The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing in a portfolio of global space companies (defined below). The Fund’s portfolio securities are selected by the Fund’s sub-adviser, VistaShares Advisors LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”). The Sub-Adviser seeks to invest the Fund’s assets to achieve returns similar to those of the BITA VistaShares Space Supercycle Index (the “Index”), which is owned, calculated, administered, and disseminated by BITA GmbH (the “Index Provider”).

The Fund, however, does not replicate the Index, as the Fund’s Sub-Adviser exercises investment discretion in constructing the Fund’s portfolio of global space companies and actively selects portfolio holdings using the Index and its methodology as an initial baseline for its securities selection. For example, the Sub-Adviser may buy or sell securities not yet included in or not yet removed from the Index and will engage in such transactions at times other than when the Index is rebalanced or reconstituted. Based on market developments or new information available to the Sub-Adviser regarding existing portfolio securities or emerging space companies (whether positive or negative), it will adjust or re-allocate portfolio holdings in a manner that deviates from the Index. The Fund may sell portfolio holdings of companies that have experienced negative changes in business circumstances or invest in companies that have recently completed an initial public offering (“IPO”) or experienced other events making them potentially attractive investment opportunities – without regard to the Index’s current composition. Accordingly, although the Fund’s returns may often be similar to that of the Index, there may be times when the Fund’s holdings and performance deviate significantly from those of the Index.

The Sub-Adviser defines a “space company” as a company that, based upon publicly available revenue data provided by the company through regulatory filings, quarterly earnings reports, company presentations and/or official earnings conference call transcripts, as well as business news reported by third parties that pertains to or analyzes a company’s revenue, derives at least 50% of its revenues from or has at least 50% of its assets invested in or has at least 50% of its assets devoted to the production, development and/or operation of (i) space access, launch, propulsion and spaceport systems, (ii) space segment systems, including spacecraft, satellites, payloads and space-qualified subsystems, (iii) ground segment infrastructure, including terminals, gateways, telemetry, tracking and command (“TT&C”) and mission operations, (iv) space networks, including satellite communications, inter-satellite links and space-based positioning, navigation and timing (“PNT”) infrastructure, and/or (v) space safety, security, reliability and space-derived data infrastructure, including space domain awareness (“SDA”)/space situational awareness (“SSA”), cybersecurity and resilience for space systems, qualification/testing services, and the downlink, processing and commercialization of space-derived datasets. The Sub-Adviser defines “supercycles” as long-term trends that disrupt current economic models through disruptive technological advancements shaping our world. The Sub-Adviser will evaluate all revenue data for accuracy.

The Sub-Adviser in constructing the Fund’s portfolio, using the Index’s components and weighting as a baseline or starting point, then utilizes both quantitative and fundamental analysis to evaluate the following factors when assessing the purchase or sale of portfolio holdings: (i) revenue exposure to space-related activities, products and services; (ii) earnings growth potential; (iii) free cash flow generation; (iv) competitive positioning; (v) valuation metrics; (vi) capital expenditure trends; and (vii) adoption and monetization opportunities within space-related market sectors. Portfolio weightings may be adjusted based on revenue growth trends, valuation opportunities, supercycle positioning, earnings revisions, or market conditions. Portfolio positions may be reduced or eliminated when the Sub-Adviser determines valuations become excessive, fundamental outlook deteriorates, competitive position weakens, revenue growth slows materially, or better risk/reward opportunities emerge elsewhere in the space company ecosystem.

Fund Attributes

The Fund is classified as “non-diversified” under the 1940 Act.

Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of the Fund’s net assets (plus borrowings for investment purposes) in space companies. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in companies that are not included in the 80% test noted above. These investments can include equity securities and depositary receipts of issuers that the Sub-Adviser would characterize as emerging space companies, based on the Sub-Adviser’s analysis of publicly available business plans and as may be further evidenced by capital expenditures, research and development efforts and business acquisitions. This 20% of the Fund’s portfolio may also be invested in cash or cash equivalents (including money market funds).

The Fund may invest in small-, medium-, and large-capitalization companies. The Fund will invest in foreign securities, including directly in securities listed on foreign exchanges (ordinary shares) and indirectly through American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). The Fund may invest in foreign securities that are located in developed and emerging markets. The Fund determines a country’s or market’s classification as a developed or emerging market based on its MSCI designation.

The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., invest more than 25% of its total assets) in the industries or groups of related industries that space companies operate within, which as of the date of this Prospectus are primarily within the aerospace and defense industry.

The BITA VistaShares Space Supercycle Index

Index Overview:

The Index is a rules-based composite index that tracks the market performance of companies, listed on global stock exchanges, that derive a meaningful portion of their revenues from building, launching, operating, or enabling the space segment, ground segment, and space-enabled data networks that underpin the modern space economy. The Index’s initial universe consists of globally listed equity securities from companies involved in at least one of the following categories:

Index Universe:

The Index’s initial universe is determined by applying the following criteria:

For more information about the types of companies that the Index tracks, see “Additional Information About the Funds” below.

The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing in a portfolio of global defense procurement supply chain companies, referred to as “defense supercycle companies” (defined below). The Fund’s portfolio securities are selected by the Fund’s sub-adviser, VistaShares Advisors LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”). The Sub-Adviser seeks to invest the Fund’s assets to achieve returns similar to those of the BITA VistaShares Defense Supercycle Index (the “Index”), which is owned, calculated, administered, and disseminated by BITA GmbH (the “Index Provider”).

The Fund, however, does not replicate the Index, as the Fund’s Sub-Adviser exercises investment discretion in constructing the Fund’s portfolio of global defense supercycle companies and actively selects portfolio holdings using the Index and its methodology as an initial baseline for its securities selection. For example, the Sub-Adviser may buy or sell securities not yet included in or not yet removed from the Index and will engage in such transactions at times other than when the Index is rebalanced or reconstituted. Based on market developments or new information available to the Sub-Adviser regarding existing portfolio securities or emerging defense companies (whether positive or negative), it will adjust or re-allocate portfolio holdings in a manner that deviates from the Index. The Fund may sell portfolio holdings of companies that have experienced negative changes in business circumstances or invest in companies that have recently completed an initial public offering (“IPO”) or experienced other events making them potentially attractive investment opportunities – without regard to the Index’s current composition. Accordingly, although the Fund’s returns may often be similar to that of the Index, there may be times when the Fund’s holdings and performance deviate significantly from those of the Index.

The Sub-Adviser defines a “defense supercycle company” as a company that, based upon publicly available revenue data provided by the company through regulatory filings, quarterly earnings reports, company presentations and/or official earnings conference call transcripts, as well as business news reported by third parties that pertains to or analyzes a company’s revenue, derives at least 50% of its revenues from or has at least 50% of its assets invested in or has at least 50% of its assets devoted to the production, development and/or operation of (i) sensors, electronic warfare systems, tactical communications, satellite communications terminals, compute and microelectronics, test and interconnect equipment, and power and energy systems used in defense applications, (ii) aircraft propulsion systems, actuation and flight controls, avionics and mission systems, aerospace structures, and advanced materials supplied to military aircraft and rotorcraft programs, (iii) naval propulsion and power systems, shipboard sensors and communications, hull materials and fabrication, and combat systems integration for military surface and subsurface vessels, (iv) guided missile components including guidance and seeker systems, solid rocket motors, energetics, warheads and propellants, conventional ammunition, precision bearings and actuation, and missile electronics and test equipment, (v) defense space systems including radiation-hardened electronics, space-qualified computing, and satellite launch and bus subsystems procured under military space programs, and/or (vi) ground vehicle systems, armor, fire control, drivetrain components, critical materials and rare earth elements, and industrial base capacity supporting defense procurement under U.S. Department of Defense Title III programs. The Sub-Adviser defines “supercycles” as long-term trends that disrupt current economic models through disruptive technological advancements shaping our world. The Sub-Adviser will evaluate all revenue data for accuracy.

The Sub-Adviser in constructing the Fund’s portfolio, using the Index’s components and weighting as a baseline or starting point, then utilizes both quantitative and fundamental analysis to evaluate the following factors when assessing the purchase or sale of portfolio holdings: (i) revenue exposure to defense-related activities, products and services; (ii) earnings growth potential; (iii) free cash flow generation; (iv) competitive positioning; (v) valuation metrics; (vi) capital expenditure trends; and (vii) adoption and monetization opportunities within defense-related market sectors. Portfolio weightings may be adjusted based on revenue growth trends, valuation opportunities, supercycle positioning, earnings revisions, or market conditions. Portfolio positions may be reduced or eliminated when the Sub-Adviser determines valuations become excessive, fundamental outlook deteriorates, competitive position weakens, revenue growth slows materially, or better risk/reward opportunities emerge elsewhere in the defense supercycle company ecosystem.

Fund Attributes

The Fund is classified as “non-diversified” under the 1940 Act.

Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of the Fund’s net assets (plus borrowings for investment purposes) in defense procurement supply chain companies. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in companies that are not included in the 80% test noted above. These investments can include equity securities and depositary receipts of issuers that are not Index constituents but that the Sub-Adviser would characterize as emerging defense procurement supply chain companies, based on the Sub-Adviser’s analysis of publicly available business plans and as may be further evidenced by capital expenditures, research and development efforts and business acquisitions. This 20% of the Fund’s portfolio may also be invested in cash or cash equivalents (including money market funds).

The Fund may invest in small-, medium-, and large-capitalization companies. The Fund will invest in foreign securities, including directly in securities listed on foreign exchanges (ordinary shares) and indirectly through American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). The Fund may invest in foreign securities that are located in developed and emerging markets. The Fund determines a country’s or market’s classification as a developed or emerging market based on its MSCI designation.

The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., invest more than 25% of its total assets) in the industries or groups of related industries that defense supercycle companies operate within, which as of the date of this Prospectus are primarily within the aerospace and defense industry. 

The BITA VistaShares Defense Supercycle Index

Index Overview:

The Index is a rules-based composite index that tracks the market performance of companies, listed on global stock exchanges, that derive a meaningful portion of their revenues from supplying components, subsystems, materials, and enabling technologies to the U.S. Department of Defense procurement supply chain, as defined by the annual DoD Procurement appropriation and its constituent P-1 appropriation lines.

Index Universe:

The Index’s initial universe consists of globally listed equity securities from companies involved in at least one of the following categories:

Index Universe:

The Index’s initial universe is determined by applying, among others, the following criteria:

For more information about the types of companies that the Index tracks, see “Additional Information About the Funds” below.