Seafarer®

Pursuing Lasting Progress in Emerging Markets®

Message to Shareholders

Dear Fellow Shareholders,

I am writing to announce three changes to the Seafarer Funds:

  1. Effective immediately after market closing on September 30, 2016, the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund will close to most new investors.
  2. The minimum initial investment for the Seafarer Funds’ Institutional Class is reduced from $100,000 to $25,000 for all accounts, effective as of August 31, 2016.
  3. Seafarer Capital Partners, the Funds’ Adviser, is reducing its management fee on Seafarer Funds net assets in excess of $1.5 billion, effective as of August 31, 2016.

Further details on the changes to the Funds are provided below. For additional information, please see the Funds’ Prospectus or contact us.

1. Effective immediately after market closing on September 30, 2016, the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund will close to most new investors.

In an effort to moderate the pace of subscriptions, the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund (SFGIX / SIGIX) will close to most new investors, effective immediately after market closing on September 30, 2016. Seafarer Capital Partners, the Adviser to the Fund, is committed to responsible practices with respect to the strategy’s size, balancing capacity constraints and shareholders’ interests. The Fund is closing to most new investors in order to ensure the strategy remains at a manageable size in prevailing market conditions, and to preserve ongoing access for existing clients.

Seafarer currently estimates that the capacity limit of the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund is approximately $4 billion in net assets. Above this limit, the Fund will likely seek to restrict subscriptions from existing clients. Please note this capacity constraint is only an estimate, and Seafarer reserves the right to revise this estimate upward or downward in the future.

As of September 30, 2016, the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund will be available for purchase only by the following investors:

  • Existing shareholders of the Fund;
  • Financial advisers, consultants and discretionary programs with existing clients in the Fund (i.e., they can continue to add new clients in the Fund);
  • Retirement plans or platforms with participants who currently invest in the Fund;
  • Model-based programs with existing accounts in the Fund; and
  • Employees of Seafarer and their families.

Please note the following regarding the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund’s closure to most new investors effective September 30:

  • If you have purchased the Fund through an intermediary (e.g. a broker or a dealer), your eligibility to purchase the Fund based on the criteria listed above may be constrained by restrictions imposed by that intermediary. If such restrictions exist, the Fund may not be able to accommodate your purchase, even if you meet one of the criteria listed above.
  • If you close your account in the Fund due to redemption or exchange, you will no longer be able to make additional investments in the Fund.
  • The Fund reserves the right to make exceptions to any action taken to close the Fund, or limit inflows into the Fund, and delegates such authority to Seafarer.
  • In the event that the capacity constraints of the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income strategy are alleviated in the future, the Fund may re-open to new investors.

2. The minimum initial investment for the Seafarer Funds’ Institutional Class is reduced from $100,000 to $25,000 for all accounts, effective as of August 31, 2016.

The reduction in the minimum initial investment for the Institutional Class applies to both the Seafarer Overseas Growth and Income Fund (SIGIX) and the Seafarer Overseas Value Fund (SIVLX). The change is effective as of August 31, 2016.

Please note: If you purchase a Fund through an intermediary (e.g., a broker or a dealer), that intermediary may require a different investment minimum for each share class (i.e., a minimum higher than that stated in the Funds’ Prospectus).

As before, for each Fund, investors generally may meet the investment minimum for the Institutional Class by aggregating multiple accounts within the Fund. If a shareholder invests in the Fund through a financial adviser or intermediary, the investment minimum for the Institutional Class may be met if that financial adviser or intermediary aggregates investments of multiple clients to meet the minimum.

The minimum initial investment for the Funds’ Investor Class ($2,500) and the minimum investment for subsequent purchases ($100) are unchanged.

Share class transfers: Investor Class shareholders who meet the new, lower Institutional Class investment minimum ($25,000) can transfer to the Institutional Class of the same Fund. A share class transfer is generally not considered a taxable transaction. The Funds do not impose fees for such transfers.  To request a share class transfer, call Shareholder Services at (855) 732-9220. Please note: Investor Class shareholders who meet the new, lower Institutional Class investment minimum ($25,000) will not be automatically transferred to the Institutional Class. A share class transfer is processed only at the request of the shareholder. For more information, see the “Share Class Transfers” section of the Funds’ Prospectus.

Also, please note: the Funds cannot process a share class transfer for a Fund position that is held through an intermediary (e.g., a broker or a dealer). Intermediaries may restrict share class transfers, or they may impose fees on such transfers.

Institutional Class Waiver Program: A waiver of the Institutional Class investment minimum is available to shareholders who sign up for an Automatic Investment Plan (AIP).  

3. Seafarer Capital Partners, the Funds’ Adviser, is reducing its management fee on Seafarer Funds net assets in excess of $1.5 billion, effective as of August 31, 2016.

Consistent with Seafarer’s stated objective of reducing Fund expenses for shareholders over time and with scale, the Adviser is lowering its management fee by 0.05%, from 0.75% to 0.70%, on Seafarer Funds net assets in excess of $1.5 billion.1 Please note that the management fee is a component of each Fund’s total operating expenses. This change is effective as of August 31, 2016.

If you have questions about the changes to the Seafarer Funds, please contact us.

Thank you for entrusting us with your capital. We are honored to serve as your investment adviser in the developing world.

Sincerely,

Michelle Foster,
  1. The Seafarer Funds, in the aggregate, pay the Adviser an annual management fee of 0.75% of the aggregate average daily net assets of the Funds up to $1.5 billion and 0.70% of the aggregate average daily net assets of the Funds over $1.5 billion. Each Fund shall pay to the Adviser a monthly fee at the annual rate using the applicable management fee calculated based on the Fund’s pro rata share of the Funds’ average daily net assets.