iShares Strategic Metals ETF

The iShares Transition-Enabling Metals ETF (ISTM) is dedicated to investing in critical metals that facilitate the global shift towards clean energy. This passively managed fund gains exposure to these essential resources, such as copper, aluminum, silver, nickel, zinc, platinum, and cobalt – all vital for clean energy technologies – through exchange-traded futures contracts. A dedicated committee meticulously selects these commodity futures, utilizing a blend of public and private data and reports that assess each metal's contribution to the clean energy transition, alongside considerations for their market availability, listing exchange, and liquidity. The portfolio of commodity futures is reassessed at least once a year, with quarterly adjustments made to their weightings based on their liquidity and global output. To qualify as a Regulated Investment Company (RIC) rather than a commodities pool, thus allowing it to issue Form 1099s instead of Schedule K-1s, the fund manages up to 25% of its commodity exposure via a wholly-owned subsidiary located in the Cayman Islands. Furthermore, the fund may hold short-term fixed income securities to serve as collateral.