portfolio managers are rewarded, in part, for their delivery of investment performance, which is reasonably expected to meet or exceed the expectations of clients and fund shareholders in terms of: excess return over an applicable benchmark, peer group ranking, risk management and factors specific to certain funds such as yield or regional focus. Performance is judged over 1-, 3- and 5-year time horizons.

For compensation purposes, the benchmark for these Funds is the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index.

The discretionary variable compensation for portfolio managers is also significantly influenced by various factors, including: (1) effective participation in team research discussions and process; and (2) management of risk in alignment with the targeted risk parameters and investment objectives of a Fund. Other factors may also be considered including: (1) general client/shareholder orientation and (2) teamwork and leadership.

As part of their year-end discretionary variable compensation and subject to certain eligibility requirements, portfolio managers may receive deferred equity-based and similar awards, in the form of: (1) shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (restricted stock units); and, (2) for certain portfolio managers, performance-tracking (or "phantom") shares of a Fund or multiple funds. Performance-tracking shares are designed to provide a rate of return (net of fees) equal to that of the Fund(s) that a portfolio manager manages, or one or more other eligible funds, as determined by senior management, thereby aligning portfolio manager compensation with fund shareholder interests. The awards are subject to vesting requirements, deferred payment and clawback and forfeiture provisions. GSAM, Goldman Sachs or their affiliates expect, but are not required to, hedge the exposure of the performance-tracking shares of a Fund by, among other things, purchasing shares of the relevant Fund(s).

Other Compensation—In addition to base salary and year-end discretionary variable compensation, the Investment Adviser has a number of additional benefits in place including (1) a 401(k) program that enables employees to direct a percentage of their base salary and bonus income into a tax-qualified retirement plan; and (2) investment opportunity programs in which certain professionals may participate subject to certain eligibility requirements.

**Portfolio Managers — Portfolio Managers' Ownership of Securities in the Funds They Manage** 

The Funds were not in operation as of the date of this SAI. Consequently, the portfolio managers owned no securities issued by the Funds as of that date.

The following table shows the portfolio managers' ownership of securities of the applicable predecessor funds, including those beneficially owned as well as those owned pursuant to the deferred compensation plan discussed above, in the predecessor funds as of March 31, 2026:

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Name of Portfolio Manager** | **Dollar Range of Equity<br>Securities Beneficially<br>Owned by Portfolio<br>Manager** |
|  **Bond Fund** |  |
|  Simon Dangoor | $100001 - $500000 |
|  Lindsay Rosner | $10001 - $50000 |
|  **Income Fund** |  |
|  Aakash Thombre | $100001 - $500000 |
|  Lindsay Rosner |  |

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**Distributor and Transfer Agent** 

*Distributor:* ALPS Distributors, Inc., 1290 Broadway, Suite 1000, Denver, Colorado 80203, serves as the exclusive distributor of Creation Units of shares of the Funds pursuant to a "best efforts" arrangement as provided by a distribution agreement with the Trust on behalf of the Funds. Shares of the Funds are offered and sold on a continuous basis by ALPS, acting as agent. The Distributor does not maintain a secondary market in the Funds' Shares.

*Transfer Agent:* The Bank of New York, 240 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10286, serves as the Trust's transfer and dividend disbursing agent. Under its transfer agency agreement with the Trust, BNY has undertaken with the Trust to provide the following services with respect to each Fund: (i) perform and facilitate the performance of purchases and redemptions of Creation Units, (ii) prepare and transmit by means of Depository Trust Company's ("DTC") book-entry system payments for dividends and distributions on or with respect to the Shares declared by the Trust on behalf of the applicable Fund, (iii) prepare and deliver reports, information and documents as specified in the transfer agency agreement, (iv) perform the customary services of a transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent, and (v) render certain other miscellaneous services as specified in the transfer agency agreement or as otherwise agreed upon.

The Trust's distribution and transfer agency agreements each provide that BNY may render similar services to others so long as the services BNY provides thereunder are not impaired thereby. Such agreements also provide that the Trust will indemnify BNY against certain liabilities.

**Expenses** 

The Board of Trustees of the Trust has approved a unitary management fee structure for the Funds. Under the unitary fee structure, the Investment Adviser is responsible for paying substantially all the expenses of each Fund, excluding payments under the Fund's 12b-1 plan (if any), interest expenses, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses, brokerage fees, costs of holding shareholder meetings and litigation, indemnification and extraordinary expenses.

The imposition of the Investment Adviser's fees, as well as any other operating expenses not borne by the Investment Adviser as described above, will have the effect of reducing the total return to investors. From time to time, the Investment Adviser may waive receipt of its fees, which would have the effect of lowering the Funds' overall expense ratio and increasing total return to investors at the time such amounts are waived or assumed, as the case may be.

**Custodian, Sub-Custodians and Provider of Administrative Services** 

BNY is the custodian of the Trust's portfolio securities and cash. The custodian of the Trust may change from time to time. BNY also maintains the Trust's accounting records. BNY may appoint domestic and foreign sub-custodians and use depositories from time to time to hold securities and other instruments purchased by the Trust in foreign countries and to hold cash and currencies for the Trust.

BNY provides administrative services pursuant to the fund administration agreement with the Trust (the "Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement") pursuant to which BNY provides certain services, including, among others, (i) preparation of certain shareholder reports and communications; (ii) preparation of certain reports and filings with the SEC; (iii) certain net asset value computation services; and (iv) such other services for the Trust as may be mutually agreed upon between the Trust and BNY. For its services under the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement, BNY receives such fees based on a stated percentage of net assets as are agreed upon from time to time between the parties. In addition, BNY is reimbursed by the Funds for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement. In addition, an affiliate of BNY will also provide certain other services for the Trust, including, (i) providing foreign exchange transaction services and (ii) executing trades in connection with certain creation and redemption transactions effected partially in cash. For these services, the BNY affiliate will receive compensation based on levels that are negotiated with the Trust and/or the Investment Adviser. BNY also provides certain middle office services to GSAM pursuant to a service agreement.

**Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm** 

[ ], [ ], is the Funds' independent registered public accounting firm. The Funds' independent registered public accounting firm may change from time to time. In addition to audit services, [ ] provides assistance on certain non-audit matters.

**POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST** 

**General Categories of Conflicts Associated with the Funds** 

Goldman Sachs (which, for purposes of this "POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST" section, shall mean, collectively, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., the Investment Adviser and their affiliates, directors, partners, trustees, managers, members, officers and employees) is a worldwide, full-service investment banking, broker-dealer, asset management and financial services organization and a major participant in global financial markets. As such, it provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals. Goldman Sachs acts as broker-dealer, investment adviser, investment banker, underwriter, research provider, administrator, financier, adviser, market maker, trader, prime broker, derivatives dealer, clearing agent, lender, custodian, counterparty, agent, principal, distributor, investor or in other commercial capacities for accounts or companies (including Fund portfolio companies) or affiliated or unaffiliated investment funds (including pooled investment vehicles and private funds). In those and other capacities, Goldman Sachs advises and deals with clients and third parties in all markets and transactions and purchases, sells, holds and recommends a broad array of investments, including securities, derivatives, loans, commodities, currencies, credit default swaps, indices, baskets and other financial instruments and products, for its own account and for the accounts of clients and of its personnel. In addition, Goldman Sachs has direct and indirect interests in the global fixed income, currency, commodity, equities, bank loan and other markets. In certain cases, the Investment Adviser causes the Funds to

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invest in products and strategies sponsored, managed or advised by Goldman Sachs or in which Goldman Sachs has an interest, either directly or indirectly, or otherwise restricts the Funds from making such investments, as further described herein. In this regard, there are instances when Goldman Sachs' activities and dealings with other clients and third parties affect the Funds in ways that disadvantage the Funds and/or benefit Goldman Sachs or other Accounts.

In addition, the Investment Adviser's activities on behalf of certain other entities that are not investment advisory clients of the Investment Adviser create conflicts of interest between such entities, on the one hand, and Accounts (including the Funds), on the other hand, that are the same as or similar to the conflicts that arise between the Funds and other Accounts, as described herein. In managing conflicts of interest that arise as a result of the foregoing, the Investment Adviser generally will be subject to fiduciary requirements. For purposes of this "POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST" section, "Funds" shall mean, collectively, the Funds and any of the other Goldman Sachs Funds, "Indexes" shall mean, collectively, stock market and other indexes that the Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates develop, own or operate and "Accounts" shall mean Goldman Sachs' own accounts, accounts in which personnel of Goldman Sachs have an interest, accounts of Goldman Sachs' clients, including separately managed accounts (or separate accounts), and investment vehicles that Goldman Sachs sponsors, manages or advises, including the Funds.

The conflicts herein do not purport to be a complete list or explanation of the conflicts associated with the financial or other interests the Investment Adviser or Goldman Sachs may have now or in the future. Additional information about potential conflicts of interest regarding the Investment Adviser and Goldman Sachs is set forth in the Investment Adviser's Form ADV. A copy of Part 1 and Part 2A of the Investment Adviser's Form ADV is available on the SEC's website (www.adviserinfo.sec.gov).

**The Sale of Fund Shares and the Allocation of Investment Opportunities** 

*Sales Incentives and Related Conflicts Arising from Goldman Sachs' Financial and Other Relationships with Intermediaries* 

Goldman Sachs and its personnel, including employees of the Investment Adviser, receive benefits and earn fees and compensation for services provided to Accounts (including the Funds) and in connection with the distribution of the Funds. Any such fees and compensation are generally paid directly or indirectly out of the fees payable to the Investment Adviser in connection with the management of such Accounts (including the Funds). Moreover, Goldman Sachs and its personnel, including employees of the Investment Adviser, have relationships (both involving and not involving the Funds, and including without limitation placement, brokerage, advisory and board relationships) with distributors, consultants and others who recommend, or engage in transactions with or for, the Funds. Such distributors, consultants and other parties may receive compensation from Goldman Sachs or the Funds in connection with such relationships. As a result of these relationships, distributors, consultants and other parties have conflicts that create incentives for them to promote the Funds.

To the extent permitted by applicable law, Goldman Sachs and the Funds have in the past made, and may in the future make, payments to authorized dealers and other financial intermediaries and to salespersons to promote the Funds. These payments may be made out of Goldman Sachs' assets or amounts payable to Goldman Sachs. These payments create an incentive for such persons to highlight, feature or recommend the Funds.

*Allocation of Investment Opportunities Among the Funds and Other Accounts* 

The Investment Adviser manages or advises multiple Accounts (including Accounts in which Goldman Sachs and its personnel have an interest) that have investment objectives that are the same or similar to the Funds and that seek to make or sell investments in the same securities or other instruments, sectors or strategies as the Funds. This creates potential conflicts, particularly in circumstances where the availability or liquidity of such investment opportunities is limited (e.g., in local and emerging markets, high yield securities, fixed income securities, direct loan originations, regulated industries, small capitalization, direct or indirect investments in private investment funds, investments in master limited partnerships in the oil and gas industry, initial public offerings/new issues and privately-issued debt securities).

Accounts (including the Funds) may invest in other Accounts (including the Funds) at or near the establishment of such Accounts, which may facilitate the Accounts achieving a specified size or scale. Conversely, Accounts (including the Funds) may also invest in other Accounts (including the Funds) that are near the end of their life and investment by Accounts (including the Funds) may allow such products to continue in operation.

The Investment Adviser does not receive performance-based compensation in respect of its investment management activities on behalf of the Funds, but may simultaneously manage Accounts for which the Investment Adviser receives greater fees or other compensation (including performance-based fees or allocations) than it receives in respect of the Funds. The simultaneous management of Accounts that pay greater fees or other compensation and the Funds creates a conflict of interest as the Investment Adviser has an incentive to favor Accounts with the potential to receive greater fees when allocating resources, services, functions or investment opportunities among Accounts. For instance, the Investment Adviser will be faced with a conflict of interest when allocating scarce investment opportunities given the possibly greater fees from Accounts that pay performance-based fees.

To address these potential conflicts, the Investment Adviser has developed allocation policies and procedures that provide that the Investment Adviser's personnel making portfolio decisions for Accounts will make investment decisions for, and allocate investment opportunities among, such Accounts consistent with the Investment Adviser's fiduciary obligations. However, the availability, amount, timing, structuring or terms of an investment available to the Funds differ from, and performance may be lower than, the investments and performance of other Accounts in certain cases. In addition, these policies and procedures may result in the pro rata allocation (on a basis determined by the Investment Adviser) of limited opportunities across eligible Accounts managed by a particular portfolio management team, but in other cases such allocation may not be pro rata. Furthermore, certain investment opportunities sourced by the Investment Adviser, or Goldman Sachs businesses or divisions outside of the Investment Adviser, may be allocated to Goldman Sachs for its own account or investment vehicles organized to facilitate investment by its current or former directors, partners, trustees, managers, members, officers, employees, and their families and related entities, including employee benefit plans in which they participate, and current consultants, and not to Accounts. See Item 11 ("Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading— Participation or Interest in Client Transactions—Certain Effects of the Activities of Goldman Sachs and Advisory Accounts") of the Investment Adviser's Form ADV.

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Allocation-related decisions for the Funds and other Accounts are made by reference to one or more factors. Factors may include: the date of inception of the Account; the Account's portfolio and its investment horizons and objectives (including with respect to portfolio construction and target returns); the risk profile of the investment; guidelines and restrictions (including legal and regulatory restrictions affecting certain Accounts or affecting holdings across Accounts); client instructions; adverse effects of timing on other Accounts or the Investment Adviser potentially participating in the investment opportunity; strategic fit and other portfolio management considerations, including different desired levels of exposure to certain strategies; the expected future capacity of the Funds and the applicable Accounts; limits on the Investment Adviser's brokerage discretion; cash and liquidity needs and other considerations; anticipated magnitude of the overall investment program for the then current year and any changes in the rate at which the program is carried out; the availability (or lack thereof) of other appropriate or substantially similar investment opportunities; the opportunity to invest in different layers in the capital structure of a company; differences in benchmark factors and hedging strategies among Accounts; the Investment Adviser's perception of a potential co-investment party's interest; and the source of the investment opportunity. Suitability considerations, reputational matters and other considerations may also be considered.

In a case in which one or more Accounts are intended to be the Investment Adviser's primary investment vehicles focused on, or to receive priority with respect to, a particular trading strategy ("Primary Vehicles") (as determined in the Investment Adviser's discretion, and including investments sourced by or available from the Investment Adviser or affiliates of the Investment Adviser), other Accounts (including the Funds) may not have access to such strategy or may have more limited access than would otherwise be the case. For example, access to such strategies may only be available to certain Accounts through an investment in a Primary Vehicle, which investment would result in additional management fees and/or performance-based compensation payable to the Investment Adviser. To the extent that such Accounts are managed by areas of Goldman Sachs other than the Investment Adviser, such Accounts will not be subject to the Investment Adviser's allocation policies. Investments by such Accounts may reduce or eliminate the availability of investment opportunities to, or otherwise adversely affect, the Fund. Furthermore, in cases in which one or more Accounts are intended to be the Investment Adviser's primary investment vehicles focused on, or receive priority with respect to, a particular trading strategy or type of investment, such Accounts have specific policies or guidelines with respect to Accounts or other persons receiving the opportunity to invest alongside such Accounts with respect to one or more investments ("Co-Investment Opportunities"). As a result, certain Accounts or other persons will receive allocations to, or rights to invest in, Co-Investment Opportunities that are not available generally to the Funds.

In addition, in some cases the Investment Adviser makes investment recommendations to Accounts that make investment decisions independently of the Investment Adviser. In circumstances in which there is limited availability of an investment opportunity, if such Accounts invest in the investment opportunity at the same time as, or prior to, a Fund, the availability of the investment opportunity for the Fund will be reduced irrespective of the Investment Adviser's policies regarding allocations of investments.

The Investment Adviser, from time to time, develops and implements new trading strategies or seeks to participate in new trading strategies and investment opportunities. These strategies and opportunities are not employed in all Accounts or employed pro rata among Accounts where they are used, even if the strategy or opportunity is consistent with the objectives of such Accounts. Further, a trading strategy employed for a Fund that is similar to, or the same as, that of another Account may be implemented differently, sometimes to a material extent. For example, a Fund may invest in different securities or other assets, or invest in the same securities and other assets but in different proportions, than another Account with the same or similar trading strategy. The implementation of the Fund's trading strategy depends on a variety of factors, including the portfolio managers involved in managing the trading strategy for the Account, the time difference associated with the location of different portfolio management teams, and the factors described above and in Item 6 ("PERFORMANCE-BASED FEES AND SIDE-BY-SIDE MANAGEMENT—Side-by-Side Management of Advisory Accounts; Allocation of Opportunities") of the Investment Adviser's Form ADV.

During periods of unusual market conditions, the Investment Adviser may deviate from its normal trade allocation practices. For example, this may occur with respect to the management of unlevered and/or long-only Accounts that are typically managed on a side-by-side basis with levered and/or long-short Accounts.

The Investment Adviser and the Funds may receive notice of, or offers to participate in, investment opportunities from third parties for various reasons. The Investment Adviser in its sole discretion will determine whether a Fund will participate in any such investment opportunities and investors should not expect that the Fund will participate in any such investment opportunities unless the opportunities are received pursuant to contractual requirements, such as preemptive rights or rights offerings, under the terms of the Fund's investments. Some or all Funds may, from time to time, be offered investment opportunities that are made available through Goldman Sachs businesses outside of the Investment Adviser, including, for example, interests in real estate and other private investments. In this regard, a conflict of interest exists to the extent that Goldman Sachs controls or otherwise influences the terms and pricing of such investments and/or retains other benefits in connection therewith. However, Goldman Sachs businesses outside of the Investment Adviser are under no general or other obligation or duty to provide investment opportunities to the Funds, and generally are not expected to do so. Further, opportunities sourced within particular portfolio management teams within the Investment Adviser may not be allocated to Accounts (including the Funds) managed by such teams or by other teams. Opportunities not allocated (or not fully allocated) to the Funds or other Accounts managed by the Investment Adviser may be undertaken by Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser), including for Accounts, or made available to other Accounts or third parties, and the Funds will not receive any compensation related to such opportunities. Even in the case of an opportunity received by a Fund pursuant to contractual requirements, the Investment Adviser may decide in its discretion that the Fund will not participate in such opportunity for portfolio construction reasons, due to the investment objective and strategies of such Fund, or because the Investment Adviser determines that participation would not be appropriate for such Fund for other reasons, in which case the Investment Adviser may allocate such opportunity to another Account. Additional information about the Investment Adviser's allocation policies is set forth in Item 6 ("PERFORMANCE-BASED FEES AND SIDE-BY-SIDE MANAGEMENT—Side-by-Side Management of Advisory Accounts; Allocation of Opportunities") of the Investment Adviser's Form ADV.

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As a result of the various considerations above, there will be cases in which certain Accounts (including Accounts in which Goldman Sachs and personnel of Goldman Sachs have an interest) receive an allocation of an investment opportunity (including an investment opportunity sourced by or available from the Investment Adviser or affiliates of the Investment Adviser) at times that the Funds do not, or when the Funds receive an allocation of such opportunities but on different terms than other Accounts (which may be less favorable). In addition, due to regulatory or other considerations, the receipt of an investment opportunity by certain Funds may restrict or limit the ability of other Funds to receive an allocation of the same opportunity. The application of these considerations may cause differences in the performance of different Accounts that employ strategies the same or similar to those of the Funds.

Certain Accounts may be unable to participate directly in particular types of investment opportunities (including those sourced by or available from the Investment Adviser or affiliates of the Investment Adviser), such as certain types of loans, due to the nature and/or size of the Accounts or limitations or prohibitions in applicable loan or transaction documentation. In addition, certain Accounts may be limited due to the timing or specific nature of the particular investment opportunity.

Multiple Accounts (including the Funds) may participate in a particular investment or incur expenses applicable in connection with the operation or management of the Accounts, or otherwise may be subject to costs or expenses that are allocable to more than one Account (which may include, without limitation, research expenses, technology expenses, valuation agent expenses, expenses relating to participation in bondholder groups, restructurings, class actions and other litigation, and insurance premiums). The Investment Adviser may allocate investment-related and other expenses on a pro rata or different basis. Certain Accounts are, by their terms or by determination of the Investment Adviser, on a case-by-case basis, not responsible for their share of such expenses, and, in addition, the Investment Adviser has agreed with certain Accounts to cap the amount of expenses (or the amount of certain types of expenses) borne by such Accounts, which results in such Accounts not bearing the full share of expenses they would otherwise have borne as described above. As a result, certain Accounts are responsible for bearing a different or greater amount of expenses, while other Accounts do not bear any, or do not bear their full share, of such expenses. The Investment Adviser may bear any such expenses on behalf of certain Accounts and not for others, as it determines in its sole discretion. If the Investment Adviser bears expenses on behalf of an Account and the Account subsequently receives reimbursement for such expenses, the Investment Adviser will generally be entitled to receive all or a portion of the amount of such reimbursement, up to the amount that was borne by the Investment Adviser on behalf of such Account.

*Goldman Sachs' Financial and Other Interests May Incentivize Goldman Sachs to Promote the Sale of Fund Shares* 

Goldman Sachs and its personnel have interests in promoting sales of Fund shares, and the compensation from such sales may be greater than the compensation relating to sales of interests in other Accounts. Therefore, Goldman Sachs and its personnel may have a financial interest in promoting Fund shares over interests in other Accounts.

**Management of the Funds by the Investment Adviser** 

***Considerations Relating to Information Held by Goldman Sachs***

Goldman Sachs has established certain information barriers and other policies designed to address the sharing of information between different businesses within Goldman Sachs. As a result of information barriers, the Investment Adviser generally will not have access, or will have limited access, to certain information and personnel, including senior personnel, in other areas of Goldman Sachs, and generally will not manage the Funds with the benefit of information held by such other areas. Goldman Sachs, due to its access to and knowledge of funds, markets and securities based on its prime brokerage and other businesses, will from time to time make decisions based on information or take (or refrain from taking) actions with respect to interests in investments of the kind held (directly or indirectly) by the Funds in a manner that is adverse to the Funds, and will not have any obligation or other duty to share information with the Investment Adviser.

In limited circumstances, however, including for purposes of managing business and reputational risk, and subject to policies and procedures, personnel on one side of an information barrier may have access to information and personnel on the other side of the information barrier through "wall crossings." The Investment Adviser faces conflicts of interest in determining whether to engage in such wall crossings. In addition, Goldman Sachs or the Investment Adviser may determine to move certain personnel, businesses, or business units from one side of an information barrier to the other side of the information barrier. In connection therewith, Goldman Sachs personnel, businesses, and business units that were moved will no longer have access to the personnel, businesses and business units on the side of the information barrier from which they were moved.

Information obtained in connection with such wall crossings and changes to information barriers may limit or restrict the ability of the Investment Adviser to engage in or otherwise effect transactions on behalf of the Funds (including purchasing or selling securities that the Investment Adviser may otherwise have purchased or sold for an Account in the absence of a wall crossing or change to an information barrier). In managing conflicts of interest that arise as a result of the foregoing, the Investment Adviser generally will be subject to fiduciary requirements. Information barriers also exist between certain businesses within the Investment Adviser. The conflicts described herein with respect to information barriers and otherwise with respect to Goldman Sachs and the Investment Adviser also apply to the asset management business of Goldman Sachs Asset & Wealth Management (of which the Investment Adviser is a part), as well as to the other businesses within Goldman Sachs Asset & Wealth Management (including the Investment Adviser). In addition, there may also be circumstances in which, as a result of information held by certain portfolio management teams in the Investment Adviser, the Investment Adviser limits an activity or transaction for a Fund, including if the Fund is managed by a portfolio management team other than the team holding such information.

In addition, regardless of the existence of information barriers, Goldman Sachs will not have any obligation or other duty to make available for the benefit of the Funds any information regarding Goldman Sachs' trading activities, strategies or views, or the activities, strategies or views used for other Accounts. Furthermore, to the extent that the Investment Adviser has developed fundamental analysis and proprietary technical models or other information, Goldman Sachs and its personnel, or other parts of the Investment Adviser, will not be under any obligation or other duty to share certain information with the Investment Adviser or personnel involved in decision-making for Accounts (including the Funds), and the Funds may make investment decisions that differ from those they would have made if Goldman Sachs had provided such information, and be disadvantaged as a result thereof.

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Different areas of the Investment Adviser and Goldman Sachs take views, and make decisions or recommendations, that are different than those of other areas of the Investment Adviser and Goldman Sachs. Different portfolio management teams within the Investment Adviser make decisions based on information or take (or refrain from taking) actions with respect to Accounts they advise in a manner different than or adverse to the Funds. Such teams do not share information with the Funds' portfolio management teams, including as a result of certain information barriers and other policies, and will not have any obligation or other duty to do so.

Goldman Sachs operates a business known as Prime Services, which provides prime brokerage, administrative and other services to clients that from time to time involve investment funds (including pooled investment vehicles and private funds) in which one or more Accounts invest ("Underlying Funds") or markets and securities in which Accounts invest. Prime Services and other parts of Goldman Sachs have broad access to information regarding the current status of certain markets, investments and funds and detailed information about fund operators that is not available to the Investment Adviser. In addition, Goldman Sachs from time to time acts as a prime broker to one or more Underlying Funds, in which case Goldman Sachs will have information concerning the investments and transactions of such Underlying Funds that is not available to the Investment Adviser. As a result of these and other activities, parts of Goldman Sachs will possess information in respect of markets, investments, investment advisers that are affiliated or unaffiliated with Goldman Sachs and Underlying Funds, which, if known to the Investment Adviser, might cause the Investment Adviser to seek to dispose of, retain or increase interests in investments held by Accounts or acquire certain positions on behalf of Accounts, or take other actions. Goldman Sachs will be under no obligation or other duty to make any such information available to the Investment Adviser or personnel involved in decision- making for Accounts (including the Funds).

***Valuation of the Funds' Investments***

The Investment Adviser performs certain valuation services related to securities and assets held in the Funds. The Investment Adviser performs such valuation services in accordance with its valuation policies. The Investment Adviser may value an identical asset differently than Goldman Sachs, or another division or unit within Goldman Sachs values the asset, including because Goldman Sachs, or such other division or unit, has information or uses valuation techniques and models that it does not share with, or that are different than those of, the Investment Adviser. This is particularly the case in respect of difficult-to-value assets. The Investment Adviser may also value an identical asset differently in different Accounts, including because different Accounts are subject to different valuation guidelines pursuant to their respective governing agreements (e.g., in connection with certain regulatory restrictions applicable to different Accounts). In addition, there may be significant differences in the treatment of the same asset by the Investment Adviser and Goldman Sachs, other divisions or units of Goldman Sachs, and/or among Accounts (e.g., with respect to an asset that is a loan, there can be differences when it is determined that such loan is deemed to be on non-accrual status or in default). Differences in valuation should be expected where different third-party vendors are hired to perform valuation functions for the Accounts, the Accounts are managed or advised by different portfolio management teams within the Investment Adviser that employ different valuation policies or procedures, or otherwise. The Investment Adviser will face a conflict with respect to valuations generally because of their effect on the Investment Adviser's fees and other compensation. Furthermore, the application of particular valuation policies with respect to the Funds will, under certain circumstances, result in improved performance of the Funds or enable the Investment Adviser to more easily track the performance of an Index than might have been the case had the Investment Adviser applied different valuation policies.

***Data and Information Sharing***

Accounts, the Investment Adviser, and/or their respective affiliates, portfolio companies and other investments (collectively, the "Data Parties") often possess data and information that they may utilize for various purposes and which they would not otherwise possess in the ordinary course of their businesses. For example, information relating to business operations, trends, budgets, customers or users, assets, funding and other metrics that the Data Parties possess or acquire through their management of Accounts and/or their own businesses and investment activities may be used by Goldman Sachs to identify and/or evaluate potential investments for Accounts and to facilitate the management of Accounts, including through operational improvements. Conversely, Goldman Sachs may use data and information that it has or acquires in connection with an Account's activities for the benefit of Goldman Sachs' own businesses and investment activities and their portfolio companies and other investments.

From time to time, Goldman Sachs may commission third-party research, at an Account's expense, in connection with the diligence of an investment opportunity or in connection with its management of a portfolio investment, and such research is expected to subsequently be available to other investment vehicles (and such persons will generally not be required to compensate an Account for the benefit they receive from such research). Such benefits could be material and Goldman Sachs will have no duty, contractual, fiduciary or otherwise, not to use such information in connection with the business and investment activities of itself, Accounts and/or their portfolio companies and other investments.

Furthermore, except for contractual obligations to third parties to maintain confidentiality of certain information, regulatory limitations on the use of material nonpublic information, and the Data Parties' information walls, Goldman Sachs is generally free to use data and information from an Account's activities to assist in the pursuit of its various other interests and activities, including to trade for the benefit of Goldman Sachs or another Account. Accounts and other sources of such data and information may not receive any financial or other benefit from having provided such data and information to Goldman Sachs. The potential ability to monetize such data and information may create incentives for Goldman Sachs to cause an Account to invest in entities and companies with a significant amount of data that it might not otherwise have invested in or on terms less favorable than it otherwise would have sought to obtain.

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***Goldman Sachs' and the Investment Adviser's Activities on Behalf of Other Accounts***

The Investment Adviser provides advisory services to the Funds. Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser), the clients it advises, and its personnel have interests in and advise Accounts that have investment objectives or portfolios similar to, related to or opposed to those of the Funds. Goldman Sachs may receive greater fees or other compensation (including performance-based fees) from such Accounts than it does from the Funds, in which case Goldman Sachs is incentivized to favor such Accounts. In addition, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser), the clients it advises, and its personnel may engage (or consider engaging) in commercial arrangements or transactions with Accounts, and/or compete for commercial arrangements or transactions in the same types of companies, assets securities and other instruments, as the Funds. Such arrangements, transactions or investments adversely affect such Funds by, for example, limiting their ability to engage in such activity or affecting the pricing or terms of such arrangements, transactions or investments. Moreover, a particular Fund on the one hand, and Goldman Sachs or other Accounts, on the other hand, may vote differently on or take or refrain from taking different actions with respect to the same security, which are disadvantageous to the Fund. Additionally, as described below, the Investment Adviser faces conflicts of interest arising out of Goldman Sachs' relationships and business dealings in connection with decisions to take or refrain from taking certain actions on behalf of Accounts when doing so would be adverse to Goldman Sachs' relationships or other business dealings with such parties.

Transactions by, advice to and activities of Accounts (including with respect to investment decisions, voting and the enforcement of rights) may involve the same or related companies, securities or other assets or instruments as those in which the Funds invest, and it should be expected that such Accounts engage in a strategy while a Fund is undertaking the same or a differing strategy, any of which could directly or indirectly disadvantage the Fund (including its ability to engage in a transaction or other activities).

In various circumstances, different Accounts make investments as part of a single transaction, including in situations in which multiple Accounts comprise a single "fund family" and situations in which Accounts make investments on a side-by-side basis on the same terms and conditions. In these circumstances, the participating Accounts may have different interests, such as different investment timing horizons, including, for example, when certain Accounts are closed-end vehicles or otherwise have a limited investment period, while other Accounts are open-ended or otherwise have a less limited investment period. Similarly, capital contribution and other obligations associated with an investment may extend beyond a particular Account's investment period or expected term. In such circumstances, the Investment Adviser may negotiate the terms of an investment on a collective basis and such terms may not be as favorable, from the perspective of a particular Account, than if the Account had been the sole participating Account. Terms required by one Account (for example, due to regulatory requirements) when it invests may negatively impact the ability of another Account to consummate the investment or may adversely alter its terms. Similarly, one Account may seek to dispose of an investment at a time when it would be desirable for another Account to continue to hold such investment (or vice versa). Depending on the structure of the applicable investment, disposing of a portion of the investment may be impractical or costly, or may have adverse effects on the rights of Accounts continuing to hold the investment. As a result, the Investment Adviser may be incentivized to accelerate or delay the sale, disposition or restructuring of an investment, which may have an adverse effect on certain of the Accounts participating in the transaction. Further, a particular Account that holds a minority interest in a portfolio company in which another Account owns a majority interest could be adversely affected in the context of restructuring and/or recapitalization transactions with respect to such portfolio company. When making an investment decision with respect to an investment in which multiple Accounts are invested, Goldman Sachs may primarily take into account the specific effect such investment decision will have on the Accounts as a whole, and not based on the best interests of any particular Account. In the event the Investment Adviser makes different investment decisions (including with respect to the timing of dispositions, additional investments, and other decisions) for Funds with respect to an investment in a common portfolio company, such Funds could have different rates of return and profit and loss on the investment or otherwise be adversely affected.

In addition, Goldman Sachs may be engaged to provide advice to an Account that is considering entering into a transaction with a Fund, and Goldman Sachs may advise the Account not to pursue the transaction with the Fund, or otherwise in connection with a potential transaction provide advice to the Account that would be adverse to the Fund. Additionally, if a Fund buys a security and an Account establishes a short position in that same security or in similar securities, such short position may result in the impairment of the price of the security that the Fund holds or could be designed to profit from a decline in the price of the security. A Fund could similarly be adversely impacted if it establishes a short position, following which an Account takes a long position in the same security or in similar securities.

Furthermore, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) may make filings in connection with a shareholder class action lawsuit or similar matter involving a particular security on behalf of an Account (including a Fund), but not on behalf of a different Account (including a Fund) that holds or held the same security, or that is invested in or has extended credit to different parts of the capital structure of the same issuer. Accounts may also have different rights in respect of an investment with the same issuer, or invest in different classes of the same issuer that have different rights, including, without limitation, with respect to liquidity. The determination to exercise such rights by the Investment Adviser on behalf of such other Accounts may have an adverse effect on the Funds.

The Funds are expected to transact with a variety of counterparties. Some of these counterparties will also engage in transactions with other Accounts managed by the Investment Adviser or another Goldman Sachs entity or business unit. For example, a Fund may directly or indirectly purchase assets from a counterparty at the same time the counterparty (or an affiliate thereof) is also negotiating to purchase different assets from another Account. This creates potential conflicts of interest, particularly with respect to the terms and purchase prices of the sales. For example, Goldman Sachs may receive fees or other compensation in connection with the sale of assets by an Account to a counterparty, which creates an incentive to negotiate a higher purchase price for those assets in a separate transaction where the Fund is a purchaser.

Similarly, a particular Fund may dispose of one or more assets through a block sale that includes assets held by other Accounts or as part of a series of transactions in which assets from multiple Accounts are sold to the same purchaser. This creates potential conflicts of interest, particularly with regard to the determination of the purchase prices of the applicable assets. For example, Goldman Sachs may receive greater fees or other compensation (including performance-based fees) in connection with the sale of assets in other Accounts that participate in a block sale as compared to the compensation that Goldman Sachs receives in connection with the sale of assets by the particular Fund. There can be no assurance that the compensation received by the particular Fund as a result of participating in a block sale would be greater than the compensation that the particular Fund would receive if its assets were sold as part of a standalone transaction. Any such transaction will be effected in accordance with the Investment Adviser's fiduciary obligations.

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Shareholders may be offered (or may already have) access to advisory services through several different Goldman Sachs businesses (including through Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and the Investment Adviser). Different advisory businesses within Goldman Sachs manage Accounts according to different strategies and apply different criteria to the same or similar strategies and have differing investment views in respect of an issuer or a security or other investment. Similarly, within the Investment Adviser, certain investment teams or portfolio managers can have differing or opposite investment views in respect of an issuer or a security, and as a result some or all of the positions a Fund's investment team or portfolio managers take in respect of the Fund will be inconsistent with, or adversely affected by, the interests and activities of the Accounts advised by other investment teams or portfolio managers of the Investment Adviser. Research, analyses or viewpoints will be available to clients or potential clients at different times. Goldman Sachs will not have any obligation or other duty to make available to the Funds any research or analysis at any particular time or prior to its public dissemination. The Investment Adviser is responsible for making investment decisions on behalf of the Funds, and such investment decisions can differ from investment decisions or recommendations by Goldman Sachs on behalf of other Accounts. The timing of transactions entered into or recommended by Goldman Sachs, on behalf of itself or its clients, including the Funds, may negatively impact the Funds or benefit certain other Accounts. For example, if Goldman Sachs, on behalf of one or more Accounts, implements an investment decision or strategy ahead of, or contemporaneously with, or behind similar investment decisions or strategies made for the Funds (whether or not the investment decisions emanate from the same research analysis or other information), it could result, due to market impact or other factors, in liquidity constraints or in certain Funds receiving less favorable investment or trading results or incurring increased costs. Similarly, if Goldman Sachs implements an investment decision or strategy that results in a purchase (or sale) of a security for one Fund, such implementation may increase the value of such security already held by another Account (or decrease the value of such security that such other Account intends to purchase), thereby benefitting such other Account.

Subject to applicable law, the Investment Adviser is incentivized to cause the Funds to invest in securities, bank loans or other obligations of companies affiliated with or advised by Goldman Sachs or in which Goldman Sachs or Accounts have an equity, debt or other interest, or to engage in investment transactions that may result in other Accounts being relieved of obligations or otherwise divested of investments, which may enhance the profitability of Goldman Sachs' or other Accounts' investment in and activities with respect to such companies. The Investment Adviser, in its discretion and in certain circumstances, recommends that certain Funds have ongoing business dealings, arrangements or agreements with persons who are (i) former employees of Goldman Sachs, (ii) affiliates or other portfolio companies of Goldman Sachs or other Accounts, (iii) Goldman Sachs' employees' family members and/or relatives and/or certain of their portfolio companies or (iv) persons otherwise associated with an investor in an Account or a portfolio company or service provider of Goldman Sachs or an Account. The Funds may bear, directly or indirectly, the costs of such dealings, arrangements or agreements.

These recommendations, and recommendations relating to continuing any such dealings, arrangements or agreements, pose conflicts of interest and may be based on differing incentives due to Goldman Sachs' relationships with such persons. In particular, when acting on behalf of, and making decisions for, Accounts, the Investment Adviser may take into account Goldman Sachs' interests in maintaining its relationships and business dealings with such persons. As a result, the Investment Adviser faces conflicts of interest arising out of Goldman Sachs' relationships and business dealings in connection with decisions to take or refrain from taking certain actions on behalf of Accounts when doing so would be adverse to Goldman Sachs' relationships or other business dealings with such parties.

When the Investment Adviser wishes to place an order for different types of Accounts (including the Funds) for which aggregation is not practicable, the Investment Adviser may use a trade sequencing and rotation policy to determine which type of Account is to be traded first. Under this policy, each portfolio management team may determine the length of its trade rotation period and the sequencing schedule for different categories of clients within this period provided that the trading periods and these sequencing schedules are designed to be reasonable. Within a given trading period, the sequencing schedule establishes when and how frequently a given client category will trade first in the order of rotation. The Investment Adviser may deviate from the predetermined sequencing schedule under certain circumstances, and the Investment Adviser's trade sequencing and rotation policy may be amended, modified or supplemented at any time without prior notice to clients.

***Potential Conflicts Relating to Follow-On Investments***

From time to time, the Investment Adviser provides opportunities to Accounts (including potentially the Funds) to make investments in companies in which certain Accounts have already invested. Such follow-on investments can create conflicts of interest, such as the determination of the terms of the new investment and the allocation of such opportunities among Accounts (including the Funds). Follow-on investment opportunities may be available to the Funds notwithstanding that the Funds have no existing investment in the issuer, resulting in the assets of the Funds potentially providing value to, or otherwise supporting the investments of, other Accounts. Accounts (including the Funds) may also participate in releveraging, recapitalization, and similar transactions involving companies in which other Accounts have invested or will invest. Conflicts of interest in these and other transactions arise between Accounts (including the Funds) with existing investments in a company or Accounts liquidating their investment in the company, on the one hand, and Accounts making subsequent investments in the company, on the other hand, which have opposing interests regarding pricing and other terms. In addition, the subsequent investments may dilute or otherwise adversely affect the interests of the previously-invested Accounts (including the Funds).

***Diverse Interests of Shareholders***

It should be expected that the various types of investors in and beneficiaries of the Funds, including to the extent applicable the Investment Adviser and its affiliates, have conflicting investment, tax and other interests with respect to their interests in the Funds. When considering a potential investment for a Fund, the Investment Adviser will generally consider the investment objectives of the Fund, not the investment objectives of any particular investor or beneficiary. The Investment Adviser makes decisions, including with respect to tax matters, from time to time that will be more beneficial to one type of investor or beneficiary than another, or to the Investment Adviser and its affiliates than to investors or beneficiaries unaffiliated with the Investment Adviser. In addition, Goldman Sachs faces certain tax risks based on positions taken by the Funds, including as a withholding agent. Goldman Sachs reserves the right on behalf of itself and its affiliates to take actions adverse to the Funds or other Accounts in these circumstances, including withholding amounts to cover actual or potential tax liabilities.

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***Selection of Service Providers***

The Funds expect to engage service providers (including attorneys and consultants) that in certain cases also provide services to Goldman Sachs and other Accounts. In addition, certain service providers to the Investment Adviser or Funds are also portfolio companies or other affiliates of the Investment Adviser or other Accounts (for example, a portfolio company of an Account may retain a portfolio company of another Account). To the extent it is involved in such selection, the Investment Adviser intends to select these service providers based on a number of factors, including expertise and experience, knowledge of related or similar products, quality of service, reputation in the marketplace, relationships with the Investment Adviser, Goldman Sachs or others, and price. These service providers may have business, financial, or other relationships with Goldman Sachs (including its personnel), which may influence the Investment Adviser's selection of these service providers for the Funds. In such circumstances, there is a conflict of interest between Goldman Sachs (acting on behalf of the Funds) and the Funds or between Funds if the Funds determine not to engage or continue to engage these service providers.

The Investment Adviser may, in its sole discretion, determine to provide, or engage or recommend an affiliate of the Investment Adviser to provide, certain services, including, but not limited to, services such as internal legal and accounting services, to the Funds, instead of engaging or recommending one or more third parties to provide such services. Subject to the governance requirements of a particular Fund and applicable law, the Investment Adviser or its affiliates, as applicable, will receive compensation in connection with the provision of such services. As a result, the Investment Adviser faces a conflict of interest when selecting or recommending service providers for the Funds. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the selection or recommendation of service providers for the Funds will be conducted in accordance with the Investment Adviser's fiduciary obligations to the Funds. The service providers selected or recommended by the Investment Adviser may charge different rates to different recipients based on the specific services provided, the personnel providing the services, the complexity of the services provided or other factors. As a result, the rates paid with respect to these service providers by a Fund, on the one hand, may be more or less favorable than the rates paid by Goldman Sachs, including the Investment Adviser, on the other hand. In addition, the rates paid by the Investment Adviser or the Funds, on the one hand, may be more or less favorable than the rates paid by other parts of Goldman Sachs or Accounts managed by other parts of Goldman Sachs, on the other hand. Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser), its personnel, and/or Accounts may hold investments in companies that provide services to entities in which the Funds invest generally, and, subject to applicable law, the Investment Adviser may refer or introduce such companies' services to entities that have issued securities held by the Funds.

***Investments in Goldman Sachs Funds***

To the extent permitted by applicable law, the Funds will, from time to time invest in money market and/or other funds sponsored, managed or advised by Goldman Sachs. In connection with any such investments, a Fund, to the extent permitted by the Act, will pay all advisory, administrative or Rule 12b-1 fees applicable to the investment. To the extent consistent with applicable law, certain Funds that invest in other funds sponsored, managed or advised by Goldman Sachs pay advisory fees to the Investment Adviser that are not reduced by any fees payable by such other funds to Goldman Sachs as manager of such other funds (i.e., there will be "double fees" involved in making any such investment, which would not arise in connection with the direct allocation of assets by investors in the Funds to such other funds). In such circumstances, as well as in all other circumstances in which Goldman Sachs receives any fees or other compensation in any form relating to the provision of services, no accounting or repayment to the Funds will be required.

The Investment Adviser, from time to time, manages Accounts (including the Funds), which may, individually or in the aggregate, own a substantial amount of the Funds. Further, the Investment Adviser, its affiliates, or another entity (i.e., a seed investor) may invest in the Funds at or near the establishment of such Funds, which may facilitate the Funds achieving a specified size or scale. The Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates may make payments to an investor that contributes seed capital to a Fund. Such payments may continue for a specified period of time and/or until a specified dollar amount is reached, and will be made from the assets of the Investment Adviser and/or such affiliates (and not the applicable Fund). Seed investors may contribute all or a majority of the assets in the Fund. There is a risk that such seed investors may redeem their investments in the Fund, particularly after payments from the Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates have ceased. Such redemptions could have a significant negative impact on the Fund, including on its liquidity and the market price of its shares.

***Goldman Sachs May In-Source or Outsource***

Subject to applicable law, Goldman Sachs, including the Investment Adviser, may from time to time and without notice to investors in-source or outsource certain processes or functions in connection with a variety of services that it provides to the Funds in its administrative or other capacities. Depending upon the nature of the services and subject to the governing documents of the Fund, fees associated with in-sourced or outsourced services will be borne by a Fund or by the Investment Adviser. Such in-sourcing or outsourcing may give rise to additional conflicts of interest.

***Distributions of Assets Other Than Cash***

With respect to redemptions from the Funds, the Funds will, in certain circumstances, have discretion to decide whether to permit or limit redemptions and whether to make distributions in connection with redemptions in the form of securities or other assets, and in such case, the composition of such distributions. In making such decisions, the Investment Adviser will sometimes have a potentially conflicting division of loyalties and responsibilities to redeeming investors and remaining investors.

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**Goldman Sachs Will Act in a Capacity Other Than Investment Adviser to the Funds** 

***Investments in and Advice Regarding Different Parts of an Issuer's Capital Structure***

In some cases, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or Accounts, on the one hand, and the Funds, on the other hand, invest in or extend credit to the same issuer, but in different parts of the issuer's capital structure. As a result, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or Accounts may take actions that adversely affect the Funds. In addition, in some cases, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) advises Accounts with respect to a portion of the capital structure of an issuer at the same time that a particular Account has an investment in different classes of securities of such issuer that are subordinate or senior to the securities with respect to which Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) is providing advice. Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) is able to pursue rights, provide advice or engage in other activities, or refrain from pursuing rights, providing advice or engaging in other activities, on behalf of itself or other Accounts with respect to an issuer in which the Funds have invested, and such actions (or inaction) may have a material adverse effect on the Funds.

For example, in the event that Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or an Account holds loans, securities or other positions in the capital structure of an issuer that rank senior in preference to the holdings of a Fund in the same issuer, and the issuer experiences financial or operational challenges, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser), acting on behalf of itself or the Account, may seek a liquidation, reorganization or restructuring of the issuer that has an adverse effect on or otherwise conflicts with the interests of the Fund's holdings in the issuer. In determining its course of action, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) will not consider the interests of the particular Account. For example, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) may determine to seek a liquidation, reorganization or restructuring that causes the Fund's holdings in the issuer to be extinguished or substantially diluted, while Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or another Account recovers some or all of the amounts due to them. In addition, in connection with any lending arrangements involving the issuer in which Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or an Account participates, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or the Account may seek to exercise its rights under the applicable loan agreement or other document, in a manner detrimental to the Fund. In situations in which Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) holds positions in multiple parts of the capital structure of an issuer across Accounts (including the Funds), the Investment Adviser may not pursue actions or remedies available to the Fund, as a result of legal and regulatory requirements or otherwise.

These potential issues are examples of conflicts that Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) will face in situations in which the Funds, and Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or other Accounts, invest in or extend credit to different parts of the capital structure of a single issuer. Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) addresses these issues based on the circumstances of particular situations. For example, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) relies on information barriers between different Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) business units or portfolio management teams. Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) in some circumstances relies on the actions of similarly situated holders of loans or securities rather than, or in connection with, taking such actions itself on behalf of the Funds.

As a result of the various conflicts and related issues described above and the fact that conflicts will not necessarily be resolved in favor of the interests of the Funds, the Funds could sustain losses during periods in which Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) and other Accounts (including Accounts sponsored, managed or advised by the Investment Adviser) achieve profits generally or with respect to particular holdings in the same issuer, or could achieve lower profits or higher losses than would have been the case had the conflicts described above not existed. It should be expected that the negative effects described above will be more pronounced in connection with transactions in, or the Funds' use of, small capitalization, emerging market, distressed or less liquid strategies.

*Principal and Cross Transactions* 

When permitted by applicable law and the Investment Adviser's policies, the Investment Adviser, acting on behalf of certain Funds (for example, those employing taxable fixed income, municipal bond fixed income and structured investment strategies), may (but is under no obligation or other duty to) enter into transactions in securities and other instruments with or through Goldman Sachs or in Accounts managed by the Investment Adviser or its affiliates and cause the Funds to engage in transactions in which the Investment Adviser acts as principal on its own behalf (principal transactions), advises both sides of a transaction (cross transactions) and acts as broker for, and receives a commission from, the Funds on one side of a transaction and a brokerage account on the other side of the transaction (agency cross transactions). There are potential conflicts of interest, regulatory issues or restrictions contained in the Investment Adviser's internal policies relating to these transactions which could limit the Investment Adviser's determination and/or ability to engage in these transactions for Accounts (including the Funds). In certain circumstances such as when Goldman Sachs is the only or one of a few participants in a particular market or is one of the largest such participants, such limitations will eliminate or reduce the availability of certain investment opportunities to Accounts (including the Funds) or impact the price or terms on which transactions relating to such investment opportunities may be effected.

Goldman Sachs will have a potentially conflicting division of loyalties and responsibilities to the parties in such transactions. The Investment Adviser has developed policies and procedures in relation to such transactions and conflicts. Cross transactions may disproportionately benefit some Accounts relative to other Accounts, including the Funds, due to the relative amount of market savings obtained by the Accounts, and cross transactions may be effected at different prices for different Accounts due to differing legal and/or regulatory requirements applicable to such Accounts. Certain Accounts are also prohibited from participating in cross transactions, even if consent is obtained. Where principal, cross or agency cross transactions are not prohibited, such transactions will be effected in accordance with fiduciary requirements and applicable law (which include disclosure and consent).

*Goldman Sachs Acting in Multiple Commercial Capacities* 

To the extent permitted by applicable law, an issuer in which a Fund has an interest (or in which the Fund acquires an interest in the future) may hire Goldman Sachs to provide underwriting, merger advisory, other financial advisory, placement agency, foreign currency or other hedging, research, asset management services, brokerage services or other services to the issuer, including issuers whose securities are components of one or more indices, such as the Indexes, that are created and operated by Goldman Sachs. Furthermore, Goldman Sachs sponsors, manages, advises or provides services to affiliated Underlying Funds (or their personnel) in which the Funds invest. Goldman Sachs may be entitled to compensation in connection with the provision of such services and the operation of the Indexes that are tracked by the Funds, and the Funds will not be entitled to any such compensation. Goldman Sachs will have an interest in obtaining fees and other compensation in connection with such services that are favorable to Goldman Sachs, and in connection with providing such services takes commercial steps in its own interest, or advises the parties to which it is providing services, or takes other actions, any of which may have an adverse effect on a Fund. Such actions may benefit Goldman Sachs.

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For example, Goldman Sachs may require repayment of all or part of a loan from a company in which an Account (including a Fund) holds an interest, which could cause the company to default or be required to liquidate its assets more rapidly, which could adversely affect the value of the company and the value of the Funds invested therein. If Goldman Sachs advises a company to make changes to its capital structure, the result would be a reduction in the value or priority of a security held (directly or indirectly) by one or more Funds. In addition, underwriters, placement agents or managers of initial public offerings, including Goldman Sachs, often require the Funds who hold privately placed securities of a company to execute a lock-up agreement prior to such company's initial public offering restricting the resale of the securities for a period of time before and following the IPO. As a result, the Investment Adviser will be restricted from selling the securities in such Funds at a more favorable price. Actions taken or advised to be taken by Goldman Sachs in connection with other types of transactions may also result in adverse consequences for the Funds. Goldman Sachs faces conflicts of interest in providing and selecting services for the Funds because Goldman Sachs provides many services and has many commercial relationships with companies and affiliated and unaffiliated Underlying Funds (or their applicable personnel). Providing services to the Funds and companies (or their personnel) in which the Funds invest enhances Goldman Sachs' relationships with various parties, facilitates additional business development and enables Goldman Sachs to obtain additional business and/or generate additional revenue. Providing such services may also result in Goldman Sachs receiving substantial fees, compensation, and/or remuneration. The Funds will not be entitled to compensation related to any such benefit to businesses of Goldman Sachs. In addition, such relationships may adversely impact the Funds, including, for example, by restricting potential investment opportunities, as described below, incentivizing the Investment Adviser to take or refrain from taking certain actions on behalf of the Funds when doing so would be adverse to such business relationships, and/or influencing the Investment Adviser's selection or recommendation of certain investment products and/or strategies over others.

Certain of Goldman Sachs' activities on behalf of its clients also restrict investment opportunities that are otherwise available to the Funds. For example, Goldman Sachs is often engaged by companies as a financial advisor, or to provide financing or other services, in connection with commercial transactions that are potential investment opportunities for the Funds. There are circumstances in which the Funds are precluded from participating in such transactions as a result of Goldman Sachs' engagement by such companies. In addition, in connection with an equity offering of securities of a portfolio company for which Goldman Sachs is acting as an underwriter, Accounts may, in certain instances, be subject to regulatory restrictions (in addition to contractual restrictions) on their ability to sell equity securities of the portfolio company for a period after completion of the offering. Goldman Sachs reserves the right to act for these companies in such circumstances, notwithstanding the potential adverse effect on the Funds. Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) also represents creditor or debtor companies in proceedings under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code (and equivalent non-U.S. bankruptcy laws) or prior to these filings. From time to time, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) serves on creditor or equity committees. It should be expected that these actions, for which Goldman Sachs may be compensated, will limit or preclude the flexibility that the Funds otherwise have to buy or sell securities issued by those companies, as well as certain other assets. Please also see "—Management of the Funds by the Investment Adviser—Considerations Relating to Information Held by Goldman Sachs" above and "—Potential Limitations and Restrictions on Investment Opportunities and Activities of Goldman Sachs and the Funds" below.

Goldman Sachs is frequently engaged as a financial advisor or financing provider to corporations and other entities and their management teams, including companies in which Accounts have an equity or debt investment, in connection with the sale of those companies or some or all of their assets. Goldman Sachs' compensation in connection with these engagements may be substantial and is usually based upon sales proceeds and contingent, in substantial part, upon a sale. As a result, in situations where sellers require Goldman Sachs to act exclusively on their behalf, Accounts will be precluded in many instances from attempting to acquire securities of the business being sold or otherwise participate as a buyer in the transaction. Goldman Sachs' decision to take on seller engagements is based upon a number of factors, including the likelihood in any particular situation that the successful buyer will be a financial purchaser rather than a strategic purchaser, the likelihood that any Accounts will be involved in the financing of that transaction and the compensation Goldman Sachs might receive by representing the seller. Goldman Sachs may be given a choice by a seller of acting as its agent, as a potential purchaser of securities or assets, or as a buyer's source of financing through Accounts. Goldman Sachs reserves the right to act as the seller's agent in those circumstances, even where this choice may preclude Accounts from acquiring the relevant securities or assets. Accounts can provide financing to buyers in connection with the buyer's purchase of securities or assets where Goldman Sachs is acting as adviser to the seller.

Goldman Sachs also represents potential buyers of businesses, including private equity sponsors, and Goldman Sachs' compensation in connection with these representations may be substantial. In these cases, Goldman Sachs' compensation is usually a flat fee that is contingent, in substantial part, upon a purchase. Accordingly, Goldman Sachs may have an incentive to direct an acquisition opportunity to one of these parties rather than to Accounts or to form a consortium with one or more of these parties to bid for the acquisition opportunity, thereby eliminating or reducing the investment opportunity available to Accounts. Furthermore, Goldman Sachs may seek to provide acquisition financing to one or more other bidders in these auctions, including in situations where an Account is bidding for the asset. In addition, Accounts may seek to provide acquisition financing to the buyer or one or more other bidders, which could be in competition with Goldman Sachs providing acquisition financing. Moreover, Goldman Sachs may provide financing to an Account in situations where it is also offering financing to one or more other bidders and such other bidders could be in competition with Accounts to provide financing. Goldman Sachs' buyer and financing assignments may include representation of clients who would not permit either Goldman Sachs or affiliates thereof, potentially including Accounts, to invest in the acquired company. In this case, none of the Investment Adviser or its affiliates, including Accounts, would be allowed to participate as an investor. In some cases, a buyer represented by Goldman Sachs may invite Investment Adviser and certain Accounts to participate in the investment. Alternatively, Investment Adviser and certain Accounts may be invited to provide financing for this type of purchase. Each of these situations is likely to present difficult competing considerations involving conflicts of interest between Goldman Sachs and Accounts, including, for example, the price or terms of any Account investment in a company advised by Goldman Sachs. In addition, Goldman Sachs may accept buyer advisory assignments in respect of a company in which Accounts have an equity or debt investment. Accounts may be precluded from selling their investment during the assignment. Goldman Sachs evaluates potential buyer assignments in light of factors similar to those that will be considered in engaging in seller assignments.

Subject to applicable law, the Investment Adviser is incentivized to cause the Funds to invest in securities, bank loans or other obligations of companies affiliated with or advised by Goldman Sachs or in which Goldman Sachs or Accounts have an equity, debt or other interest, or to engage in investment transactions that may result in Goldman Sachs or other Accounts being relieved of obligations or otherwise divested of investments. For example, subject to applicable law certain Funds may acquire securities or indebtedness of a company affiliated with Goldman

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Sachs directly or indirectly through syndicate or secondary market purchases, or make a loan to, or purchase securities from, a company that uses the proceeds to repay loans made by Goldman Sachs. These activities by a Fund may enhance the profitability of Goldman Sachs or other Accounts with respect to their investment in and activities relating to such companies. The Fund will not be entitled to compensation as a result of this enhanced profitability.

To the extent permitted by applicable law, Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) creates, writes, sells, issues, invests in or acts as placement agent or distributor of derivative instruments related to the Funds, or with respect to underlying securities or assets of the Funds or which are be otherwise based on or seek to replicate or hedge the performance of the Funds. Such derivative transactions, and any associated hedging activity, may differ from and be adverse to the interests of the Funds.

Goldman Sachs makes loans to, and enters into margin, asset-based or other credit facilities or similar transactions with, clients, companies or individuals that are secured by publicly or privately held securities or other assets, including a client's Fund shares as described above. Some of these borrowers are public or private companies, or founders, officers or shareholders in companies in which the Funds (directly or indirectly) invest, and such loans may be secured by securities of such companies, which may be the same as, pari passu with, or more senior or junior to, interests held (directly or indirectly) by the Funds. Other borrowers include certain Goldman Sachs clients that pledge their interests in certain Accounts to Goldman Sachs as collateral for such loans. In connection with its rights as lender, Goldman Sachs acts to protect its own commercial interest and may take actions that adversely affect the borrower, including by liquidating or causing the liquidation of securities on behalf of a borrower or foreclosing and liquidating such securities in Goldman Sachs' own name. Such actions will adversely affect the Funds (if, for example, a large position in a security is liquidated, among the other potential adverse consequences will be that the value of such security will decline rapidly and the Funds will in turn decline in value or will be unable to liquidate their positions in such security at an advantageous price or at all). In addition, any foreclosure on collateral consisting of interests in an Account could have an adverse effect on that Account and its financing arrangements. In addition, Goldman Sachs may make loans to shareholders or enter into similar transactions that are secured by a pledge of, or mortgage over, a shareholder's Fund shares, which would provide Goldman Sachs with the right to redeem such Fund shares in the event that such shareholder defaults on its obligations. These transactions and related redemptions may be significant and may be made without notice to the shareholders.

Conflicts of interest also arise in the context of a restructuring or refinancing of debt securities that are owned by both Goldman Sachs and certain Accounts. In connection with any such restructuring or refinancing, the issuer could ask for broad liability releases not only from the participants themselves, but in addition from any affiliates of the participants that also hold the debt securities being restructured or refinanced. To the extent that a particular Account does not have the authority to provide such a release and is unable to negotiate a narrower release, it would be precluded from participating in the transaction, which could disadvantage such Account.

**Allocation of Personnel, Services and/or Resources** 

Conflicts of interest may arise in allocating time, personnel and/or resources of the Investment Adviser among the investment activities of multiple Accounts. The Investment Adviser and other Goldman Sachs personnel who play key roles in managing the Accounts may spend a portion of their time on matters other than or only tangentially related to any particular Account, or may leave the Investment Adviser for another investment group of Goldman Sachs (or may leave Goldman Sachs entirely). Time may be spent on other Goldman Sachs investment activities, including without limitation, investments made on behalf of Goldman Sachs and certain other entities (including special purpose acquisition companies) that are not investment advisory clients of the Investment Adviser. As a result, the other obligations of these individuals could conflict with their responsibilities to any of the Accounts. Further, the Investment Adviser may devote less time, services or resources to sourcing for investments of insufficient size to be expected to be shared with the other Accounts, even where such investment opportunities may be in the best interest of an Account.

**Code of Ethics and Personal Trading** 

Each of the Funds and Goldman Sachs, as each Fund's Investment Adviser and Distributor, has adopted a Code of Ethics (the "Code of Ethics") in compliance with Section 17(j) of the Act designed to provide that personnel of the Investment Adviser, and certain additional Goldman Sachs personnel who support the Investment Adviser, comply with applicable federal securities laws and place the interests of clients first in conducting personal securities transactions. The Code of Ethics imposes certain restrictions on securities transactions in the personal accounts of covered persons to help avoid conflicts of interest. Subject to the limitations of the Code of Ethics, covered persons buy and sell securities or other investments for their personal accounts, including investments in the Funds, and also take positions that are the same as, different from, or made at different times than, positions taken (directly or indirectly) by the Funds. The Codes of Ethics are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC's Internet site at http://www.sec.gov. Copies may also be obtained after paying a duplicating fee by electronic request to publicinfo@sec.gov. Additionally, all Goldman Sachs personnel, including personnel of the Investment Adviser, are subject to firm-wide policies and procedures regarding confidential and proprietary information, information barriers, private investments, outside business activities and personal trading. The Investment Adviser requires pre-clearance of personal securities transactions, both public and private, by the Investment Adviser personnel and the Investment Adviser can deny any such transaction in its discretion. In order to address potential conflicts of interest with the Accounts and other legal and regulatory restrictions (such as when the Investment Adviser has confidential information about a portfolio company), Goldman Sachs maintains a list of securities in which the Investment Adviser personnel cannot trade. Additionally, the Investment Adviser generally does not allow its personnel to purchase securities of single-name public issuers.

**Proxy Voting by the Investment Adviser** 

The Investment Adviser has implemented processes designed to prevent conflicts of interest from influencing proxy voting decisions that it makes on behalf of advisory clients, including the Funds, and to help ensure that such decisions are made in accordance with its fiduciary obligations to its clients. Notwithstanding such proxy voting processes, proxy voting decisions made by the Investment Adviser in respect of securities held by the Funds may benefit the interests of Goldman Sachs and/or Accounts other than the Funds. Examples of material conflicts of interest that could

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arise in connection with a proxy voting decision include, without limitation, circumstances in which (i) Goldman Sachs has a business relationship with or other interests in the issuer or another interested party and (ii) Goldman Sachs personnel have a personal relationship with personnel of the issuer or another interested party. Conflicts of interest relating to proxy voting decisions also arise in situations in which Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser) or Accounts (including the Funds), on the one hand, and a particular Account, on the other hand, invest in or extend credit to the same issuer, but in different parts of the issuer's capital structure. See Item 11 ("Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading—Participation or Interest in Client Accounts—Investments in and Advice Regarding Different Parts of an Issuer's Capital Structure") of the Investment Adviser's Form ADV. For a more detailed discussion of these policies and procedures, see the section of this SAI titled "PROXY VOTING."

**Potential Limitations and Restrictions on Investment Opportunities and Activities of Goldman Sachs and the Funds** 

The Investment Adviser restricts its investment decisions and activities on behalf of the Funds in various circumstances, including as a result of applicable regulatory requirements, information held by the Investment Adviser or Goldman Sachs, Goldman Sachs' roles in connection with other clients and in the capital markets (including in connection with advice it gives to such clients or commercial arrangements or transactions that are undertaken by such clients or by Goldman Sachs), Goldman Sachs' internal policies and/or potential reputational risk in connection with Accounts (including the Funds). In certain cases, the Investment Adviser will not engage in transactions or other activities for, or enforce certain rights in favor of, one or more Funds due to Goldman Sachs' activities outside the Funds (e.g., the Investment Adviser may refrain from making investments for the Funds that would cause Goldman Sachs to exceed position limits or cause Goldman Sachs to have additional disclosure obligations and may limit purchases or sales of securities in respect of which Goldman Sachs is engaged in an underwriting or other distribution) and regulatory requirements, policies and reputational risk assessments.

In addition, in certain circumstances, the Investment Adviser restricts, limits or reduces the amount of a Fund's investment, or restricts the type of governance or voting rights it acquires or exercises, where the Fund (potentially together with Goldman Sachs and other Accounts) exceeds a certain ownership interest, or possesses certain degrees of voting or control or has other interests. For example, such limitations may exist if a position or transaction could require a filing or license or other regulatory or corporate consent, which could, among other things, result in additional costs and disclosure obligations for, or impose regulatory restrictions on, Goldman Sachs, including the Investment Adviser, or on other Accounts, or where exceeding a threshold is prohibited or results in regulatory or other restrictions. In certain cases, restrictions and limitations will be applied to avoid approaching such threshold. Circumstances in which such restrictions or limitations arise include, without limitation: (i) a prohibition against owning more than a certain percentage of an issuer's securities; (ii) a "poison pill" that has a dilutive impact on the holdings of the Fund should a threshold be exceeded; (iii) provisions that cause Goldman Sachs to be considered an "interested stockholder" of an issuer; (iv) provisions that cause Goldman Sachs to be considered an "affiliate" or "control person" of the issuer; and (v) the imposition by an issuer (through charter amendment, contract or otherwise) or governmental, regulatory or self-regulatory organization (through law, rule, regulation, interpretation or other guidance) of other restrictions or limitations.

In addition, due to regulatory restrictions, certain Accounts are prohibited from, or are subject to certain restrictions when, trading with or through Goldman Sachs, engaging Goldman Sachs as a service provider or purchasing investments issued or managed by Goldman Sachs.

When faced with the foregoing limitations, Goldman Sachs will generally avoid exceeding the threshold because exceeding the threshold could have an adverse impact on the ability of the Investment Adviser or Goldman Sachs to conduct its business activities. The Investment Adviser may also reduce a Fund's interest in, or restrict a Fund from participating in, an investment opportunity that has limited availability or where Goldman Sachs has determined to cap its aggregate investment in consideration of certain regulatory or other requirements so that other Accounts that pursue similar investment strategies are able to acquire an interest in the investment opportunity. In some cases, the Investment Adviser determines not to engage in certain transactions or activities beneficial to the Funds because engaging in such transactions or activities in compliance with applicable law would result in significant cost to, or administrative burden on, the Investment Adviser or create the potential risk of trade or other errors.

The Investment Adviser generally is not permitted to use material non-public information in effecting purchases and sales in transactions for the Funds that involve public securities. The Investment Adviser may limit an activity or transaction (such as a purchase or sale transaction) which might otherwise be engaged in by the Funds, including as a result of information held by Goldman Sachs (including the Investment Adviser or its personnel). For example, directors, officers and employees of Goldman Sachs may take seats on the boards of directors of, or have board of directors observer rights with respect to, companies in which Goldman Sachs invests on behalf of the Funds. To the extent a director, officer or employee of Goldman Sachs were to take a seat on the board of directors of, or have board of directors observer rights with respect to, a public company, the Investment Adviser (or certain of its investment teams) may be limited and/or restricted in its or their ability to trade in the securities of the company. In addition, any such director, officer or employee of Goldman Sachs that is a member of the board of directors of a portfolio company may have duties in his or her capacity as a director that conflict with the Investment Adviser's duties to Accounts, and may act in a manner that disadvantages or otherwise harms a Fund and/or Goldman Sachs. In addition, the Investment Adviser may, in its sole discretion, determine to limit the information it receives in respect of an investment opportunity to avoid receiving material non-public information. As a result, other investors may be in possession of information in respect of investments, which, if known to the Investment Adviser, might cause the Investment Adviser to not make such investment, to seek to dispose of, retain or increase interests in such investments, or take other actions. Any decision by the Investment Adviser to limit access to such information may be disadvantageous to an Account.

Different areas of Goldman Sachs come into possession of material non-public information regarding an issuer of securities held by an Underlying Fund in which an Account invests. In the absence of information barriers between such different areas of Goldman Sachs or under certain other circumstances, the Account will be prohibited, including by internal policies, from trading, redeeming from or otherwise disposing of such security or such Underlying Fund during the period such material non-public information is held by such other part of Goldman Sachs, which period may be substantial. As a result, the Account would not be permitted to redeem from an Underlying Fund in whole or in part during periods when it otherwise would have been able to do so, which could adversely affect the Account. Other investors in the Underlying Fund that are not subject to such restrictions may be able to redeem from the Underlying Fund during such periods.

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In addition, the Investment Adviser's clients may partially or fully fund a new Account with in-kind securities in which the Investment Adviser is restricted. In such circumstances, the Investment Adviser will generally sell any such securities at the next available trading window, subject to operational and technological limitations (unless such securities are subject to another express arrangement), requiring such Accounts to dispose of investments at an earlier or later date and/or at a less favorable price than would otherwise have been the case had the Investment Adviser not been so restricted. Accounts will be responsible for all tax liabilities that result from any such sale transactions.

The Investment Adviser operates a program reasonably designed to ensure compliance generally with economic and trade sanctions- related obligations applicable directly to its activities (although such obligations are not necessarily the same obligations to which any particular Fund is subject). Such economic and trade sanctions may prohibit, among other things, transactions with and the provision of services to, directly or indirectly, certain countries, territories, entities and individuals. It should be expected that these economic and trade sanctions, if applicable, and the application by the Investment Adviser of its compliance program in respect thereof, will restrict or limit the Funds' investment activities, and may require the Investment Adviser to cause a Fund to sell its position in a particular investment at an inopportune time and/or when the Investment Adviser would otherwise not have done so.

The Investment Adviser may determine to limit or not engage at all in transactions and activities on behalf of the Funds for reputational, legal or other reasons. Examples of when such determinations may be made include, but are not limited to, where Goldman Sachs is providing (or may provide) advice or services to an entity involved in such activity or transaction, where Goldman Sachs or an Account is or may be engaged in the same or a related activity or transaction to that being considered on behalf of the Funds, where Goldman Sachs or an Account has an interest in an entity involved in such activity or transaction, where there are political, public relations, or other reputational considerations relating to counterparties or other participants in such activity or transaction or where such activity or transaction on behalf of or in respect of the Funds could affect in tangible or intangible ways Goldman Sachs, the Investment Adviser, an Account or their activities.

Goldman Sachs has and seeks to have long-term relationships with many significant participants in the financial markets. Goldman Sachs also has and seeks to have longstanding relationships with, and regularly provides financing, investment banking services and other services to, a significant number of corporations and private equity sponsors, leveraged buyout and hedge fund purchasers, and their respective senior managers, shareholders and partners. Some of these purchasers may directly or indirectly compete with Accounts for investment opportunities. Goldman Sachs considers these relationships, as well as client relationships and reputational considerations, in its management of Accounts. In this regard, there may be certain investment opportunities or certain investment strategies that Goldman Sachs (i) does not undertake on behalf of Accounts in view of these relationships, or (ii) refers to clients (in whole or in part) instead of retaining for Accounts. Similarly, Goldman Sachs may take the existence and development of such relationships into consideration in the management of Fund portfolios. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, there may, for example, be certain strategies involving the acquisition, management or realization of particular investments that an Account will not employ in light of these relationships, as well as investment opportunities or strategies that an Account will not pursue in light of their potential impact on other areas of Goldman Sachs or on Account investments or be unable to pursue as a result of non-competition agreements or other similar undertakings made by Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs will consider its client relationships and the need to preserve its reputation in its management of Accounts and, as a result, (i) there may be certain investment opportunities or strategies that Goldman Sachs will not undertake on behalf of Funds or will refer to one or more Funds but not others, (ii) there may be certain rights or activities that Goldman Sachs will not undertake on behalf of Funds (including in respect of director representation and recusal), or (iii) there may be certain investments that, in certain limited circumstances, are sold, disposed of or restructured earlier or later than otherwise expected.

In order to engage in certain transactions on behalf of a Fund, the Investment Adviser will also be subject to (or cause the Fund to become subject to) the rules, terms and/or conditions of any venues through which it trades securities, derivatives or other instruments. This includes, but is not limited to, where the Investment Adviser and/or the Fund are required to comply with the rules of certain exchanges, execution platforms, trading facilities, clearing houses and other venues, or are required to consent to the jurisdiction of any such venues. The rules, terms and/or conditions of any such venue often result in the Investment Adviser and/or the Fund being subject to, among other things, margin requirements, additional fees and other charges, disciplinary procedures, reporting and recordkeeping, position limits and other restrictions on trading, settlement risks and other related conditions on trading set out by such venues.

From time to time, a Fund, the Investment Adviser or its affiliates and/or their service providers or agents are required, or determine that it is advisable, to disclose certain information about the Fund, including, but not limited to, investments held by the Fund, and the names and percentage interest of beneficial owners thereof (and the underlying beneficial owners of such beneficial owners), to third parties, including local governmental authorities, regulatory organizations, taxing authorities, markets, exchanges, clearing facilities, custodians, brokers and trading counterparties of, or service providers to, the Investment Adviser or the Fund. The Investment Adviser generally expects to comply with requests to disclose such information as it so determines including through electronic delivery platforms; however, in some cases, the Investment Adviser will cause the sale of certain assets for the Fund rather than make certain required disclosures, at a time that is inopportune from a pricing or other standpoint. In addition, the Investment Adviser may provide third parties with aggregated data regarding the activities of, or certain performance or other metrics associated with the Accounts, and the Investment Adviser may receive compensation from such third parties for providing them such information.

Goldman Sachs may become subject to additional restrictions on its business activities that could have an impact on the Funds' activities. In addition, the Investment Adviser may restrict its investment decisions and activities on behalf of the Funds and not other Accounts, including Accounts sponsored, managed or advised by the Investment Adviser.

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**Brokerage Transactions** 

Subject to applicable law, the Investment Adviser often selects U.S. and non-U.S. broker-dealers (including affiliates of the Investment Adviser) that furnish the Investment Adviser, the Funds, Investment Adviser affiliates and other Goldman Sachs personnel with proprietary or third-party brokerage and research services (collectively, "brokerage and research services") that provide, in the Investment Adviser's view, appropriate assistance to the Investment Adviser in the investment decision-making process. These brokerage and research services may be bundled with the trade execution, clearing or settlement services provided by a particular broker-dealer and, subject to applicable law, the Investment Adviser may pay for such brokerage and research services with client commissions (or "soft dollars"). There are instances or situations in which such practices are subject to restrictions under applicable law. For example, the EU's Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II ("MiFID II") restricts EU domiciled investment advisers from receiving research and other materials that do not qualify as "acceptable minor non-monetary benefits" from broker-dealers unless the research or materials are paid for by the investment advisers from their own resources or from research payment accounts funded by and with the agreement of their clients.

Accounts differ with regard to whether and to what extent they pay for brokerage and research services through commissions and, subject to applicable law, brokerage and research services may be used to service the Funds and any or all other Accounts throughout the Investment Adviser, including Accounts that do not pay commissions to the broker-dealer relating to the brokerage and research service arrangements. As a result, brokerage and research services (including soft dollar benefits) may disproportionately benefit other Accounts relative to the Funds based on the relative amount of commissions paid by the Funds and in particular those Accounts that do not pay for brokerage and research services or do so to a lesser extent, including in connection with the establishment of maximum budgets for research costs (and switching to execution-only pricing when maximums are met). The Investment Adviser does not attempt to allocate soft dollar benefits proportionately among clients or to track the benefits of brokerage and research services to the commissions associated with a particular Account or group of Accounts.

**Aggregation of Orders by the Investment Adviser** 

The Investment Adviser follows policies and procedures pursuant to which it may (but is not required to) combine or aggregate purchase or sale orders for the same security or other instrument for multiple Accounts (including Accounts in which Goldman Sachs or personnel of Goldman Sachs have an interest) (sometimes referred to as "bunching"), so that the orders can be executed at the same time and block trade treatment of any such orders can be elected when available. The Investment Adviser aggregates orders when the Investment Adviser considers doing so to be operationally feasible and appropriate and in the interests of its clients and may elect block trade treatment when available. In addition, under certain circumstances orders for the Funds may be aggregated with orders for Accounts that contain Goldman Sachs assets.

When a bunched order or block trade is completely filled, or if the order is only partially filled, at the end of the day, the Investment Adviser generally will allocate the securities or other instruments purchased or the proceeds of any sale pro rata among the participating Accounts, based on the Funds' relative sizes. If an order is filled at several different prices, through multiple trades (whether at a particular broker-dealer or among multiple broker-dealers), generally all participating Accounts will receive the average price and pay the average commission, however, this may not always be the case (due to, e.g., odd lots, rounding, market practice or constraints applicable to particular Accounts).

Although it may do so in certain circumstances, the Investment Adviser does not always bunch or aggregate orders for different Funds, elect block trade treatment or net buy and sell orders for the same Fund, if portfolio management decisions relating to the orders are made by different portfolio management teams or if different portfolio management processes are used for different account types, if bunching, aggregating, electing block trade treatment or netting is not appropriate or practicable from the Investment Adviser's operational or other perspective, or if doing so would not be appropriate in light of applicable regulatory considerations, which may differ among Accounts. For example, time zone differences, trading instructions, cash flows, separate trading desks or portfolio management processes may, among other factors, result in separate, non-aggregated, non-netted executions, with orders in the same instrument being entered for different Accounts at different times or, in the case of netting, buy and sell trades for the same instrument being entered for the same Account. The Investment Adviser may be able to negotiate a better price and lower commission rate on aggregated orders than on orders for Funds that are not aggregated, and incur lower transaction costs on netted orders than orders that are not netted. The Investment Adviser is under no obligation or other duty to aggregate or net for particular orders. Where orders for a Fund are not aggregated with other orders, or not netted against orders for the Fund or other Accounts, the Fund will not benefit from a better price and lower commission rate or lower transaction cost that might have been available had the orders been aggregated or netted. Aggregation and netting of orders may disproportionately benefit some Accounts relative to other Accounts, including a Fund, due to the relative amount of market savings obtained by the Accounts. The Investment Adviser may aggregate orders of Accounts that are subject to MiFID II ("MiFID II Advisory Accounts") with orders of Accounts not subject to MiFID II, including those that generate soft dollar commissions (including the Funds) and those that restrict the use of soft dollars. All Accounts included in an aggregated order with MiFID II Advisory Accounts pay (or receive) the same average price for the security and the same execution costs (measured by rate). However, MiFID II Advisory Accounts included in an aggregated order may pay commissions at "execution-only" rates below the total commission rates paid by Accounts included in the aggregated order that are not subject to MiFID II.

**Affiliated Indexes and ETFs** 

The Investment Adviser and its affiliates have in the past, and may in the future, develop, own and operate Indexes based on investment and trading strategies and concepts developed by the Investment Adviser or its affiliates ("Investment Adviser Strategies"). The Investment Adviser may in the future enter into revenue sharing arrangements with third-party co-developers of an Index pursuant to which the Investment Adviser receives a portion of the fees generated from licensing the right to use the Index or components thereof to third parties. Some of the Funds seek to track the performance of the Indexes. The Investment Adviser manages Accounts which track the same Indexes used by the Funds or which are based on the same, or substantially similar, Investment Adviser Strategies that are used in the operation of the Indexes and the Funds. The operation of the Indexes, the Funds and the Accounts in this manner gives rise to potential conflicts of interest.

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For example, Accounts that track the same Indexes used by the Funds may engage in purchases and sales of securities prior to when the Index and the Funds engage in similar transactions because such Accounts may be managed and rebalanced on an ongoing basis, whereas the Funds' portfolios are only rebalanced on a periodic basis corresponding with the rebalancing of the Index. These differences may result in the Accounts having more favorable performance relative to that of the Index and the Funds or other Accounts that track the Index. Other potential conflicts include the potential for unauthorized access to Index information, allowing Index changes that benefit the Investment Adviser or other Accounts and not the investors in the Funds, and the manipulation of Index pricing to present the performance of the Funds, or tracking ability, in a preferential light.

The Investment Adviser has adopted policies and procedures that are designed to address potential conflicts that arise in connection with the Investment Adviser's operation of the Indexes, the Funds and the Accounts. The Investment Adviser has established certain information barriers and other policies designed to address the sharing of information between different businesses within the Investment Adviser, including with respect to personnel responsible for maintaining the Indexes and those involved in decision-making for the Funds. In addition, as described above in "—Code of Ethics and Personal Trading," the Investment Adviser has adopted a Code of Ethics.

To the extent it is intended that a Fund track an Index, the Fund may not match, and may vary substantially from, the Index for any period of time. A Fund that tracks an Index may purchase, hold and sell securities at times when a non-Index fund would not do so. The Investment Adviser does not guarantee that any tracking error targets will be achieved. Funds tracking an Index may be negatively impacted by any errors in the Index, either as a result of calculation errors, inaccurate data sources or otherwise. The Investment Adviser does not guarantee the availability, timeliness, accuracy and/or completeness of an Index and the Investment Adviser is not responsible for errors, omissions or interruptions in the Index (including when the Investment Adviser or an affiliate acts as the Index provider) or the calculation thereof (including when the Investment Adviser or an affiliate acts as the calculation agent).

**CREATIONS AND REDEMPTIONS** 

The Trust issues and sells shares of the Funds only in Creation Units on a continuous basis through the Distributor, without a sales load, at the NAV next determined after receipt of an order in proper form as described in the Participant Agreement (as defined below), on any Business Day (as defined below).

In its discretion, the Investment Adviser reserves the right to increase or decrease the number of a Fund's Shares that constitute a Creation Unit. The Board reserves the right to declare a split or a consolidation in the number of shares outstanding of a Fund, and to make a corresponding change in the number of shares constituting a Creation Unit, in the event that the per share price in the secondary market rises (or declines) to an amount that falls outside the range deemed desirable by the Board.

A "Business Day" with respect to the Funds is each day the NYSE, the Exchange and the Trust are open, including any day that a Fund is required to be open under Section 22(e) of the Act, which excludes weekends and the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Orders from large institutional investors who have entered into agreements with the Funds' Distributor to create or redeem Creation Units will only be accepted on a Business Day.

The time at which transactions and shares are priced and the time by which orders must be received may be changed in case of an emergency or if regular trading on the NYSE is stopped at a time other than its regularly scheduled closing time. The Trust reserves the right to reprocess creation and redemption transactions that were initially processed at a NAV other than a Fund's official closing NAV (as each may be subsequently adjusted), and to recover amounts from (or distribute amounts to) Authorized Participants based on the official closing NAV. The Trust reserves the right to advance the time by which creation and redemption orders must be received for same business day credit as otherwise permitted by the SEC.

**Fund Deposit** 

The consideration for purchase of Creation Units generally consists of Deposit Securities and the Cash Component. Together, the Deposit Securities and Cash Component constitute the "Fund Deposit," which represents the minimum initial and subsequent investment amount for a Creation Unit of a Fund. The portfolio of securities required may be different than the portfolio of securities such Fund will deliver upon redemption of Fund shares.

The function of the Cash Component is to compensate for any differences between the NAV per Creation Unit and the Deposit Amount (as defined below). The Cash Component would be an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the shares (per Creation Unit) and the "Deposit Amount," which is an amount equal to the market value of the Deposit Securities. If the Cash Component is a positive number (the NAV per Creation Unit exceeds the Deposit Amount), the Authorized Participant will deliver the Cash Component. If the Cash Component is a negative number (the NAV per Creation Unit is less than the Deposit Amount), the Authorized Participant will receive the Cash Component. Computation of the Cash Component excludes any stamp duty or other similar fees and expenses payable upon transfer of beneficial ownership of the Deposit Securities, which shall be the sole responsibility of the Authorized Participant. The Cash Component may also include a "Dividend Equivalent Payment," which enables each Fund to make a complete distribution of dividends on the next dividend payment date, and is an amount equal, on a per Creation Unit basis, to the dividends on all the securities held by the Fund with ex-dividend dates within the accumulation period for such distribution (the "Accumulation Period"), net of expenses and liabilities for such period, as if all of the securities had been held by the Trust for the entire Accumulation Period. The Accumulation Period begins on the ex-dividend date for each Fund and ends on the next ex-dividend date.

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BNY, through the National Securities Clearing Corporation ("NSCC"), makes available on each Business Day, prior to the opening of business on the Exchange (currently 9:30 a.m., Eastern time), the identity and the required number or amount of each Deposit Security and the amount of the Cash Component (or cash deposit) to be included in the current Fund Deposit (based on information at the end of the previous Business Day). Such Fund Deposit is applicable, subject to any adjustments as described below, in order to effect purchases of Creation Units of that Fund until such time as the next-announced composition of the Fund Deposit is made available.

The Trust reserves the right to accept a basket of securities and/or cash that differs from a basket of Deposit Securities and/or cash published or transacted on a Business Day, or to permit or require the substitution of an amount of cash (a "cash-in-lieu" amount) to be added to the Cash Component to replace any Deposit Security.

**Procedures for Creating Creation Units** 

To be eligible to place orders with the Distributor and to create a Creation Unit of a Fund, an entity must be a member or participant of a clearing agency registered with the SEC, which has a written agreement with the Fund or one of its service providers that allows the authorized participant to place orders for the purchase and redemption of Creation Units (a "Participant Agreement," and such participants, an "Authorized Participant"). All shares of the Funds, however created, will be entered on the records of DTC in the name of its nominee for the account of a participant of DTC ("DTC Participant").

Except as described below, and in all cases subject to the terms of the applicable Participant Agreement, all orders to create Creation Units of a Fund must be received by the Transfer Agent no later than the closing time of the regular trading session of the Exchange ("Order Cutoff Time") (ordinarily 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) in each case on the date such order is placed for creation of Creation Units to be effected based on the NAV of shares of such Fund as next determined after receipt of an order in proper form. A "Custom Order" may be placed by an Authorized Participant in the event that a Fund accepts (or delivers, in the case of a redemption) a basket of securities and/or cash that differs from a basket of Deposit Securities and/or cash published or transacted on a Business Day (discussed below). Custom Orders must be received by the Transfer Agent at such earlier time as provided in the Participant Agreement. On days when the Exchange closes earlier than normal (such as the day before a holiday), the Fund requires standard orders to create Creation Units to be placed by the earlier closing time and Custom Orders to create Creation Units must be received no later than one hour prior to the earlier closing time. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Trust may, but is not required to, permit Custom Orders until 4:00 p.m., Eastern time, or until the market close (in the event the Exchange closes early). The date on which an order to create Creation Units (or an order to redeem Creation Units, as discussed below) is placed is referred to as the "Transmittal Date." Orders must be transmitted by an Authorized Participant through the Transfer Agent's electronic order system or by telephone or other transmission method acceptable to the Transfer Agent and approved by the Distributor pursuant to procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement. Economic or market disruptions or changes, or telephone or other communication failure may impede the ability to reach the Transfer Agent, Distributor or an Authorized Participant.

All investor orders to create Creation Units shall be placed with an Authorized Participant in the form required by such Authorized Participant. In addition, an Authorized Participant may request that an investor make certain representations or enter into agreements with respect to an order (to provide for payments of cash). Investors should be aware that their particular broker may not have executed a Participant Agreement and, therefore, orders to create Creation Units of a Fund will have to be placed by the investor's broker through an Authorized Participant. In such cases, there may be additional charges to such investor. A limited number of broker-dealers are expected to execute a Participant Agreement and only a small number of such Authorized Participants are expected to have international capabilities.

Creation Units may be created in advance of the receipt by the Trust of all or a portion of the Fund Deposit. In such cases, the Authorized Participant will remain liable for the full deposit of the missing portion(s) of the Fund Deposit and will be required to post collateral with the Trust consisting of cash at least equal to a percentage of the marked to market value of such missing portion(s) that is specified in the Participant Agreement. The Trust may use such collateral to buy the missing portion(s) of the Fund Deposit at any time and will subject such Authorized Participant to liability for any shortfall between the cost to the Trust of purchasing such securities and the value of such collateral. The Trust will have no liability for any such shortfall. The Trust will return any unused portion of the collateral to the Authorized Participant once the entire Fund Deposit has been properly received by the Transfer Agent and deposited into the Trust.

Orders for Creation Units that are effected outside the clearing process through the Continuous Net Settlement System of the NSCC (the "Clearing Process") are likely to require transmittal by the DTC Participant earlier on the Transmittal Date than orders effected using the Clearing Process. Those persons placing orders outside the Clearing Process should ascertain the deadlines applicable to DTC and the Federal Reserve Bank wire system by contacting the operations department of the broker or depository institution effectuating such transfer of Deposit Securities and Cash Component.

Orders to create Creation Units of a Fund may be placed through the Clearing Process utilizing procedures applicable to domestic funds for domestic securities ("Domestic Funds") (see "Placement of Creation Orders Using Clearing Process") or outside the Clearing Process utilizing the procedures applicable to either Domestic Funds or foreign funds for foreign securities ("Foreign Funds") (see "— Placement of Creation Orders Outside Clearing Process—Domestic Funds" and "—Placement of Creation Orders Outside Clearing Process—Foreign Funds"). In the event that a Fund includes both domestic and foreign securities, the time for submitting orders is as stated in the "Placement of Creation Orders Outside Clearing Process—Foreign Funds" and "Placement of Redemption Orders Outside Clearing Process—Domestic Funds" sections below shall operate.

**Placement of Creation Orders Using Clearing Process** 

Fund Deposits created through the Clearing Process, if available, must be delivered through a broker-dealer or other participant in the Clearing Process ("Participating Party") that has executed a Participant Agreement.

The Participant Agreement authorizes the Transfer Agent to transmit to NSCC on behalf of the Participating Party such trade instructions as are necessary to effect the Participating Party's creation order. Pursuant to such trade instructions from the Transfer Agent to NSCC, the Participating Party agrees to transfer the requisite Deposit Securities (or contracts to purchase such Deposit Securities that are expected to be delivered in a "regular way" manner) and the Cash Component to the Trust by the prescribed settlement date. An order to create Creation Units of the Funds

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through the Clearing Process is deemed received by the Transfer Agent, and approved by the Distributor on the Transmittal Date if (i) such order is received by the Transfer Agent not later than the Order Cutoff Time on such Transmittal Date and (ii) all other procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement are properly followed. All orders are subject to acceptance by the Distributor.

**Placement of Creation Orders Outside Clearing Process—Domestic Funds** 

Fund Deposits created outside the Clearing Process must be delivered through a DTC Participant that has executed a Participant Agreement. A DTC Participant who wishes to place an order creating Creation Units of the Funds to be effected outside the Clearing Process need not be a Participating Party, but such orders must state that the DTC Participant is not using the Clearing Process and that the creation of Creation Units will instead be effected through a transfer of securities and cash. The Fund Deposit transfer must be ordered by the DTC Participant in a manner so as to ensure the timely delivery of the requisite number of Deposit Securities through DTC to the account of the Trust. All questions as to the number of Deposit Securities to be delivered, and the validity, form and eligibility (including time of receipt) for the deposit of any tendered securities, will be determined by the Trust, whose determination shall be final and binding. The cash equal to the Cash Component must be transferred directly to the Transfer Agent through the Federal Reserve wire system in a timely manner. An order to create Creation Units of a Fund outside the Clearing Process is deemed received by the Transfer Agent, and approved by the Distributor on the Transmittal Date if (i) such order is received by the Transfer Agent not later than the Order Cutoff Time on such Transmittal Date; and (ii) all other procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement are properly followed. However, if the Transfer Agent does not receive both the requisite Deposit Securities and the Cash Component in a timely fashion, such order will be cancelled. Upon written notice to the Transfer Agent, such cancelled order may be resubmitted the following Business Day using the Fund Deposit as newly constituted to reflect the current NAV of the applicable Fund. The delivery of Creation Units so created will occur by the prescribed settlement date.

Additional transaction fees may be imposed with respect to transactions effected outside the Clearing Process (through a DTC participant) and in circumstances in which any cash can be used in lieu of Deposit Securities to create Creation Units. (See "Creation Transaction Fee" section below.)

**Placement of Creation Orders Outside Clearing Process—Foreign Funds** 

The Transfer Agent will inform the Distributor, the Investment Adviser and the Custodian upon receipt of a Creation Order. The Custodian will then provide such information to the appropriate subcustodian. For each Fund, the Custodian will cause the subcustodian of such Fund to maintain an account into which the Deposit Securities (or the cash value of all or part of such securities, in the case of a permitted or required cash purchase or "cash-in-lieu" amount) will be delivered. Deposit Securities must be delivered to an account maintained at the applicable local custodian. The Trust must also receive, on or before the prescribed settlement date, immediately available or same day funds estimated by the Custodian to be sufficient to pay the Cash Component next determined after receipt in proper form of the purchase order, together with the creation transaction fee described below.

Once the Distributor has accepted a creation order, the Transfer Agent will confirm the issuance of a Creation Unit of a Fund against receipt of payment, at such NAV as will have been calculated after receipt in proper form of such order. The Transfer Agent will then transmit a confirmation of acceptance of such order.

Creation Units will not be issued until the transfer of good title to the Trust of the Deposit Securities and the payment of the Cash Component and applicable transaction fee have been completed. When the subcustodian has confirmed to the Custodian that the required Deposit Securities (or the cash value thereof) have been delivered to the account of the relevant subcustodian, the Distributor and the Investment Adviser will be notified of such delivery and the Transfer Agent will issue and cause the delivery of the Creation Units.

**Acceptance of Creation Orders** 

The Trust and the Distributor reserve the right to reject or revoke a purchase order for any reason, provided that such action does not result in a suspension of sales of Creation Units in contravention of Rule 6c-11 and the SEC's positions thereunder. For example, the Trust and the Distributor may reject or revoke acceptance of a creation order, including, but not limited to, when: (i) the order is not in proper form; (ii) the investor(s), upon obtaining the Shares ordered, would own 80% or more of the currently outstanding Shares of such Fund; (iii) acceptance of the Fund Deposit would, in the opinion of the Fund, be unlawful; or (iv) in the event that circumstances outside the control of the Trust, the Transfer Agent, the Distributor or the Investment Adviser make it impracticable to process creation orders. Examples of such circumstances include acts of God; public service or utility problems such as fires, floods, extreme weather conditions and power outages resulting in telephone, facsimile and computer failures; market conditions or activities causing trading halts; systems failures involving computer or other information systems affecting the Trust, the Investment Adviser, the Distributor, DTC, the Clearing Process, Federal Reserve, the Transfer Agent or any other participant in the creation process, and other extraordinary events. The Distributor shall notify the Authorized Participant acting on behalf of the creator of a Creation Unit of its rejection of the order of such person. Neither the Trust, the Transfer Agent, the Distributor nor the Investment Adviser are under any duty, however, to give notification of any defects or irregularities in the delivery of Fund Deposits nor shall any of them incur any liability for the failure to give any such notification.

All questions as to the number of shares of Deposit Securities and the validity, form, eligibility, and acceptance for deposit of any securities to be delivered and the amount and form of the Cash Component, as applicable, shall be determined by the Trust, and the Trust's determination shall be final and binding.

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**Creation Transaction Fee** 

A fixed creation transaction fee payable to the Custodian is imposed on each creation transaction regardless of the number of Creation Units purchased in the transaction, in the following amounts:

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Fund** | **Creation<br>Transaction<br>Fee** |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | $512 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | $512 |

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In the case of cash creations or where the Trust permits or requires a creator to substitute cash in lieu of depositing a portion of the Deposit Securities, the creator may be assessed an additional variable charge to compensate the Funds for the costs associated with purchasing the applicable securities. (See "Fund Deposit" section above.) As a result, in order to seek to replicate the in-kind creation order process, the Trust expects to purchase, in the secondary market or otherwise gain exposure to, the portfolio securities that could have been delivered as a result of an in-kind creation order pursuant to local law or market convention, or for other reasons ("Market Purchases"). In such cases where the Trust makes Market Purchases, the Authorized Participant may be required to reimburse the Trust for, among other things, any difference between the market value at which the securities and/or financial instruments were purchased by the Trust and the cash in lieu amount (which amount, at the Investment Adviser's discretion, may be capped), applicable registration fees, brokerage commissions and certain taxes. The Investment Adviser may adjust the transaction fee to the extent the composition of the creation securities changes or cash in lieu is added to the Cash Component to protect existing shareholders. Creators of Creation Units are responsible for the costs of transferring the securities constituting the Deposit Securities to the account of the Trust. See "Portfolio Transactions and Brokerage" for additional information regarding certain cash creation transactions. From time to time, all or a portion of a Fund's transaction fees may be waived at the sole discretion of the Investment Adviser, including in connection with an Authorized Participant's investment of seed capital in a Fund or where an Authorized Participant is engaged in certain customized creation and redemption basket activity that is designed to benefit a Fund by facilitating index tracking in a tax efficient manner (i.e., to minimize the realization of capital gains). To the extent a Fund does not recoup the amount of costs incurred in connection with a creation transaction, those costs will be borne by the Fund and may negatively affect the Fund's performance.

**Redemption of Creation Units** 

Shares may be redeemed only in Creation Units at their NAV next determined after receipt of a redemption request in proper form on a Business Day and only through a Participating Party or DTC Participant who has executed a Participant Agreement. The Funds will not redeem Shares in amounts less than Creation Units (except each Fund may redeem Shares in amounts less than a Creation Unit in the event the Fund is being liquidated). Beneficial owners must accumulate enough Shares in the secondary market to constitute a Creation Unit in order to have such Shares redeemed by the Trust. There can be no assurance, however, that there will be sufficient liquidity in the public trading market at any time to permit assembly of a Creation Unit. Authorized Participants should expect to incur brokerage and other costs in connection with assembling a sufficient number of Shares to constitute a redeemable Creation Unit. All redemptions are subject to the procedures contained in the applicable Participant Agreement.

With respect to a Fund, BNY, through the NSCC, makes available prior to the opening of business on the Exchange (currently 9:30 a.m., Eastern time) on each Business Day, the identity and number or amount of each Fund's securities ("Fund Securities") and/or an amount of cash that will be applicable (subject to possible amendment or correction) to redemption requests received in proper form (as described below) on that day. All orders are subject to acceptance by the Distributor. Fund Securities received on redemption may not be identical to Deposit Securities that are applicable to creations of Creation Units.

Unless cash only redemptions are available or specified for a Fund, the redemption proceeds for a Creation Unit will generally consist of Fund Securities – as published on the Business Day of the request for a redemption order received in proper form–plus cash in an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the Shares being redeemed, as next determined after a receipt of a request in proper form, and the value of the Fund Securities, less the redemption transaction fee and variable fees described below. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Trust reserves the right to deliver a basket of securities and/or cash that differs from a basket of Fund Securities and/or cash published or transacted on a Business Day, or to substitute an amount of cash (a "cash-in-lieu" amount) to be added to the Cash Component to replace any Fund Security. Where "cash-in-lieu" is used, the amount of cash paid out in such cases will be equivalent to the value of the instrument listed as a Deposit Security. In the event that the Fund Securities have a value greater than the NAV of the Shares, a compensating cash payment equal to the difference is required to be made by an Authorized Participant.

Redemptions of shares for Fund Securities will be subject to compliance with applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws, and each Fund reserves the right to redeem Creation Units for cash to the extent that the Trust could not lawfully deliver specific Fund Securities upon redemptions or could not do so without first registering the Fund Securities under such laws. An Authorized Participant, or a beneficial owner of shares for which it is acting, subject to a legal restriction with respect to a particular security included in the redemption of a Creation Unit may be paid an equivalent amount of cash. This would specifically prohibit delivery of Fund Securities that are not registered in reliance upon Rule 144A under the 1933 Act to a redeeming beneficial owner of shares that is not a "qualified institutional buyer," as such term is defined under Rule 144A of the 1933 Act. The Authorized Participant may request the redeeming beneficial owner of the shares to complete an order form or to enter into agreements with respect to such matters as compensating cash payment.

The right of redemption may be suspended or the date of payment postponed with respect to a Fund: (i) for any period during which the NYSE is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings); (ii) for any period during which trading on the NYSE is suspended or restricted; (iii) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which disposal by the Fund of securities it owns or determination of the Fund's NAV is not reasonably practicable; or (iv) in such other circumstances as permitted by the SEC.

If the Trust determines, based on information available to the Trust when a redemption request is submitted by an Authorized Participant, that (i) the short interest of the Fund in the marketplace is greater than or equal to 100% and (ii) the orders in the aggregate from all Authorized Participants redeeming Fund Shares on a Business Day represent 25% or more of the outstanding Shares of the Fund, such Authorized Participant will be required to verify to the Trust the accuracy of its representations that are deemed to have been made by submitting a request for redemption.

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If, after receiving notice of the verification requirement, the Authorized Participant does not verify the accuracy of its representations that are deemed to have been made by submitting a request for redemption in accordance with this requirement, its redemption request will be considered not to have been received in proper form.

**Redemption Transaction Fee** 

The basic redemption transaction fee is the same no matter how many Creation Units are being redeemed pursuant to any one redemption request, in the following amounts:

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Fund** | **Redemption<br>Transaction<br>Fee** |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | $643 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | $643 |

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An additional variable charge for cash redemptions or partial cash redemptions (when cash redemptions are permitted or required for a Fund) may also be imposed to compensate each applicable Fund for the costs associated with selling the applicable securities. As a result, in order to seek to replicate the in-kind redemption order process, the Trust expects to sell, in the secondary market, the portfolio securities or settle any financial instruments that may not be permitted to be re-registered in the name of the Participating Party as a result of an in-kind redemption order pursuant to local law or market convention, or for other reasons ("Market Sales"). In such cases where the Trust makes Market Sales, the Authorized Participant may be required to reimburse the Trust for, among other things, any difference between the market value at which the securities and/or financial instruments were sold or settled by the Trust and the cash in lieu amount (which amount, at the Investment Adviser's discretion, may be capped), applicable registration fees, brokerage commissions and certain taxes ("Transaction Costs"). The Investment Adviser may adjust the transaction fee to the extent the composition of the redemption securities changes or cash in lieu is added to the Cash Component to protect ongoing shareholders. In no event will fees charged by a Fund in connection with a redemption exceed 2% of the value of each Creation Unit. Investors who use the services of a broker or other such intermediary may be charged a fee for such services. See "Portfolio Transactions and Brokerage" for additional information regarding certain cash redemption transactions. From time to time, all or a portion of a Fund's transaction fees may be waived at the sole discretion of the Investment Adviser, including in connection with an Authorized Participant's investment of seed capital in a Fund or where an Authorized Participant is engaged in certain customized creation and redemption basket activity that is designed to benefit a Fund by facilitating index tracking in a tax efficient manner (i.e., to minimize the realization of capital gains). To the extent a Fund does not recoup the amount of Transaction Costs incurred in connection with a redemption from the redeeming shareholder because of the 2% cap or otherwise, those Transaction Costs will be borne by the Fund and may negatively affect the Fund's performance.

**Placement of Redemption Orders Using Clearing Process** 

Orders to redeem Creation Units of a Fund through the Clearing Process, if available, must be delivered through a Participating Party that has executed the Participant Agreement. An order to redeem Creation Units of a Fund using the Clearing Process is deemed received on the Transmittal Date if (i) such order is received by the Transfer Agent not later than 4:00 p.m. Eastern time on such Transmittal Date; and (ii) all other procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement are properly followed; such order will be effected based on the NAV of the Fund as next determined. An order to redeem Creation Units of a Fund using the Clearing Process made in proper form but received by the Fund after 4:00 p.m. Eastern time, will be deemed received on the next Business Day immediately following the Transmittal Date. The requisite Fund Securities (or contracts to purchase such Fund Securities which are expected to be delivered in a "regular way" manner) and the applicable cash payment will be transferred by the prescribed settlement date.

**Placement of Redemption Orders Outside Clearing Process—Domestic Funds** 

Orders to redeem Creation Units of a Fund outside the Clearing Process must be delivered through a DTC Participant that has executed the Participant Agreement. A DTC Participant who wishes to place an order for redemption of Creation Units of a Fund to be effected outside the Clearing Process need not be a Participating Party, but such orders must state that the DTC Participant is not using the Clearing Process and that redemption of Creation Units of the Fund will instead be effected through transfer of Creation Units of the Fund directly through DTC. An order to redeem Creation Units of a Fund outside the Clearing Process is deemed received by BNY on the Transmittal Date if (i) such order is received by BNY not later than 4:00 p.m. Eastern time on such Transmittal Date; (ii) such order is preceded or accompanied by the requisite number of Shares of Creation Units specified in such order; and (iii) all other procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement are properly followed.

After BNY has deemed an order for redemption outside the Clearing Process received, BNY will initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Fund Securities (or contracts to purchase such Fund Securities) and the cash redemption payment to the redeeming Beneficial Owner by the prescribed settlement date. Additional transaction fee may be imposed with respect to transactions effected outside the Clearing Process. (See "Redemption Transaction Fee" section above.)

**Placement of Redemption Orders Outside Clearing Process—Foreign Funds** 

Arrangements satisfactory to the Trust must be in place for the Participating Party to transfer the Creation Units through DTC on or before the prescribed settlement date. Redemptions of Shares for Fund Securities will be subject to compliance with applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws and a Fund (whether or not it otherwise permits or requires cash redemptions) reserves the right to redeem Creation Units for cash to the extent that a Fund could not lawfully deliver specific Fund Securities upon redemptions or could not do so without first registering the Fund Securities under such laws.

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In connection with taking delivery of Shares for Fund Securities upon redemption of Creation Units, a redeeming shareholder or entity acting on behalf of a redeeming shareholder must maintain appropriate custody arrangements with a qualified broker dealer, bank or other custody providers in each jurisdiction in which any of the Fund Securities are customarily traded, to which account such Fund Securities will be delivered. If neither the redeeming shareholder nor the entity acting on behalf of a redeeming shareholder has appropriate arrangements to take delivery of the Fund Securities in the applicable foreign jurisdiction and it is not possible to make other such arrangements, or if it is not possible to effect deliveries of the Fund Securities in such jurisdictions, the Trust may, in its discretion, exercise its option to redeem such Shares in cash, and the redeeming shareholder will be required to receive its redemption proceeds in cash.

Regular Foreign Holidays. The Funds may effect deliveries of Creation Units and portfolio securities on a basis other than the normal settlement periods in order to accommodate local holiday schedules, to account for different treatment among foreign and U.S. markets of dividend record dates and ex-dividend dates or under certain other circumstances. The ability of the Trust to effect in-kind creations and redemptions within the normal settlement periods is subject, among other things, to the condition that, within the time period from the date of the order to the date of delivery of the securities, there are no days that are holidays in the applicable foreign market. For every occurrence of one or more intervening holidays in the applicable foreign market that are not holidays observed in the U.S. equity market, the redemption settlement cycle may be extended by the number of such intervening holidays. In addition to holidays, other unforeseeable closings in a foreign market due to emergencies may also prevent the Trust from delivering securities within normal settlement periods. The securities delivery cycles currently practicable for transferring portfolio securities to redeeming Authorized Participants, coupled with foreign market holiday schedules, will require a delivery process longer than seven calendar days for the Funds, in certain circumstances. In such cases, the local market settlement procedures will not commence until the end of the local holiday periods. The timing of settlement may also be affected by the proclamation of new holidays, the treatment by market participants of certain days as "informal holidays" (e.g., days on which no or limited securities transactions occur, as a result of substantially shortened trading hours), the elimination of existing holidays or changes in local securities delivery practices. Because the portfolio securities of the Funds may trade on days that the Funds' Exchange is closed or on days that are not Business Days for the Funds, Authorized Participants may not be able to redeem their shares of the Funds, or to purchase and sell shares of the Funds on the Exchange, on days when the NAV of the Funds could be significantly affected by events in the relevant non-U.S. markets.

**BOOK ENTRY ONLY SYSTEM** 

DTC acts as securities depositary for the Shares. Shares of the Funds are represented by securities registered in the name of DTC or its nominee and deposited with, or on behalf of, DTC. Certificates will not be issued for Shares.

DTC, a limited purpose trust company, was created to hold securities of the DTC Participants and to facilitate the clearance and settlement of securities transactions among the DTC Participants in such securities through electronic book entry changes in accounts of the DTC Participants, thereby eliminating the need for physical movement of securities certificates. DTC Participants include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and certain other organizations, some of whom (and/or their representatives) own DTC. More specifically, DTC is owned by a number of its DTC Participants and by the NYSE and FINRA. Access to the DTC system is also available to others such as banks, brokers, dealers and trust companies that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant, either directly or indirectly (the "Indirect Participants").

Beneficial ownership of Shares is limited to DTC Participants, Indirect Participants and persons holding interests through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants. Ownership of beneficial interests in Shares (owners of such beneficial interests are referred to herein as "Beneficial Owners") is shown on, and the transfer of ownership is effected only through, records maintained by DTC (with respect to DTC Participants) and on the records of DTC Participants (with respect to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners that are not DTC Participants). Beneficial Owners will receive from or through the DTC Participant a written confirmation relating to their purchase of Shares.

Conveyance of all notices, statements and other communications to Beneficial Owners is effected as follows. Pursuant to the Depositary Agreement between the Trust and DTC, DTC is required to make available to the Trust upon request and for a fee to be charged to the Trust a listing of the Shares holdings of each DTC Participant. The Trust shall inquire of each such DTC Participant as to the number of Beneficial Owners holding Shares, directly or indirectly, through such DTC Participant. The Trust shall provide each such DTC Participant with copies of such notice, statement or other communication, in such form, number and at such place as such DTC Participant may reasonably request, in order that such notice, statement or communication may be transmitted by such DTC Participant, directly or indirectly, to such Beneficial Owners. In addition, the Trust shall pay to each such DTC Participant a fair and reasonable amount as reimbursement for the expenses attendant to such transmittal, all subject to applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.

Share distributions shall be made to DTC or its nominee, Cede & Co., as the registered holder of all Shares. DTC or its nominee, upon receipt of any such distributions, shall credit immediately DTC Participants' accounts with payments in amounts proportionate to their respective beneficial interests in Shares as shown on the records of DTC or its nominee. Payments by DTC Participants to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners of Shares held through such DTC Participants will be governed by standing instructions and customary practices, as is now the case with securities held for the accounts of customers in bearer form or registered in a "street name," and will be the responsibility of such DTC Participants.

The Trust has no responsibility or liability for any aspects of the records relating to or notices to Beneficial Owners, or payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests in such Shares, or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial ownership interests or for any other aspect of the relationship between DTC and the DTC Participants or the relationship between such DTC Participants and the Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners owning through such DTC Participants.

DTC may determine to discontinue providing its service with respect to the Shares at any time by giving reasonable notice to the Trust and discharging its responsibilities with respect thereto under applicable law. Under such circumstances, the Trust shall take action either to find a replacement for DTC to perform its functions at a comparable cost or, if such a replacement is unavailable, to issue and deliver printed certificates representing ownership of Shares, unless the Trust makes other arrangements with respect thereto satisfactory to an Exchange.

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**Request for Multiple Copies of Shareholder Documents** 

To reduce expenses, it is intended that only one copy of a Fund's Prospectus and each annual and semi-annual report, when available, will be mailed to those addresses shared by two or more accounts. If you wish to receive individual copies of these documents, please contact the financial intermediary through which you hold your shares.

**PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE** 

The portfolio transactions for the Funds are generally effected at a net price without a broker's commission (i.e., a dealer is dealing with the Funds as principal and receives compensation equal to the spread between the dealer's cost for a given security and the resale price of such security). In certain foreign countries, debt securities are traded on exchanges at fixed commission rates. In connection with portfolio transactions, the Management Agreement provides that the Investment Adviser shall attempt to obtain the most favorable execution and net price available. The Management Agreement provides that, on occasions when the Investment Adviser deems the purchase or sale of a security to be in the best interests of a Fund as well as its other customers (including any other fund or other investment company or advisory account for which an Investment Adviser or an affiliate acts as Investment Adviser), the Fund, to the extent permitted by applicable laws and regulations, may aggregate the securities to be sold or purchased for the Fund with those to be sold or purchased for such other customers in order to obtain the best net price and most favorable execution. In such event, allocation of the securities so purchased or sold, as well as the expenses incurred in the transaction, will be made by the Investment Adviser in the manner it considers to be most equitable and consistent with its fiduciary obligations to such Fund and such other customers. In some instances, this procedure may adversely affect the size and price of the position obtainable for a Fund. The Management Agreement permits the Investment Adviser, in its discretion, to purchase and sell portfolio securities to and from dealers who provide the Trust with brokerage or research services in which dealers may execute brokerage transactions at a higher cost to a Fund.

Brokerage and research services furnished by firms through which a Fund effects its securities transactions may be used by the Investment Adviser in servicing other accounts and not all of these services may be used by the Investment Adviser in connection with the Fund generating the brokerage credits. Such research or other services may include research reports on companies, industries and securities; economic and financial data; financial publications; computer data bases; quotation equipment and services; and research-oriented computer hardware, software and other services. The fees received under the

Management Agreement is not reduced by reason of the Investment Adviser receiving such brokerage and research services. Such services are used by the Investment Adviser in connection with all of its investment activities, and some of such services obtained in connection with the execution of transactions for the Fund may be used in managing other investment accounts. Conversely, brokers furnishing such services may be selected for the execution of transactions of such other accounts, whose aggregate assets may be larger than those of the Fund, and the services furnished by such brokers may be used by the Investment Adviser in providing management services for the Trust. The Investment Adviser may also participate in so-called "commission sharing arrangements" and "client commission arrangements" under which the Investment Adviser may execute transactions through a broker-dealer and request that the broker-dealer allocate a portion of the commissions or commission credits to another firm that provides research to the Investment Adviser. The Investment Adviser excludes from use under these arrangements those products and services that are not fully eligible under applicable law and regulatory interpretations– even as to the portion that would be eligible if accounted for separately.

The research services received as part of commission sharing and client commission arrangements will comply with Section 28(e) and may be subject to different legal requirements in the jurisdictions in which the Investment Adviser does business. Participating in commission sharing and client commission arrangements may enable the Investment Adviser to consolidate payments for research through one or more channels using accumulated client commissions or credits from transactions executed through a particular broker-dealer to obtain research provided by other firms. Such arrangements also help to ensure the continued receipt of research services while facilitating best execution in the trading process. The Investment Adviser believes such research services are useful in its investment decision-making process by, among other things, ensuring access to a variety of high quality research, access to individual analysts and availability of resources that the Investment Adviser might not be provided access to absent such arrangements.

On occasions when an Investment Adviser deems the purchase or sale of a security or other financial instruments to be in the best interest of a Fund as well as its other customers (including any other fund or other investment company or advisory account for which such Investment Adviser acts as investment adviser or sub-investment adviser), the Investment Adviser, to the extent permitted by applicable laws and regulations, may aggregate the securities to be sold or purchased for the Fund with those to be sold or purchased for such other customers in order to obtain the best net price and most favorable execution under the circumstances. In such event, allocation of the securities so purchased or sold, as well as the expenses incurred in the transaction, will be made by the Investment Adviser in the manner it considers to be equitable and consistent with its fiduciary obligations to the Fund and such other customers. In some instances, this procedure may adversely affect the price and size of the position obtainable for the Fund.

When creation or redemption transactions consist of cash, the transactions may require the Fund to contemporaneously transact with broker-dealers for purchases of Deposit Securities or sales of Fund Securities (as defined above), as applicable. Depending on the timing of the transactions and certain other factors, such transactions will generally be placed with the purchasing or redeeming Authorized Participant in its capacity as a broker-dealer or with its affiliated broker-dealer and conditioned upon an agreement with the Authorized Participant or its affiliated broker-dealer to transact at guaranteed prices in order to reduce transaction costs incurred as a consequence of settling creation or redemption baskets in cash rather than in-kind.

Specifically, following the Fund's receipt of a creation or redemption order, to the extent such purchases or redemptions consist of a cash portion, the Fund will generally enter an order with the Authorized Participant or affiliated broker-dealer to purchase or sell the Deposit Securities or Fund Securities, as applicable. Such Authorized Participant or its affiliated broker-dealer will be required to guarantee that the Fund will achieve execution of its order at a price at least as favorable to the Fund as the Fund's valuation of the Deposit Securities/Fund Securities used for purposes of calculating the NAV applied to the creation or redemption transaction giving rise to the order, which will depend on the results achieved by the executing firm and will vary depending on market activity, timing and a variety of other factors.

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An Authorized Participant is required to deposit an amount with the Fund in order to ensure that the execution of the order on the terms noted above will be honored on orders arising from creation transactions executed by an Authorized Participant or its affiliate as broker-dealer. If the broker-dealer executing the order achieves executions in market transactions at a price equal to or more favorable than the Fund's valuation of the Deposit Securities, the Authorized Participant generally will retain the benefit of the favorable executions and the deposit is returned to the Authorized Participant. If, however, the broker-dealer executing the order is unable to achieve a price at least equal to the Fund's valuation of the securities, the Fund retains the portion of the deposit equal to the full amount of the execution shortfall (including any taxes, brokerage commissions or other costs) and may require the Authorized Participant to deposit any additional amount required to cover the full amount of the actual execution transaction.

An Authorized Participant agrees to pay the shortfall amount in order to ensure that a guarantee on execution will be honored for brokerage orders arising from redemption transactions executed by an Authorized Participant or its affiliate as broker-dealer. If the broker- dealer executing the order achieves executions in market transactions at a price equal to or more favorable than the Fund's valuation of the Fund Securities, the Authorized Participant generally will retain the benefit of the favorable executions. If, however, the broker-dealer is unable to achieve executions in market transactions at a price at least equal to the Fund's valuation of the securities, the Fund will be entitled to the portion of the offset equal to the full amount of the execution shortfall (including any taxes, brokerage commissions or other costs).

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Investment Adviser reserves the right to place transactions associated with cash or partial cash creation or redemption transactions with a broker-dealer unaffiliated with the purchasing or redeeming Authorized Participant under certain circumstances.

Commission rates in the U.S. are established pursuant to negotiations with the broker based on the quality and quantity of execution services provided by the broker in the light of generally prevailing rates. The allocation of orders among brokers and the commission rates paid are reviewed periodically by the Trustees. The amount of brokerage commissions paid by the Fund may vary substantially from year to year because of differences in shareholder purchase and redemption activity, portfolio turnover rates and other factors.

For the fiscal years ended March 31, 2025, March 31, 2024, and March 31, 2023, each Fund (based on the brokerage commissions paid by its predecessor fund) paid brokerage commissions as follows:

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| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2025** | **Total<br>Brokerage**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid** | **Total**<br>**Brokerage**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid to**<br>**Goldman Sachs<sup>(1)</sup>** | **Total**<br>**Brokerage**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid to**<br>**Goldman Sachs<sup>(1)</sup>** | **Total**<br>**Amount of**<br>**Transactions on**<br>**which**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid<sup>(2)</sup>** | **Amount of**<br>**Transactions**<br>**Effected<br>through**<br>**Brokers<br>Providing**<br>**Research<sup>(3)</sup>** | **Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to**<br>**Brokers<br>Providing<br>Research<sup>(4)</sup>** |
|  Core Plus Bond ETF | $51132 | $51445 | 201% | $3691173026 | $0 | $0 |
|  Income ETF | $10064 | $0 | 0% | $693448914 | $0 | $0 |

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| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2024** | **Total<br>Brokerage**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid** | **Total**<br>**Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to**<br>**Goldman Sachs<sup>(1)</sup>** | **Total**<br>**Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to**<br>**Goldman Sachs<sup>(1)</sup>** | **Total**<br>**Amount of**<br>**Transactions on**<br>**which**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid<sup>(2)</sup>** | **Amount of**<br>**Transactions**<br>**Effected<br>through**<br>**Brokers<br>Providing**<br>**Research<sup>(3)</sup>** | **Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to<br>Brokers<br>Providing<br>Research<sup>(4)</sup>** |
|  Core Plus Bond ETF | $54013 | $54013 | 100% | $3941714884 | $0 | $0 |
|  Income ETF | $7967 | $0 | 0% | $533358737 | $0 | $0 |

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| | | | | | | |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| **Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2023** | **Total<br>Brokerage**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid** | **Total**<br>**Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to**<br>**Goldman Sachs<sup>(1)</sup>** | **Total**<br>**Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to**<br>**Goldman Sachs<sup>(1)</sup>** | **Total**<br>**Amount of**<br>**Transactions on**<br>**which**<br>**Commissions<br>Paid<sup>(2)</sup>** | **Amount of**<br>**Transactions**<br>**Effected<br>through**<br>**Brokers<br>Providing**<br>**Research<sup>(3)</sup>** | **Brokerage**<br>**Commissions**<br>**Paid to<br>Brokers<br>Providing<br>Research<sup>(4)</sup>** |
|  Core Plus Bond ETF | $49237 | $47798 | 97% | $3499234679 | $0 | $0 |
|  Income ETF | 4909 | $0 | 0% | $363527873 | $0 | $0 |

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<sup>1</sup> The figures in the table report brokerage commissions from futures transactions.

<sup>2</sup> Percentage of total commissions paid to Goldman Sachs from futures transactions. 

<sup>3</sup> Refers to market value of futures contracts.

<sup>4</sup> The information above reflects the full commission amounts paid to brokers that provide research to the Investment Adviser. Only a portion of such commission pays for research and the remainder of such commission is to compensate the broker for execution services, commitment of capital and other services related to the execution of brokerage transactions. 

Subject to the above considerations, the Investment Adviser may use Goldman Sachs or an affiliate as a broker for the Funds. In order for Goldman Sachs or an affiliate, acting as agent, to effect securities or futures transactions for the Funds, the commissions, fees or other remuneration received by Goldman Sachs or an affiliate must be reasonable and fair compared to the commissions, fees or other remuneration received by other brokers in connection with comparable transactions involving similar securities or futures contracts. Furthermore, the Trustees, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, have adopted procedures which are reasonably designed to provide that any commissions, fees or other remuneration paid to Goldman Sachs are consistent with the foregoing standard. Brokerage transactions with Goldman Sachs are also subject to such fiduciary standards as may be imposed upon Goldman Sachs by applicable law.

See "Custodian, Sub-Custodians and Provider of Administrative Services" for information regarding foreign exchange transaction services and execution of trades in connection with certain creation and redemption transactions.

**DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE** 

In accordance with procedures approved by the Trustees, the NAV per share of the Fund's Shares is calculated by a Fund's provider of administrative services by determining the value of the net assets attributed to the Fund and dividing by the number of outstanding shares of the Fund. All securities are generally valued on each Business Day as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE (normally, but not always, 4:00p.m. Eastern time), or such other times as the NYSE or the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations System ("NASDAQ") market may officially close.

For the purpose of calculating the NAV per share of the Funds, investments are valued under valuation procedures approved by the Trustees. With respect to a Fund's investments that do not have readily available market quotations, the Trustees have designated the Investment Adviser as the valuation designee to perform fair valuations pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the Investment Company Act. Portfolio securities of a Fund are generally valued as follows: (i) equity securities listed on any U.S. or foreign stock exchange or on the NASDAQ will be valued at the last sale price or the official closing price on the exchange or system in which they are principally traded on the valuation date. If there is no sale or official closing price on the valuation date, equity securities may be valued at the closing bid price for long positions or the closing ask price for short positions at the time closest to, but no later than, the NAV calculation time. If the relevant exchange or system has not closed by the above mentioned time for determining the Fund's NAV, the securities will be valued at the last sale price or official closing price, or if not available at the bid price at the time the NAV is determined; (ii) over-the-counter equity securities not quoted on NASDAQ will be valued at the last sale price on the valuation day or, if no sale occurs, at the last bid price for long positions or the last ask price for short positions at the time closest to, but no later than, the NAV calculation time; (iii) equity securities for which no prices are obtained under sections (i) or (ii), including those for which a pricing source supplies no exchange quotation or a quotation that is believed by the Investment Adviser to not represent fair value, will be valued through the use of broker quotes, if possible; (iv) fixed income securities will be valued via electronic feeds from independent pricing services to the administrator using evaluated prices provided by a recognized pricing service and dealer-supplied quotations. Fixed income securities for which a pricing service either does not supply a quotation or supplies a quotation that is believed by the Investment Adviser to not represent fair value, will be valued through the use of broker quotes, if possible; (v) fixed income securities for which vendor pricing or broker quotes are not available will be valued by the Investment Adviser based on fair valuation policies that incorporate matrix pricing or valuation models, which utilize certain inputs and assumptions, including, but not limited to, yield or price with respect to comparable fixed income securities and various other factors; (vi) investments in open-end registered investment companies (excluding investments in ETFs) and investments in private funds are valued based on the NAV of those registered investment companies or private funds (which may use fair value pricing as discussed in their prospectus or offering memorandum); (vii) spot foreign exchange rates will be valued using a pricing service at the time closest to the time used for the index calculation of the Fund and forward foreign currency contracts will be valued by adding forward points provided by an independent pricing service to the spot foreign exchange rates and interpolating based upon maturity dates of each contract or by using outright forward rates, where available (if quotations are unavailable from a pricing service or, if the quotations by the Investment Adviser are believed to be inaccurate, the contracts will be valued by calculating the mean between the last bid and ask quotations supplied by at least one dealer in such contracts); (viii) exchange-traded futures contracts will be valued at the last published settlement price on the exchange where they are principally traded (or, if a sale occurs after the last published settlement price but before the NAV calculation time, at the last sale price at the time closest to, but no later than, the NAV calculation time); (ix) exchange-traded options contracts with settlement prices will be valued at the last published settlement price on the exchange where they are principally traded (or, if a sale occurs after the last published settlement price but before the NAV calculation time, at the last sale price at the time closest to, but no later than, the NAV calculation time); (x) exchange-traded options contracts without settlement prices will be valued at the midpoint of the bid and ask prices on the exchange where they are principally traded (or, in the absence of two-way trading, at the last bid price for long positions and the last ask price for short positions at the time closest to, but no later than, the NAV calculation time); (xi) over-the-counter derivatives, including, but not limited to, interest rate swaps, credit default swaps, total return index swaps, put/call option combos, total return basket swaps, index volatility and foreign exchange ("FX") variance swaps, will be valued at their fair value as determined using counterparty supplied valuations, an independent pricing service or valuation models which use market data inputs supplied by an independent pricing service; and (xii) all other instruments, including those for which a pricing service supplies no exchange quotation/price or a quotation that is believed by the Investment Adviser to be inaccurate, will be

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valued in accordance with the valuation procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Securities may also be valued at fair value in accordance with procedures approved by the Board of Trustees where a Fund's provider of administrative services is unable for other reasons to facilitate pricing of individual securities or calculate the Fund's NAV, or if the Investment Adviser believes that such quotations do not accurately reflect fair value. Fair values determined in accordance with the valuation procedures approved by the Board of Trustees may be based on subjective judgments and it is possible that the prices resulting from such valuation procedures may differ materially from the value realized on a sale.

The value of all assets and liabilities expressed in foreign currencies will be converted into U.S. dollar values at foreign currency exchange rates generally determined as of 4:00 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time. If such quotations are not available, the rate of exchange will be determined in good faith under procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

Generally, trading in securities on European, Asian and Far Eastern securities exchanges and on over-the-counter markets in these regions is substantially completed at various times prior to the close of business on each Business Day in New York (i.e., a day on which the NYSE is open for trading). In addition, European, Asian or Far Eastern securities trading generally or in a particular country or countries may not take place on all Business Days in New York. Furthermore, trading takes place in various foreign markets on days which are not Business Days in New York and days on which a Fund's NAV is not calculated. Such calculation does not take place contemporaneously with the determination of the prices of the majority of the portfolio securities used in such calculation.

The Investment Adviser, consistent with its procedures and applicable regulatory guidance, may (but need not) determine to make an adjustment to the previous closing prices of either domestic or foreign securities in light of significant events, to reflect what it believes to be the fair value of the securities at the time of determining a Fund's NAV. Significant events that could affect a large number of securities in a particular market may include, but are not limited to: situations relating to one or more single issuers in a market sector; significant fluctuations in U.S. or foreign markets; market dislocations; market disruptions or unscheduled market closings; equipment failures; natural or man-made disasters or acts of God; armed conflicts; governmental actions or other developments; as well as the same or similar events which may affect specific issuers or the securities markets even though not tied directly to the securities markets. Other significant events that could relate to a single issuer may include, but are not limited to: corporate actions such as reorganizations, mergers and buy-outs; corporate announcements, including those relating to earnings, products and regulatory news; significant litigation; ratings downgrades; bankruptcies; and trading limits or suspensions.

In general, fair value represents a good faith approximation of the current value of an asset and may be used when there is no public market or possibly no market at all for an asset. A security that is fair valued may be valued at a price higher or lower than actual market quotations or the value determined by other funds using their own fair valuation procedures or by other investors. The fair value of an asset may not be the price at which that asset is ultimately sold.

The proceeds received by a Fund and each other series of the Trust from the issue or sale of its Shares, and all net investment income, realized and unrealized gain and proceeds thereof, subject only to the rights of creditors, will be specifically allocated to the Fund or particular series and constitute the underlying assets of the Fund or series. The underlying assets of a Fund will be segregated on the books of account, and will be charged with the liabilities in respect of the Fund and with a share of the general liabilities of the Trust. Expenses of the Trust with respect to a Fund and the other series of the Trust are generally allocated in proportion to the NAVs of the respective Fund except where allocations of expenses can otherwise be fairly made.

Each Fund relies on various sources to calculate its NAV. The ability of a Fund's provider of administrative services to calculate the NAV per share of the Fund is subject to operational risks associated with processing or human errors, systems or technology failures, cyber attacks and errors caused by third party service providers, data sources, or trading counterparties. Such failures may result in delays in the calculation of a Fund's NAV and/or the inability to calculate NAV over extended time periods. The Funds may be unable to recover any losses associated with such failures. In addition, if the third-party service providers and/or data sources upon which a Fund directly or indirectly relies to calculate its NAV or price individual securities are unavailable or otherwise unable to calculate the NAV correctly, it may be necessary for alternative procedures to be utilized to price the securities at the time of determining the Fund's NAV.

**SHARES OF THE TRUST** 

Each Fund is a series of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust formed on December 16, 2009.

The Trustees have authority under the Trust's Declaration of Trust to create and classify shares of beneficial interest in separate series, without further action by shareholders. The Trustees also have authority to classify and reclassify any series of shares into one or more classes of shares. As of the date of this SAI, the Trustees have authorized the issuance of one class of shares of each Fund ("Shares"). Additional series may be added in the future.

Each Share of a Fund represents a proportionate interest in the assets belonging to the applicable class of the Fund and all expenses of the Fund are borne at the same rate by each class of shares. In addition, the fees and expenses set forth below for Shares may be subject to fee waivers or reimbursements, as discussed more fully in the Funds' Prospectus.

Certain aspects of the Shares may be altered after advance notice to shareholders if it is deemed necessary in order to satisfy certain tax regulatory requirements.

When issued for the consideration described in the Funds' Prospectus, shares are fully paid and non-assessable. The Trustees may, however, cause shareholders, or shareholders of a particular series or class, to pay certain custodian, transfer agency, shareholder servicing or similar charges by setting off the same against declared but unpaid dividends or by reducing share ownership (or by both means). In the event of liquidation, shareholders are entitled to share pro rata in the net assets of the Funds available for distribution to such shareholders. All shares are freely transferable and have no preemptive, subscription or conversion rights. The Trustees may require Shareholders to redeem Shares for certain reasons under terms set by the Trustees.

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The Act requires that where more than one series of shares exists, each series must be preferred over all other series in respect of assets specifically allocated to such series. In addition, Rule 18f-2 under the Act provides that any matter required to be submitted by the provisions of the Act or applicable state law, or otherwise, to the holders of the outstanding voting securities of an investment company such as the Trust shall not be deemed to have been effectively acted upon unless approved by the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of each series affected by such matter. Rule 18f-2 further provides that a series shall be deemed to be affected by a matter unless the interests of each series in the matter are substantially identical or the matter does not affect any interest of such series. However, Rule 18f-2 exempts the selection of independent public accountants, the approval of principal distribution contracts and the election of trustees from the separate voting requirements of Rule 18f-2.

The Trust is not required to hold annual meetings of shareholders and does not intend to hold such meetings. In the event that a meeting of shareholders is held, each Share of the Trust will be entitled, as determined by the Trustees without the vote or consent of the shareholders, either to one vote for each share or to one vote for each dollar of NAV represented by such share on all matters presented to shareholders including the election of Trustees (this method of voting being referred to as "dollar based voting"). However, to the extent required by the Act or otherwise determined by the Trustees, series and classes of the Trust will vote separately from each other. Shareholders of the Trust do not have cumulative voting rights in the election of Trustees. Meetings of shareholders of the Trust, or any series or class thereof, may be called by the Trustees, certain officers or upon the written request of holders of 10% or more of the shares entitled to vote at such meetings. The Trustees will call a special meeting of shareholders for the purpose of electing Trustees, if, at anytime, less than a majority of Trustees holding office at the time were elected by shareholders. The shareholders of the Trust will have voting rights only with respect to the limited number of matters specified in the Declaration of Trust and such other matters as the Trustees may determine or may be required by law.

The Declaration of Trust provides for indemnification of Trustees, officers, employees and agents of the Trust unless the recipient is adjudicated (i) to be liable by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such person's office or (ii) not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable belief that such person's actions were in the best interest of the Trust. The Declaration of Trust provides that, if any shareholder or former shareholder of any series is held personally liable solely by reason of being or having been a shareholder and not because of the shareholder's acts or omissions or for some other reason, the shareholder or former shareholder (or the shareholder's heirs, executors, administrators, legal representatives or general successors) shall be held harmless from and indemnified against all loss and expense arising from such liability. The Trust, acting on behalf of any affected series, must, upon request by such shareholder, assume the defense of any claim made against such shareholder for any act or obligation of the series and satisfy any judgment thereon from the assets of the series.

The Declaration of Trust states that the Trust shall continue without limitation of time but, Trustees may without Shareholder approval (i) sell and convey all or substantially all of the assets of the Trust or any affected Series to another trust, partnership, association, or corporation, or to a separate series of shares thereof, organized under the laws of any state, which trust, partnership, association, or corporation is an open-end management investment company as defined in the Investment Company Act, or is a series thereof, for adequate consideration which may include the assumption of all outstanding obligations, taxes, and other liabilities, accrued or contingent, of the Trust or any affected Series, and which may include shares of beneficial interest, stock, or other ownership interests of such trust, partnership, association, or corporation or of a series thereof; or (ii) at any time, sell and convert into money all of the assets of the Trust or any affected series.

The Declaration of Trust authorizes the Trustees, without shareholder approval, to cause the Trust, or any series thereof, to merge, reorganize or consolidate with any corporation, association, trust or other organization or sell or exchange all or substantially all of the property belonging to the Trust or any series thereof. In addition, the Trustees, without shareholder approval, may adopt a master-feeder structure by investing all or a portion of the assets of a series of the Trust in the securities of another open-end investment company with substantially the same investment objective, restrictions and policies.

The Declaration of Trust permits the Trustees to amend the Declaration of Trust without a shareholder vote. However, shareholders of the Trust have the right to vote on any amendment (i) that would adversely affect the voting rights of shareholders; (ii) that is required by law to be approved by shareholders; (iii) that would amend the provisions of the Declaration of Trust regarding amendments and supplements thereto; or (iv) that the Trustees determine to submit to shareholders.

**Shareholder and Trustee Liability** 

Under Delaware Law, the shareholders of the Funds are not generally subject to liability for the debts or obligations of the Trust. Similarly, Delaware law provides that a series of the Trust will not be liable for the debts or obligations of any other series of the Trust. However, no similar statutory or other authority limiting statutory trust shareholder liability exists in other states. As a result, to the extent that a Delaware statutory trust or a shareholder is subject to the jurisdiction of courts of such other states, the courts may not apply Delaware law and may thereby subject the Delaware statutory trust shareholders to liability. To guard against this risk, the Declaration of Trust contains an express disclaimer of shareholder liability for acts or obligations of a series. Notice of such disclaimer will normally be given in each agreement, obligation or instrument entered into or executed by a series of the Trust. The Declaration of Trust provides for indemnification by the relevant series for all loss suffered by a shareholder as a result of an obligation of the series. The Declaration of Trust also provides that a series shall, upon request, assume the defense of any claim made against any shareholder for any act or obligation of the series and satisfy any judgment thereon. In view of the above, the risk of personal liability of shareholders of a Delaware statutory trust is remote.

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In addition to the requirements under Delaware law, the Declaration of Trust provides that shareholders of a series may bring a derivative action on behalf of the series only if the following conditions are met: (a) shareholders eligible to bring such derivative action under Delaware law who collectively hold at least 10% of the outstanding shares of the series, or 10% of the outstanding shares of the class to which such action relates, shall join in the request for the Trustees to commence such action; and (b) the Trustees must be afforded a reasonable amount of time to consider such shareholder request and to investigate the basis of such claim. The Trustees will be entitled to retain counsel or other advisers in considering the merits of the request and may require an undertaking by the shareholders making such request to reimburse the series for the expense of any such advisers in the event that the Trustees determine not to bring such action.

The Declaration of Trust further provides that the Trustees will not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes of fact or law, but nothing in the Declaration of Trust protects a Trustee against liability to which he or she would otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his or her office.

**TAXATION** 

The following are certain additional U.S. federal income tax considerations generally affecting the Funds and the purchase, ownership and disposition of shares of the Fund that are not described in the Prospectus. The discussions below and in the Prospectus are only summaries and are not intended as substitutes for careful tax planning. They do not address special tax rules applicable to certain classes of investors, such as tax-exempt entities, insurance companies and financial institutions. Each prospective shareholder is urged to consult his or her own tax adviser with respect to the specific federal, state, local and foreign tax consequences of investing in each Fund. The summary is based on the laws in effect on the date of this SAI, which are subject to change. Future changes in tax laws may adversely impact a Fund and its shareholders.

**<u>Fund Taxation</u>**

Each Fund is treated as a separate taxable entity and has elected to be treated and intends to qualify for each of its taxable years as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Code.

There are certain tax requirements that each Fund must follow if it is to avoid federal taxation. In its efforts to adhere to these requirements, the Funds may have to limit its investment activities in some types of instruments. Qualification as a regulated investment company under the Code requires, among other things, that (i) the Fund derive at least 90% of its gross income (including tax exempt interest) for each taxable year from dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans, gains from the sale or other disposition of stocks or securities or foreign currencies, net income from qualified publicly traded partnerships or other income (including but not limited to gains from options, futures, and forward contracts) derived with respect to the Fund's business of investing in stocks, securities or currencies (the "90% gross income test"); and (ii) the Fund diversify its holdings so that, in general, at the close of each quarter of its taxable year, (a) at least 50% of the fair market value of the Fund's total (gross) assets is comprised of cash, cash items, U.S. Government Securities, securities of other regulated investment companies and other securities limited in respect of any one issuer to an amount not greater in value than 5% of the value of the Fund's total assets and to not more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (b) not more than 25% of the value of its total (gross) assets is invested in the securities of any one issuer (other than U.S. Government Securities and securities of other regulated investment companies), two or more issuers controlled by the Fund and engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses, or certain publicly traded partnerships.

For purposes of the 90% gross income test, income that a Fund earns from equity interests in certain entities that are not treated as corporations or as qualified publicly traded partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes (e.g., partnerships or trusts) will generally have the same character for the Fund as in the hands of such an entity; consequently, a Fund may be required to limit its equity investments in any such entities that earn fee income, rental income, or other nonqualifying income. In addition, future Treasury Regulations could provide that qualifying income under the 90% gross income test will not include gains from foreign currency transactions that are not directly related to the Fund's principal business of investing in stock or securities or options and futures with respect to stock or securities. Using foreign currency positions or entering into foreign currency options, futures and forward or swap contracts for purposes other than hedging currency risk with respect to securities in a Fund's portfolio or anticipated to be acquired may not qualify as "directly-related" under these tests.

If a Fund complies with the foregoing provisions, then in any taxable year in which the Fund distributes, in compliance with the Code's timing and other requirements, an amount at least equal to the sum of 90% of its "investment company taxable income" (which includes dividends, taxable interest, taxable accrued original issue discount and market discount income, income from securities lending, any net short-term capital gain in excess of net long-term capital loss, certain net realized foreign exchange gains and any other taxable income other than "net capital gain," as defined below, and is reduced by deductible expenses), plus 90% of the excess of its gross tax-exempt interest income (if any) over certain disallowed deductions, the Fund (but not its shareholders) will be relieved of federal income tax on any income of the Fund, including long-term capital gains, distributed to shareholders. If, instead, a Fund retains any investment company taxable income or net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss), it will be subject to a tax at regular corporate rates on the amount retained. Because there are some uncertainties regarding the computation of the amounts deemed distributed to Fund shareholders for these purposes — including, in particular, uncertainties regarding the portion, if any, of amounts paid in redemption of Fund shares that should be treated as such distributions — there can be no assurance that the Fund will avoid corporate-level tax in each year.

Each Fund generally intends to distribute for each taxable year to its shareholders all or substantially all of its investment company taxable income, net capital gain and any tax-exempt interest. Exchange control or other foreign laws, regulations or practices may restrict repatriation of investment income, capital or the proceeds of securities sales by foreign investors and may therefore make it more difficult for these Funds to satisfy the distribution requirements described above, as well as the excise tax distribution requirements described below. These Funds generally expect, however, to be able to obtain sufficient cash to satisfy those requirements, from new investors, the sale of securities or other sources. If for any taxable year a Fund does not qualify as a regulated investment company, it will be taxed on all of its taxable income and net capital gain at corporate rates, and its distributions to shareholders will generally be taxable as ordinary dividends to the extent of its current and accumulated earnings and profits.

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If a Fund retains any net capital gain, the Fund may designate the retained amount as undistributed capital gains in a notice to its shareholders who (1) if subject to U.S. federal income tax on long-term capital gains, will be required to include in income for federal income tax purposes, as long-term capital gain, their shares of that undistributed amount, and (2) will be entitled to credit their proportionate shares of the tax paid by the Fund against their U.S. federal income tax liabilities, if any, and to claim refunds to the extent the credit exceeds those liabilities. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the tax basis of shares owned by a shareholder of the Fund will be increased by the amount of any such undistributed net capital gain included in the shareholder's gross income and decreased by the federal income tax paid by the Fund on that amount of net capital gain.

To avoid a 4% federal excise tax, each Fund must generally distribute (or be deemed to have distributed) by December 31 of each calendar year an amount at least equal to the sum of 98% of its taxable ordinary income (taking into account certain deferrals and elections) for the calendar year, 98.2% of the excess of its capital gains over its capital losses (generally computed on the basis of the one-year period ending on October 31 of such year), and all taxable ordinary income and the excess of capital gains over capital losses for all previous years that were not distributed for those years and on which the Fund paid no federal income tax. For federal income tax purposes, dividends declared by a Fund in October, November or December to shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month and paid during January of the following year are taxable to such shareholders, and deductible by the Fund, as if paid on December 31 of the year declared. Each Fund anticipates that it will generally make timely distributions of income and capital gains in compliance with these requirements so that it will generally not be required to pay the excise tax.

For federal income tax purposes, each Fund is generally permitted to carry forward a net capital loss in any taxable year to offset its own capital gains, if any. These amounts are available to be carried forward to offset future capital gains to the extent permitted by the Code and applicable tax regulations.

Gains and losses on the sale, lapse, or other termination of options and futures contracts, options thereon and certain forward contracts (except certain foreign currency options, forward contracts and futures contracts) will generally be treated as capital gains and losses. Certain of the futures contracts, forward contracts and options held by a Fund will be required to be "marked-to-market" for federal tax purposes — that is, treated as having been sold at their fair market value on the last day of the Fund's taxable year (or, for excise tax purposes, on the last day of the relevant period). These provisions may require a Fund to recognize income or gains without a concurrent receipt of cash. Any gain or loss recognized on actual or deemed sales of these futures contracts, forward contracts, or options will (except for certain foreign currency options, forward contracts, and futures contracts) be treated as 60% long-term capital gain or loss and 40% short-term capital gain or loss. As a result of certain hedging transactions entered into by a Fund, that Fund may be required to defer the recognition of losses on futures contracts, forward contracts, and options or underlying securities or foreign currencies to the extent of any unrecognized gains on related positions held by the Fund, and the characterization of gains or losses as long-term or short-term may be changed. The tax provisions described in this paragraph may affect the amount, timing and character of the Fund's distributions to shareholders. The application of certain requirements for qualification as a regulated investment company and the application of certain other tax rules may be unclear in some respects in connection with certain investment practices such as dollar rolls, or investments in certain derivatives, including interest rate swaps, floors, caps and collars, currency swaps, total return swaps, mortgage swaps, index swaps, forward contracts and structured notes. As a result, that Fund may therefore be required to limit its investments in such transactions and it is also possible that the IRS may not agree with the Fund's tax treatment of such transactions. In addition, the tax treatment of derivatives, and certain other investments, may be affected by future legislation, Treasury Regulations and guidance issued by the IRS that could affect the timing, character and amount of a Fund's income and gains and distributions to shareholders. Certain tax elections may be available to the Funds to mitigate some of the unfavorable consequences described in this paragraph.

Section 988 of the Code contains special tax rules applicable to certain foreign currency transactions and instruments, which may affect the amount, timing and character of income, gain or loss recognized by a Fund. Under these rules, foreign exchange gain or loss realized with respect to foreign currencies and certain futures and options thereon, foreign currency-denominated debt instruments, foreign currency forward contracts, and foreign currency-denominated payables and receivables will generally be treated as ordinary income or loss, although in some cases elections may be available that would alter this treatment. If a net foreign exchange loss treated as ordinary loss under Section 988 of the Code were to exceed a Fund's investment company taxable income (computed without regard to that loss) for a taxable year, the resulting loss would not be deductible by the Fund or its shareholders in future years. Net loss, if any, from certain foreign currency transactions or instruments could exceed net investment income otherwise calculated for accounting purposes, with the result being either no dividends being paid or a portion of a Fund's dividends being treated as a return of capital for tax purposes, nontaxable to the extent of a shareholder's tax basis in his shares and, once such basis is exhausted, generally giving rise to capital gains.

A Fund's investment, if any, in zero coupon securities, deferred interest securities, certain structured securities or other securities bearing original issue discount or, if a Fund elects to include market discount in income currently, market discount, as well as any "marked-to-market" gain from certain options, futures or forward contracts, as described above, will in many cases cause it to realize income or gain before the receipt of cash payments with respect to these securities or contracts. In order to obtain cash to enable it to distribute any such income or gain, to maintain its qualification as a regulated investment company and to avoid federal income and excise taxes, a Fund may be required to liquidate portfolio investments sooner than it might otherwise have done.

Investments in lower-rated securities may present special tax issues for a Fund to the extent actual or anticipated defaults may be more likely with respect to those kinds of securities. Tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when an investor in such securities may cease to accrue interest, original issue discount, or market discount; when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless securities; how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and income; and whether exchanges of debt obligations in a workout context are taxable. These and other issues will generally need to be addressed by a Fund, in the event it invests in such securities, so as to seek to eliminate or to minimize any adverse tax consequences.

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If a Fund acquires stock (including, under proposed regulations, an option to acquire stock such as is inherent in a convertible bond) in certain foreign corporations that receive at least 75% of their annual gross income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, rents, royalties or capital gain) or hold at least 50% of their assets in investments producing such passive income ("passive foreign investment companies"), the Fund could be subject to federal income tax and additional interest charges on "excess distributions" received from such companies or gain from the sale of stock in such companies, even if all income or gain actually received by the Fund is timely distributed to its shareholders. The Fund will not be able to pass through to its shareholders any credit or deduction for such a tax. In some cases, elections may be available that will ameliorate these adverse tax consequences, but those elections will require the Fund to include each year certain amounts as income or gain (subject to the distribution requirements described above) without a concurrent receipt of cash. The Fund may attempt to limit and/or to manage its holdings in passive foreign investment companies to minimize its tax liability or maximize its return from these investments.

If a Fund invests in certain real estate investment trusts ("REITs") or in real estate mortgage investment conduit residual interests, a portion of the Fund's income may be classified as "excess inclusion income." A shareholder that is otherwise not subject to tax may be taxable on their share of any such excess inclusion income as "unrelated business taxable income." In addition, tax may be imposed on a Fund on the portion of any excess inclusion income allocable to any shareholders that are classified as disqualified organizations.

**<u>Taxable U.S. Shareholders—Distributions</u>**

Each Fund expects to qualify to pay "exempt-interest dividends," as defined in the Code. To qualify to pay exempt-interest dividends, a Fund must, at the close of each quarter of its taxable year, have at least 50% of the value of its total assets invested in municipal obligations whose interest is excluded from gross income under Section 103(a) of the Code. In purchasing municipal obligations, each Fund intends to rely on opinions of bond counsel or counsel to the issuers for each issue as to the excludability of interest on such obligations from gross income for federal income tax purposes. A Fund will not undertake independent investigations concerning the tax exempt status of such obligations, nor does it guarantee or represent that bond counsels' opinions are correct. Bond counsels' opinions will generally be based in part upon covenants by the issuers and related parties regarding continuing compliance with federal tax requirements. Tax laws not only limit the purposes for which tax exempt bonds may be issued and the supply of such bonds, but also contain numerous and complex requirements that must be satisfied on a continuing basis in order for bonds to be and remain tax exempt. If the issuer of a bond or a user of a bond-financed facility fails to comply with such requirements at any time, interest on the bond could become taxable, retroactive to the date the obligation was issued. In that event, a portion of a Fund's distributions attributable to interest the Fund received on such bond for the current year and for prior years could be characterized or recharacterized as taxable income. The availability of tax exempt obligations and the value of a Fund's portfolio may be affected by restrictive federal income tax legislation enacted in recent years or by similar, future legislation. If a Fund satisfies the applicable requirements, dividends paid by the Fund which are attributable to tax exempt interest on municipal obligations and designated by the Fund as exempt-interest dividends in a written notice to its shareholders after the close of its taxable year may be treated by shareholders as items of interest excludable from their gross income under Section 103(a) of the Code. The recipient of tax exempt income is required to report such income on his or her federal income tax return. The Code provides that interest on indebtedness incurred or continued to purchase or carry shares of a Fund is not deductible to the extent attributable to exempt-interest dividends.

Although all or a substantial portion of the dividends paid by a Fund may be excluded by shareholders of such Fund from their gross income for federal income tax purposes, each Fund may purchase private activity bonds, the interest from which (including a Fund's distributions attributable to such interest) may be a preference item for purposes of the federal alternative minimum tax. All exempt- interest dividends from a Fund, whether or not attributable to private activity bond interest, will be taken into account in determining the extent to which a shareholder's Social Security or certain railroad retirement benefits are taxable.

The Funds are not intended to constitute a balanced investment program and are not designed for investors seeking capital appreciation or maximum tax exempt income irrespective of fluctuations in principal. Shares of the Funds would not be suitable for tax exempt institutions, retirement plans qualified under Section 401 of the Code, H.R. 10 plans and individual retirement accounts since such institutions, plans and accounts are generally tax exempt and, therefore, would not gain any additional benefit from the Funds' dividends being tax exempt. The same is generally true for non-U.S. persons, because they are generally exempt from U.S. tax on interest income. In addition, the Funds may not be an appropriate investment for persons or entities that are "substantial users" of facilities financed by private activity bonds or "related persons" thereof. "Substantial user" is defined under U.S. Treasury Regulations to include a non-exempt person which regularly uses a part of such facilities in its trade or business and whose gross revenues derived with respect to the facilities financed by the issuance of bonds are more than 5% of the total revenues derived by all users of such facilities, which occupies more than 5% of the usable area of such facilities or for which such facilities or a part thereof were specifically constructed, reconstructed or acquired. "Related persons" include certain related natural persons, affiliated corporations, partnerships and its partners and an S corporation and its shareholders. A shareholder is advised to consult his or her tax adviser with respect to whether exempt-interest dividends retain the exclusion under Section 103(a) if such shareholder would be treated as a "substantial user" under Section 147(a)(1) with respect to some or all of the tax exempt obligations held by a Fund.

For U.S. federal income tax purposes, taxable distributions by a Fund, whether reinvested in additional shares or paid in cash, generally will be taxable to shareholders who are subject to tax. Taxable distributions include distributions that are attributable to (i) taxable income, including but not limited to dividends, taxable bond interest, recognized market discount income, original issue discount income accrued with respect to taxable bonds, income from repurchase agreements, income from dollar rolls, income from interest rate, currency, total return swaps, options on swaps, caps, floors and collars, and a portion of the discount from certain stripped tax exempt obligations or their coupons; or (ii) capital gains from the sale of securities or other investments (including from the disposition of rights to when-issued securities prior to issuance) or from options, futures or certain forward contracts.

In general, taxable distributions from investment company taxable income for the year will be taxable as ordinary income. However, taxable distributions to noncorporate shareholders attributable to dividends received by the Funds from U.S. and certain foreign corporations will generally be taxed at the long-term capital gain rate (described below), as long as certain other requirements are met. For these lower rates to apply, the noncorporate shareholders must have owned their Fund shares for at least 61 days during the 121-day period beginning 60 days before the Fund's ex-dividend date (or 91 days during the 181-day period beginning 90 days before the Fund's ex-dividend date in the case of certain preferred stock

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dividends paid by the Fund) and the Fund must also have owned the underlying stock for this same period beginning 60 days before the ex-dividend date for the stock (or 91 days during the 181-day period beginning 90 days before the Fund's ex-dividend date in the case of certain preferred stock dividends paid by the Fund). The amount of the Fund's taxable distributions that otherwise qualify for these lower rates may be reduced as a result of the Fund's securities lending activities, hedging activities or a high portfolio turnover rate.

Taxable distributions reported to shareholders as derived from a Fund's dividend income, if any, that would be eligible for the dividends received deduction if the Fund were not a regulated investment company may be eligible for the dividends received deduction for corporate shareholders. The dividends received deduction, if available, is reduced to the extent the shares with respect to which the dividends are received are treated as debt-financed under federal income tax law and is eliminated if the shares are deemed to have been held for less than a minimum period, generally 46 days. The dividends received deduction also may be reduced as a result of the Fund's hedging activities, securities lending activities or a high portfolio turnover rate. The dividend may, if it is treated as an "extraordinary dividend" under the Code, reduce a shareholder's tax basis in its shares of the Fund. Capital gain dividends (i.e., dividends from net capital gain), if reported as such to shareholders, will be taxed to shareholders as long-term capital gain regardless of how long shares have been held by shareholders, but are not eligible for the dividends received deduction for corporations. The maximum individual rate applicable to long-term capital gains is generally either 15% or 20%, depending on whether the individual's income exceeds certain threshold amounts. Taxable distributions, if any, that are in excess of a Fund's current and accumulated earnings and profits will first reduce a shareholder's tax basis in his shares and, after such basis is reduced to zero, will generally constitute capital gains to a shareholder who holds his shares as capital assets.

Certain taxable distributions reported by a Fund as Section 163(j) interest dividends may be treated as interest income by shareholders for purposes of the tax rules applicable to interest expense limitations under Section 163(j). Such treatment by the shareholder is generally subject to holding period requirements and other potential limitations, although the holding period requirements are generally not applicable to dividends declared by money market funds and certain other funds that declare dividends daily and pay such dividends on a monthly or more frequent basis. The amount that a Fund is eligible to report as a Section 163(j) dividend for a tax year is generally limited to the excess of the Fund's business interest income over the sum of the Fund's (i) business interest expense and (ii) other deductions properly allocable to the Fund's business interest income.

Individuals (and certain other non-corporate entities) are generally eligible for a 20% deduction with respect to taxable ordinary dividends from REITs and certain taxable income from publicly traded partnerships through 2025. Treasury Regulations allow regulated investment companies to pass-through the deduction with respect to taxable ordinary dividends from REITs to shareholders. However, currently there is no mechanism to pass through the deductions with respect to income from publicly traded partnerships.

After the close of each calendar year, the shareholders will be informed of the federal income tax status of a Fund's dividends and distributions for such year, including the portion of such dividends, if any, that qualifies as tax exempt or as capital gain and the portion, if any, that should be treated as a tax preference item for purposes of the federal alternative minimum tax. Shareholders who have not held shares of a Fund for that Fund's full taxable year may have reported as tax exempt or as a tax preference item a percentage of distributions which is not equal to the actual amount of tax exempt income or tax preference item income earned by that Fund during the period of their investment in the Fund.

Different tax treatment, including penalties on certain excess contributions and deferrals, certain pre-retirement and post-retirement distributions and certain prohibited transactions, is accorded to accounts maintained as qualified retirement plans. Shareholders should consult their tax advisers for more information.

**<u>Taxable U.S. Shareholders—Sale of Shares</u>**

When a shareholder's shares are sold, redeemed or otherwise disposed of in a transaction that is treated as a sale for tax purposes, the shareholder will generally recognize gain or loss equal to the difference between the shareholder's adjusted tax basis in the shares and the cash, or fair market value of any property, received. (To aid in computing that tax basis, a shareholder should generally retain its account statements for the period that it holds shares.) If the shareholder holds the shares as a capital asset at the time of sale, the character of the gain or loss should be capital, and treated as long-term if the shareholder's holding period is more than one year and short-term otherwise, subject to the rules below.

Certain special tax rules may apply to a shareholder's capital gains or losses on Fund shares. If a shareholder receives a capital gain dividend with respect to shares and such shares have a tax holding period of six months or less at the time of a sale or redemption of such shares, then any loss the shareholder realizes on the sale or redemption will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of such capital gain dividend. In addition, any loss realized upon the sale or exchange of Fund shares with a tax holding period of six months or less may be disallowed to the extent of any distributions treated as exempt-interest dividends with respect to such shares. Additionally, any loss realized on a sale or redemption of shares of a Fund may be disallowed under "wash sale" rules to the extent the shares disposed of are replaced with other shares of the same Fund within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the shares are disposed of, such as pursuant to a dividend reinvestment in shares of the Fund. If disallowed, the loss will be reflected in an adjustment to the basis of the shares acquired. If a Fund redeems a shareholder in-kind rather than in cash, the shareholder would realize the same gain or loss as if the shareholder had been redeemed in cash. Further, the shareholder's basis in the securities received in the in-kind redemption would be the securities' fair market value on the date of the in-kind redemption.

**<u>Medicare Tax</u>**

An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from a Fund and net gains from redemptions or other taxable dispositions of Fund shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person's "modified adjusted gross income" (in the case of an individual) or "adjusted gross income" (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds certain threshold amounts.

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**<u>Backup Withholding</u>**

Backup withholding may be required at a rate up to 24% with respect to distributions payable to shareholders who fail to provide their correct taxpayer identification number or to make required certifications, or who have been notified by the IRS that they are subject to backup withholding. Corporate shareholders and certain other shareholders specified in the Code generally are exempt from such backup withholding. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld may be credited against the shareholder's U.S. federal tax liability.

**<u>Non-U.S. Shareholders</u>**

The discussion above relates solely to U.S. federal income tax law as it applies to "U.S. persons" subject to tax under such law.

Except as discussed below, distributions to shareholders who, as to the United States, are not "U.S. persons," (i.e., are nonresident aliens, foreign corporations, fiduciaries of foreign trusts or estates or other non-U.S. investors) generally will be subject to U.S. federal withholding tax at the rate of 30% on distributions treated as ordinary income unless the tax is reduced or eliminated pursuant to a tax treaty or the distributions are effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the shareholder; but distributions of net capital gain (the excess of any net long-term capital gains over any net short-term capital losses) including amounts retained by a Fund which are designated as undistributed capital gains, to such a non-U.S. shareholder will not be subject to U.S. federal income or withholding tax unless the distributions are effectively connected with the shareholder's trade or business in the United States or, in the case of a shareholder who is a nonresident alien individual, the shareholder is present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year and certain other conditions are met.

Non-U.S. shareholders generally are not subject to U.S. federal income tax withholding on certain distributions of interest income and/or short-term capital gains that are reported by a Fund. It is expected that each Fund will generally report short-term gains, to the extent permitted, but the Fund does not intend to report any distributions attributable to interest income. Therefore, all distributions of interest income (other than exempt interest dividends) will be subject to withholding when paid to non-U.S. investors.

Any capital gain realized by a non-U.S. shareholder upon a sale or redemption of shares of a Fund will not be subject to U.S. federal income or withholding tax unless the gain is effectively connected with the shareholder's trade or business in the U.S., or in the case of a shareholder who is a nonresident alien individual, the shareholder is present in the U.S. for 183 days or more during the taxable year and certain other conditions are met.

Non-U.S. persons who fail to furnish the proper IRS Form W-8 (i.e., W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, W-8ECI, W-8IMY or W-8EXP), or an acceptable substitute, may be subject to backup withholding at a 24% rate on dividends (including capital gain dividends) and on the proceeds of redemptions and exchanges. Also, non-U.S. shareholders of a Fund may be subject to U.S. estate tax with respect to their Fund shares.

Withholding of U.S. tax (at a 30% rate) is required with respect to payments of dividends made to certain non-U.S. entities that fail to comply (or be deemed compliant) with extensive reporting and withholding requirements designed to inform the Treasury of U.S.- owned foreign investment accounts. Shareholders may be requested to provide additional information to enable the applicable withholding agent to determine whether withholding is required.

Each shareholder who is not a U.S. person should consult his or her tax adviser regarding the U.S. and non-U.S. tax consequences of ownership of shares of, and receipt of distributions from, the Fund.

**<u>Creation Units</u>**

As a result of U.S. federal income tax requirements, the Trust on behalf of each Fund, has the right to reject an order for a creation of shares if the creator (or group of creators) would, upon obtaining the shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of a Fund and if, pursuant to Section 351 of the Code, the Fund would have a basis in the Deposit Securities different from the market value of such securities on the date of deposit. The Trust also has the right to require information necessary to determine beneficial share ownership for purposes of the 80% determination. See "Creations and Redemptions."

**<u>State and Local Taxes</u>**

Each Fund may be subject to state or local taxes in jurisdictions in which the Fund is deemed to be doing business. In addition, in those states or localities that impose income taxes, the treatment of a Fund and its shareholders under those jurisdictions' tax laws may differ from the treatment under federal income tax laws, and investment in the Fund may have tax consequences for shareholders that are different from those of a direct investment in the Fund's portfolio securities. Shareholders should consult their own tax advisers concerning state and local tax matters.

**FINANCIAL STATEMENTS** 

<u>[The audited financial statements and related reports of](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/../../../ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312525135877/d931546dncsr.htm)</u>[<u>\[ \]</u><u>, independent registered public accounting firm for the predecessor funds, contained in the predecessor funds</u><u>'</u> <u>filing on Form N-CSR for the most recent fiscal year are hereby incorporated by reference.</u><u> </u>](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/../../../ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312525135877/d931546dncsr.htm)The audited financial statements in the predecessor funds' filing on Form N-CSR have been incorporated herein by reference in reliance upon such report given upon the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing. No other parts of the applicable predecessor fund's Form N-CSR are incorporated by reference herein. A copy of the predecessor fund's financial information and the Funds' financial information (when available) may be obtained upon request and without charge by writing Goldman Sachs Funds, 71 South Wacker Drive, Suite 1200, Chicago, Illinois 60606 or by calling 1-800-621-2550.

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**PROXY VOTING** 

The Trust, on behalf of the Funds, has delegated the voting of portfolio securities to the Investment Adviser. For client accounts for which the Investment Adviser has voting discretion, the Investment Adviser has adopted policies and procedures (the "Proxy Voting Policy") for the voting of proxies. Under the Proxy Voting Policy, the Investment Adviser's guiding principles in performing proxy voting are to make decisions that favor proposals that, in the Investment Adviser's view, tend to maximize a company's long-term shareholder value and are not influenced by conflicts of interest. These principles reflect the Investment Adviser's belief that sound corporate governance will create a framework within which a company can be managed in the interests of its shareholders. To implement these guiding principles for investments in publicly-traded equities of operating and/or holding companies, the Investment Adviser has developed customized proxy voting guidelines (the "Guidelines") that it generally applies when voting on behalf of client accounts. Attached as Appendix B is a summary of the Guidelines. These Guidelines address a wide variety of individual topics, including, among other matters, shareholder voting rights, anti-takeover defenses, board structures, the election of directors, executive and director compensation, reorganizations, mergers, issues of corporate social responsibility and shareholder proposals. When client assets are placed with managers outside of the Investment Adviser, such external managers generally will be responsible for voting proxies in accordance with the managers' own policies, including that the Investment Adviser may make elections through external manager voting choice programs where applicable.

The Proxy Voting Policy, including the Guidelines, is reviewed annually to ensure that it continues to be consistent with the Investment Adviser's guiding principles.

Under the oversight of the Investment Adviser's Global Stewardship Team, initial voting outputs ("Outputs") are developed for each proxy vote that reflect the application of the Guidelines to the particular proposal. Final votes are then submitted by the Global Stewardship Team through a proxy voting platform. In some cases, in certain markets, votes may be automatically submitted in accordance with the Output, although the Investment Adviser retains the ability to recall such automatically submitted votes if warranted. If the Investment Adviser becomes aware that an issuer has filed, or will file, additional proxy solicitation materials sufficiently in advance of the voting deadline, the Global Stewardship Team will generally endeavor to consider such information where such information is viewed, in its discretion, as material when casting a vote.

While it is the Investment Adviser's policy generally to follow the Guidelines, the Investment Adviser's portfolio management teams ("Portfolio Management Teams") may on certain proxy votes seek approval to diverge from the Output or votes cast by other Portfolio Management Teams by following an "override" process. Given the case-by-case nature of the Guidelines, there may be a difference of opinion as to the appropriate voting decision under the Guidelines on certain proxy votes. Such override decisions are subject to a review and approval process, including a determination that the decision is not influenced by any conflict of interest. In forming their views on particular proxy voting matters, the Portfolio Management Teams may consider applicable regional rules, standards, and practices in addition to the Guidelines.

The Investment Adviser has retained a third-party proxy voting platform service (the "Proxy Platform Service") to assist in the implementation of certain proxy voting-related functions, including, without limitation, operational, recordkeeping and reporting services. The Investment Adviser applies the Guidelines to each proxy issue and determining the appropriate voting decision. The Proxy Platform Service provides a platform that facilitates the casting of those votes in an efficient manner. The Investment Adviser conducts an annual due diligence meeting with the Proxy Platform Service to review the processes and procedures related to their voting platform, including any material changes in the services, operations, staffing or processes.

From time to time, the Investment Adviser may face regulatory, compliance, legal or logistical limits with respect to voting securities that it may purchase or hold for client accounts, which can affect the Investment Adviser's ability to vote such proxies, as well as the desirability of voting such proxies. Among other limits, federal, state and foreign regulatory restrictions or company specific ownership limits, as well as legal matters related to consolidated groups, may restrict the total percentage of an issuer's voting securities that the Investment Adviser can hold for clients and the nature of the Investment Adviser's voting in such securities. The Investment Adviser's ability to vote proxies may also be affected by, among other things: (i) late receipt of meeting notices; (ii) requirements to vote proxies in person; (iii) restrictions on a foreigner's ability to exercise votes; (iv) potential difficulties in translating the proxy; (v) requirements to provide local agents with unrestricted powers of attorney to facilitate voting instructions; and (vi) requirements that investors who exercise their voting rights surrender the right to dispose of their holdings for some specified period in proximity to the shareholder meeting.

The Investment Adviser has implemented processes designed to prevent conflicts of interest from influencing its proxy voting decisions that the Investment Adviser makes on behalf of a client account. These processes include the Investment Adviser's use of the Guidelines, the override approval process previously discussed, and the establishment of information barriers between the Investment Adviser and other businesses within The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Notwithstanding such proxy voting policies and procedures, actual proxy voting decisions of the Investment Adviser may have the effect of benefitting the interests of other clients or businesses of other divisions or units of Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and/or its affiliates. To mitigate perceived or potential conflicts of interest, when a proxy is for shares of a fund managed by the Investment Adviser, the Investment Adviser will generally instruct that such shares be voted in the same proportion as other shares are voted with respect to a proposal, subject to applicable legal, regulatory and operational requirements.

Voting decisions with respect to fixed income securities generally follow the Guidelines. Securities of privately held issuers generally will be made by a Fund's Portfolio Management Team based on their assessment of the particular transactions or other matters at issue.

Information regarding how a Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available on the Funds' website, or will be available as soon as reasonably practicable after the Funds' latest filing on Form N-PX with the SEC, at dfinview.com/GoldmanSachs and on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. This information may also be obtained upon request and without charge by calling Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC at the toll-free telephone number listed on the front cover of this SAI.

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**PAYMENTS TO OTHERS (INCLUDING INTERMEDIARIES)** 

The Investment Adviser, and/or its affiliates may make payments to intermediaries from time to time to promote the sale, distribution and/or servicing of shares of a Fund (each, an "Intermediary"). Such payments ("Additional Payments") are made out of the Investment Adviser's, and/or its affiliates' own assets (which may come directly or indirectly from fees paid by a Fund), are not an additional charge to a Fund or its shareholders, and do not change the price paid by investors for the purchase of a Fund's shares or the amount a Fund receives as proceeds from such purchases.

The Additional Payments are intended to compensate Intermediaries for, among other things: marketing activities and presentations, educational training programs, the support or purchase of technology platforms/software and/or reporting systems. The Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates may also make payments to Intermediaries for certain printing, publishing and mailing costs associated with the Funds or materials relating to exchange-traded funds in general and/or for the provision of analytical or other data to GSAM or its affiliates. In addition, the Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates may make payments to Intermediaries that make Fund shares available to their clients or for otherwise promoting the Funds, including through provision of consultative services to GSAM or its affiliates relating to marketing of the Funds and/or sale of Fund shares. These may include Additional Payments to Intermediaries that agree not to charge their customers any trading commissions when those customers purchase or sell shares of a Fund online and/or that promote the availability of commission-free ETF trading to their customers.

GSAM and/or its affiliates may determine to make Additional Payments based on any number of metrics. For example, GSAM and/or its affiliates may make Additional Payments at year-end or other intervals in a fixed amount, an amount based upon an Intermediary's services at defined levels or an amount based on the Intermediary's net sales of one or more Goldman Sachs Funds in a year or other period or calculated in basis points based on average net assets attributed to the Intermediary.

These Additional Payments may be significant to certain Intermediaries, and may be an important factor in an Intermediary's willingness to support the sale of a Fund through its distribution system.

The Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates may be motivated to make Additional Payments since they promote the sale of Fund shares to clients of Intermediaries and the retention of those investments by those clients. To the extent Intermediaries sell more shares of a Fund or retain shares of a Fund in their clients' accounts, the Investment Adviser benefits from the incremental management and other fees paid by a Fund with respect to those assets.

In addition, certain Intermediaries may have access to certain research and investment services from the Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates. Such research and investment services ("Additional Services") may include research reports; economic analysis; portfolio analysis, portfolio construction and similar tools and software; business planning services; certain marketing and investor education materials; and strategic asset allocation modeling. The Intermediary may not pay for these products or services or may only pay for a portion of the total cost of these products or services. The cost of the Additional Services and the particular services provided may vary from Intermediary to Intermediary.

The presence of these Additional Payments or Additional Services, the varying fee structure and the basis on which an Intermediary compensates its registered representatives or salespersons may create an incentive for a particular Intermediary, registered representative or salesperson to highlight, feature or recommend funds, including a Fund, or other investments based, at least in part, on the level of compensation paid. Additionally, if one fund sponsor makes greater distribution payments than another, an Intermediary may have an incentive to recommend one fund complex over another. Similarly, if an Intermediary receives more distribution assistance for one share class versus another, that Intermediary may have an incentive to recommend that share class. Because Intermediaries may be paid varying amounts per class of a fund for sub-transfer agency and related recordkeeping services, the service requirements of which also may vary by class, this may create an additional incentive for financial firms and their financial advisors to favor one fund complex over another, or one fund class over another. You should consider whether such incentives exist when evaluating any recommendations from an Intermediary to purchase or sell Shares of a Fund.

Your Intermediary may charge you additional fees or commissions other than those disclosed in the Prospectus. Shareholders should contact their Intermediary for more information about the Additional Payments or Additional Services they receive and any potential conflicts of interest, as well as for information regarding any fees and/or commissions it charges. For additional questions, please contact Goldman Sachs Funds at 1-800-621-2550.

Not described above are other subsidiaries of Goldman Sachs who may receive revenue from the Investment Adviser, and/or its affiliates through intra-company compensation arrangements and for financial, distribution, administrative and operational services.

Furthermore, the Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates may, to the extent permitted by applicable regulations, sponsor various trainings and educational programs and reimburse investors for certain expenses incurred in connection with accessing the Fund through portal arrangements. The Investment Adviser and its affiliates may also pay for the travel expenses, meals, lodging and entertainment of Intermediaries and their salespersons and guests in connection with educational, sales and promotional programs subject to applicable FINRA regulations. Other compensation may also be offered from time to time to the extent not prohibited by applicable federal or state laws or FINRA regulations. This compensation is not included in, and is made in addition to, the Additional Payments described above.

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**OTHER INFORMATION** 

**Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings Information and Portfolio Characteristics Information** 

The Trust has adopted a policy regarding the selective disclosure of portfolio holdings information and portfolio characteristics information. The policy seeks to (1) ensure that the disclosure of portfolio holdings information and portfolio characteristics information is in the best interest of Fund shareholders; and (2) address the conflicts of interest associated with the disclosure of portfolio holdings information and portfolio characteristics information. The policy provides that neither the Fund nor the Trust's officers or Trustees, nor its Investment Adviser or any agent, nor any employee thereof ("Fund Representative"), will disclose the Fund's portfolio holdings information or portfolio characteristics information to any person other than in accordance with the policy.

For purposes of the policy, "portfolio holdings information" means a Fund's actual portfolio holdings, as well as non-public information about its trading strategies, as applicable, or pending transactions. Portfolio holdings information does not include summary or statistical information which is derived from (but does not include) individual portfolio holdings ("portfolio characteristics information").

Under the policy, neither a Fund nor any Fund Representative may solicit or accept any compensation or other consideration in connection with the disclosure of portfolio holdings information or portfolio characteristics information. A Fund Representative may generally provide portfolio holdings information and material portfolio characteristics information to third parties if such information has been included in a Fund's public filings with the SEC, disclosed on the Funds' publicly accessible website, publicly disseminated through the NSCC or is otherwise publicly available.

*Portfolio Holdings Information*. Each Fund's complete portfolio holdings are publicly disseminated through financial reporting and news services, including the Funds' publicly accessible Internet website (am.gs.com). In addition, a basket composition file, which includes the security names and share quantities or amounts to deliver in exchange for Fund shares and may overlap with actual or expected Fund holdings, is publicly disseminated via the NSCC.

As described above under "Creations and Redemptions," following close of trading on a business day and prior to the commencement of trading on the next business day, the Investment Adviser may post an Eligible Securities List on the Fund's website and disseminate the Eligible Securities List to market makers and Authorized Participants for the Fund. Such Eligible Securities List would consist of securities that the Investment Adviser would consider purchasing on such next business day as part of the strategy for the Fund.

Portfolio holdings information that is not filed with the SEC, disclosed on the Funds' publicly available website, publicly disseminated through the NSCC or is otherwise publicly available may be provided to third parties (including, without limitation, individuals, institutional investors, intermediaries that sell shares of the Fund, consultants and third-party data and other providers) only for legitimate business purposes and only if the third-party recipients are required to keep all such portfolio holdings information confidential and are prohibited from trading on the information they receive in violation of the federal securities laws. Disclosure to such third parties must be approved in advance by the Investment Adviser's legal or compliance department. Disclosure to providers of auditing, custody, proxy voting and other similar services; rating and ranking organizations; lenders and other third-party service providers that may obtain access to such information in the performance of their contractual duties to the Funds will generally be permitted. In general, each recipient of non-public portfolio holdings information must sign a confidentiality agreement and agree not to trade on the basis of such information in violation of the federal securities laws, although this requirement will not apply when the recipient is otherwise subject to a duty of confidentiality.

*Portfolio Characteristics Information*. Material portfolio characteristics information that is not publicly available (e.g., information that is not filed with the SEC or disclosed on the Funds' publicly available website) or calculated from publicly available information may be provided to third parties only if the third-party recipients are required to keep all such portfolio characteristics information confidential and are prohibited from trading on the information they receive in violation of the federal securities laws. Disclosure to such third parties must be approved in advance by the Investment Adviser's legal or compliance department, who must first determine that the Fund has a legitimate business purpose for doing so. In general, each recipient of material, non-public portfolio characteristics information must sign a confidentiality agreement and agree not to trade on the basis of such information in violation of the federal securities laws, although this requirement will not apply when the recipient is otherwise subject to a duty of confidentiality.

However, upon request, a Fund will provide certain non-public portfolio characteristics information to any (i) shareholder or (ii) non-shareholder (including, without limitation, individuals, institutional investors, intermediaries that sell shares of the Fund, consultants and third-party data providers) whose request for such information satisfies and/or serves a legitimate business purpose for the Fund. Examples of portfolio characteristics information include, but are not limited to, certain statistical information about a Fund's portfolio. In accordance with the policy, this type of portfolio characteristics information that is made available upon request will be disclosed in accordance with, and subject to the time lag indicated in, the schedule below. This portfolio characteristics information may be requested by calling Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC toll-free at 1-800-621-2550. Portfolio characteristics information that is otherwise publicly available may be disclosed without these time lags.

The type and volume of portfolio characteristics information that is made available upon request will vary among the Goldman Sachs Funds (depending on the investment strategies and the portfolio management team of the applicable Fund). If portfolio characteristics information is disclosed to one recipient, it must also be disclosed to all other eligible recipients requesting the same information. However, under certain circumstances, the volume of portfolio characteristics information provided to one recipient may differ from the volume of portfolio characteristics information provided to other recipients.

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| **Type of Information** | **When Available Upon Request** |
| Financial Characteristics Information<br> Aggregate Liquidity Classification Information | **Prior to 90 Calendar Days After Month-End:** Cannot disclose without (i) a confidentiality agreement; (ii) an agreement not to trade on the basis of non-public information in violation of the federal securities laws; and (iii) legal or compliance approval.<br>**90 Calendar Days After Month-End:** May disclose to shareholders and any non-shareholder with a legitimate business purpose. |

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In addition, the Fund described in this SAI currently intend to publish certain portfolio characteristics information on the Trust's website (am.gs.com) on a daily basis. Operational disruptions and other systems disruptions may delay the posting of this information on the Trust's website or the availability of this information by calling Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC at the toll-free number listed above.

*Oversight of the Policy*. Under the policy, Fund Representatives will periodically supply the Board of the Trustees with a list of third parties who receive non-public portfolio holdings information and material, non-public portfolio characteristics information pursuant to an ongoing arrangement subject to a confidentiality agreement and agreement not to trade on the basis of such information in violation of the federal securities laws. In addition, the Board receives information, on a quarterly basis, on such arrangements that were permitted during the preceding quarter. Under the policy, the Investment Adviser's legal and compliance personnel authorize the disclosure of portfolio holdings information and portfolio characteristics information.

**Miscellaneous** 

The Prospectus and this SAI do not contain all the information included in the Registration Statement filed with the SEC under the 1933 Act with respect to the securities offered by the Prospectus. Certain portions of the Registration Statement have been omitted from the Prospectus and this SAI pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC. The Registration Statement including the exhibits filed therewith may be examined at the office of the SEC in Washington, D.C.

Statements contained in the Prospectus or in this SAI as to the contents of any contract or other document referred to are not necessarily complete, and, in each instance, reference is made to the copy of such contract or other document filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement of which the Prospectus and this SAI form a part, each such statement being qualified in all respects by such reference.

**Corporate Actions** 

From time to time, the issuer of a security held in a Fund's portfolio may initiate a corporate action relating to that security. Corporate actions relating to equity securities may include, among others, an offer to purchase new shares, or to tender existing shares, of that security at a certain price. Corporate actions relating to debt securities may include, among others, an offer for early redemption of the debt security, or an offer to convert the debt security into stock. Certain corporate actions are voluntary, meaning that the Fund may only participate in the corporate action if it elects to do so in a timely fashion. Participation in certain corporate actions may enhance the value of a Fund's investment portfolio.

In cases where a Fund or the Investment Adviser receives sufficient advance notice of a voluntary corporate action, the Investment Adviser will exercise its discretion, in good faith, to determine whether the Fund will participate in that corporate action. If the Fund or the Investment Adviser does not receive sufficient advance notice of a voluntary corporate action, the Fund may not be able to timely elect to participate in that corporate action. Participation or lack of participation in a voluntary corporate action may result in a negative impact on the value of the Fund's investment portfolio.

**CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF SECURITIES** 

The Funds had not commenced operations as of the date of this SAI, and the Trust does not know of any persons who own of record or beneficially 5% or more of the outstanding Shares of a Fund as of that date.

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**APPENDIX A** 

**DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES RATINGS** 

**Short-Term Credit Ratings** 

An S&P Global Ratings ("S&P") short-term issue credit rating is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation having an original maturity of no more than 365 days. The following summarizes the rating categories used by S&P for short-term issues:

"A-1" – A short-term obligation rated "A-1" is rated in the highest category by S&P. The obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on these obligations is extremely strong.

"A-2" – A short-term obligation rated "A-2" is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher rating categories. However, the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is satisfactory.

"A-3" – A short-term obligation rated "A-3" exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken an obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

"B" – A short-term obligation rated "B" is regarded as vulnerable and has significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments; however, it faces major ongoing uncertainties that could lead to the obligor's inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments.

"A" – A short-term obligation rated "C" is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

"D" – A short-term obligation rated "D" is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the "D" rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made within any stated grace period. However, any stated grace period longer than five business days will be treated as five business days. The "D" rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. An obligation's rating is lowered to "D" if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.

Local Currency and Foreign Currency Ratings – S&P's issuer credit ratings make a distinction between foreign currency ratings and local currency ratings. An issuer's foreign currency rating will differ from its local currency rating when the obligor has a different capacity to meet its obligations denominated in its local currency, vs. obligations denominated in a foreign currency.

Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's") short-term ratings are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations with an original maturity of thirteen months or less and reflect both on the likelihood of a default on contractually promised payments and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default.

Moody's employs the following designations to indicate the relative repayment ability of rated issuers:

"P-1" – Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-1 have a superior ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

"P-2" – Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-2 have a strong ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

"P-3" – Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-3 have an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations. "NP" – Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories.

Fitch Ratings, Inc. ("Fitch") short-term issuer or obligation ratings are based in all cases on the short-term vulnerability to default of the rated entity and relates to the capacity to meet financial obligations in accordance with the documentation governing the relevant obligation. Short-term deposit ratings may be adjusted for loss severity. Short-Term Ratings are assigned to obligations whose initial maturity is viewed as "short term" based on market convention. Typically, this means up to 13 months for corporate, sovereign, and structured obligations and up to 36 months for obligations in U.S. public finance markets.

The following summarizes the rating categories used by Fitch for short-term obligations:

"F-1" – Securities possess the highest short-term credit quality. This designation indicates the strongest intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments; may have an added "+" to denote any exceptionally strong credit feature.

"F-2" – Securities possess good short-term credit quality. This designation indicates good intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments.

"F-3" – Securities possess fair short-term credit quality. This designation indicates that the intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments is adequate.

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"B" – Securities possess speculative short-term credit quality. This designation indicates minimal capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, plus heightened vulnerability to near term adverse changes in financial and economic conditions.

"C" – Securities possess high short-term default risk. Default is a real possibility.

"RD" – Restricted Default. Indicates an entity that has defaulted on one or more of its financial commitments, although it continues to meet other financial obligations. Typically applicable to entity ratings only.

"D" – Default. Indicates a broad-based default event for an entity, or the default of a short-term obligation.

"NR" – This designation indicates that Fitch does not publicly rate the associated issuer or issue.

"WD" – This designation indicates that the rating has been withdrawn and is no longer maintained by Fitch.

DBRS, Inc. ("DBRS") short-term debt rating scale provides an opinion on the risk that an issuer will not meet its short-term financial obligations in a timely manner. Ratings are based on quantitative and qualitative considerations relevant to the issuer and the relative ranking of claims. The "R-1" and "R-2" rating categories are further denoted by the sub-categories "(high)", "(middle)", and "(low)".

The following summarizes the ratings used by DBRS for commercial paper and short-term debt:

"R-1 (high)" – Short-term debt rated "R-1 (high)" is of the highest credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is exceptionally high. Unlikely to be adversely affected by future events.

"R-1 (middle)" – Short-term debt rated "R-1 (middle)" is of superior credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is very high. Differs from "R-1 (high)" by a relatively modest degree. Unlikely to be significantly vulnerable to future events.

"R-1 (low)" – Short-term debt rated "R-1 (low)" is of good credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is substantial. Overall strength is not as favorable as higher rating categories. May be vulnerable to future events, but qualifying negative factors are considered manageable.

"R-2 (high)" – Short-term debt rated "R-2 (high)" is considered to be at the upper end of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events.

"R-2 (middle)" – Short-term debt rated "R-2 (middle)" is considered to be of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events or may be exposed to other factors that could reduce credit quality.

"R-2 (low)" – Short-term debt rated "R-2 (low)" is considered to be at the lower end of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events. A number of challenges are present that could affect the issuer's ability to meet such obligations.

"R-3" – Short-term debt rated "R-3" is considered to be at the lowest end of adequate credit quality. There is a capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due. May be vulnerable to future events and the certainty of meeting such obligations could be impacted by a variety of developments.

"R-4" – Short-term debt rated "R-4" is considered to be of speculative credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is uncertain.

"R-5" – Short-term debt rated "R-5" is considered to be of highly speculative credit quality. There is a high level of uncertainty as to the capacity to meet short-term financial obligations as they fall due.

"D" – Short-term debt rated "D" is assigned when the issuer has filed under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or winding up statute or there is a failure to satisfy an obligation after the exhaustion of grace periods, a downgrade to "D" may occur. DBRS may also use "SD" (Selective Default) in cases where only some securities are impacted, such as the case of a "distressed exchange".

**Long-Term Credit Ratings** 

The following summarizes the ratings used by S&P for long-term issues:

"AAA" – An obligation rated "AAA" has the highest rating assigned by S&P. The obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is extremely strong.

"AA" – An obligation rated "AA" differs from the highest-rated obligations only to a small degree. The obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is very strong.

"A" – An obligation rated "A" is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher-rated categories. However, the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is still strong.

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"BBB" – An obligation rated "BBB" exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

Obligations rated "BB," "B," "CCC," "CC" and "C" are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. "BB" indicates the least degree of speculation and "C" the highest. While such obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposures to adverse conditions.

"BB" – An obligation rated "BB" is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions that could lead to the obligor's inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

"B" – An obligation rated "B" is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated "BB", but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor's capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

"CCC" – An obligation rated "CCC" is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

"CC" – An obligation rated "CC" is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The "CC" rating is used when a default has not yet occurred but S&P expects default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the anticipated time to default.

"C" – An obligation rated "C" is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment, and the obligation is expected to have lower relative seniority or lower ultimate recovery compared with obligations that are rated higher.

"D" – An obligation rated "D" is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the "D" rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made within five business days in the absence of a stated grace period or within the earlier of the stated grace period or 30 calendar days. The "D" rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. An obligation's rating is lowered to "D" if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.

"NR" – This indicates that no rating has been requested, or that there is insufficient information on which to base a rating, or that S&P does not rate a particular obligation as a matter of policy.

Plus (+) or minus (-) – The ratings from "AA" to "CCC" may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show relative standing within the major rating categories.

Local Currency and Foreign Currency Ratings – S&P' issuer credit ratings make a distinction between foreign currency ratings and local currency ratings. An issuer's foreign currency rating will differ from its local currency rating when the obligor has a different capacity to meet its obligations denominated in its local currency, vs. obligations denominated in a foreign currency.

Moody's long-term ratings are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations with an original maturity of one year or more and reflect both on the likelihood of a default on contractually promised payments and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default. The following summarizes the ratings used by Moody's for long-term debt:

"Aaa" – Obligations rated "Aaa" are judged to be of the highest quality, subject to the lowest level of credit risk.

"Aa" – Obligations rated "Aa" are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk.

"A" – Obligations rated "A" are judged to be upper-medium grade and are subject to low credit risk.

"Baa" – Obligations rated "Baa" are judged to be medium-grade and subject to moderate credit risk and as such may possess certain speculative characteristics.

"Ba" – Obligations rated "Ba" are judged to be speculative and are subject to substantial credit risk. "B" – Obligations rated "B" are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk.

"Caa" – Obligations rated "Caa" are judged to be speculative of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk.

"Ca" – Obligations rated "Ca" are highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest.

"C" – Obligations rated "C" are the lowest rated and are typically in default, with little prospect for recovery of principal or interest.

Note: Moody's appends numerical modifiers 1, 2, and 3 to each generic rating classification from "Aa" through "Caa." The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category; the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category.

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The following summarizes long-term ratings used by Fitch:

"AAA" – Securities considered to be of the highest credit quality. "AAA" ratings denote the lowest expectation of credit risk. They are assigned only in cases of exceptionally strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is highly unlikely to be adversely affected by foreseeable events.

"AA" – Securities considered to be of very high credit quality. "AA" ratings denote expectations of very low credit risk. They indicate very strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable events.

"A" – Securities considered to be of high credit quality. "A" ratings denote expectations of low credit risk. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered strong. This capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic conditions than is the case for higher ratings.

"BBB" – Securities considered to be of good credit quality. "BBB" ratings indicate that expectations of credit risk are currently low. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered adequate, but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this capacity.

"BB" – Securities considered to be speculative. "BB" ratings indicate an elevated vulnerability to credit risk, particularly in the event of adverse changes in business or economic conditions over time; however, business or financial alternatives may be available to allow financial commitments to be met.

"B" – Securities considered to be highly speculative. "B" ratings indicate that material credit risk is present. "CCC" – A "CCC" rating indicates that substantial credit risk is present.

"CC" – A "CC" rating indicates very high levels of credit risk.

"C" – A "C" rating indicates exceptionally high levels of credit risk.

Defaulted obligations typically are not assigned "RD" or "D" ratings but are instead rated in the "B" to "C" rating categories, depending on their recovery prospects and other relevant characteristics. Fitch believes that this approach better aligns obligations that have comparable overall expected loss but varying vulnerability to default and loss.

Plus (+) or minus (-) may be appended to a rating to denote relative status within major rating categories. Such suffixes are not added to the "AAA" category or to categories below "CCC".

"NR" – Denotes that Fitch does not publicly rate the associated issue or issuer.

"WD" – Indicates that the rating has been withdrawn and is no longer maintained by Fitch.

The DBRS long-term rating scale provides an opinion on the risk of default. That is, the risk that an issuer will fail to satisfy its financial obligations in accordance with the terms under which an obligation has been issued. Ratings are based on quantitative and qualitative considerations relevant to the issuer, and the relative ranking of the claims. All rating categories other than "AAA" and also contain subcategories "(high)" and "(low)". The absence of either a "(high)" or "(low)" designation indicates the rating is in the middle of the category. The following summarizes the ratings used by DBRS for long-term debt:

"AAA" – Long-term debt rated "AAA" is of the highest credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is exceptionally high and unlikely to be adversely affected by future events.

"AA" – Long-term debt rated "AA" is of superior credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is considered high. Credit quality differs from "AAA" only to a small degree. Unlikely to be significantly vulnerable to future events.

"A" – Long-term debt rated "A" is of good credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is substantial, but of lesser credit quality than "AA." May be vulnerable to future events, but qualifying negative factors are considered manageable.

"BBB" – Long-term debt rated "BBB" is of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is considered acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events.

"BB" – Long-term debt rated "BB" is of speculative , non-investment grade credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is uncertain. Vulnerable to future events.

"B" – Long-term debt rated "B" is of highly speculative credit quality. There is a high level of uncertainty as to the capacity to meet financial obligations.

"CCC", "CC" and "C" – Long-term debt rated in any of these categories is of very highly speculative credit quality. In danger of defaulting on financial obligations. There is little difference between these three categories, although "CC" and "C" ratings are normally applied to obligations that are seen as highly likely to default, or subordinated to obligations rated in the "CCC" to "B" range. Obligations in respect of which default has not technically taken place but is considered inevitable may be rated in the category.

"D" – A security rated "D" is assigned when the issuer has filed under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or winding up statute or there is a failure to satisfy an obligation after the exhaustion of grace periods, a downgrade to "D" may occur. DBRS may also use "SD" (Selective Default) in cases where only some securities are impacted, such as the case of a "distressed exchange".

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**Municipal Note Ratings** 

An S&P U.S. municipal note rating reflects S&P' opinion about the liquidity factors and market access risks unique to the notes. Notes due in three years or less will likely receive a note rating. Notes with an original maturity of more than three years will most likely receive a long-term debt rating. In determining which type of rating, if any, to assign, S&P' analysis will review the following considerations:

Amortization schedule-the larger the final maturity relative to other maturities, the more likely it will be treated as a note; and Source of payment-the more dependent the issue is on the market for its refinancing, the more likely it will be treated as a note. Note rating symbols are as follows:

"SP-1" – A municipal note rated "SP-1" exhibits a strong capacity to pay principal and interest. An issue determined to possess a very strong capacity to pay debt service is given a plus (+) designation.

"SP-2" – A municipal note rated "SP-2" exhibits a satisfactory capacity to pay principal and interest, with some vulnerability to adverse financial and economic changes over the term of the notes.

"SP-3" – A municipal note rated "SP-3" exhibits a speculative capacity to pay principal and interest.

Moody's uses the Municipal Investment Grade ("MIG") scale to rate U.S. municipal bond anticipation notes of up to three years maturity. Municipal notes rated on the MIG scale may be secured by either pledged revenues or proceeds of a take-out financing received prior to note maturity. MIG ratings expire at the maturity of the obligation, and the issuer's long-term rating is only one consideration in assigning the MIG rating. MIG ratings are divided into three levels– "MIG-1" through "MIG-3"—while speculative grade short-term obligations are designated "SG." The following summarizes the ratings used by Moody's for these short-term obligations:

"MIG-1" – This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing.

"MIG-2" – This designation denotes strong credit quality. Margins of protection are ample, although not as large as in the preceding group.

"MIG-3" – This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Liquidity and cash-flow protection may be narrow, and market access for refinancing is likely to be less well-established.

"SG" – This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Debt instruments in this category may lack sufficient margins of protection.

In the case of variable rate demand obligations ("VRDOs"), a two-component rating is assigned; a long- or short-term debt rating and a demand obligation rating. The first element represents Moody's evaluation of risk associated with scheduled principal and interest payments. The second element represents Moody's evaluation of risk associated with the ability to receive purchase price upon demand ("demand feature"). The second element uses a rating from a variation of the MIG scale called the Variable Municipal Investment Grade ("VMIG") scale. The rating transitions on the VMIG scale differ from those on the Prime scale to reflect the risk that external liquidity support generally will terminate if the issuer's long-term rating drops below investment grade.

"VMIG-1" – This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by the superior short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

"VMIG-2" – This designation denotes strong credit quality. Good protection is afforded by the strong short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

"VMIG-3" – This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Adequate protection is afforded by the satisfactory short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

"SG" – This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Demand features rated in this category may be supported by a liquidity provider that does not have an investment grade short-term rating or may lack the structural and/or legal protections necessary to ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

"NR" – Is assigned to an unrated obligation.

Fitch uses the same ratings for municipal securities as described above for other short-term credit ratings.

**About Credit Ratings** 

An S&P issue credit rating is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation, a specific class of financial obligations, or a specific financial program (including ratings on medium-term note programs and commercial paper programs). It takes into consideration the creditworthiness of guarantors, insurers, or other forms of credit enhancement on the obligation and takes into account the currency in which the obligation is denominated. The opinion reflects S&P' view of the obligor's capacity and willingness to meet its financial commitments as they come due, and this opinion may assess terms, such as collateral security and subordination, which could affect ultimate payment in the event of default.

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Moody's credit ratings must be construed solely as statements of opinion and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, sell or hold any securities.

Fitch's credit ratings relating to issuers are an opinion on the relative ability of an entity to meet financial commitments, such as interest, preferred dividends, repayment of principal, insurance claims or counterparty obligations. Fitch credit ratings are used by investors as indications of the likelihood of receiving the money owed to them in accordance with the terms on which they invested. Fitch's credit ratings cover the global spectrum of corporate, sovereign financial, bank, insurance and public finance entities (including supranational and sub-national entities) and the securities or other obligations they issue, as well as structured finance securities backed by receivables or other financial assets.

Credit ratings provided by DBRS are forward-looking opinions about credit risk which reflect the creditworthiness of an issuer, rated entity, and/or security. Credit ratings are not statements of fact. While historical statistics and performance can be important considerations, credit ratings are not based solely on such; they include subjective considerations and involve expectations for future performance that cannot be guaranteed. To the extent that future events and economic conditions do not match expectations, credit ratings assigned to issuers and/or securities can change. Credit ratings are also based on approved and applicable methodologies, models and criteria ("Methodologies"), which are periodically updated and when material changes are deemed necessary, this may also lead to rating changes.

Credit ratings typically provide an opinion on the risk that investors may not be repaid in accordance with the terms under which the obligation was issued. In some cases, credit ratings may also include consideration for the relative ranking of claims and recovery, should default occur. Credit ratings are meant to provide opinions on relative measures of risk and are not based on expectations of any specific default probability, nor are they meant to predict such.

The data and information on which DBRS bases its opinions is not audited or verified by DBRS, although DBRS conducts a reasonableness review of information received and relied upon in accordance with its Methodologies and policies.

DBRS uses rating symbols as a concise method of expressing its opinion to the market but there are a limited number of rating categories for the possible slight risk differentials that exist across the rating spectrum and DBRS does not assert that credit ratings in the same category are of "exactly" the same quality.

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**APPENDIX B GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT'S PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES SUMMARY** 

**Effective March 2026** 

The following is a summary of the material Proxy Voting Guidelines (the "Guidelines"), which form the substantive basis of our Policy and Procedures on Proxy Voting for Investment Advisory Clients (the "Policy"). As described in the main body of the Policy, one or more Portfolio Management Teams and/or the Global Stewardship Team may diverge from the Guidelines and a related Recommendation on any particular proxy vote or in connection with any individual investment decision in accordance with the Policy.

**PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES SUMMARY** 

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| | |
|:---|:---|
|  [Section 1: Director Elections](#sai144724_100) | 2-B |
|  [Section 2: Shareholder Rights and Governance Practices](#sai144724_101) | 6-B |
|  [Section 3: Auditors and Audit Practices](#sai144724_102) | 8-B |
|  [Section 4: Business Items & Issues](#sai144724_103) | 9-B |
|  [Section 5: Compensation](#sai144724_104) | 10-B |
|  [Section 6: Shareholder Proposals](#sai144724_105) | 12-B |
|  [Section 7: Sustainability](#sai144724_106) | 13-B |

---

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**PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES SUMMARY** 

*The following section is a summary of the Guidelines, which form the substantive basis of the Policy with respect to global public equity investments of operating and/or holding companies. Applying these guidelines is subject to certain regional and country-specific exceptions and modifications and is not inclusive of all considerations in each market.* 

**Section 1: Director Elections** 

**Board and Director Accountability** 

The board of directors serves on behalf of shareholders to ensure that management is effectively developing and implementing a strategy that will lead to long-term shareholder value. As such, we believe that shareholders have the right and responsibility to hold boards and directors accountable in fulfilling their duties and responsibilities. We view director elections as an important mechanism for shareholders to hold boards accountable.

**Oversight Role of the Board** 

Oversight of strategy and risk are key functions of the board of directors. Companies should be managing risks and opportunities that are material to their business and have a link to long-term value creation. We expect boards to:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Have processes for reviewing the company's risk appetite, existing risks, and emerging risks, including
over different time horizons

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Actively engage with the management team on strategy development and oversee the development of a long-term
strategic roadmap

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Disclose how the board provides oversight of the company's strategy development, risk management, and risk
identification system

If the board fails to discharge their risk oversight responsibilities effectively, we may vote against the relevant committee members and/or other relevant directors. This includes in instances of:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Material failures of governance, stewardship, or fiduciary responsibilities at the company including but not
limited to failure to meet global corporate governance principles and/or significant local market standards

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Failure to disclose material information in a timely manner

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Egregious actions related to the director(s)' service on other boards or other evidence of improper
business practices that raise substantial doubt about his or her ability to effectively oversee management and serve the best interests of shareholders at any company

**Committee Accountability** 

We believe that board committees play an important role in establishing strong corporate governance and oversight. Subject to local market laws and practices, we generally expect that the board of directors will establish committees to oversee areas such as, but not limited to, audit, executive and non-executive compensation, and director nominations and appointments. In certain circumstances or regions, we may expect the board to establish additional committees. The responsibilities of the committees should be publicly disclosed. Subject to local market practices, we generally expect key committees, including audit and compensation/remuneration, to be primarily, if not fully, independent. Inmost cases, we expect independent chairs to lead each of the key committees.

We may vote against committee chairs and/or members if we believe a particular committee has fallen short of carrying out their stated responsibilities.

Our expectations for key committees are stated below.

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**Audit Committee** 

Audit Committees should be responsible for overseeing the reporting of the company's financial statements, the establishment of robust internal audit processes, and the management of the independent auditor.

We may consider votes against Audit Committee member(s) if we have serious concerns about the company's accounting practices. These could include, but are not limited to:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Fraud

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Material misstatement of the company's financial statements

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Material weakness in the company's financial reporting

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Excessive non-audit fees paid to the independent auditor

In our evaluation, we may examine the severity, breadth, chronological sequence and duration of the issues, as well as the company's efforts at remediation or corrective actions. Given the serious nature of these issues, we may evaluate whether solely Audit Committee members should receive against votes, or if other board should also be held accountable.

**Compensation Committee** 

Compensation, or Remuneration, Committees should be responsible for establishing the company's policies and practices related to executive and non-executive compensation. This includes evaluating the appropriate compensation mechanisms and/or frameworks to attract and retain a strong executive team, and to motivate that team to deliver long-term shareholder value.

In evaluating whether directors serving on the Compensation Committee are effectively fulfilling their responsibilities, we may consider whether the company's compensation plans and practices continue to include problematic pay practices that would cause us to vote against the plan for more than one year.

**Nominating and Governance Committee** 

In general, Nominating and Governance Committees should be responsible for assessing current and prospective director qualities and competencies, conducting the board and director evaluation process, leading the board succession planning processes, and reviewing the board's corporate governance practices.

In evaluating whether directors serving on the Nominating and Governance Committee are effectively fulfilling their responsibilities, we consider:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Board composition requirements, including independence requirements, and the board's alignment with
applicable listing requirements, corporate governance codes, and local market practices

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Board refreshment processes, policies, and practices

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Current corporate governance practices and policies, and whether the company maintains or adopted certain
governance provisions which may materially limit shareholder rights

**Board Composition and Director Qualifications** 

To best represent the interests of shareholders, we believe boards should be comprised of directors who are independent, capable, committed, and engaged. The board should include qualified directors with relevant and complementary experience and skill sets. Companies should disclose director nominee information, including biographical information and how each director's particular skills and experiences are relevant to the company and the board. Disclosure about nominees enables shareholders to make more informed voting decisions.

Evaluations of boards and directors will be informed by market-specific standards, practices, regulations, and other pertinent factors.

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**Director Independence** 

Independent directors are critical to oversee management and protect shareholder rights.

We generally expect the board to comply with its local listing standards' (e.g. New York Stock Exchange / NASDAQ) definitions of independence. We may also consider additional company-specific criteria or local market practices when evaluating director's independence.

**Board Independence** 

An independent board is best positioned to maintain strong corporate governance practices, effectively support and oversee management, and ensure objectivity in decision-making.

We expect boards to be comprised of a majority of independent directors or align with local market practices. We may vote against responsible directors if we believe board oversight and objectivity is falling short of our expectations and could be improved with greater independent director representation.

**Board Composition** 

**Director Qualifications and Skills** 

We believe boards should be comprised of directors with a mixture of backgrounds, skills, experiences, and perspectives, which should include a range of professional and personal characteristics useful to the effective oversight of the company's business. We believe this diversity of thought supports the board in fostering robust conversations, better assessing and managing risks and opportunities, and providing strong oversight of the company.

We generally defer to the Nominating Committee, or the full board, to determine the appropriate board composition attributes. The board's composition should align with local market-specific frameworks, codes, laws, standards, and practices, where applicable. Boards should have robust processes for evaluating director candidates and qualifications. They should regularly review the board's composition, its identified key skills, and any potential skill gaps to ensure each director and the full board are best equipped to carry out their responsibilities.

To best understand the board's composition and processes, we look for fulsome disclosure, including:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Key skills, experiences, and attributes possessed by the directors

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Alignment of the key skills and experiences with the company's long-term strategy

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The board's process for regularly evaluating director skills and overall board composition

**Tenure and Term Limits** 

We believe boards should have a reasonable mix of short-, medium-, and longer-tenured directors. An appropriate balance of tenure enables the board to maintain continuity and institutional knowledge while also introducing fresh perspectives and relevant skills.

We expect boards to regularly review director tenure as part of their board evaluation and refreshment processes. Should a board find age, tenure, and/or term limits useful, we defer to the board to set those limits and expect disclosure about the board's policy.

While we do not mandate tenure or term limits, we may vote against certain directors, including members of the Nominating and Governance Committee, if we deem the board to have excessive average tenure and without sufficient mitigating factors, like robust refreshment practices.

In markets where local regulations or practices set maximum tenure standards, directors with tenure in excess of such regulations or practices generally will be considered non-independent.

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**Board and Committee Leadership** 

We generally believe that boards are best equipped to determine the appropriate board leadership and committee structure for their company, absent significant concerns about leadership, governance, and/or independence. We expect boards to disclose their approach and any relevant policies or processes. We also consider local market standards and practices.

Should significant governance concerns arise, this may inform our voting decisions at a company, including voting against certain directors or supporting shareholder proposals related to board leadership.

We expect boards' commitment to strong independent leadership to carry through to committee leadership. Key committee chairs should be independent and possess the appropriate skills and experiences to lead the committee(s) on which they serve.

We expect disclosure around any policy related to committee leadership, including those related to committee rotations.

We also consider local market norms and standards where they differ from our baseline views.

**Director Commitments** 

**Attendance** 

Directors should be informed and engaged to best carry out their responsibilities. Board and committee meeting attendance is crucial to maintaining an informed board. We may vote against directors who demonstrate inadequate attendance, without sufficient mitigating factors.

**Director Capacity and Commitments** 

We expect directors serving on shareholders' behalf to have adequate time and attention to fulfill their responsibilities on each board on which they serve. Nominating committees should evaluate a director candidate's commitments during the recruitment process and should regularly review each director's capacity to serve. Companies should disclose its relevant process(es) and policies, including if the board has established its own limitations on the number of board positions held by individual directors.

In order to ensure directors have sufficient capacity to serve on our behalf, we have established general guidelines on the maximum number of board positions that we expect to be held by individual directors (sometimes referred to as being "overboarded").

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• No more than five public company boards for independent directors

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• For public company CEOs, no more than two public company boards in addition to their own company

When evaluating director capacity and commitments, we will consider these guidelines in addition to local market norms and standards and company-specific facts and circumstances.

**Contested Elections** 

Our assessment of contested elections of directors, e.g., the election of shareholder nominees or the dismissal of incumbent directors, is based on a case-by-case assessment of company-specific circumstances in order to determine which director candidates are best suited to add value for shareholders.

The assessment includes, but is not limited to, an analysis of the following factors:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Company performance relative to its peers

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The case for change at the targeted company, including the strategy of the incumbents versus that being proposed
by the dissident(s)

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The governance profile of the company, including any evidence of management entrenchment and the board's
history of responsiveness to shareholders

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The independence, experiences, skills and overall quality of the company's and the dissident's
respective board candidates

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Whether minority or majority representation is being sought by the dissident

Our assessment also considers each possible voting option, including – where applicable – the potential to support a mix of management and dissident nominees.

**Section 2: Shareholder Rights and Governance Practices** 

**Voting Standards and Election-related Issues** 

We believe that voting at shareholder meetings is one of the fundamental rights of shareholders. There are certain standards and practices that we believe companies should adopt to better enable shareholders to participate in the voting process. In general, we look for balanced approaches to support shareholder accessibility and influence.

**Annual Elections / Classified Boards** 

We believe that shareholders should, in general and subject to local market standards and practices, have the ability to demonstrate their support, or lack of support, for directors every year. As such, we are supportive of companies adopting annual director elections and maintaining a declassified board. If a company maintains a classified board structure in jurisdictions where the practice is inconsistent with local market standards, we generally expect them to establish a sunset provision that will transition the board to annual director elections over a period of time. We will consider company- or local market-specific circumstances when evaluating a company's board structure.

**Voting Standards for Director Elections** 

We believe that electing directors to serve on behalf of shareholders is one of the primary responsibilities of shareholders. We believe that certain voting standards, described below, best enable shareholders to exercise this responsibility.

**Majority voting** 

We generally believe that a majority vote standard based on votes cast is most appropriate for the election of directors, and we will generally support proposals that seek the adoption of a majority voting standard in uncontested director elections.

We expect companies to also adopt a resignation or other post-election policy to address situations when directors do not receive majority support.

**Cumulative voting** 

Given our general preference for a majority vote standard for the election of directors, we generally do not believe cumulative voting is appropriate absent additional local market- or company-specific context.

**Voting Standards – Other Matters** 

**Supermajority vote standards** 

We generally believe that a simple majority vote standard should be used for material matters that require shareholder approval. As such, we generally support proposals to reduce or eliminate supermajority vote requirements and will generally not support proposals to require a supermajority shareholder vote.

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We will consider company- or local market-specific circumstances when evaluating a company's voting standards.

**Bylaws & Charter Amendments** 

We believe that material amendments to a company's bylaws and/ or charters should be put forth for shareholder approval.

In general, we believe that a simple majority vote standard should be used for material matters that require shareholder approval, including amendments to key corporate documents. We will generally support proposals to reduce or eliminate a supermajority vote requirement to amend bylaws and/or charters.

**Equal Voting Rights (Dual-Class Stock Structures)** 

We believe in the "one-share, one-vote" principle and look to companies to create alignment between shareholders' economic interests and their voting power.

We generally support companies maintaining or converting to a one-share, one-vote (single-class stock) capital structure. We generally do not support companies in maintaining or introducing dual-class capital structures or the creation of super voting shares.

We will consider company- or local market-specific circumstances when evaluating a company's share class structure.

**Shareholder Meetings and Access** 

**Right to Call Special Meetings** 

We believe that, in certain situations, shareholders should have the ability to raise significant issues without depending on the company to schedule a shareholder meeting. As such, we generally support companies providing shareholders with the right to call special meetings.

We believe a 25% threshold is generally reasonable for special meetings, but we may support lower thresholds if a company does not currently give shareholders the right to call special meetings. If the right already exists at 25% (or lower), we generally will not support lowering the threshold, taking into account company-specific circumstances.

We generally think that the right to act via written consent is not a sufficient alternative to the right to call a special meeting.

**Right to Act by Written Consent** 

We believe that, in certain situations, shareholders should have the ability to raise significant issues without depending on the company to schedule a shareholder meeting. As such, we generally support companies providing shareholders with the ability to act by written consent if they do not have a history of strong governance practices or they do not currently give shareholders the right to call special meetings at a threshold of 25% or lower.

**Meeting Format** 

We believe that shareholders have the right to participate in the annual meeting, or special meetings, of the companies in which they are invested. Where consistent with local market standards and practices, we generally support companies electing to host hybrid\* shareholder meetings. In certain markets, companies are also allowed to hold virtual-only\* shareholder meetings. We generally support companies' decisions to hold virtual-only shareholder meetings so long as shareholder participation rights are appropriately protected. We will consider any company- or market-specific circumstances, including local regulations, when evaluating these proposals.

\* The phrase "virtual-only" refers to a meeting that is held exclusively through the use of online technology without a corresponding in-person meeting. The term "hybrid" refers to an in-person meeting in which shareholders are also permitted to participate online.

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**Shareholder Rights Plans ('Poison Pills')** 

We review shareholder rights plans, commonly known as poison pills, on a case-by-case basis.

When evaluating poison pills, we consider several factors, including:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Board independence

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Existing takeover defenses

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Problematic governance practices

We expect companies to disclose their rationale for adopting the pill, and we expect companies to submit a poison pill for shareholder approval within one year of adoption.

Certain problematic practices related to a company's poison pill may inform our voting decisions, including director elections. Examples of problematic practices include:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The poison pill has a dead-hand or modified dead-hand feature for an extended period of time

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The board adopts or renews a poison pill without shareholder approval and does not commit to putting the pill to
a shareholder vote within one year of adoption

**Section 3: Auditors and Audit Practices** 

Reliable financial reporting is critical for shareholders to assess a company's performance. We expect independent auditors to provide an independent, objective opinion that financial statements are complete and accurate. We also expect the board's Audit Committee to oversee the management of the auditing process.

**Auditor Ratification** 

External auditors play an important role in the financial system by assuring the integrity of a company's financial statements. To best fulfill their responsibilities, we expect auditors to be independent and free of conflicts of interest. Where consistent with local market standards, we also expect companies to allow shareholders to approve the appointment of the company's auditor each year.

In evaluating auditors, we may withhold support if we have concerns related to any of the following:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• An auditor lacks independence. Our analysis of an auditor's independence may consider whether an auditor
has a financial interest in or association with the company; excessive fees for non-audit related business; and other relevant context;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• There is reason to believe that the independent auditor has rendered an opinion that is neither accurate nor
indicative of the company's financial position; or

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Poor accounting practices are identified that rise to a serious level of concern, such as: fraud; misapplication
of GAAP; or material weaknesses identified in audit-related disclosures.

**Audit Committee Oversight** 

The board of directors' Audit Committee should be responsible for overseeing the management of the independent auditor, in addition to overseeing the reporting of the company's financial statements and the establishment of robust internal audit processes. As described in "Director Elections" above, we will consider votes against Audit Committee member(s) if we have serious concerns about the company's accounting practices.

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**Section 4: Business Items & Issues** 

**Business Practices** 

We generally believe that routine business practices and decision making should be left to the discretion of management and the board.

**Reincorporation** 

We evaluate reincorporation proposals on an individual basis, taking into consideration the company's economic and strategic rationale and the impact the reincorporation would have on shareholders' rights. **Exclusive Venue for Shareholder Lawsuits**

We generally defer to companies on organizational issues, including selecting venues for shareholder lawsuits. While we generally support the selection of an exclusive venue, we will consider the reasons for the proposal, the strength of the company's existing governance practices, relevant regulations, and shareholder rights in the selected jurisdiction when evaluating a specific proposal.

**Bundled Proposals** 

We generally support the bundled election of management nominees, unless adequate disclosures of the nominees have not been provided or if one or more of the nominees does not meet the expectations of our policy (see Section 1 – Director Elections).

**Transactions & Capital Structure** 

**Transactions** 

**Mergers & Acquisitions** 

We expect major corporate transactions, like a merger or acquisition, to be carried out in the best interest of shareholders. Companies should provide strategic, operational, and financial rationale for the transaction and articulate how it will create long-term value for shareholders. We also expect the board of directors to have thorough oversight of the process.

**Related-Party Transactions** 

In markets where shareholders are required to approve related-party transactions, we expect companies entering into related-party transactions to comply with relevant corporate laws and/or listing standards. We also expect entities entering into such a transaction to disclose details of the nature of the transaction, including the rationale, the value, and timing, so shareholders can best evaluate the transaction.

When evaluating such transactions, we may consider the following:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The parties on either side of the transaction;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The nature of the asset to be transferred/service to be provided;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The pricing of the transaction (and any associated professional valuation);

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The views of independent directors and independent financial advisors;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Whether any entities party to the transaction (including advisers) is conflicted

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**Capital Structure** 

We believe capital structure changes should be driven by legitimate business needs and should not disadvantage shareholders. We generally are not supportive of implementing capital structure changes that are intended for anti-takeover purposes.

Our evaluation of capital structure related issues is company-specific and may be informed by local market practices, laws, regulations, and other applicable standards.

General considerations for common capital structure-related issues are detailed below.

**Common Stock** 

We are generally supportive of companies increasing the number of shares of common stock up to 100% over the current authorization, subject to any stricter limits set in local market standards or practices.

**Preferred Stock** 

We generally support the creation of a new class of preferred stock or issuances of preferred stock up to a reasonable percent of issued capital. We are unlikely to support the creation or issuance if the terms would adversely impact the rights of existing shareholders, including shares that would carry superior voting rights.

We generally oppose the creation of preferred stock with unspecified voting, conversion, dividend and other rights, commonly known as "blank check" preferred, unless the company states the stock will not be used for anti-takeover purposes.

**Share Repurchase Plans** 

While we are generally supportive of share repurchase plans, when evaluating a proposal, we will consider the underlying purpose, historical abuse of repurchase plans, and reasonableness of pricing provisions and safeguards.

**Section 5: Compensation** 

**Compensation Overview** 

We believe effective compensation practices, also referred to as remuneration in many markets, should enable companies to attract and retain the talent they need to deliver on their long-term strategies. We expect compensation plans to be reasonable, incentivize appropriate risk-reward trade-offs, align with company performance, and ultimately drive long-term shareholder value. We believe companies should have an appropriate balance of short- and long-term metrics that are aligned to business goals and objectives. Effective disclosure of compensation plans and practices also enables shareholders to evaluate alignment between pay outcomes and business performance. We expect disclosure of approach and rationale, particularly if a company's compensation practices differ significantly from market standards and practices.

Votes on compensation matters may take different forms in different markets, but generally can include:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Advisory votes on executives' compensation/ remuneration ("Say on Pay");

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Votes to approve new equity plans or amend existing equity plans;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Votes to approve specific grants of shares to executives; and

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Shareholder resolutions addressing certain aspects of executive compensation.

Below are more detailed explanations of how our compensation principles and expectations inform our voting on key compensation-related ballot items.

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**Advisory Votes on Executive Compensation** 

**"Say-on-Pay" / Remuneration Plans** 

We believe boards are responsible for establishing compensation plans that are appropriate for the company's circumstances and strategy. While unique to each company, we expect plans to demonstrate alignment between executive compensation and business performance. Thorough disclosure of compensation plans allows shareholders to best evaluate the compensation decisions of the board. While we do not take a prescriptive approach, we evaluate the designs of both short-term and long-term incentive plans, and our compensation evaluations are company- and market- specific. As such, certain practices or decisions may negatively influence our support. These factors may include, but are not limited to:

*Compensation Plan Design and Board Actions* 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Lack of transparent disclosure of compensation philosophy, goals, and targets

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Limited presence of performance-based long-term incentive awards

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Abbreviated time period for long-term incentive awards

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Outsized bonus payouts lacking performance linkage and/or proper disclosure

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Egregious employment or retention agreements

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Adjustments made to targets and/or performance metrics during the pay period without sufficient disclosure

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Repricing or replacing of underwater stock options without prior shareholder approval

**Equity Compensation Plans** 

We believe equity compensation plays an important role in attracting and retaining key talent, including executives. As such, we generally defer, within reasonable limits, to company decisions on how best to implement equity compensation plans. When determining our support for a specific plan proposal, we will evaluate potential plan cost, plan features, and historical grant practices. Certain plan features, such as the ability to reprice stock options or stock appreciation rights without prior shareholder approval, unfavorable change-in-control features, the presence of gross ups, and options reload, may negatively impact our support for an equity plan.

**Other Compensation-Related Matters** 

**Non-Executive Director Compensation** 

We are generally supportive of compensating non-executive directors in cash, taking into account peer practices and market and regional norms, unless the amounts are excessive.

We evaluate equity compensation for non-executive directors on a case-by-case basis. In our evaluation, we may consider total non-executive director compensation, potential dilution, and market practices and norms, as well as other factors.

**Employee Stock Purchase Plans** 

We believe employee stock purchase plans can be a valuable tool to support a company's ability to attract and retain talent. As such, we are generally supportive of qualified employee stock purchase plans. When evaluating non-qualified purchase plans, we usually consider the following factors:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Broad-based participation

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Limits on employee contributions

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Presence of a discount on the stock price on the date of purchase

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**Option Exchange Programs/Repricing Options** 

We understand that companies may face circumstances where they believe exchanging or repricing options is warranted. We evaluate those situations on a case-by-case basis and will generally consider the following factors, in addition to others:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Rationale for the re-pricing

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Terms and exercise price of the options

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Participants in the program – namely if executive officers and directors are included or excluded

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Historic trading patterns and stock price volatility

**Golden Parachutes** 

We evaluate change-in-control payments ("Golden Parachutes") on a case-by-case basis. Our evaluation generally includes the factors listed below:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• New single-trigger entitlements for outstanding awards

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Maximum performance payout for the long-term incentive plan regardless of performance results

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Max payout for the short-term incentive plan regardless of performance results

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• New single-trigger grants in connection with merger

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Single trigger cash payments

**Section 6: Shareholder Proposals** 

We evaluate shareholder proposals with the primary focus of promoting long-term shareholder value. When evaluating shareholder proposals, the following factors are generally considered:

**Materiality** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Whether the subject of the proposal is considered to be material to the company's business

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Whether the proposal is appropriately tailored to the facts and circumstances of the particular company where it
is being submitted

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The degree to which the company's stated position on the issues raised in the proposal could affect its
reputation, risk profile, or business performance

**Disclosure** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• The company's current level of publicly available disclosure, including if the company already discloses
similar information

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• If the disclosure would materially add to shareholders' ability to assess the company's financial
performance, strategic positioning, or corporate governance

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• If the information could be produced at reasonable cost to the company and its shareholders

**Proposal content and implementation** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Whether the subject of the proposal is best left to the discretion of the board

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Whether providing this information would reveal proprietary or confidential information that would place the
company at a competitive disadvantage

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**Section 7: Sustainability** 

We expect companies to manage risks and opportunities that are material to their businesses and have a clear link to long-term value creation, including – where relevant – "sustainability"-related issues. These could include, where material for a particular company:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Climate-related risks and opportunities

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Biodiversity and other environmental matters

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Human capital management and other labor issues

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Human rights

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Corporate political activities

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;• Other sector-specific sustainability matters

We evaluate companies' corporate strategies, investment and financing activities, management incentives, resource use, regulatory policies, and environmental impact, as well as their overall effect on and engagement with consumers, workers, and the communities in which they operate to assess and promote long-term value creation.

As with other risk and strategic issues, we expect boards to have robust oversight and disclosure of processes and practices for material sustainability-related risks and opportunities. We seek to understand how the company has identified material issues; the strategy around, and risk management of, those material issues; and any relevant metrics and targets used to assess performance related to the material issues. This includes an assessment of whether the company's related disclosures allow for investors to effectively evaluate companies' practices related to material sustainability-related risks and opportunities, including–where relevant – whether the company has implemented or formally committed to the implementation of a reporting program based on a recognized industry group's standards or recommendations.

In instances where we believe a company does not provide the appropriate oversight, disclosures, and/or evidence of effective practices relating to business-relevant sustainability issues, we may express our views through our engagement and/or voting. Our views are shaped by the company's business and commercial context, as well as local market standards and practices, reflecting our case-by-case approach to assessing sustainability matters.

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**PART C: OTHER INFORMATION** 

Part C of this Registration Statement should be read in conjunction with Parts A and B. Capitalized terms used in this Part C and not otherwise defined have the meanings given them in Parts A and B of this Registration Statement.

**Item 15. Indemnification** 

Article VII, Section 7.5 of the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the Registrant, a Delaware statutory trust, provides for indemnification of the Trustees, officers and employees of the Registrant by the Registrant, subject to certain limitations. [The Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust is incorporated by reference to Exhibit (1)(b).](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312522255448/d379801dex99a2.htm)

Section 6 of the Distribution Agreement between the Registrant and Distributor dated March 26, 2015, provides that the Registrant will indemnify Distributor against certain liabilities, subject to certain conditions. A copy of the Distribution Agreement is incorporated by reference as [Exhibit (e)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312518258822/d570991dex99e1.htm), to the Registrant's Registration Statement.

Fund and trustees and officers liability policies purchased jointly by the Registrant and other registered investment companies for which the trustees and officers serve as such insure such persons and their respective trustees, partners, officers and employees, subject to the policies' coverage limits and exclusions and varying deductibles, against loss resulting from claims by reason of any act, error, omission, misstatement, misleading statement, neglect or breach of duty.

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, the Registrant has been informed that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is therefore unenforceable.

**Item 16. Exhibits** 

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| (1)<br>(a) | [Certificate of Trust of the Registrant dated December 16, 2009 (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed May 4, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515169270/d837615dex99a1.htm) |
| (b) | [Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust dated September 20, 2022 (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 466 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed September 30, 2022)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312522255448/d379801dex99a2.htm) |
| (c) | [Form of Amended Schedule A dated April 22, 2026, to the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust dated September 20, 2022 (filed herewith)](d144724dex991c.htm) |
| (2) | [Amended and Restated By-laws dated July 22, 2021 (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 369 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed July 26, 2021)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312521224388/d176692dex99b.htm) |
| (3) | Not applicable. |
| (4) | Form of Agreement and Plan of Reorganization is included in Part A to this Registration Statement. |
| (5) | Not applicable. |
| (6)<br> (a) | [Management Agreement between Registrant and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (with respect to ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> Emerging Markets Equity ETF) (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 3 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed September 11, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515318140/d837615dex99d.htm) |
| (b) | [Form of Management Agreement between Registrant and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (with respect to ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> Europe Equity ETF, ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> International Equity ETF, ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> Japan Equity ETF, ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF and ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> U.S. Small Cap Equity ETF) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 10 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed May 25, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312516602261/d195912dex99d2.htm) |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| (c) | [Form of Amended Annex A to the Management Agreement between Registrant and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (with respect to all series of Registrant except ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Emerging Markets Equity ETF) (filed herewith)](d144724dex996c.htm) |
| (7)<br> (a) | [Distribution Agreement dated March 26, 2015 between Registrant and ALPS Distributors, Inc. (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed August 7, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515282875/d837615dex99e.htm) |
| (b) | [Distribution Agreement dated April 16, 2018 between Registrant and ALPS Distributors, Inc. (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 126 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed August 27, 2018)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312518258822/d570991dex99e1.htm) |
| (c) | [Form of Amendment to Distribution Agreement between Registrant and ALPS Distributors, Inc. (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 126 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed August 27, 2018)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312518258822/d570991dex99e2.htm) |
| (8) | Not applicable. |
| (9)<br> (a) | [Custody Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 279 to Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed April 28, 2011)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000095012311041091/b88801exv99wgw43.htm) |
| (b) | [Letter Amendment to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed August 7, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515282875/d837615dex99g2.htm) |
| (c) | [Letter Amendment dated October 20, 2015 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 518 to Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed January 15, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312516430638/d222601dex99g67.htm) |
| (d) | [Amendment dated January 6, 2016 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 523 to Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed January 29, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312516444378/d52911dex99g68.htm) |
| (e) | [Amendment dated March 1, 2016 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (Goldman Sachs Financial Square Tax-Exempt Money Market Fund and Goldman Sachs Investor Tax-Exempt Money Market Fund) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 559 to Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed May 20, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312516597635/d161702dex99g69.htm) |
| (f) | [Amendment dated June 13, 2016 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (Goldman Sachs Hedge Industry VIP ETF) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 93 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 22, 2017)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312517377613/d450037dex99g6.htm) |
| (g) | [Amendment dated August 29, 2016 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (Goldman Sachs Treasury Access 0-1 Year ETF) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 93 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 22, 2017)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312517377613/d450037dex99g7.htm) |
| (h) | [Amendment dated April 5, 2017 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (Goldman Sachs Access Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF, Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 93 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 22, 2017)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312517377613/d450037dex99g8.htm) |

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| | |
|:---|:---|
| (i) | [Amendment dated May 10, 2017 to the Custodian Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 93 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 22, 2017)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312517377613/d450037dex99g9.htm) |
| (j) | [Amendment dated December 10, 2018 to the Custody Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 202 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed May 10, 2019)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312519144100/d493672dex99g10.htm) |
| (k) | [Amendment dated July 12, 2019 to the Custody Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (certain equity funds) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 778 to the Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed December 20, 2019)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312519321151/d822947dex99g71.htm) |
| (l) | [Amendment dated December 13, 2019 to the Custody Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 281 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed July 6, 2020)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312520187791/d755444dex99g12.htm) |
| (m) | [Letter Amendment dated March 10, 2022 to the Custody Agreement between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund, Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC, and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 498 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2022)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312522312645/d384303dex99g13.htm) |
| (n) | [Amendment dated October 12, 2023 to the Custody Agreement between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund, Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC, and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 618 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2023)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312523304142/d556196dex99g14.htm) |
| (o) | [Amendment dated June 9, 2025 to the Custody Agreement between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund, Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC, and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 692 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed June 20, 2025)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312525143723/d157286dex999o.htm) |
| (10) | [Distribution and Service Plan (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 3 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed September 11, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515318140/d837615dex99m.htm) |
| (11) | [Opinion and Consent of Dechert LLP (filed herewith)](d144724dex9911.htm) |
| (12) | [Form of Opinion of Dechert LLP supporting the tax matters and consequences to shareholders of each Acquired Fund with respect solely to each transaction between the Acquired Fund and its corresponding Acquiring Fund pursuant to the Form of Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation (filed herewith)](d144724dex9912.htm) |
| (13)<br> (a) | [Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 3 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed September 11, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515318140/d837615dex99h1.htm) |
| (b) | [Amendment dated December 10, 2018 to the Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 202 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed May 10, 2019)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312519144100/d493672dex99h2.htm) |

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(c) [Amendment dated December 13, 2019 to the Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 281 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed July 6, 2020)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312520187791/d755444dex99h3.htm)

(d) [Form of Authorized Participant Agreement (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed August 7, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515282875/d837615dex99h2.htm)

(e) [Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 279 to the Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed April 28, 2011)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000095012311041091/b88801exv99whw27.htm)

(f) [Letter Amendment to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed August 7, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515282875/d837615dex99h4.htm)

(g) [License Agreement between the Trust and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (incorporated by reference from Pre-Effective Amendment No. 3 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed September 11, 2015)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312515318140/d837615dex99h5.htm)

(h) [Letter Amendment dated October 20, 2015 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 3 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed February 8, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312516453980/d55076dex99h6.htm)

(i) [Amendment dated January 6, 2016 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 523 to Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed January 29, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312516444378/d52911dex99h42.htm)

(j) [Amendment dated March 1, 2016 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (Goldman Sachs Financial Square Tax-Exempt Money Market Fund and Goldman Sachs Investor Tax-Exempt Money Market Fund) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 559 to Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed May 20, 2016)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312516597635/d161702dex99h44.htm)

(k) [Amendment dated December 10, 2018 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 202 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed May 10, 2019)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312519144100/d493672dex99h10.htm)

(l) [Amendment dated July 12, 2019 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (certain equity funds) (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 778 to the Goldman Sachs Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 33-17619, filed December 20, 2019)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/822977/000119312519321151/d822947dex99h39.htm)

(m) [Amendment dated December 13, 2019 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 28, 2016 between Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 281 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed July 6, 2020)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312520187791/d755444dex99h13.htm)

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  | (n) | [Expense Limitation Agreement between Registrant and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. relating to Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<u><sup>®</sup></u> Emerging Markets Equity ETF (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 72 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed July 6, 2017)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312517223196/d282745dex99h9.htm) |
|  | (o) | [Letter Amendment dated March 10, 2022 to the Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 498 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2022)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312522312645/d384303dex99h15.htm) |
|  | (p) | [Letter Amendment dated March 17, 2022 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust II, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund and Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 498 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2022)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312522312645/d384303dex99h16.htm) |
|  | (q) | [Form of Fund of Funds Investment Agreement (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 498 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2022)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312522312645/d384303dex99h17.htm) |
|  | (r) | [Amendment dated October 12, 2023 to the Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 618 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2023)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312523304142/d556196dex99h19.htm) |
|  | (s) | [Amendment dated October 12, 2023 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund and Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 618 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 27, 2023)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312523304142/d556196dex99h18.htm) |
|  | (t) | [Amendment dated May 31, 2024 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund and Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 672 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed December 26, 2024)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312524284998/d861631dex99h20.htm) |
|  | (u) | [Amendment dated June 9, 2025 to the Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 692 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed June 20, 2025)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312525143723/d157286dex9913u.htm) |
|  | (v) | [Amendment dated June 9, 2025 to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement dated April 5, 2011 between Registrant, Goldman Sachs Trust, Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust, Goldman Sachs ETF Trust II, Goldman Sachs Real Estate Diversified Income Fund and Cayman Commodity-MFS, LLC and The Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference from Post-Effective Amendment No. 692 to the Trust's registration statement, SEC File No. 333-200933, filed June 20, 2025)](http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1479026/000119312525143723/d157286dex9913v.htm) |
| (14) |  | Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (to be filed by amendment) |

---

------

(15) Not applicable.

(16) [Powers of Attorney for James A. McNamara, Joseph F. DiMaria, Gregory G. Weaver, Cheryl K. Beebe, Dwight L. Bush, Kathryn A. Cassidy, John G. Chou, Joaquin Delgado, Eileen H. Dowling, Lawrence Hughes, John F. Killian, Steven D. Krichmar, Michael Latham, Lawrence W. Stranghoener and Brian J. Wildman (filed herewith)](d144724dex9916.htm)

(17) Not applicable.

(18) Not applicable.

**Item 17. Undertakings** 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1) The undersigned Registrant agrees that prior to any public reoffering of the securities registered through the
use of a prospectus which is a part of this Registration Statement by any person or party who is deemed to be an underwriter within the meaning of Rule 145(c) of the Securities Act of 1933 [17 CFR 230.145c], the reoffering prospectus will contain
the information called for by the applicable registration form for reofferings by persons who may be deemed underwriters, in addition to the information called for by the other items of the applicable form.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(2) The undersigned Registrant agrees that every prospectus that is filed under paragraph (1) above will be
filed as a part of an amendment to the Registration Statement and will not be used until the amendment is effective, and that, in determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new
registration statement for the securities offered therein, and the offering of the securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering of them.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(3) The undersigned Registrant agrees to file in a Post-effective Amendment to this Registration Statement a final
tax opinion within a reasonable time after the close of this transaction.

------

**SIGNATURES** 

As required by the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed on behalf of the Registrant, in the City and State of New York, on the 28<sup>th</sup> day of April, 2026.

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| **GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST** | **GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST** |
| (A Delaware statutory trust) | (A Delaware statutory trust) |
| By: | /s/ Robert Griffith |
|  | Robert Griffith |
|  | Secretary |

---

As required by the Securities Act of 1933, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name** | **Title** | **Date** |
| <sup>1</sup>James A. McNamara | President, Chief Executive Officer and Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| James A. McNamara |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Joseph F. DiMaria | Treasurer, Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer | April 28, 2026 |
| Joseph F. DiMaria |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Gregory G. Weaver | Chair and Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Gregory G. Weaver |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Cheryl K. Beebe | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Cheryl K. Beebe |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Dwight L. Bush | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Dwight L. Bush |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Kathryn A. Cassidy | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Kathryn A. Cassidy |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>John G. Chou | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| John G. Chou |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Joaquin Delgado | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Joaquin Delgado |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Eileen H. Dowling | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Eileen H. Dowling |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Lawrence Hughes | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Lawrence Hughes |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>John F. Killian | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| John F. Killian |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Steven D. Krichmar | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Steven D. Krichmar |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Michael Latham | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Michael Latham |  |  |
| <sup>1</sup>Lawrence W. Stranghoener | Trustee | April 28, 2026 |
| Lawrence W. Stranghoener |  |  |

---

------

<sup>1</sup>Brian J. Wildman Trustee April 28, 2026 <br> Brian J. Wildman

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| By: | /s/ Robert Griffith |
| Robert Griffith, | Robert Griffith, |
| Attorney-In-Fact | Attorney-In-Fact |

---

<sup>1</sup> Pursuant to powers of attorney filed herewith.

------

**CERTIFICATE** 

The undersigned Secretary for Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (the "Trust") hereby certifies that the Board of Trustees of the Trust duly adopted the following resolution at a meeting of the Board held on April 21-22, 2026.

**RESOLVED,** that Trustees and officers of the Trust who may be required to sign the Trust's filings on Form N-14 and any and all amendments thereto be, and each hereby is, authorized to execute a power of attorney appointing Caroline L. Kraus, James A. McNamara, Joseph F. DiMaria, and Robert Griffith, jointly and severally, as their attorneys-in-fact, each with power of substitution, for said Trustees and officers in any and all capacities to sign the Trust's filings on Form N-14 for the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF (the "Funds") and any and all amendments to such filings on Form N-14, and to file the same, with exhibits thereto, if any, and other documents in connection therewith, with the SEC and with other federal, state, foreign and quasi-governmental agencies and such other instruments related to compliance with certain of the federal securities laws and other applicable federal, state, foreign and quasi-governmental filings, hereby ratifying and confirming all that each of said attorneys-in-fact, or his or her substitute or substitutes, may do or cause to be done by virtue thereof; and be it further

**RESOLVED,** that the officers of the Trust be, and each hereby is, authorized to prepare, execute and deliver such documents, with such changes as may be recommended by Trust officers or Fund counsel, and to take such other actions as he or she may determine to be necessary or appropriate to carry out the intent or purposes of the foregoing resolutions, such determination to be conclusively evidenced by the doing of such acts and the preparation, execution and delivery of such documents.

Dated: April 28, 2026

---

| |
|:---|
| /s/ Robert Griffith |
| Robert Griffith, |
| Secretary |

---

------

**EXHIBIT INDEX** 

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| (1)(c) | [Form of Amended Schedule A dated April 22, 2026, to the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust dated September 20, 2022](d144724dex991c.htm) |
| (6)(c) | [Form of Amended Annex A to the Management Agreement between Registrant and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (with respect to all series of Registrant except ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Emerging Markets Equity ETF)](d144724dex996c.htm) |
| (11) | [Opinion and Consent of Dechert LLP](d144724dex9911.htm) |
| (12) | [Form of Opinion of Dechert LLP supporting the tax matters and consequences to shareholders of each Acquired Fund with respect solely to each transaction between the Acquired Fund and its corresponding Acquiring Fund pursuant to the Form of Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation](d144724dex9912.htm) |
| (16) | [Powers of Attorney for James A. McNamara, Joseph F. DiMaria, Gregory G. Weaver, Cheryl K. Beebe, Dwight L. Bush, Kathryn A. Cassidy, John G. Chou, Joaquin Delgado, Eileen H. Dowling, Lawrence Hughes, John F. Killian, Steven D. Krichmar, Michael Latham, Lawrence W. Stranghoener and Brian J. Wildman](d144724dex9916.htm) |

---

## Ex-99.(1)(C)

**EX-99.(1)(c)** 

**<u>Schedule A</u>**

**Goldman Sachs ETF Trust** 

**April 22, 2026** 

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| Series of Shares | Date Established |
| Goldman Sachs Access Emerging Markets USD Bond ETF | March 14, 2018 |
| Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF | March 15, 2017 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Inflation Protected USD Bond ETF | March 14, 2018 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate 1-5 Year Bond ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate 10+ Year Bond ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | March 15, 2017 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Floating Rate ETF | September 20, 2018 |
| Goldman Sachs Access U.S. Preferred Stock & Hybrid Securities ETF | June 7, 2023 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Treasury 0-1 Year ETF | April 12, 2016 |
| Goldman Sachs Access U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | June 21, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs Access U.S. Treasury Bond ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs Access Municipal Bond ETF | June 10, 2022 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Emerging Markets Equity ETF | April 16, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Emerging Markets Low Vol Plus Equity ETF | July 22, 2022 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Europe Equity ETF | April 16, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> International Equity ETF | April 16, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Japan Equity ETF | April 16, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF | April 16, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> U.S. Small Cap Equity ETF | April 16, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> World Equity ETF | November 3, 2021 |
| Goldman Sachs Bitcoin Premium Income ETF | December 10, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Core Bond ETF | February 12, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | April 22, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs Corporate Bond ETF | February 12, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Data Enhanced Emerging Markets Equity ETF | December 10, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Data Enhanced International Equity ETF | December 10, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Dynamic California Municipal Income ETF | April 17, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs Dynamic New York Municipal Income ETF | April 17, 2024 |

---

------

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| Goldman Sachs Enhanced U.S. Equity ETF | June 18, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF | March 15, 2017 |
| Goldman Sachs Future Consumer Equity ETF | March 17, 2021 |
| Goldman Sachs Future Planet Equity ETF | January 21, 2021 |
| Goldman Sachs Future Health Care Equity ETF | March 17, 2021 |
| Goldman Sachs Future Tech Leaders Equity ETF | December 2, 2020 |
| Goldman Sachs Growth Opportunities ETF | June 18, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Hedge Industry VIP ETF | July 23, 2015 |
| Goldman Sachs Income ETF | April 22, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs India Equity ETF | September 18, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs Innovate Equity ETF | February 19, 2020 |
| Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF | December 8, 2017 |
| Goldman Sachs MarketBeta<sup>®</sup> Emerging Markets Equity ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs MarketBeta<sup>®</sup> International Equity ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs MarketBeta<sup>®</sup> International Small Cap Equity ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs MarketBeta<sup>®</sup> Russell 1000 Growth Equity ETF | July 20, 2023 |
| Goldman Sachs MarketBeta<sup>®</sup> Russell 1000 Value Equity ETF | July 20, 2023 |
| Goldman Sachs MarketBeta<sup>®</sup> U.S. Equity ETF | June 4, 2019 |
| Goldman Sachs MSCI World Private Equity Tracker ETF | July 17, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Municipal Income ETF | April 17, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs Nasdaq-100 Premium Income ETF | April 27, 2023 |
| Goldman Sachs Small Cap Equity ETF | June 7, 2023 |
| Goldman Sachs S&P 500 Premium Income ETF | April 27, 2023 |
| Goldman Sachs Technology Opportunities ETF | June 18, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs Ultra Short Municipal Income ETF | April 17, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs Ultra Short Bond ETF | September 20, 2018 |
| Goldman Sachs Value Opportunities ETF | June 18, 2025 |

---

## Ex-99.(6)(C)

**EX-99.(6)(c)** 

**Amended Annex A** 

**Goldman Sachs Asset Management L.P.** 

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| Fund | Fee (Annual Rate) | Initial Date |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF | 0.45% | May 17, 2017 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Emerging Markets USD Bond ETF | 0.30% | June 6, 2018 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF | 0.15% | May 17, 2017 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Inflation Protected USD Bond ETF | 0.12% | June 6, 2018 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate 1-5 Year Bond ETF | 0.08% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate 10+ Year Bond ETF | 0.08% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | 0.08% | May 17, 2017 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Treasury 0-1 Year ETF | 0.14% | July 19, 2016 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | 0.08% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access U.S. Preferred Stock and Hybrid Securities ETF | 0.45% | February 14, 2024 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access U.S. Treasury Bond ETF | 0.07% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Emerging Markets Low Vol Plus Equity ETF | 0.45% | September 20, 2022 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Europe Equity ETF | 0.25% | April 16, 2015 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> International Equity ETF | 0.25% | April 16, 2015 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> Japan Equity ETF | 0.25% | April 16, 2015 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF | 0.09% | April 16, 2015 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> U.S. Low Vol Plus Equity ETF | 0.15% | December 2, 2022 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> U.S. Small Cap Equity ETF | 0.20% | April 16, 2015 |
|  Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta<sup>®</sup> World Equity ETF | 0.25% | December 1, 2021 |
|  Goldman Sachs Access Municipal Bond ETF | 0.08% | September 20, 2022 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Bond ETF | 0.25% | April 16, 2025 |
|  Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF | 0.40% | April 22, 2026 |
|  Goldman Sachs Corporate Bond ETF | 0.29% | April 16, 2025 |

---

------

---

| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
|  Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF | 0.09% | May 17, 2017 |
|  Goldman Sachs Data Enhanced Emerging Markets Equity ETF | 0.4% | February 12, 2026 |
|  Goldman Sachs Data Enhanced International Equity ETF | 0.3% | February 12, 2026 |
|  Goldman Sachs Dynamic California Municipal Income ETF | 0.35% | June 12, 2024 |
|  Goldman Sachs Dynamic New York Municipal Income ETF | 0.35% | June 12, 2024 |
|  Goldman Sachs Enhanced U.S. Equity ETF | 0.3% | June 17, 2025 |
|  Goldman Sachs Future Health Care Equity ETF | 0.75% | June 9, 2021 |
|  Goldman Sachs Future Tech Leaders Equity ETF | 0.75% | March 17, 2021 |
|  Goldman Sachs Growth Opportunities ETF | 0.45% | June 17, 2025 |
|  Goldman Sachs Hedge Industry VIP ETF | 0.45% | April 12, 2016 |
|  Goldman Sachs Income ETF | 0.4% | April 22, 2026 |
|  Goldman Sachs India Equity ETF | 0.75% | September 18, 2024 |
|  Goldman Sachs Innovate Equity ETF | 0.5% | July 27, 2020 |
|  Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF | 0.2% | March 14, 2018 |
|  Goldman Sachs MarketBeta Emerging Markets Equity ETF | 0.45% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs MarketBeta International Equity ETF | 0.25% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs MarketBeta International Small Cap Equity ETF | 0.3% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs MarketBeta Russell 1000 Growth Equity ETF | 0.12% | July 20, 2023 |
|  Goldman Sachs MarketBeta Russell 1000 Value Equity ETF | 0.12% | July 20, 2023 |
|  Goldman Sachs MarketBeta U.S. Equity ETF | 0.09% | September 18, 2019 |
|  Goldman Sachs MSCI World Private Equity Return Tracker ETF | 0.5% | September 16, 2025 |
|  Goldman Sachs Municipal Income ETF | 0.18% | June 12, 2024 |
|  Goldman Sachs Nasdaq-100 Premium Income ETF | 0.35% | April 27, 2023 |
|  Goldman Sachs Ultra Short Bond ETF | 0.2% | November 28, 2018 |
|  Goldman Sachs Ultra Short Municipal Income ETF | 0.16% | June 12, 2024 |
|  Goldman Sachs Small Cap Equity ETF | 0.8% | July 14, 2023 |
|  Goldman Sachs S&P 500 Premium Income ETF | 0.35% | April 27, 2023 |
|  Goldman Sachs Technology Opportunities ETF | 0.65% | June 17, 2025 |
|  Goldman Sachs Value Opportunities ETF | 0.45% | June 17, 2025 |

---

------

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| **GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST** | **GOLDMAN SACHS ETF TRUST** |
| By: | /s/ James McNamara |
| Name: | James McNamara |
| Title: | President |
| **GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT, L.P.** | **GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT, L.P.** |
| By: | /s/ Brendan McCarthy |
| Name: | Brendan McCarthy |
| Title: | Managing Director |
|  | Dated: April 22, 2026 |

---

## Ex-99.(11)

**EX-99.(11)** 

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| ![LOGO](g144724dsp291.jpg) | **Dechert LLP**<br> Three Bryant Park<br> 1095 Avenue of the Americas<br> New York, NY 10036-6797<br> +1 212 698 3500 Main<br> +1 212 698 3599 Fax<br> www.dechert.com |

---

April 27, 2026

Goldman Sachs ETF Trust

200 West Street

New York, New York 10282

Re: Goldman Sachs ETF Trust – Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF

Registration Statement on Form N-14 (the "Registration Statement")

Ladies and Gentlemen:

We have acted as counsel to Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (the "Trust"), a Delaware statutory trust, in connection with the Trust's Registration Statement on Form N-14 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act"), filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), on April 27, 2026, relating to the transfer of all of the assets of each of the Goldman Sachs Bond Fund and Goldman Sachs Income Fund (each, an "Acquired Fund," and collectively, the "Acquired Funds"), each a series of Goldman Sachs Trust, in exchange for the issuance of shares of beneficial interest ("Shares") of each of the Goldman Sachs Core Plus Bond ETF and Goldman Sachs Income ETF (each, an "Acquiring Fund," and collectively, the "Acquiring Funds"), respectively, each a series of the Trust, and the assumption by each Acquiring Fund of all of the liabilities of its corresponding Acquired Fund, pursuant to the proposed reorganizations as described in the Registration Statement and in the form of Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation by and between the Trust, on behalf of each Acquiring Fund, and Goldman Sachs Trust, on behalf of the corresponding Acquired Fund, filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement.

This opinion is limited to the Delaware Statutory Trust Act statute, and we express no opinion with respect to the laws of any other jurisdiction or to any other laws of the State of Delaware. Further, we express no opinion as to compliance with any state or federal securities laws, including the securities laws of the State of Delaware.

We have examined such governmental and corporate certificates and records as we deemed necessary to render this opinion, and we are familiar with the Trust's Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust (the "Declaration of Trust") and Amended and Restated By-Laws, each as amended to date. In addition, in rendering this opinion, insofar as it relates to the valid existence of the Trust, we have relied solely on a certificate of the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware, dated as of April 27, 2026, and this opinion is limited accordingly and is rendered as of the date of such certificate.

In rendering this opinion we have assumed, without independent verification, (i) the due authority of all individuals signing in representative capacities and the genuineness of signatures; (ii) the authenticity, completeness and continued effectiveness of all documents or copies furnished to us; and (iii) that the facts contained in the instruments and certificates or statements of public officials, officers and representatives of the Trust on which we have relied for the purposes of this opinion are true and correct.

Based upon the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the Shares of each Acquiring Fund to be registered under the 1933 Act and issued pursuant to the Registration Statement have been duly authorized for issuance and, when issued to its corresponding Acquired Fund shareholders in the manner described in the Registration Statement, will be validly issued and, subject to the qualifications set forth in the Trust's Declaration of Trust,

------

![LOGO](g144724dsp291.jpg)

April 27, 2026

fully paid and non-assessable beneficial interests in such Acquiring Fund. In this regard, we note that, pursuant to Section 4.5 of Article IV of the Declaration of Trust, the Trustees have the power to cause each shareholder, or each shareholder of any particular series or class, to pay directly, in advance or arrears, for charges of the Trust's custodian or transfer, shareholder servicing or similar agent, an amount fixed from time to time by the Trustees, by setting off such charges due from such shareholder from declared but unpaid dividends owed such shareholder and/or by reducing the number of shares in the account of such shareholder by that number of full and/or fractional shares which represents the outstanding amount of such charges due from such shareholder.

We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as an exhibit to the Registration Statement, to be filed with the SEC, and to the use of our name in the Registration Statement, unless and until we revoke such consent. In giving such consent, however, we do not admit that we are within the category of persons whose consent is required by Section 7 of the 1933 Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.

---

| |
|:---|
| Very truly yours, |
| /s/ Dechert LLP |

---

## Ex-99.(12)

**EX-99.(12)** 

---

| | |
|:---|:---|
| ![LOGO](g144724g0424120410060.jpg) | **Dechert LLP**<br> Three Bryant Park<br> 1095 Avenue of the Americas<br> New York, NY 10036-6797<br> +1 212 698 3500 Main<br> +1 212 698 3599 Fax<br>|

---

FORM OF TAX OPINION

[ ], 2026

Board of Trustees

Goldman Sachs Trust

Goldman Sachs [ ] Fund

71 South Wacker Drive

Chicago, Illinois 60606

Board of Trustees

Goldman Sachs ETF Trust

Goldman Sachs [ ] ETF

71 South Wacker Drive

Chicago, Illinois 60606

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen:

You have requested our opinion regarding certain U.S. federal income tax consequences to Goldman Sachs [ ] Fund (the "Acquired Fund"), a separate series of Goldman Sachs Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the "Acquired Fund Trust"), and to Goldman Sachs [ ] ETF (the "Acquiring Fund"), a separate series of the Goldman Sachs ETF Trust, a Delaware statutory trust (the "Acquiring Fund Trust"), and to the relevant holders (the "Acquired Fund Shareholders") of shares of beneficial interest in the Acquired Fund (the "Acquired Fund Shares"), in connection with the transfer of all of the assets, as defined in the Agreement and Plan of Reorganization and Liquidation (the "Plan") dated as of [ ], 2026, executed by the Acquiring Fund Trust on behalf of the Acquiring Fund and by the Acquired Fund Trust on behalf of the Acquired Fund, of the Acquired Fund (the "Assets") to the Acquiring Fund in exchange solely for shares of beneficial interest of the Acquiring Fund (the "Acquiring Fund Shares") and the assumption of the Acquired Fund's liabilities as defined in the Plan (the "Liabilities") by the Acquiring Fund, followed by the distribution of the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund and cash in lieu of fractional shares in complete liquidation and termination of the Acquired Fund (the "Reorganization"), all pursuant to the Plan.

For purposes of this opinion, we have examined and relied upon (1) the Plan, (2) the Registration Statement filed on Form N-14 in connection with the Reorganization, (3) the facts and representations contained in the letter dated on or about the date hereof addressed to us from the Acquiring Fund Trust on behalf of the Acquiring Fund, (4) the facts and representations contained in the letter dated on or about the date hereof addressed to us from the Acquired Fund Trust on behalf of the Acquired Fund, and (5) such other documents and instruments as we have deemed necessary or appropriate for purposes of rendering this opinion.

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This opinion is based upon the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"), United States Treasury Regulations, judicial decisions, and administrative rulings and pronouncements of the Internal Revenue Service, all as in effect on the date hereof. This opinion is conditioned upon the Reorganization taking place in the manner described in the Plan.

Based upon the foregoing, it is our opinion that for federal income tax purposes, with respect to the Acquired Fund and the Acquiring Fund:

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1. The acquisition by the Acquiring Fund of all of the properties of the Acquired Fund in exchange solely for
Acquiring Fund Shares and the assumption of all Liabilities of the Acquired Fund by the Acquiring Fund followed by the distribution by the Acquired Fund of Acquiring Fund Shares and cash in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund Shares to the Acquired
Fund Shareholders and cash to Cash-Out Shareholders in exchange for their Acquired Fund Shares in complete liquidation and termination of the Acquired Fund will constitute a "reorganization" within
the meaning of section 368(a) of the Code. The Acquiring Fund and the Acquired Fund each will be "a party to a reorganization" within the meaning of section 368(b) of the Code.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2. The Acquired Fund will not recognize gain or loss upon the transfer of the Assets of the Acquired Fund to the
Acquiring Fund in exchange solely for the assumption of all the Acquired Fund's Liabilities and the Acquiring Fund Shares, except that the Acquired Fund may be required to recognize gain or loss with respect to contracts described in section
1256(b) of the Code or stock in a passive foreign investment company, as defined in section 1297(a) of the Code.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3. The Acquired Fund will not recognize gain or loss upon the distribution to the Acquired Fund Shareholders of
the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund in the Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;4. The Acquiring Fund will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving the Assets of the Acquired Fund in exchange
solely for the assumption of all Liabilities of the Acquired Fund and the issuance of the Acquiring Fund Shares.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;5. The Acquired Fund Shareholders will recognize no gain or loss upon receiving the Acquiring Fund Shares solely
in exchange for the Acquired Fund Shares (except with respect to cash received in lieu of fractional shares, if any).

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&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;6. The aggregate basis of the Acquiring Fund Shares received by an Acquired Fund Shareholder in the Reorganization
will be the same as the aggregate basis of the Acquired Fund Shares exchanged in the Reorganization (reduced by any amount of tax basis allocable to fractional shares for which cash is received).

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;7. An Acquired Fund Shareholder's holding period for the Acquiring Fund Shares received by the Acquired Fund
Shareholder in the Reorganization will include the holding period during which the Acquired Fund Shareholder held the Acquired Fund Shares surrendered in exchange therefor, provided that the Acquired Fund Shareholder held the shares as a capital
asset on the date of Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;8. The tax basis of the Assets of the Acquired Fund acquired by the Acquiring Fund will be the same as the tax
basis of such Assets to the Acquired Fund immediately prior to the Reorganization.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;9. The holding period of the Assets of the Acquired Fund in the hands of the Acquiring Fund will include the
period during which those Assets were held by the Acquired Fund.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;10. The Acquired Fund's tax attributes enumerated in section 381(c) of the Code will be taken into account by
the Acquiring Fund without limitation.

For avoidance of doubt, Acquired Fund Shareholders for this purpose refers to shareholders of the Acquired Fund who hold Acquired Fund Shares through a brokerage account that can accept Acquiring Fund Shares and does not include Cash-Out Shareholders.

We express no opinion as to the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Reorganization except as expressly set forth above, or as to any transaction except those consummated in accordance with the Plan. Without limiting the foregoing, we express no opinion as to the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Reorganization to the Acquired Fund with respect to contracts described in section 1256(b) of the Code or stock in a passive foreign investment company, as defined in section 1297(a) of the Code.

We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as an exhibit to the Form N-14 and to all references to our firm therein.

Very truly yours,

## Ex-99.(16)

**EX-99.(16)** 

**POWER OF ATTORNEY** 

Know All Persons By These Presents, that each person whose signature appears below hereby constitutes and appoints James A. McNamara, Caroline L. Kraus, Joseph F. DiMaria and Robert Griffith, jointly and severally, and each of them, his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, until the earlier of his or her resignation or removal as an officer of Goldman Sachs ETF Trust (the "Trust"), each with power and authority of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her in any and all capacities to sign the Registration Statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, of the Trust and any and all amendments to such Registration Statement, and to file the same, with exhibits thereto, and other instruments or documents in connection therewith, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming all that each of said attorneys-in-fact, or his or her substitute or substitutes, may do or cause to be done by virtue thereof.

This Power of Attorney may be executed in multiple counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but which taken together shall constitute one instrument.

WITNESS our hands on the date(s) set forth below.

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| **Name** | **Title** | **Date** |
| /s/ James A. McNamara<br> James A. McNamara | President (Chief Executive Officer)<br> and Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Joseph F. DiMaria<br> Joseph F. DiMaria | Treasurer, Principal Financial Officer and<br> Principal Accounting Officer | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Gregory G. Weaver<br> Gregory G. Weaver | Chair and Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Cheryl K. Beebe<br> Cheryl K. Beebe | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Dwight L. Bush<br> Dwight L. Bush | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Kathryn A. Cassidy<br> Kathryn A. Cassidy | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ John G. Chou<br> John G. Chou | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Joaquin Delgado<br> Joaquin Delgado | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Eileen H. Dowling<br> Eileen H. Dowling | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Lawrence Hughes<br> Lawrence Hughes | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ John F. Killian<br> John F. Killian | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |

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| | | |
|:---|:---|:---|
| /s/ Steven D. Krichmar<br> Steven D. Krichmar | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Michael Latham<br> Michael Latham | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Lawrence W. Stranghoener<br> Lawrence W. Stranghoener | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |
| /s/ Brian J. Wildman<br> Brian J. Wildman | Trustee | April 22, 2026 |

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