These financial statements and financial highlights are the responsibility of the Funds’ management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Funds’ financial statements and financial highlights based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Funds in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Funds are not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of their internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Funds’ internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and financial highlights, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and financial highlights. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and financial highlights. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of December 31, 2023, by correspondence with custodians or counterparties; when replies were not received, we performed other auditing procedures. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Deloitte & Touche LLP
Boston, Massachusetts
February 26, 2024
We have served as the auditor of one or more BlackRock investment companies since 1992.
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Important Tax Information
(unaudited)
The following amounts, or maximum amounts allowable by law, are hereby designated as qualified dividend income for individuals for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
| | | | |
| | |
| | | |
| |
| DSU | | $ | 67,771 | |
| BLW | | | 1,925,070 | |
| BIT | | | 367,715 | |
The Funds hereby designate the following amounts, or maximum amounts allowable by law, of distributions from direct federal obligation interest for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
| | | | |
| | |
| | | |
| |
| DSU | | $ | 8,407 | |
| FRA | | | 1,401 | |
| BKT | | | 27,062 | |
| BLW | | | 39,465 | |
| BIT | | | 7,680 | |
The law varies in each state as to whether and what percent of ordinary income dividends attributable to federal obligations is exempt from state income tax. Shareholders are advised to check with their tax advisers to determine if any portion of the dividends received is exempt from state income tax.
The following percentages, or maximum percentages allowable by law, of ordinary income distributions paid during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 qualified for the dividends-received deduction for corporate shareholders:
| | | | |
| | |
| | | |
| |
| DSU | | | 0.09 | % |
| BLW | | | 2.94 | |
| BIT | | | 4.90 | |
The Funds hereby designate the following amounts, or maximum amounts allowable by law, as interest income eligible to be treated as a Section 163(j) interest dividend for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
| | | | |
| | |
| | | |
| |
| DSU | | $ | 45,922,515 | |
| FRA | | | 43,614,658 | |
| BKT | | | 8,168,604 | |
| BLW | | | 36,547,168 | |
| BIT | | | 5,133,975 | |
The Funds hereby designate the following amounts, or maximum amounts allowable by law, as interest-related dividends eligible for exemption from U.S. withholding tax for nonresident aliens and foreign corporations for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
| | | | |
| | |
| | | |
| |
| DSU | | $ | 34,675,260 | |
| FRA | | | 33,356,933 | |
| BKT | | | 8,184,185 | |
| BLW | | | 27,670,731 | |
| BIT | | | 4,356,938 | |
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I M P O R T A N T T A X I N F O R M A T I O N | | 193 |
Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
The following information is a summary of certain changes since December 31, 2022, with respect to each Fund other than BlackRock Multi-Sector Income Trust (BIT), and since October 31, 2023, with respect to BIT (BIT changed its fiscal year end from October 31 to December 31 effective December 31, 2023). This information may not reflect all of the changes that have occurred since you purchased the relevant Fund.
During each Fund’s most recent fiscal year, there were no material changes in the Fund’s investment objectives or policies that have not been approved by shareholders or in the principal risk factors associated with investment in the Fund.
Investment Objectives and Policies
BlackRock Debt Strategies Fund, Inc. (DSU)
The Fund’s primary investment objective is to seek to provide current income by investing primarily in a diversified portfolio of U.S. companies’ debt instruments, including Corporate Loans (as defined below), which are rated in the lower rating categories of the established rating services (Baa or lower by Moody’s Investor’s Service (“Moody’s”) or BBB or lower by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”)) or unrated debt instruments which are in the judgment of BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) of equivalent quality. Such investments generally involve greater volatility of price and risks to principal and income than securities in the higher rating categories. As a secondary objective, the Fund will seek to provide capital appreciation. The Fund’s investment objectives are fundamental policies and may not be changed without the approval of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund (as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”)).
Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Fund’s total assets will be invested in debt instruments. The Fund may invest directly in debt instruments or synthetically through the use of derivatives. The Fund has no restrictions on portfolio maturity or duration of the debt securities in which it may invest.
The Fund’s investment policies permit investment in the following asset classes which are described in greater detail below: (i) senior and subordinated corporate loans, both secured and unsecured (“Corporate Loans”), issued either directly by the borrower or in the form of participation interests in Corporate Loans made by banks and other financial institutions; (ii) publicly offered and privately placed high-yield debt securities, senior and subordinated, both secured and unsecured; and (iii) convertible debt instruments and preferred stock, each of which may be converted into common stock or other securities of the same or a different issuer, and nonconvertible preferred stock. The debt securities and Corporate Loans in which the Fund invests may pay interest at fixed rates or at rates that float at a margin above a generally recognized base lending rate such as the prime rate of a designated U.S. bank, or that adjust periodically at a margin above the CD rate or LIBOR.
In connection with its investments in corporate debt securities, or restructuring of investments owned by the Fund, the Fund may receive warrants or other
non-income
producing debt or equity securities. The Fund may retain such securities until the Manager determines it is appropriate in light of current market conditions to effect a disposition of such securities.
The Fund will not invest in Corporate Loans that would require the Fund to make any additional investments in connection with its obligation to make future advances to a borrower in connection with revolving credit facilities if such commitments would exceed 20% of the Fund’s total assets or would cause the Fund to fail to meet the diversification requirements described herein.
The Fund may invest in high-yield corporate debt securities, including Corporate Loans, which are rated in the lower rating categories of the established rating services (Baa or lower by Moody’s and BBB or lower by S&P Global Ratings), or in unrated securities considered by the Manager to be of comparable quality. Securities rated below Baa or lower by Moody’s or BBB or lower by S&P and unrated securities of comparable quality, are commonly known as “junk bonds.” Securities which subsequently are downgraded may continue to be held by the Fund and will be sold only if, in the judgment of the Manager, it is advantageous to do so.
Up to 20% of the Fund’s total assets may be invested in Distressed Securities (defined below), which includes publicly offered or privately placed debt securities and Corporate Loans which, at the time of investment, are the subject of bankruptcy proceedings or otherwise in default as to the repayment of principal and/or payment of interest or are rated in the lowest rating categories (Ca or lower by Moody’s and CC or lower by S&P) or which, if unrated, are in the judgment of the Manager of equivalent quality (“Distressed Securities”). Although the Fund will invest primarily in lower-rated securities, other than with respect to Distressed Securities (which are discussed below) it will not invest in securities in the lowest rating categories (Ca or below by Moody’s and CC or below by S&P) unless the Manager believes that the financial condition of the issuer or the protection afforded to the particular securities is stronger than would otherwise be indicated by such low ratings. Securities which subsequently are downgraded may continue to be held by the Fund and will be sold only if, in the judgment of the Manager, it is advantageous to do so.
Up to 20% of the Fund’s total assets may be invested in financial instruments of issuers domiciled outside the United States or that are denominated in various foreign currencies and multinational foreign currency units, provided that the foreign issuers of any
non-U.S.
dollar denominated instruments purchased by the Fund are domiciled in a country that is a member of the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation
and Development (OECD).
Up to 20% of the Fund’s total assets can be invested in convertible debt instruments and preferred stock, each of which may be converted into common stock or other securities of the same or a different issuer, and
non-convertible
preferred stock. The types of preferred securities in which the Fund may invest include trust preferred securities.
As a result of conversions of convertible securities or upon an exchange offer or bankruptcy plan of reorganization, a significant portion of the Fund’s total assets may be invested in common stock at certain points in time.
The Fund may engage in various portfolio strategies to seek to increase its return and to hedge its portfolio against movements in interest rates or foreign currencies through the use of interest rate or foreign currency swap transactions, the purchase of call and put options on securities, the sale of covered call and put options on its portfolio securities and transactions in financial futures and related options on such futures. There can be no assurance that the Fund will employ these strategies or that, if employed, they will be effective.
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
(continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies
(continued)
The Fund may make short sales of securities, provided that the market value of all securities sold short does not exceed 10% of its total assets. The Fund may make short sales both as a form of hedging to offset potential declines in long positions in similar securities and in order to seek to enhance return. The Fund’s obligation to replace the borrowed security will be secured by collateral deposited with the broker dealer, usually cash, U.S. government securities or other liquid securities similar to those borrowed. The Fund also will be required to segregate similar collateral with its custodian or designate such collateral on its books and records to the extent, if any, necessary so that the value of both collateral amounts in the aggregate is at all times equal to at least 100% of the current market value of the security sold short. The Fund also may make short sales “against the box.” Short sales “against the box” are not subject to the foregoing 10% limitation.
Subject to other investment restrictions applicable to the Fund, up to 10% of the Fund’s assets may be invested in debt instruments, including Corporate Loans, of investment companies (which may or may not be registered under the Investment Company Act) whose portfolio securities consist entirely of (i) corporate debt or equity securities acceptable to the Manager or (ii) money market instruments.
The Fund has no limitation on the amount of its investments that are not readily marketable or are subject to restrictions on resale.
The Fund currently utilizes leverage for investment purposes in the form of a bank credit facility. The Fund generally will not utilize leverage if it anticipates that the Fund’s leveraged capital structure would result in a lower return to common stockholders than that obtainable if the common stock were unleveraged for any significant amount of time. At times, the Fund could utilize leverage through borrowings, including the issuance of short term debt securities, the issuance of shares of preferred stock or a combination thereof. The Fund also has the ability to utilize leverage through the issuance of shares of preferred stock. The Fund may also utilize leverage through the use of reverse repurchase agreements.
The Fund may enter into derivative securities transactions that have leverage embedded in them.
The Fund may also borrow money as a temporary measure for extraordinary or emergency purposes, including the payment of dividends and the settlement of securities transactions which may otherwise require untimely dispositions of Fund securities. The Fund at times may borrow from affiliates of the Manager, provided that the terms of such borrowings are no less favorable than those available from comparable sources of funds in the marketplace.
There can be no assurance that the Fund will borrow in order to leverage its assets or, if it does, what percentage of the Fund’s assets such borrowings will represent. The Fund does not currently anticipate issuing any preferred stock.
BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund, Inc. (FRA)
The Fund’s investment objective is to provide stockholders with high current income and such preservation of capital as is consistent with investment in a diversified, leveraged portfolio consisting primarily of floating rate debt securities and instruments (“floating rate debt securities”). The Fund’s investment objective is a fundamental policy and may not be changed without stockholder approval.
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its Managed Assets in floating rate debt securities, including floating or variable rate debt securities that pay interest at rates that adjust whenever a specified interest rate changes and/or which reset on predetermined dates (such as the last day of a month or calendar quarter). “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). The Fund invests a substantial portion of its investments in floating rate debt securities consisting of secured or unsecured senior floating rate loans that are rated below investment grade at the time of investment or, if unrated, are considered by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) or BlackRock International Limited (“BIL” and together with the Manager, the “Advisors”), the Fund’s
sub-advisor,
to be of comparable quality. Secured loans may be either wholly or partially secured at the time of investment. In addition to senior loans, floating rate debt securities may include, without limitation, instruments such as catastrophe and other event linked bonds, bank capital securities, corporate bonds, notes, money market instruments and certain types of mortgage related and other asset backed securities. Due to their floating or variable rate features, these instruments will generally pay higher levels of income in a rising interest rate environment and lower levels of income as interest rates decline. For the same reason, the market value of a floating rate debt security is generally expected to have less sensitivity to fluctuations in market interest rates than a fixed rate debt instrument, although the value of a floating rate debt security may nonetheless decline as interest rates rise and due to other factors, such as real or perceived changes in credit quality or financial condition of the issuer or borrower, volatility in the capital markets or other adverse market conditions.
The Fund may invest directly in floating rate debt securities or synthetically through the use of derivatives.
The Fund’s policy to invest, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its Managed Assets in floating rate debt securities, as described above, is a
non-fundamental
policy and may be changed by the Board of Directors of the Fund provided that stockholders are provided with at least 60 days’ prior notice of any change, unless such change was previously approved by shareholders, as required by the rules under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”).
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its total assets in securities other than floating rate debt securities, including, but not limited to, fixed rate debt securities such as convertible securities, bonds, notes, fixed rate loans and mortgage related and other asset backed securities issued on a public or private basis, collateralized debt obligations (which include collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”) and other similarly structured securities), preferred securities, commercial paper, U.S. government securities, structured notes, credit linked notes, credit linked trust certificates and other hybrid instruments.
To a limited extent, incidental to and in connection with its investment activities or pursuant to a convertible feature in a security, the Fund may acquire warrants and other debt and equity securities. The Fund may also acquire other debt and equity securities of a borrower or issuer in connection with an amendment, waiver, conversion or exchange of a senior loan or other debt security or in connection with a bankruptcy or workout of the borrower or issuer.
The Fund may invest without limit, and generally intends to invest a substantial portion of its assets, in high yield securities, including senior loans and other floating or fixed rate debt securities, that are rated below investment grade by the established rating services (Ba or lower by Moody’s Investor’s Service (“Moody’s”) or BB or lower by S&P Global
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I N V E S T M E N T O B J E C T I V E S , P O L I C I E S A N D R I S K S | | | 195 | |
Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
(continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies
(continued)
Ratings (“S&P”)) or, if unrated, are considered by the Advisors to be of comparable quality. High yield bonds commonly are referred to as “junk” bonds. The high yield securities in which the Fund invests may include credit linked notes, structured notes, credit linked trust certificates or other instruments evidencing interests in special purpose vehicles or trusts that hold interests in high yield securities. Other than with respect to Distressed Securities (which are discussed below), the high yield securities in which the Fund may invest do not include securities which, at the time of investment, are in default or the issuers of which are in bankruptcy. The Fund may also invest in investment grade securities, which are securities rated at least BBB– as determined by S&P, Baa3 as determined by Moody’s or, if unrated, determined to be of comparable quality by the Advisors.
The Fund may not invest more than 10% of its total assets (at the time of investment) in securities that are rated Caa1 or lower (if rated by Moody’s) or CCC+ or lower (if rated by S&P) by each agency rating such security or, if unrated, are considered by the Advisors to be of comparable quality or are otherwise considered to be distressed securities (“Distressed Securities”).
The Fund may invest without limitation in debt securities of issuers domiciled outside the United States. The Fund, however, will not invest more than 10% of its total assets in debt securities of issuers located in emerging market countries. Emerging market countries generally include every nation in the world (including countries that may be considered “frontier” markets) except the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and most countries located in Western Europe. The Fund will invest primarily in U.S. dollar denominated debt securities. The Fund will not invest more than 10% of its total assets in debt securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar or that do not provide for payment to the Fund in U.S. dollars, including obligations of
non-U.S.
governments and their respective subdivisions, agencies and government sponsored enterprises.
The Fund may invest in bonds of varying maturities issued by U.S. and
non-U.S.
corporations and other business or governmental entities. Bonds can be variable or fixed rate debt obligations, including bills, notes, debentures, money market instruments and similar instruments and securities. The Fund may also invest in catastrophe or other “event linked” bonds. The Fund may invest in securities of any maturity.
The Fund may invest in preferred securities, including preferred securities that may be converted into common stock or other securities of the same or a different issuer. The types of preferred securities in which the Fund may invest include trust preferred securities.
The Fund may invest in convertible securities. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred security or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock or other equity security of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund may invest without limit in illiquid securities, which are floating rate debt securities, senior loans, high yield securities and other securities that lack a secondary trading market or are otherwise considered illiquid.
The Fund currently utilizes leverage for investment purposes in the form of a bank credit facility. At times, the Fund could utilize leverage through borrowings, the issuance of short term debt securities, the issuance of shares of preferred stock or a combination thereof. The Fund also has the ability to utilize leverage through the issuance of shares of preferred stock. The Fund may also leverage through the use of reverse repurchase agreements. There can be no assurance that the Fund will borrow in order to leverage its assets or, if it does, what percentage of the Fund’s assets such borrowings will represent. The Fund does not currently anticipate issuing any preferred stock.
The Fund may enter into derivative securities transactions that have leverage embedded in them.
BlackRock Income Trust, Inc. (BKT)
The Fund’s investment objective is to manage a portfolio of high-quality securities to achieve both preservation of capital and high monthly income. The Fund will seek to distribute monthly income that is greater than that obtainable on an annualized basis by investment in United States government securities having the same maturity as the weighted average maturity of the Fund’s investments. The Fund’s portfolio is expected to consist primarily of mortgage-backed securities and, to a lesser extent, asset-backed securities.
Mortgage-backed securities are securities that directly or indirectly represent a participation in, or are secured by and payable from, mortgage loans secured by real property. There are three basic types of mortgage-backed securities: (i) those issued or guaranteed by the United States government or one of its agencies or instrumentalities, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (“GNMA”), the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”); (ii) those issued by private issuers that are collateralized by securities issued or guaranteed by the United States government or one of its agencies or instrumentalities; and (iii) those issued by private issuers and collateralized by securities without a government guarantee but usually with some form of private credit enhancement.
The Fund will invest at least 65% of its assets in mortgage-backed securities. The balance of the Fund’s assets generally will be invested in asset-backed securities, which have structural characteristics similar to mortgage-backed securities but have underlying assets that are not mortgage loans or interests in mortgage loans. The Fund may also invest in various derivative mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, such as collateralized mortgage obligations and asset-backed security residual interests and stripped mortgage-backed securities. The Fund may invest directly in securities or synthetically through the use of derivatives. In addition, for hedging purposes, the Fund may utilize a portion of its assets for certain options, futures, interest rate swaps and related transactions. For purposes of enhancing liquidity and/or preserving capital, the Fund may invest without limit in securities issued by the United States government and its agencies and instrumentalities, or repurchase agreements collateralized by such securities, certificates of deposit, time deposits or bankers’ acceptances of similar quality.
At least 80% of the Fund’s assets will be invested in securities that are (i) issued or guaranteed by the United States government or one of its agencies or instrumentalities or (ii) rated at the time of investment either AAA by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) or Aaa by Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”). Securities issued or guaranteed by the United States government or its agencies or instrumentalities are generally considered to be of the same or higher quality than privately issued securities rated AAA or Aaa.
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
(continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies
(continued)
No more than 20% of the Fund’s assets will be invested in other securities, all of which will have been determined by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) or BlackRock International Limited (“BIL” and together with the Manager, the “Advisors”), the Fund’s
sub-advisor,
to be of comparable credit quality.
The yield characteristics of mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities differ from traditional debt securities. Among the major differences are that interest and principal payments are made more frequently, usually monthly, and that principal may be prepaid at any time because the underlying mortgage loans or other assets generally may be prepaid at any time. As a result, if the Fund purchases such a security at a premium, a prepayment rate that is faster than expected will reduce yield to maturity, while a prepayment rate that is slower than expected will have the opposite effect of increasing yield to maturity. Conversely, if the Fund purchases these securities at a discount, faster than expected prepayments will increase, while slower than expected prepayments will reduce, yield to maturity. The Fund may also invest in derivative securities such as stripped mortgage-backed securities or residual interests, which generally are more sensitive to changes in prepayment and interest rates. The Advisors will seek to manage these risks (and potential benefits) by investing in a variety of such securities and through hedging techniques.
Prepayments on a pool of mortgage loans are influenced by a variety of economic, geographic, social and other factors, including changes in mortgagors’ housing needs, job transfers, unemployment, mortgagors’ net equity in the mortgaged properties and servicing decisions. Generally, however, prepayments on fixed rate mortgage loans will increase during a period of falling interest rates and decrease during a period of rising interest rates. The same factors apply to prepayments on asset-backed securities but the predominant factor in a particular case may be different than in the case of mortgage-backed securities. Accordingly, amounts available for reinvestment by the Fund are likely to be greater during a period of declining interest rates than during a period of rising interest rates.
The Fund’s yield will also be affected by the interest rates on instruments in which the Fund is able to reinvest the proceeds of payments and prepayments. Accelerated prepayments on securities purchased by the Fund at a premium also impose a risk of loss of principal because the premium may not have been fully amortized at the time the principal is repaid in full.
The Fund may borrow from time to time, at the Advisors’ discretion, for purposes of investment leverage when yields on available investments exceed interest rates and other expenses of related borrowing, or when, in the Advisors’ opinion, unusual market conditions otherwise make it advantageous for the Fund to increase its investment capacity.
The Fund may enter into derivative securities transactions that have leverage embedded in them.
The Fund may also borrow for emergency purposes, for the payment of dividends or for the clearance of transactions.
The Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements.
BlackRock Limited Duration Income Trust (BLW)
The Fund’s investment objective is to provide current income and capital appreciation. The Fund pursues its objective by investing primarily in three distinct asset classes:
| | • | | intermediate duration, investment grade corporate bonds, mortgage related securities and asset-backed securities and U.S. government and agency securities; |
| | • | | senior, secured floating rate loans made to corporate and other business entities; and |
| | • | | U.S. dollar-denominated securities of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers rated below investment grade and, to a limited extent, non-U.S. dollar denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers rated below investment grade. |
The Fund may invest directly in securities or synthetically through the use of derivatives.
BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) and the Fund’s
sub-advisers,
BlackRock International Limited (“BIL”) and BlackRock (Singapore) Limited (“BSL” and collectively with BIL and the Manager, the “Advisors”), have broad discretion to allocate the Fund’s assets among these three principal asset classes.
The Fund’s investment objective may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Fund without prior shareholder approval.
The Fund’s portfolio normally has an average portfolio duration of less than five years (including the effect of anticipated leverage), although it may be longer from time to time depending on market conditions. In comparison to maturity (which is the date on which the issuer of a debt instrument is obligated to repay the principal amount), duration is a measure of the price volatility of a debt instrument as a result in changes in market rates of interest, based on the weighted average timing of the instrument’s expected principal and interest payments. Specifically, duration measures the anticipated percentage change in net asset value that is expected for every percentage point change in interest rates. The two have an inverse relationship. Duration differs from maturity in that it takes into account a security’s yield, coupon payments and its principal payments in addition to the amount of time until the security finally matures. As the value of a security changes over time, so will its duration. Prices of securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes than securities with shorter durations. In general, a portfolio of securities with a longer duration can be expected to be more sensitive to interest rate changes than a portfolio with a shorter duration.
The Fund is intended to have a relatively low level of interest rate risk compared to investment portfolios of similar credit quality but with longer durations. Certain of the Fund’s other strategies, however, may result in an above average amount of risk and volatility or loss of principal.
The Fund may invest in corporate bonds.
The Fund anticipates that, under normal market conditions, a significant portion of its Managed Assets will be invested in securities rated below investment grade, such as those rated (Ba or lower by Moody’s Investor’s Service (“Moody’s”) or BB or lower by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”)) or securities comparably rated by other rating agencies or in unrated securities determined by the Advisors to be of comparable quality. High yield securities commonly are referred to as “junk” bonds. The Fund may invest in individual
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I N V E S T M E N T O B J E C T I V E S , P O L I C I E S A N D R I S K S | | | 197 | |
Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
(continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies
(continued)
securities of any credit quality. “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes).
The Fund may also invest in investment grade securities, which are securities rated at least BBB– as determined by S&P, Baa3 as determined by Moody’s or, if unrated, determined to be of comparable quality by the Advisors. When the Advisors believe it to be in the best interests of the Fund’s shareholders, the Fund will reduce its investment in lower grade securities and, in certain market conditions, the Fund may invest none of its assets in lower grade securities.
The Fund may invest without limitation in U.S. dollar denominated securities of
non-U.S.
issuers and, to a limited extent,
non-U.S.
dollar-denominated securities of
non-U.S.
issuers
(“Non-U.S.
Securities”), including up to 20% of its Managed Assets in issuers located in emerging market countries. The Fund can hold no more than 10% of its Managed Assets in
non-U.S.
dollar-denominated
Non-U.S.
Securities.
Non-U.S.
Securities may include debt securities issued by foreign governments and other sovereign entities and debt securities issued by foreign corporations or supranational entities and securities denominated in U.S. dollars or, to a limited extent (as described above), in foreign currencies or multinational currency units. The Fund may invest in Brady Bonds and other sovereign debt of countries that have restructured their debt pursuant to the Brady Plan, which are viewed as speculative investments. The Fund may also purchase debt securities of supranational organizations such as the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community and the World Bank, which are chartered to promote economic development.
The Fund may invest in debt securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities including but not limited to: (1) U.S. Treasury obligations, which differ in their interest rates, maturities and times of issuance, such as U.S. Treasury bills (maturity of one year or less), U.S. Treasury notes (maturity of one to ten years), and U.S. Treasury bonds (generally maturities of greater than ten years), including the principal components or the interest components issued by the U.S. government under the separate trading of registered interest and principal securities program (i.e., “STRIPS”), all of which are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States; and (2) obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies or instrumentalities, including government guaranteed mortgage-related securities, some of which are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury, some of which are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. government and some of which are backed only by the credit of the issuer itself.
The Fund may invest in mortgage-related securities, which include collateralized mortgage obligations, stripped mortgage-backed securities, mortgage pass-through securities, interests in real estate mortgage investment conduits, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), including debt and preferred stock issued by REITs, as well as other real estate-related securities. The mortgage-related securities in which the Fund may invest include those with fixed, floating or variable interest rates, those with interest rates that change based on multiples of changes in a specified index of interest rates and those with interest rates that change inversely to changes in interest rates, as well as those that do not bear interest. The Fund may invest in residential and commercial mortgage-related securities issued by governmental entities and private issuers, including subordinated mortgage-related securities. The Fund will not invest more than 15% of its Managed Assets in commercial mortgage-related securities.
Asset-backed securities are a form of structured debt obligations. The securitization techniques used for asset-backed securities are similar to those used for mortgage-related securities. The collateral for these securities may include home equity loans, automobile and credit card receivables, boat loans, computer leases, airplane leases, mobile home loans, recreational vehicle loans and hospital account receivables. The Fund may invest in these and other types of asset-backed securities that may be developed in the future.
In addition to senior, secured floating rate loans made to corporate and other business entities, the Fund may also purchase unsecured loans, other floating rate debt securities, and credit-linked notes.
A senior loan is typically originated, negotiated and structured by a U.S. or foreign commercial bank, insurance company, finance company or other financial institution (the “Agent”) for a group of loan investors (“Loan Investors”). The Fund may purchase “Assignments” from the Agent or other Loan Investors. The Fund also may invest in “Participations.” Participations by the Fund in a Loan Investor’s portion of a senior loan typically will result in the Fund having a contractual relationship only with such Loan Investor, not with the borrower, whereas the Fund, as a purchaser of an Assignment, would typically succeed to all the rights and obligations under the loan agreement of the assigning Loan Investor and become a Loan Investor under the loan agreement with the same rights and obligations as the assigning Loan Investor. The Fund will only acquire Participations if the Loan Investor selling the Participation, and any other persons interpositioned between the Fund and the Loan Investor, are believed by the Advisors to be creditworthy at the time they enter into such transactions.
The Fund may also acquire equity securities or debt securities (including
non-dollar
denominated debt securities) issued in exchange for a senior loan or issued in connection with the debt restructuring or reorganization of a borrower, or if such acquisition, in the judgment of the Advisors, may enhance the value of a senior loan or would otherwise be consistent with the Fund’s investment policies.
The Fund may invest in collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”), which are structured securities backed by a diversified pool of high yield, public or private fixed income securities. Under normal market conditions, the Fund expects to invest in the lower tranches of CBOs.
The Fund may purchase and sell futures contracts, enter into various interest rate transactions such as swaps, caps, floors or collars, currency transactions such as currency forward contracts, currency futures contracts, currency swaps or options on currency or currency futures and swap contracts (including, but not limited to, credit default swaps) and may purchase and sell exchange-listed and
put and call options on securities and swap contracts, financial indices and futures contracts and use other derivative instruments or management techniques. The Fund also may purchase derivative instruments that combine features of these instruments.
The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Managed Assets in securities of other open- or
closed-end
investment companies that invest primarily in bonds of the types in which the Fund may invest directly. The Fund generally expects to invest in other investment companies either during periods when it has large amounts of uninvested cash, such as the period shortly after the Fund receives the proceeds of the offering of its common shares, or during periods when there is a shortage of attractive opportunities in the fixed income market.
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Investment Objectives, Policies and Risks
(continued)
Investment Objectives and Policies
(continued)
The Fund currently utilizes leverage for investment purposes in the form of reverse repurchase agreements. The Fund may borrow from banks and other financial institutions and may also borrow additional funds using such investment techniques as the Advisors may from time to time determine. Of these investment techniques, the Fund expects primarily to use reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls.
The Fund also has the ability to utilize leverage through the issuance of preferred shares. The Fund does not currently anticipate issuing any preferred shares.
The Fund generally will not utilize leverage if it anticipates that the Fund’s leveraged capital structure would result in a lower return to shareholders than that obtainable over time with an unleveraged capital structure. There can be no assurance that the Fund will borrow in order to leverage its assets or, if it does, what percentage of the Fund’s assets such borrowings will represent.
The Fund may enter into derivative securities transactions that have leverage embedded in them.
BlackRock Multi-Sector Income Trust (BIT)
The Fund’s primary investment objective is to seek high current income, with a secondary objective of capital appreciation. The Fund’s investment objectives may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Fund (the “Board,” and each member, a “Trustee”) without prior shareholder approval.
In investing the Fund’s assets, BlackRock Advisors, LLC, the Fund’s investment adviser (the “Manager”), and BlackRock International Limited and BlackRock (Singapore) Limited, the Fund’s
sub-advisers
(each, a
“Sub-Advisor”
and, collectively with the Manager, the “Managers”), expect to allocate capital across multiple sectors of the fixed-income securities market by evaluating portfolio risk in light of the available investment opportunities and prevailing risks in the fixed-income market, with the goal of delivering attractive risk-adjusted returns. In doing so, the Managers seek to find the appropriate balance between risk mitigation and opportunism. The Managers do not manage the Fund to a benchmark, which provides flexibility to allocate and rotate the Fund’s assets across various sectors within the fixed-income universe. This strategy seeks to provide exposure to those segments of the fixed-income market that the Managers anticipate will provide value while attempting to minimize exposure to those segments that the Managers anticipate will not provide value. If the Managers’ perception of the value of a segment of the fixed-income market or an individual security is incorrect, your investment in the Fund may lose value.
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its Managed Assets in loan and debt instruments and other investments with similar economic characteristics (collectively “fixed-income securities”). The Fund may invest directly in securities or synthetically through the use of derivatives. “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). Fixed-income securities in which the Fund may invest include:
| | • | | mortgage related securities, including mortgage-backed securities (“MBS”), which are structured debt obligations collateralized by pools of commercial mortgages (commercial mortgage-backed securities or “CMBS”) or residential mortgages (residential mortgage-backed securities or “RMBS”), including agency RMBS issued or guaranteed by U.S. federal agencies or government related guarantors and non-agency RMBS issued by commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, mortgage bankers, private mortgage insurance companies and other non-governmental issuers; collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”); Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduits (“REMICs”), including resecuritizations of REMICs; stripped mortgage-backed securities, including interest-only (“IO”) and principal-only (“PO”) classes; delegated underwriting and servicing bonds; MBS credit default swaps and other mortgage related derivative instruments; inverse floating rate instruments which are derivative interests in MBS; repurchase agreements supported by MBS; and interests in real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) that invest the majority of their assets in real property mortgages or MBS, including debt and preferred stock issued by mortgage REITs; |
