INVESTMENT RISK FACTORS

Following is a discussion of the principal risks of investing in the Fund which could adversely affect the Net Asset Value, yield and total return.  Investors should read and consider the section of the Fund Prospectus entitled Risk Factors before investing in the Company.

The risks described below should not be considered to be an exhaustive list of the risks which potential investors should consider in addition to all of the information in the Fund Prospectus. Different risks may apply to different Funds and/or Classes. Potential investors should be aware that an investment in a Fund may also be exposed to normal market fluctuations and other risks from time to time.  Although care is taken to understand and manage the risks described below, the Fund and accordingly the Shareholders in the Fund will ultimately bear the risks associated with the investments of the Fund.  Potential investors should consult their professional financial and tax advisers before making an investment. The difference at any one time between the sale price (to which may be added a sales charge or commission) and the redemption price of Shares (from which may be deducted a redemption fee) means an investment should be viewed as medium to long term. The attention of potential investors is also drawn to the taxation risks associated with investing in the Company, an overview of which are set out in the Section of the Prospectus entitled "Taxation".

General Risks

An investment in a Fund is neither insured nor guaranteed by any government, government agencies or instrumentalities or any bank guarantee fund. Shares of a Fund are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank and the amount invested in Shares may fluctuate up and/or down. An investment in a Fund involves certain investment risks, including the possible loss of principal and there is no assurance that that any appreciation in the value of investments will occur or that the investment objective of a Fund will actually be achieved and results may vary substantially over time. A Fund’s investment strategy may carry considerable risks.

The Funds will be investing in assets selected by the Investment Manager in accordance with the respective investment objectives and policies of the Fund. The value of investments and the income from them, and therefore the value of and income from Shares relating to each Fund, will be closely linked to the performance of such investments. Investments made by the Investment Manager will be speculative and an investment in a Fund, therefore, involves a degree of risk.

Past performance of the Company or any Fund should not be relied upon as an indicator of future performance. The value of Shares and the income from them may go down as well as up and, accordingly, an investor maynot get back the full amount invested.

Market Risk

The value of securities may be affected by a decline in the entire market of an asset class in which investments are made thus affecting the prices and values of the assets in the Fund. Securities may decline in value due to factors affecting securities markets generally or particular industries represented in the securities markets. The value of a security may decline due to general market conditions which are not specifically related to a particular company, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. They may also decline due to factors which affect a particular industry or industries, such as labour shortages or increased production costs and competitive conditions within an industry. During a general downturn in the securities markets, multiple asset classes may decline in value simultaneously. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than fixed-income securities. In addition, some of the Regulated Markets on which a Fund may invest may be less well-regulated than those in developed markets and may prove to be illiquid, insufficiently liquid or highly volatile from time to time. This may affect the price at which a Fund may liquidate positions to meet redemption requests or other funding requirements. The higher the volatility of the market in which a Fund invests, the greater the market risk. Such markets are subject to greater fluctuations in return.

Liquidity Risk

Liquidity risk is the risk of a Fund having insufficient realizable cash, investments and borrowing capacity to fund redemption requests net of subscriptions. A Fund’s assets primarily comprise realizable securities which can be readily sold in normal market conditions. However not all securities or instruments invested in by a Fund may be listed or rated and consequently liquidity of such securities or instruments may be low. A Fund may also encounter difficulties in disposing of assets at their fair market price due to adverse market conditions. A Fund’s liabilities arise primarily through its exposure to redemption of Shares that Shareholders wish to sell. The Investment Manager endeavours to manage the Funds’ investments, including cash, to meet its liabilities.  However, investments may need to be sold if insufficient cash is available to finance such redemptions. If the size of disposals is sufficiently large, or the market is illiquid, then there is a risk that either the investments might not be sold or the price at which they are sold may adversely affect the Net Asset Value of a Fund. The Directors may, at their discretion, elect to restrict the total number of Shares redeemed in a Fund on any Dealing Day to a maximum percentage of the outstanding Shares in the Fund, in which case all requests will be scaled down pro rata to the number of Shares requested to be redeemed. The remaining balance of Shares may be redeemed on the next Dealing Day provided no such restriction is applicable.

Credit Risk

Credit risk also arises from the uncertainty surrounding the ultimate repayment of principal and interest or other investments by the issuers of such securities. There can be no assurance that the issuers of securities or other instruments in which a Fund invests will not be subject to credit difficulties leading to the loss of some or all of the sums invested in such securities or other instruments. A Fund will also be exposed to a credit risk in relation to the counterparties with whom a Fund trades and may bear the risk of settlement default. Changes in the credit quality of an issuer and/or could affect the value of a security or other instrument or a Fund’s share price.

Currency Risk

A Fund’s investments may be acquired in a wide range of currencies other than the Base Currency of the Fund.  Changes in the exchange rate between the Base Currency of the Fund and the currency of the asset may lead to a depreciation of the value of the Fund’s assets as expressed in the Base Currency. It may not be possible or practical to hedge against such exchange rate risk.

Emerging Market Risks

To the extent that a Fund invests in emerging markets, the following risks shall also apply:

The trading and settlement practices of some of the stock exchanges or markets on which a Fund may invest may not be the same as those in more developed markets, which may increase settlement risk and/or result in delays in realizing investments made by a Fund. In addition, a Fund will be exposed to credit risk on parties with whom it trades and will bear the risk of settlement default. The Custodian may be instructed by the Investment Manager to settle transactions on a delivery free of payment basis where the Investment Manager believes that this form of settlement is common market practice. Shareholders should be aware, however, that this may result in a loss to a Fund if a transaction fails to settle and the Custodian will not be liable to a Fund or to the Shareholders for such a loss.

Currency fluctuations can be severe in developing countries that have both floating or fixed exchange rate regimes. The latter can undergo sharp one-time devaluations.  Disclosure and regulatory standards may be less stringent in certain securities markets than they are in developed countries and there may be less publicly available information on the issuers than is published by or about issuers in such developed countries. Consequently some of the publicly available information may be incomplete and/or inaccurate. In some countries the legal infrastructure and accounting and reporting standards do not provide the same degree of shareholder protection or information to investors as would generally apply in many developed countries. In particular, greater reliance may be placed by the auditors on representations from the management of a company and there may be less independent verification of information than would apply in many developed countries. The valuation of assets, depreciation, exchange differences, deferred taxation, contingent liabilities and consolidation may also be treated differently from international accounting standards.

The performance of a Fund may be affected by changes in economic and market conditions, uncertainties such as political developments, changes in government policies, the imposition of restrictions on the transfer of capital and in legal, regulatory and tax requirements.

A Fund may also be exposed to risks of expropriation, nationalization and confiscation of assets and changes in legislation relating to the level of foreign ownership. Local custody services remain underdeveloped in many emerging market countries (which include amongst others Ecuador and Chile) and there is a transaction and custody risk involved in dealing in such markets. In certain circumstances a Fund may not be able to recover or may encounter delays in the recovery of some of its assets. Such circumstances may include uncertainty relating to, or the retroactive application of legislation, the imposition of exchange controls or improper registration of title. In some emerging market countries evidence of title to units is maintained in book-entry form by an independent registrar who may not be subject to effective government supervision, which increases the risk of the registration of a Fund's holdings of units in such markets being lost through fraud, negligence or mere oversight on the part of such independent registrars. The costs borne by a Fund in investing and holding investments in such markets will generally be higher than in more developed markets.

Prices of securities traded in emerging markets tend to be less liquid and more volatile.

Legal documentation entered into by the Company on behalf of the Funds may not be enforceable in certain jurisdictions.

Taxation Risk

The income and gains of a Fund from its assets may suffer withholding tax which may or may not be reclaimable in the countries where such income and gains arise. If the position changes in the future and either the application of a higher or lower rate results in an additional payment of tax or a repayment to the relevant Fund respectively, the Net Asset Value will not be re-stated and the benefit or the cost will be allocated to the existing Shareholders of the relevant Fund rateably at the time of the adjustment.

In addition, potential Applicants’ attention is drawn to the taxation risks associated with investing in the Company and in the Funds. See section headed Taxation in the Fund Prospectus.

Legal and Regulatory Risks

Legal and regulatory (including taxation) changes could adversely affect the Company. Regulation (including taxation) of investment vehicles such as the Company is still evolving and therefore subject to change. In addition, many governmental agencies, self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. In some jurisdictions the interpretation and implementation of laws and regulations and the enforcement of Shareholder’s rights under such laws and regulations may involve significant uncertainties, may not be consistent with those of other nations and may vary from region to region. Furthermore, there may be differences in accounting and auditing standards, reporting practices and disclosure requirements to those generally accepted internationally. The information provided in the Prospectus is based upon the laws and regulations as at the date of the Prospectus but it is not exhaustive and does not constitute legal or tax advice.  Laws and regulations of any country may change from time to time.  Any change in the taxation legislation in Ireland or in any jurisdiction where a Fund is registered, listed, marketed, or invested could affect the tax status of the Fund, the value of the Fund’s investments in the affected jurisdiction, the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective, and/or alter the post tax returns to Shareholders. The effect of any future legal or regulatory (including taxation) change on the Company is impossible to predict, but could be substantial and have adverse consequences on the rights and returns of Shareholders.

Valuation Risk

A Fund may invest some of its assets in illiquid and/or unquoted securities or instruments. Such investments or instruments will be valued by the Directors or their delegate in good faith as to their probable realization value as set out in this Prospectus. Such investments are inherently difficult to value and are the subject of substantial uncertainty. There is no assurance that the estimates resulting from the valuation process will reflect the actual sales or “close-out” prices of such securities.  In addition, assets in which a Fund invests may be valued on a less frequent basis than the Fund. Accordingly there is a risk that (i) the valuations of a Fund may not reflect the true value of assets held by a Fund at a specific time which could result in losses or inaccurate pricing for a Fund and/or (ii) the valuations may not be
available at the relevant Valuation Point so that some of the assets of the Fund may be valued at their probable realisation value.

Investment Manager Risk

The Administrator may seek the advice of the Investment Manager with respect to the valuation of certain investments and Shareholders should be aware of an inherent conflict of interest between the involvement of the Investment Manager in recommending the valuation price of a Fund's investment and the Investment Manager's other duties and responsibilities in relation to the Funds.

Securities of Other Investment Companies

Investing in other investment companies involves substantially the same risks as investing directly in the underlying instruments, but may involve additional expenses at the investment company-level, such as portfolio management fees and operating expenses. The Company and/or the Investment Manager will not have control over the activities of any investment company or collective investment scheme invested in by a Fund.  Administrators of collective investment schemes and companies in which a Fund may invest may manage the collective investment schemes or be managed in a manner not anticipated by the Company or the Investment Manager. 

Borrowing

If a Fund borrows money, its share price may be subject to greater fluctuation until the borrowing is paid off. If the Fund makes additional investments while borrowings are outstanding, this may be considered a form of leverage.

Leverage

Leverage may be employed as part of the investment strategy when using FDI. FDI may contain a leverage component and consequently any adverse changes in the value or level of the underlying asset can result in a loss greater than the amount invested in the FDI itself.

No Segregation of Liability

Investors should note that the Company has not adopted the principles of segregated liability and on that basis assets within a Fund are not ring-fenced from assets within another Fund of the Company. On that basis, issues could arise in circumstances where a Fund becomes insolvent and accordingly the insolvency of this Fund impacts on the other solvent Fund within the Company. As at the date of this Prospectus, the Company only has one Fund.

Risks relating to an investment in CABEI Central American Portfolio

Investors in the Fund should also be aware of the following additional risks:

Investment in the Fund could entail a certain level of price volatility.  It is therefore recommended that not more than 10% of an investor’s investment portfolio be invested in the Fund. Investments will be made primarily in markets less liquid than those found in the United States, in securities not rated by the major rating services, which could encounter transfer and foreign exchange exposure. This Fund is consequently designed for investors with a longer term investment horizon.  Potential investors' attention is drawn to the taxation risks associated with investing in any portfolio in the Company. See the section headed "Taxation" in the Fund Prospectus.

The investments of the Fund are subject to normal market fluctuations and other risks inherent in investing in securities and there can be no assurance that any appreciation in value will occur. The value of investments and the income from them and therefore the value of and income from the shares of the Fund can fall as well as rise and investors may not realize the same amount that they invest. Changes in exchange rates between currencies may also cause the value of an investment to diminish or increase.

The Company and the Investment Manager may not have control over the activities of the collective investment schemes invested in by the Fund. Managers of collective investment schemes may take undesirable tax positions, employ excessive leverage, or otherwise manage the collective investment schemes in a manner not anticipated by the Company or the Investment Manager.  While the prudent use of FDIs can be beneficial, FDIs also involve risks different from, and in certain cases greater than, the risks presented by more traditional investments.

The Fund may from time to time utilize fx forwards for hedging purposes in order to seek to protect against possible changes in the market value of the Fund's investment portfolio resulting from fluctuations in the currency exchange rates, securities markets and/or changes in interest rates or to hedge the interest rate or currency exchange rate on any of the Fund's liabilities or assets.

Counterparty Risk

The Fund will be exposed to a credit risk on the counterparties with which they trade in relation to non-exchange traded contracts such as forward exchange rate contracts. Non-exchange traded contracts are not afforded the same protections as may apply to participants trading such contracts on organized exchanges, such as the performance guarantee of an exchange clearing house. Non-exchange traded contracts are agreements specifically tailored to the needs of an individual investor which enable the user to structure precisely the date, market level and amount of a given position. The counterparty for these agreements will be the specific company or firm involved in the transaction rather than a recognized exchange and accordingly the insolvency, bankruptcy or default of a counterparty with which the Fund trades such contracts could result in substantial losses to the Fund.  If settlement never occurs the loss incurred by the Fund will be the difference between the price of the original contract and the price of the replacement contract or, in the case where the contract is not replaced, the absolute value of the contract at the time it is voided. Furthermore, in some markets ‘Delivery versus Payment’ may not be possible in which case the absolute value of the contract is at risk if the Fund meets its settlement obligations but the counterparty fails before meeting its obligations under the relevant contract.  Furthermore, if the creditworthiness of a derivative counterparty declines, the risk that the counterparty may not perform could increase, potentially resulting in a loss to the portfolio. Regardless of the measures the Fund may implement to reduce counterparty credit risk there can be no assurance that a counterparty will not default or that the Fund will not sustain losses on the transactions as a result.

OTC Markets Risk

Where the Fund acquires securities on OTC markets, there is no guarantee that the Fund will be able to realize the fair value of such securities due to their tendency to have limited liquidity and comparatively high price volatility.

Forward Trading

Forward contracts, unlike futures contracts, are not traded on exchanges and are not standardized; rather, banks and dealers act as principals in these markets, negotiating each transaction on an individual basis.  Forward and cash trading is substantially unregulated; there is no limitation on daily price movements and speculative position limits are not applicable. The principals who deal in the forward markets are not required to continue to make markets in the currencies or commodities they trade and these markets can experience periods of illiquidity, sometimes of significant duration. Market illiquidity or disruption could result in major losses to the Fund.

Interest Rate Swaps

An interest rate swap normally involves exchanging a fixed interest amount per payment period for a payment that is based on a floating rate benchmark. The notional principal of an interest rate swap is never exchanged, only the fixed and floating amounts. Where the payment dates of the two interest amounts coincide there is normally one net settlement. The market risk of this type of instrument is driven by the change in the reference benchmarks used for the fixed and floating legs. An interest rate swap is an OTC agreement between two parties and so can be tailored to the requirements of the parties involved.  Consequently each party bears the other’s credit risk and collateral is arranged to mitigate this risk.

Futures

The risk to the buyer or seller of an exchange-traded future is the change in value of the underlying reference asset. Futures contracts represent a pledge to make a certain economic transfer at a future date. The exchange of value occurs by the date specified in the contract; the majority of contracts have to be cash settled and where physical delivery is an option the underlying instrument is actually rarely exchanged. Futures are distinguished from generic forward contracts in that they contain standardized terms, trade on a formal exchange, are regulated by overseeing agencies, and are guaranteed by clearing firms. Also, in order to ensure that payment will occur, futures have both an initial margin and a margin requirement which moves in line with the market value of the underlying asset that must be settled daily.

Fixed Income Securities

Fixed income securities are subject to many risk factors, including economic conditions, government regulations, market sentiment, and local and international political events. The market value of these securities in which the Fund invests will fluctuate in response to changes in creditworthiness of the issuer, interest rates, currency values, and other economic, political and market factors. Such fluctuations may be substantial.  There is a risk that one or more issuers of securities held by the Fund may default in payment of interest and/or principal. That portion of the Fund invested in securities which are rated below investment grade, or are deemed equivalent thereto by the Investment Manager, are subject to significantly greater risk of such defaults.

As the Fund may invest more than 30% of its Net Asset Value in below investment grade securities investment in the Fund should not constitute a substantial proportion of an investment portfolio and may not be appropriate investment for all investors. Lower rated securities are considered by credit rating agencies to be speculative and to carry a high level of risk. The lower rated securities in which the Fund will invest will have a significantly greater risk of default in payments of interest, principal, or both, than the risk of default for investment grade bonds.  Issuers of below investment grade securities present a higher risk of bankruptcy or reorganization than issuers of investment grade bonds, or may have recently been in bankruptcy or reorganization proceedings.

The secondary market for lower rated securities is typically much less liquid than the market for investment grade bonds, frequently with significantly more volatile prices and larger spreads between bid and asked price in trading. The market price of lower rated securities will be affected by the bond market’s perception of credit quality and the effect of stronger or weaker economic growth as well as political developments.

The market price of lower rated securities will also be affected by general changes in interest rates (decreasing as rates rise, and increasing as rates fall) that affect the market price of all bonds, although lower rated securities may be less sensitive to interest rate changes than investment grade bonds. The below investment grade security market at times will be very illiquid. Market prices of lower rated securities may be affected by imbalances in sell and buy orders among institutional investors and dealers. In addition to credit risk and liquidity risk concerns, the market price of lower rated securities in particular may be adversely impacted by legislative or regulatory developments, such as determinations that certain categories of institutional investors must divest their below investment grade holdings, or changes in rules regarding taxation or corporate reorganizations.  The Fund may also have to sell holdings of below investment grade securities at unfavorable prices in order to raise proceeds to pay for redemptions of Shares.

Disclaimer

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Market volatility can significantly impact short-term performance. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares may be worth more or less than their original cost when redeemed. Total return figures do not reflect the impact of any applicable sales charges.