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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM
|
QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
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For the quarterly period ended
|
or |
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TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
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For the transition period from to |
Commission File Number:
iShares ® Silver Trust
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
|
|
(State or other jurisdiction of
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(I.R.S. Employer
|
c/o iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC
Attn: Product Management Team
iShares Product Research & Development
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
(
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
N/A
(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class |
Trading Symbol(s) |
Name of each exchange on which registered |
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|
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Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
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Accelerated filer ☐ |
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Non-accelerated filer ☐ |
Smaller reporting company
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Emerging growth company
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If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes
As of April 30, 2021, the Registrant had
PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1. Financial Statements
iShares ® Silver Trust
Statements of Assets and Liabilities (Unaudited)
At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020
March 31,
|
December 31,
|
|||||||
Assets |
||||||||
Investment in silver bullion, at fair value (a) |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Total Assets |
|
|
||||||
Liabilities |
||||||||
Sponsor’s fees payable |
|
|
||||||
Total Liabilities |
|
|
||||||
Commitments and contingent liabilities (Note 6) |
— | — | ||||||
Net Assets |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Shares issued and outstanding (b) |
|
|
||||||
Net asset value per Share (Note 2C) |
$ |
|
$ |
|
(a) |
Cost of investment in silver bullion: $11,937,644,776 and $10,472,474,303, respectively. |
(b) |
No par value, unlimited amount authorized. |
See notes to financial statements.
Statements of Operations (Unaudited)
For the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020
Three Months Ended
|
||||||||
2021 |
2020 |
|||||||
Expenses |
||||||||
Sponsor’s fees |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Total expenses |
|
|
||||||
Net investment loss |
(
|
) |
(
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) | ||||
Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss) |
||||||||
Net realized gain (loss) from: |
||||||||
Silver bullion sold to pay expenses |
|
|
||||||
Silver bullion distributed for the redemption of Shares |
|
(
|
) | |||||
Net realized gain (loss) |
|
(
|
) | |||||
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net realized and unrealized loss |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net decrease in net assets per Share (a) |
$ |
(
|
) | $ |
(
|
) |
(a) |
Net decrease in net assets per Share based on average shares outstanding during the period. |
See notes to financial statements.
Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Unaudited)
For the three months ended March 31, 2021
Three Months Ended
|
||||
Net Assets at December 31, 2020 |
$ |
|
||
Operations: |
||||
Net investment loss |
(
|
) | ||
Net realized gain |
|
|||
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation |
(
|
) | ||
Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations |
(
|
) | ||
Capital Share Transactions: |
||||
Contributions for Shares issued |
|
|||
Distributions for Shares redeemed |
(
|
) | ||
Net increase in net assets from capital share transactions |
|
|||
Decrease in net assets |
(
|
) | ||
Net Assets at March 31, 2021 |
$ |
|
||
Shares issued and redeemed |
||||
Shares issued |
|
|||
Shares redeemed |
(
|
) | ||
Net increase in Shares issued and outstanding |
|
See notes to financial statements.
iShares ® Silver Trust
Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Unaudited)
For the three months ended March 31, 2020
Three Months Ended | ||||
March 31, 2020 |
||||
Net Assets at December 31, 2019 |
$ |
|
||
Operations: |
||||
Net investment loss |
(
|
) | ||
Net realized loss |
(
|
) | ||
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation |
(
|
) | ||
Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations |
(
|
) | ||
Capital Share Transactions: |
||||
Contributions for Shares issued |
|
|||
Distributions for Shares redeemed |
(
|
) | ||
Net increase in net assets from capital share transactions |
|
|||
Decrease in net assets |
(
|
) | ||
Net Assets at March 31, 2020 |
$ |
|
||
Shares issued and redeemed |
||||
Shares issued |
|
|||
Shares redeemed |
(
|
) | ||
Net increase in Shares issued and outstanding |
|
See notes to financial statements.
Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)
For the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020
Three Months Ended
|
||||||||
2021 |
2020 |
|||||||
Cash Flows from Operating Activities |
||||||||
Proceeds from silver bullion sold to pay expenses |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Expenses – Sponsor’s fees paid |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net cash provided by operating activities |
|
|
||||||
Increase (decrease) in cash |
|
|
||||||
Cash, beginning of period |
|
|
||||||
Cash, end of period |
$ |
|
$ | — | ||||
Reconciliation of Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations to Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Operating Activities |
||||||||
Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations |
$ |
(
|
) | $ |
(
|
) | ||
Adjustments to reconcile net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting from operations to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities: |
||||||||
Proceeds from silver bullion sold to pay expenses |
|
|
||||||
Net realized (gain) loss |
(
|
) |
|
|||||
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation |
|
|
||||||
Change in operating assets and liabilities: |
||||||||
Sponsor’s fees payable |
|
(
|
) | |||||
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Supplemental disclosure of non-cash information: |
||||||||
Silver bullion contributed for Shares issued |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Silver bullion distributed for Shares redeemed |
$ |
(
|
) | $ |
(
|
) |
See notes to financial statements.
Schedules of Investments (Unaudited)
At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020
March 31, 2021 |
Description |
Ounces |
Cost |
Fair Value |
|||||||||
Silver bullion |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
|||||||
Total Investments – 100.05 % |
|
|||||||||||
Less Liabilities – (0.05) % |
(
|
) | ||||||||||
Net Assets – 100.00 % |
$ |
|
December 31, 2020 |
Description |
Ounces |
Cost |
Fair Value |
|||||||||
Silver bullion |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
|||||||
Total Investments – 100.04 % |
|
|||||||||||
Less Liabilities – (0.04) % |
(
|
) | ||||||||||
Net Assets – 100.00 % |
$ |
|
See notes to financial statements.
Notes to Financial Statements (Unaudited)
March 31, 2021
1 - |
Organization |
The iShares Silver Trust (the “Trust”) was organized on April 21, 2006 as a New York trust. The trustee is The Bank of New York Mellon (the “Trustee”), which is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Trust. The Trust’s sponsor is iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”). The Trust is governed by the provisions of the Second Amended and Restated Depositary Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”) executed by the Trustee and the Sponsor as of December 22, 2016. The Trust issues units of beneficial interest (“Shares”) representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net assets.
The Trust seeks to reflect generally the performance of the price of silver. The Trust seeks to reflect such performance before payment of the Trust’s expenses and liabilities. The Trust is designed to provide a vehicle for investors to make an investment similar to an investment in silver.
The accompanying unaudited financial statements were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions for Form 10 -Q and the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). In the opinion of management, all material adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair statement of the interim period financial statements, have been made. Interim period results are not necessarily indicative of results for a full-year period. These financial statements and the notes thereto should be read in conjunction with the Trust’s financial statements included in its Annual Report on Form 10 -K for the year ended December 31, 2020, as filed with the SEC on March 1, 2021.
The Trust qualifies as an investment company solely for accounting purposes and not for any other purpose and follows the accounting and reporting guidance under the Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946, Financial Services - Investment Companies, but is not registered, and is not required to be registered, as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.
2 - |
Significant Accounting Policies |
|
A. |
Basis of Accounting |
The following significant accounting policies are consistently followed by the Trust in the preparation of its financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Certain statements and captions in the financial statements for the prior periods have been changed to conform to the current financial statement presentation.
|
B. |
Silver Bullion |
JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., London branch (the “Custodian”), is responsible for the safekeeping of silver bullion owned by the Trust.
Fair value of the silver bullion held by the Trust is based on the price per ounce of silver determined in an electronic auction consisting of one or more 30‑second rounds hosted by ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) that begins at 12:00 p.m. (London time) and published shortly thereafter on each day that the London silver market is open for business (such price, the “LBMA Silver Price”). If there is no announced LBMA Silver Price on any day, the Trustee is authorized to use the most recently announced LBMA Silver Price unless the Trustee, in consultation with the Sponsor, determines that such price is inappropriate as a basis for evaluation.
Gain or loss on sales of silver bullion is calculated on a trade date basis using the average cost method.
The following tables summarize activity in silver bullion for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020:
Three Months Ended March 31, 2021 |
Ounces |
Cost |
Fair Value |
Realized
|
||||||||||||
Beginning balance |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ | — | |||||||||
Silver bullion contributed |
|
|
|
— | ||||||||||||
Silver bullion distributed |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
|
|||||||||
Silver bullion sold to pay expenses |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
|
|||||||||
Net realized gain |
— | — |
|
— | ||||||||||||
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation |
— | — |
(
|
) | — | |||||||||||
Ending balance |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Three Months Ended March 31, 2020 |
Ounces |
Cost |
Fair Value |
Realized Gain (Loss) |
||||||||||||
Beginning balance |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ | — | |||||||||
Silver bullion contributed |
|
|
|
— | ||||||||||||
Silver bullion distributed |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||||||
Silver bullion sold to pay expenses |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) |
|
|||||||||
Net realized loss |
— | — |
(
|
) | — | |||||||||||
Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation |
— | — |
(
|
) | — | |||||||||||
Ending balance |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
(
|
) |
C. |
Calculation of Net Asset Value |
On each business day, as soon as practicable after 4:00 p.m. (New York time), the net asset value of the Trust is obtained by subtracting all accrued fees, expenses and other liabilities of the Trust from the fair value of the silver and other assets held by the Trust. The Trustee computes the net asset value per Share by dividing the net asset value of the Trust by the number of Shares outstanding on the date the computation is made.
|
D. |
Offering of the Shares |
Trust Shares are issued and redeemed continuously in aggregations of
The per Share amount of silver exchanged for a purchase or redemption represents the per Share amount of silver held by the Trust, after giving effect to its liabilities.
When silver bullion is exchanged in settlement of a redemption, it is considered a sale of silver bullion for accounting purposes.
E. |
Federal Income Taxes |
The Trust is treated as a grantor trust for federal income tax purposes and, therefore, no provision for federal income taxes is required. Any interest, expenses, gains and losses are passed through to the holders of Shares of the Trust.
The Sponsor has analyzed applicable tax laws and regulations and their application to the Trust as of March 31, 2021 and does not believe that there are any uncertain tax positions that require recognition of a tax liability.
3 - |
Trust Expenses |
The Trust pays to the Sponsor a Sponsor’s fee that accrues daily at an annualized rate equal to
4 - |
Related Parties |
The Sponsor and the Trustee are considered to be related parties to the Trust. The Trustee’s fee is paid by the Sponsor and is not a separate expense of the Trust.
5 - |
Indemnification |
The Trust Agreement provides that the Trustee shall indemnify the Sponsor, its directors, employees and agents against, and hold each of them harmless from, any loss, liability, cost, expense or judgment (including reasonable fees and expenses of counsel) (i) caused by the negligence or bad faith of the Trustee or (ii) arising out of any information furnished in writing to the Sponsor by the Trustee expressly for use in the registration statement, or any amendment thereto or periodic or other report filed with the SEC relating to the Shares that is not materially altered by the Sponsor.
The Trust Agreement provides that the Sponsor and its shareholders, directors, officers, employees, affiliates (as such term is defined under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended) and subsidiaries shall be indemnified from the Trust and held harmless against any loss, liability or expense incurred without their ( 1 ) negligence, bad faith, willful misconduct or willful malfeasance arising out of or in connection with the performance of their obligations under the Trust Agreement or any actions taken in accordance with the provisions of the Trust Agreement or ( 2 ) reckless disregard of their obligations and duties under the Trust Agreement.
The Trust has agreed that the Custodian will only be responsible for any loss or damage suffered by the Trust as a direct result of the Custodian’s negligence, fraud or willful default in the performance of its duties.
6 - |
Commitments and Contingent Liabilities |
In the normal course of business, the Trust may enter into contracts with service providers that contain general indemnification clauses. The Trust’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown as this would involve future claims that may be made against the Trust that have not yet occurred.
7 - |
Concentration Risk |
Substantially all of the Trust’s assets are holdings of silver bullion, which creates a concentration risk associated with fluctuations in the price of silver. Accordingly, a decline in the price of silver will have an adverse effect on the value of the Shares of the Trust. Factors that may have the effect of causing a decline in the price of silver include a change in economic conditions (such as a recession); a significant increase in the hedging activities of silver producers; significant changes in the attitude of speculators, investors and other market participants towards silver; global silver supply and demand; global or regional political, economic or financial events and situations; investors’ expectations with respect to the rate of inflation; interest rates; investment and trading activities of hedge funds and commodity funds; other economic variables such as income growth, economic output, and monetary policies; and investor confidence.
8 - |
Financial Highlights |
The following financial highlights relate to investment performance and operations for a Share outstanding for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020.
Three Months Ended
|
||||||||
2021 |
2020 |
|||||||
Net asset value per Share, beginning of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Net investment loss (a) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net realized and unrealized loss (b) |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net decrease in net assets from operations |
(
|
) |
(
|
) | ||||
Net asset value per Share, end of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
||||
Total return, at net asset value (c)(d) |
(
|
)% |
(
|
)% | ||||
Ratio to average net assets: |
||||||||
Net investment loss (e) |
(
|
)% |
(
|
)% | ||||
Expenses (e) |
|
% |
|
% |
(a) |
Based on average Shares outstanding during the period. |
(b) |
The amounts reported for a Share outstanding may not accord with the change in aggregate gains and losses on investment for the period due to the timing of Trust Share transactions in relation to the fluctuating fair values of the Trust’s underlying investment. |
(c) |
Based on the change in net asset value of a Share during the period. |
(d) |
Percentage is not annualized. |
(e) |
Percentage is annualized. |
9 - |
Investment Valuation |
U.S. GAAP defines fair value as the price the Trust would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The Trust’s policy is to value its investment at fair value.
Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of assets and liabilities. Inputs may be based on independent market data (“observable inputs”) or they may be internally developed (“unobservable inputs”). These inputs are categorized into a disclosure hierarchy consisting of three broad levels for financial reporting purposes. The level of a value determined for an asset or liability within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of any input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are as follows:
Level 1 − |
Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities; |
Level 2 − |
Inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability either directly or indirectly, including quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not considered to be active, inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability, and inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data by correlation or other means; and |
Level 3 − |
Unobservable inputs that are unobservable for the asset or liability, including the Trust’s assumptions used in determining the fair value of investments. |
At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the value of the silver bullion held by the Trust is categorized as Level 1.
Item 2. Management ’ s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.
This information should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes to financial statements included in Item 1 of Part I of this Form 10‑Q. The discussion and analysis that follows may contain statements that relate to future events or future performance. In some cases, such forward looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “ may, ” “ should, ” “ could, ” “ expect, ” “ plan, ” “ anticipate, ” “ believe, ” “ estimate, ” “ predict, ” “ potential ” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions. Actual events or results may differ materially. These statements are based upon certain assumptions and analyses made by the Sponsor on the basis of its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Whether or not actual results and developments will conform to the Sponsor ’ s expectations and predictions, however, is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including the special considerations discussed below, general economic, market and business conditions, changes in laws or regulations, including those concerning taxes, made by governmental authorities or regulatory bodies, and other world economic and political developments. Although the Sponsor does not make forward-looking statements unless it believes it has a reasonable basis for doing so, the Sponsor cannot guarantee their accuracy. Except as required by applicable disclosure laws, neither the Trust nor the Sponsor is under a duty to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform such statements to actual results or to a change in the Sponsor ’ s expectations or predictions.
Introduction
The iShares Silver Trust (the “Trust”) is a grantor trust formed under the laws of the State of New York. The Trust does not have any officers, directors, or employees, and is administered by The Bank of New York Mellon (the “Trustee”) acting as trustee pursuant to the Second Amended and Restated Depositary Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”) between the Trustee and iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC, the sponsor of the Trust (the “Sponsor”). The Trust issues units of beneficial interest (“Shares”) representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net assets. The assets of the Trust consist primarily of silver bullion held by a custodian as an agent of the Trust responsible only to the Trustee.
The Trust is a passive investment vehicle and seeks to reflect generally the performance of the price of silver. The Trust seeks to reflect such performance before payment of the Trust’s expenses and liabilities. The Trust does not engage in any activities designed to obtain a profit from, or ameliorate losses caused by, changes in the price of silver.
The Trust issues and redeems Shares only in exchange for silver, only in aggregations of 50,000 Shares (a “Basket”) or integral multiples thereof, and only in transactions with registered broker-dealers that have previously entered into an agreement with the Sponsor and the Trustee governing the terms and conditions of such issuance (such broker-dealers, the “Authorized Participants”). A list of the current Authorized Participants is available from the Sponsor or the Trustee.
Shares of the Trust trade on NYSE Arca, Inc. under the ticker symbol SLV.
Valuation of Silver Bullion ; Computation of Net Asset Value
On each business day, as soon as practicable after 4:00 p.m. (New York time), the Trustee evaluates the silver held by the Trust and determines the net asset value of the Trust and net asset value per Share (“NAV”). The Trustee values the silver held by the Trust using the price per ounce of silver determined in an electronic auction hosted by ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) that begins at 12:00 p.m. (London time) and published shortly thereafter, on the day the valuation takes place (such price, the “LBMA Silver Price”). If there is no announced LBMA Silver Price on any day, the Trustee is authorized to use the most recently announced LBMA Silver Price unless the Trustee, in consultation with the Sponsor, determines that such price is inappropriate as a basis for evaluation. The LBMA Silver Price is used by the Trust because it is commonly used by the U.S. silver market as an indicator of the value of silver and is permitted to be used under the Trust Agreement. The use of an indicator of the value of silver bullion other than the LBMA Silver Price could result in materially different fair value pricing of the silver held by the Trust, and as such, could result in different cost or market adjustments or in different redemption value adjustments of the outstanding redeemable capital Shares. Having valued the silver held by the Trust, the Trustee then subtracts all accrued fees, expenses and other liabilities of the Trust from the total value of the silver held by the Trust and other assets of the Trust. The result is the net asset value of the Trust. The Trustee computes NAV by dividing the net asset value of the Trust by the number of Shares outstanding on the date the computation is made.
Liquidity
The Trust is not aware of any trends, demands, conditions or events that are reasonably likely to result in material changes to its liquidity needs. In exchange for a fee, the Sponsor has agreed to assume most of the expenses incurred by the Trust. As a result, the only ordinary expense of the Trust during the period covered by this report was the Sponsor’s fee. The Trust’s only source of liquidity is its sales of silver.
Critical Accounting Policies
The financial statements and accompanying notes are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America. The preparation of these financial statements relies on estimates and assumptions that impact the Trust’s financial position and results of operations. These estimates and assumptions affect the Trust’s application of accounting policies. A description of the valuation of silver bullion, a critical accounting policy that the Trust believes is important to understanding its results of operations and financial position, is provided in the section entitled “Valuation of Silver Bullion; Computation of Net Asset Value” above. In addition, please refer to Note 2 to the financial statements included in this report for further discussion of the Trust’s accounting policies.
Results of Operations
The Quarter Ended March 31, 2021
The Trust’s net asset value fell from $14,791,792,720 at December 31, 2020 to $13,796,532,456 at March 31, 2021, a 6.73% decrease. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value resulted primarily from a decrease in the LBMA Silver Price, which fell 9.40% from $26.49 at December 31, 2020 to $24.00 at March 31, 2021. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value was partially offset by an increase in the number of outstanding Shares, which rose from 600,950,000 Shares at December 31, 2020 to 619,300,000 Shares at March 31, 2021, a consequence of 176,700,000 Shares (3,534 Baskets) being created and 158,350,000 Shares (3,167 Baskets) being redeemed during the quarter.
The 9.47% decrease in the Trust’s NAV from $24.61 at December 31, 2020 to $22.28 at March 31, 2021 is directly related to the 9.40% decrease in the price of silver.
The Trust’s NAV decreased slightly more than the price of silver on a percentage basis due to the Sponsor’s fees, which were $19,286,631 for the quarter, or 0.12% of the Trust’s average weighted assets of $15,631,562,346 during the quarter. The NAV of $27.48 on February 1, 2021 was the highest during the quarter, compared with a low during the quarter of $22.28 on March 31, 2021.
Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2021 was $1,585,307,592, resulting from an unrealized loss on investment in silver bullion of $2,459,779,533, a net realized gain of $888,549,245 on silver distributed for the redemption of Shares, a net realized gain of $5,209,327 from silver bullion sold to pay expenses, and a net investment loss of $19,286,631. Other than the Sponsor’s fees of $19,286,631, the Trust had no expenses during the quarter.
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.
Not applicable.
Item 4. Controls and Procedures.
The duly authorized officers of the Sponsor performing functions equivalent to those a principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Trust would perform if the Trust had any officers, with the participation of the Trustee, have evaluated the effectiveness of the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures, and have concluded that the disclosure controls and procedures of the Trust were effective as of the end of the period covered by this report to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in the reports that the Trust files or submits under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the applicable rules and forms, and that it is accumulated and communicated to the duly authorized officers of the Sponsor performing functions equivalent to those a principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Trust would perform if the Trust had any officers, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
There are inherent limitations to the effectiveness of any system of disclosure controls and procedures, including the possibility of human error and the circumvention or overriding of the controls and procedures.
There were no changes in the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting.
None.
There have been no material changes to the Risk Factors last reported under Part I, Item 1A of the registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 1, 2021.
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
a) None.
b) Not applicable.
c) 158,350,000 Shares (3,167 Baskets) were redeemed during the quarter ended March 31, 2021.
Period |
Total Number of Shares
|
Average Ounces of
|
||||||
01/01/21 to 01/31/21 |
33,050,000 | $ | 0.9291 | |||||
02/01/21 to 02/28/21 |
82,900,000 | 0.9289 | ||||||
03/01/21 to 03/31/21 |
42,400,000 | 0.9285 | ||||||
Total |
158,350,000 | $ | 0.9288 |
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities
None.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures.
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
Exhibit No. |
Description |
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4.1 |
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4.2 |
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10.1 |
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10.2 |
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10.3 |
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31.1 |
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31.2 |
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32.1 |
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32.2 |
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101.INS |
Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document. |
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101.SCH |
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document |
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101.CAL |
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document |
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101.DEF |
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document |
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101.LAB |
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document |
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101.PRE |
Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document |
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104 |
Cover Page Interactive Data File included as Exhibit 101 (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) |
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned in the capacities* indicated thereunto duly authorized.
iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC,
Sponsor of the iShares Silver Trust (registrant)
/s/ Paul Lohrey |
Paul Lohrey |
Director, President and Chief Executive Officer |
(Principal executive officer) |
Date: | May 4, 2021 |
/s/ Mary Cronin |
Mary Cronin |
Director and Chief Financial Officer |
(Principal financial and accounting officer) |
Date: | May 4, 2021 |
* |
The registrant is a trust and the persons are signing in their respective capacities as officers of iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC, the Sponsor of the registrant. |
No information found
* THE VALUE IS THE MARKET VALUE AS OF THE LAST DAY OF THE QUARTER FOR WHICH THE 13F WAS FILED.
FUND | NUMBER OF SHARES | VALUE ($) | PUT OR CALL |
---|
DIRECTORS | AGE | BIO | OTHER DIRECTOR MEMBERSHIPS |
---|---|---|---|
Dr. Vandebroek has served as founder and owner of Strategic Vision Ventures, LLC, a technology consulting firm, since 2021. Previously, Dr. Vandebroek was the inaugural visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Engineering for the 2019-2020 academic year; Vice President, Emerging Technology Partnerships for IBM from 2018 to 2019; and Chief Operating Officer - IBM Research from 2017 to 2018. Prior to joining IBM, she was an executive with Xerox Corporation, where her roles included serving as Chief Technology Officer and Corporate Vice President of Xerox Corporation, President of the Xerox Innovation Group, and Chief Engineer. She was also responsible for overseeing Xerox’s global research centers, including the Palo Alto Research Center, or PARC Inc. Dr. Vandebroek currently serves on the boards of IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. and Wolters Kluwer N. V., both of which are publicly traded, as well as Inari Agriculture, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company, and formerly served on the board of Analogic Corporation. In 2021, Dr. Vandebroek was appointed an honorary Professor at KU Leuven, Belgium. Dr. Vandebroek is the Chair of the Advisory Committee of the Flanders AI Research Program and a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers. Dr. Vandebroek holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in electro-mechanical engineering from KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, and a doctoral degree in electrical engineering from Cornell University. | |||
Mr. Chapin retired from Bank of America Merrill Lynch in 2016 as Executive Vice Chairman of Global Corporate & Investment Banking, after more than thirty years in investment banking. As Executive Vice Chairman from 2010 to 2016 he was responsible for managing relationships with some of the firm’s largest clients. Mr. Chapin has worked on a broad range of financings and strategic advisory assignments totaling more than $500 billion and has been named Investment Banker of the Year by Investment Dealers’ Digest . Mr. Chapin was named Vice Chairman of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. in 2003 and was a member of the firm’s executive Operating Committee. Mr. Chapin served in a number of other senior leadership positions while at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, including having responsibility for the Global Investment Banking division and managing many of the firm’s global corporate relationships. Mr. Chapin has served since 2019 as a Senior Advisor to Rockefeller Capital Management, a leading independent, privately owned financial services firm. He is also a member of the board of directors of O-I Glass, Inc. and PHINIA, Inc., both of which are publicly traded, and until 2023 was a director of CIRCOR International, Inc. Additionally, he serves as a trustee emeritus of Lafayette College and as a director emeritus of New York’s Roundabout Theatre Company. Mr. Chapin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lafayette College and a Master of Business Administration degree from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. | |||
Dr. Singh was elected President and Chief Executive Officer of Revvity effective December 30, 2019, and appointed to our board of directors in 2019. Previously, Dr. Singh was the President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company since January 2019. Dr. Singh joined Revvity as the President of our Diagnostics business in 2014. He was elected Senior Vice President in 2016 and Executive Vice President in 2018. Prior to joining Revvity, Dr. Singh was General Manager of GE Healthcare’s Women’s Health business from 2012 to 2014, with responsibility for its mammography and bone densitometry businesses. Before that, Dr. Singh held senior executive level roles in strategy, business development and mergers & acquisitions at both GE Healthcare and Philips Healthcare. Earlier in his career, he held leadership roles of increasing responsibility at DuPont Pharmaceuticals and subsequently at Bristol-Myers Squibb Medical Imaging, which included managing the Asia Pacific and Middle East region. | |||
Dr. Barrett joined Atlas Venture, an early-stage life sciences venture capital fund, in 2002 and is a partner in the life sciences group, where he has been involved in the creation of several therapeutic and drug discovery platform companies. Previously, he was a co-founder, Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer of Celera Genomics which in 2001 announced the first successful sequencing of the human genome. Prior to that, Dr. Barrett held several senior management positions at The Perkin-Elmer Corporation, most recently serving as Vice President, Corporate Planning and Business Development, where he operated several businesses and helped to greatly expand its life sciences portfolio through a series of licensing agreements, partnerships and acquisitions. He currently serves as the Chairman of Synlogic, Inc., which is publicly traded, and is a board member of privately held Obsidian Therapeutics, Inc. Dr. Barrett is also an executive fellow at the Harvard Business School and is the chair of the key advisory board of the Blavatnik Fellowship program. Dr. Barrett previously served on the board of Larimar Therapeutics, Inc., a publicly traded company, until 2023. In addition, Dr. Barrett is a board member of Nucleate, a student run non-profit organization representing the global community of bio-innovators. Dr. Barrett received his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Lowell Technological Institute (now known as the University of Massachusetts, Lowell) and his doctoral degree in analytical chemistry from Northeastern University. | |||
Ms. Witz has served as the President of PWH Advisors, a consultancy firm advising healthcare and investment companies, since founding the firm in 2016. Previously, Ms. Witz served as a Member of the Executive Committee for Sanofi, S. A., most recently as Executive Vice President, Global Diabetes & Cardiovascular, and previously as Executive Vice President, Global Pharma and Consumer Healthcare divisions. Before joining Sanofi, Ms. Witz served as President and Chief Executive Officer of GE’s pharmaceutical diagnostics, a $2 billion integrated pharmaceutical business that encompassed research and development through commercialization. Previously Ms. Witz served with GE Healthcare, where she held positions of increasing responsibility in Europe and the United States. Before joining GE Healthcare, Ms. Witz was previously employed with Becton Dickinson Pharmaceutical Systems. Ms. Witz currently serves on the boards of publicly traded companies Fresenius Medical Care AG and Regulus Therapeutics, Inc., as well as several privately held companies. Ms. Witz formerly served on the boards of publicly traded Horizon Therapeutics plc until 2023, Savencia SA until 2018, and Tesaro, Inc. until 2019. Ms. Witz received her Master of Business Administration degree from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France and her Master of Science degree in biochemistry from the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées, Lyon, France. She was also a doctoral student in molecular biology at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Strasbourg, France. | |||
MICHELLE MCMURRY-HEATH, MD, PhD : Age 55; Principal Occupation: Founder and Chief Executive Officer, BioTechquity Clinical. Director of Revvity since 2022. Member of the compensation and benefits committee. | |||
MICHEL VOUNATSOS : Age 63; Principal Occupation: Former Chief Executive Officer of Biogen Inc. Director of Revvity since 2020. Chair of the nominating and corporate governance committee and member of the audit committee. | |||
Mr. Klobuchar joined Eikon Therapeutics in 2024, and oversees the company’s corporate infrastructure, including global supply chain management and product manufacturing. Mr. Klobuchar is a member of Eikon’s Executive Committee and manages key executives across a variety of functional areas and business operations. Prior to joining Eikon, Mr. Klobuchar had been associated with Merck & Co., Inc., a premier research-intensive global biopharmaceutical company, for over 25 years, most recently serving from 2021 to 2024 as Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, and from 2019 to 2021 as Senior Vice President, CFO and Head of Portfolio and Alliance Management for Merck Research Laboratories. Prior to that, Mr. Klobuchar held a variety of positions of increasing responsibility in Merck’s research, manufacturing, commercial planning, finance and strategy organizations, including leading key elements related to the integration of Merck Research Laboratories with Schering-Plough R&D following the merger of the two companies. Mr. Klobuchar received his Master of Business Administration degree from Villanova University, a Master of Science degree in chemical engineering from Rutgers University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Purdue University. | |||
FRANK WITNEY, PhD : Age 71; Principal Occupation: Former Chief Executive Officer, Affymetrix, Inc., a leading provider of microarray technology; Director of Revvity since 2016. Member of the compensation and benefits and nominating and corporate governance committees. | |||
Mr. Michas is the founder and has been Managing Partner of Juniper Investment Company, LLC since 2008. Juniper is also a Principal of Aetolian Investors, LLC, a registered commodity pool operator. Mr. Michas received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College and a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School. Mr. Michas is the Non-Executive Chairman of the board of BorgWarner Inc. and a board member of AstroNova, Inc., both of which are publicly traded. Mr. Michas is also a director of funds managed by Atlantic Investment Management, Inc., a privately held investment company, as well as a board member of privately held Theragenics Corporation. Mr. Michas also served as the Non-Executive Chairman of the board of Lincoln Educational Services Corporation until 2015, and as a director of Allied Motion Technologies, Inc. until July 2017. |
Name and Principal Position |
Year |
Salary
($) |
Bonus
($) |
Stock
Awards ($) |
Option
Awards ($) |
Non-Equity
Incentive Plan Compensation ($) |
All Other
Compensation ($) |
Total ($) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prahlad R. Singh Chief Executive Officer |
2024 | $ | 1,100,000 | — | $ | 4,125,038 | $ | 4,116,298 | $ | 2,530,440 | $ | 54,839 | $ | 11,926,615 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2023 | $ | 1,086,539 | — | $ | 5,775,022 | $ | 1,921,023 | $ | 315,563 | $ | 32,477 | $ | 9,130,624 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2022 | $ | 1,050,000 | — | $ | 5,512,467 | $ | 1,836,460 | $ | 2,152,763 | $ | 25,309 | $ | 10,576,998 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Maxwell Krakowiak Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
|
2024 | $ | 507,692 | — | $ | 1,050,013 | $ | 1,047,775 | $ | 615,038 | $ | 25,168 | $ | 3,245,686 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2023 | $ | 500,000 | — | $ | 1,468,779 | $ | 654,938 | $ | 111,563 | $ | 19,548 | $ | 2,754,828 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2022 | $ | 365,124 | $ | 50,000 | $ | 324,899 | $ | 324,955 | $ | 383,210 | $ | 16,250 | $ | 1,464,439 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Joel S. Goldberg Senior Vice President, Administration, General Counsel and Secretary
|
2024 | $ | 550,000 | — | $ | 1,031,208 | $ | 1,029,084 | $ | 732,188 | $ | 39,086 | $ | 3,381,566 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2023 | $ | 547,308 | — | $ | 1,443,756 | $ | 480,244 | $ | 122,719 | $ | 50,715 | $ | 2,644,742 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2022 | $ | 538,115 | — | $ | 1,214,971 | $ | 404,768 | $ | 703,688 | $ | 44,015 | $ | 2,905,558 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Miriame Victor Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer
|
2024 | $ | 467,692 | — | $ | 727,508 | $ | 725,981 | $ | 530,299 | $ | 26,166 | $ | 2,477,646 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2023 | $ | 447,077 | — | $ | 862,557 | $ | 286,903 | $ | 83,870 | $ | 24,450 | $ | 1,704,856 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tajinder S. Vohra Senior Vice President Global Operations
|
2024 | $ | 475,000 | — | $ | 653,115 | $ | 651,738 | $ | 504,189 | $ | 25,311 | $ | 2,309,353 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2023 | $ | 470,962 | — | $ | 890,613 | $ | 296,287 | $ | 79,943 | $ | 23,170 | $ | 1,760,975 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2022 | $ | 451,923 | — | $ | 689,905 | $ | 229,892 | $ | 452,695 | $ | 22,623 | $ | 1,847,038 |
Customers
Customer name | Ticker |
---|---|
State Street Corporation | STT |
No Suppliers Found
Price
Yield
Owner | Position | Direct Shares | Indirect Shares |
---|---|---|---|
Singh Prahlad R. | - | 90,195 | 37,163 |
Singh Prahlad R. | - | 83,016 | 25,088 |
MICHAS ALEXIS P | - | 58,203 | 500 |
Goldberg Joel S | - | 33,400 | 63,709 |
Goldberg Joel S | - | 27,319 | 63,709 |
Vohra Tajinder S | - | 22,625 | 0 |
Witney Frank | - | 18,662 | 0 |
Witz Pascale | - | 13,705 | 0 |
Tereau Daniel R | - | 11,611 | 0 |
Krakowiak Maxwell | - | 7,202 | 0 |
Victor Miriame | - | 6,960 | 0 |
Gonzales Anita | - | 4,522 | 0 |
Okun Andrew | - | 4,356 | 8 |
Gonzales Anita | - | 3,859 | 0 |
McMurry-Heath Michelle | - | 3,021 | 0 |
Vandebroek Sophie V. | - | 481 | 0 |