2020 PROSPECTUS - BLACKROCK
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Table of Contents
JULY 31, 2020
(as revised August 17, 2020)
2020 Prospectus
iShares Trust
• iShares Emerging Markets Infrastructure ETF | EMIF | NASDAQ
Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities
and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), paper copies of the Fund’s shareholder reports
will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the
reports from your financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer or bank. Instead,
the reports will be made available on a website, and you will be notified by mail each
time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.
If you already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be
affected by this change and you need not take any action. If you hold accounts
through a financial intermediary, you may contact your financial intermediary to
enroll in electronic delivery. Please note that not all financial intermediaries may offer
this service.
You may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. If you hold
accounts through a financial intermediary, you can follow the instructions included
with this disclosure, if applicable, or contact your financial intermediary to request
that you continue to receive paper copies of your shareholder reports. Please note
that not all financial intermediaries may offer this service. Your election to receive
reports in paper will apply to all funds held with your financial intermediary.
The SEC has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the
adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Fund Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . S-1
More Information About the Fund . . . . . . . . 1
A Further Discussion of Principal Risks . . 2
A Further Discussion of Other Risks . . . . . . 20
Portfolio Holdings Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Shareholder Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Financial Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Index Provider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Disclaimers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
The “S&P Emerging Markets Infrastructure IndexTM” is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC or its affiliates
(“SPDJI”), and has been licensed for use by BlackRock Fund Advisors or its affiliates. Standard & Poor’s® and
S&P® are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC (“S&P”); Dow Jones® is a
registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC (“Dow Jones”); iShares® and BlackRock® are
registered trademarks of BlackRock Fund Advisors and its affiliates; and these trademarks have been licensed
for use by SPDJI and sublicensed for certain purposes by iShares Trust. The Fund is not sponsored, endorsed,
sold or promoted by SPDJI, Dow Jones, S&P or their respective affiliates, and none of such parties makes any
representation regarding the advisability of investing in such product(s); nor do they have any liability for any
errors, omissions, or interruptions of the S&P Emerging Markets Infrastructure Index.
iTable of Contents
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iSHARES® EMERGING MARKETS
INFRASTRUCTURE ETF
Ticker: EMIF Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
Investment Objective
The iShares Emerging Markets Infrastructure ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to track the
investment results of an index composed of 30 of the largest emerging market equities
in the infrastructure industry.
Fees and Expenses
The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you buy, hold
and sell shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares Trust
(the “Trust”) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (“BFA”) (the “Investment Advisory
Agreement”) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except the
management fees, interest expenses, taxes, expenses incurred with respect to the
acquisition and disposition of portfolio securities and the execution of portfolio
transactions, including brokerage commissions, distribution fees or expenses, litigation
expenses and any extraordinary expenses. The Fund may incur “Acquired Fund Fees
and Expenses.” Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses reflect the Fund’s pro rata share of
the fees and expenses incurred by investing in other investment companies. The
impact of Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses is included in the total returns of the
Fund. Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not included in the calculation of the ratio
of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of the
Fund’s prospectus (the “Prospectus”). BFA, the investment adviser to the Fund, has
contractually agreed to waive its management fees in an amount equal to the Acquired
Fund Fees and Expenses, if any, attributable to investments by the Fund in other series
of the Trust and iShares, Inc. through July 31, 2022. The contractual waiver may be
terminated prior to July 31, 2022 only upon written agreement of the Trust and BFA.
You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a
percentage of the value of your investments)1
Total Annual
Fund
Distribution Total Annual Operating
and Acquired Fund Fund Expenses
Management Service (12b-1) Other Fees Operating After
Fees Fees Expenses and Expenses2 Expenses Fee Waiver2 Fee Waiver
0.60% None None 0.00% 0.60% 0.00% 0.60%
1
The expense information in the table has been restated to reflect current fees.
2
The amount rounded to 0.00%.
S-1Table of Contents
Example. This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of
the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you
invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your
shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment
has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same.
Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your
costs would be:
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
$61 $192 $335 $750
Portfolio Turnover. The Fund may pay China, Greece, Malaysia, Mexico,
transaction costs, such as Russia, South Korea and Thailand.
commissions, when it buys and sells Companies domiciled in an emerging or
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). developed market country are eligible
A higher portfolio turnover rate may for inclusion as long as the majority of
indicate higher transaction costs and the company’s revenues are derived
may result in higher taxes when Fund from emerging market operations.
shares are held in a taxable account. Based on the methodology, constituents
These costs, which are not reflected in must have a minimum total market
the Annual Fund Operating Expenses or capitalization as of the rebalancing
in the Example, affect the Fund’s reference date of $250 million and a
performance. During the most recent minimum float adjusted market
fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover capitalization as of the rebalancing
rate was 18% of the average value of its reference date of $200 million.
portfolio. Constituents must also have a 3-month
Average Daily Value Traded of greater
Principal Investment than $1 million. The Underlying Index
Strategies may include large-, mid- or small-
The Fund seeks to track the investment capitalization companies. As of March
results of the S&P Emerging Markets 31, 2020, a significant portion of the
Infrastructure IndexTM (the “Underlying Underlying Index is represented by
Index”), which is designed to track the securities of companies in the energy,
performance of 30 of the largest industrials, infrastructure and utilities
publicly listed companies in the industries or sectors. The components
infrastructure industry in emerging of the Underlying Index are likely to
markets, as determined by S&P Dow change over time.
Jones Indices LLC (the “Index Provider” BFA uses a “passive” or indexing
or “SPDJI”). The Underlying Index approach to try to achieve the Fund’s
includes three distinct infrastructure investment objective. Unlike many
sub-sectors: energy, transportation and investment companies, the Fund does
utilities. As of March 31, 2020, the not try to “beat” the index it tracks and
Underlying Index was comprised of does not seek temporary defensive
securities of companies in the following positions when markets decline or
countries or regions: Brazil, Chilé, appear overvalued.
S-2Table of Contents
Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Underlying Index before fees and
the Fund will substantially outperform expenses of the Fund.
the Underlying Index but also may The Fund may lend securities
reduce some of the risks of active representing up to one-third of the
management, such as poor security value of the Fund’s total assets
selection. Indexing seeks to achieve (including the value of any collateral
lower costs and better after-tax received).
performance by aiming to keep portfolio
turnover low in comparison to actively The Underlying Index is a product of
managed investment companies. SPDJI, which is independent of the Fund
and BFA. The Index Provider determines
BFA uses a representative sampling the composition and relative weightings
indexing strategy to manage the Fund. of the securities in the Underlying Index
“Representative sampling” is an and publishes information regarding the
indexing strategy that involves investing market value of the Underlying Index.
in a representative sample of securities
that collectively has an investment Industry Concentration Policy. The
profile similar to that of an applicable Fund will concentrate its investments
underlying index. The securities (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total
selected are expected to have, in the assets) in a particular industry or group
aggregate, investment characteristics of industries to approximately the same
(based on factors such as market extent that the Underlying Index is
capitalization and industry weightings), concentrated. For purposes of this
fundamental characteristics (such as limitation, securities of the U.S.
return variability and yield) and liquidity government (including its agencies and
measures similar to those of an instrumentalities) and repurchase
applicable underlying index. The Fund agreements collateralized by U.S.
may or may not hold all of the securities government securities are not
in the Underlying Index. considered to be issued by members of
any industry. Because all of the
The Fund generally will invest at least securities included in the Underlying
90% of its assets in the component Index are issued by utility, energy and
securities of the Underlying Index and in transportation infrastructure
investments that have economic companies, the Fund will be
characteristics that are substantially concentrated in the infrastructure
identical to the component securities of industry.
the Underlying Index (i.e., depositary
receipts representing securities of the Summary of Principal Risks
Underlying Index) and may invest up to
As with any investment, you could lose
10% of its assets in certain futures,
all or part of your investment in the
options and swap contracts, cash and
Fund, and the Fund’s performance could
cash equivalents, including shares of
trail that of other investments. The Fund
money market funds advised by BFA or
is subject to certain risks, including the
its affiliates, as well as in securities not
principal risks noted below, any of
included in the Underlying Index, but
which may adversely affect the Fund’s
which BFA believes will help the Fund
net asset value per share (“NAV”),
track the Underlying Index. The Fund
trading price, yield, total return and
seeks to track the investment results of
S-3Table of Contents
ability to meet its investment objective. extent that the Fund’s investments are
The order of the below risk factors does concentrated in the securities and/or
not indicate the significance of any other assets of a particular issuer or
particular risk factor. issuers, country, group of countries,
Asset Class Risk. Securities and other region, market, industry, group of
assets in the Underlying Index or in the industries, sector or asset class.
Fund’s portfolio may underperform in Currency Risk. Because the Fund’s
comparison to the general financial NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the
markets, a particular financial market or Fund’s NAV could decline if the currency
other asset classes. of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund
Authorized Participant Concentration invests depreciates against the U.S.
Risk. Only an Authorized Participant (as dollar or if there are delays or limits on
defined in the Creations and repatriation of such currency. Currency
Redemptions section of this prospectus exchange rates can be very volatile and
(the “Prospectus”)) may engage in can change quickly and unpredictably.
creation or redemption transactions As a result, the Fund’s NAV may change
directly with the Fund, and none of quickly and without warning.
those Authorized Participants is Custody Risk. Less developed
obligated to engage in creation and/or securities markets are more likely to
redemption transactions. The Fund has experience problems with the clearing
a limited number of institutions that and settling of trades, as well as the
may act as Authorized Participants on holding of securities by local banks,
an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other agents and depositories.
market participants). To the extent that Cybersecurity Risk. Failures or
Authorized Participants exit the breaches of the electronic systems of
business or are unable to proceed with the Fund, the Fund’s adviser,
creation or redemption orders with distributor, the Index Provider and other
respect to the Fund and no other service providers, market makers,
Authorized Participant is able to step Authorized Participants or the issuers of
forward to create or redeem, Fund securities in which the Fund invests
shares may be more likely to trade at a have the ability to cause disruptions,
premium or discount to NAV and negatively impact the Fund’s business
possibly face trading halts or delisting. operations and/or potentially result in
Authorized Participant concentration financial losses to the Fund and its
risk may be heightened for exchange- shareholders. While the Fund has
traded funds (“ETFs”), such as the Fund, established business continuity plans
that invest in securities issued by non- and risk management systems seeking
U.S. issuers or other securities or to address system breaches or failures,
instruments that have lower trading there are inherent limitations in such
volumes. plans and systems. Furthermore, the
Concentration Risk. The Fund may be Fund cannot control the cybersecurity
susceptible to an increased risk of loss, plans and systems of the Fund’s Index
including losses due to adverse events Provider and other service providers,
that affect the Fund’s investments more market makers, Authorized Participants
than the market as a whole, to the
S-4Table of Contents
or issuers of securities in which the time to time and may not be identified
Fund invests. and corrected by the Index Provider for
Energy Sector Risk. The market value a period of time or at all, which may
of securities in the energy sector may have an adverse impact on the Fund
decline for many reasons, including, and its shareholders. Unusual market
among others, changes in energy prices, conditions may cause the Index
energy supply and demand, government Provider to postpone a scheduled
regulations and energy conservation rebalance, which could cause the
efforts. Underlying Index to vary from its normal
or expected composition.
Equity Securities Risk. Equity
securities are subject to changes in Industrials Sector Risk. Companies in
value, and their values may be more the industrials sector may be adversely
volatile than those of other asset affected by changes in the supply of and
classes. The Underlying Index is demand for products and services,
comprised of common stocks, which product obsolescence, claims for
generally subject their holders to more environmental damage or product
risks than preferred stocks and debt liability and changes in general
securities because common economic conditions, among other
stockholders’ claims are subordinated factors.
to those of holders of preferred stocks Infectious Illness Risk. An outbreak of
and debt securities upon the bankruptcy an infectious respiratory illness, COVID-
of the issuer. 19, caused by a novel coronavirus has
Geographic Risk. A natural disaster resulted in travel restrictions, disruption
could occur in a geographic region in of healthcare systems, prolonged
which the Fund invests, which could quarantines, cancellations, supply chain
adversely affect the economy or the disruptions, lower consumer demand,
business operations of companies in the layoffs, ratings downgrades, defaults
specific geographic region, causing an and other significant economic impacts.
adverse impact on the Fund’s Certain markets have experienced
investments in, or which are exposed to, temporary closures, extreme volatility,
the affected region. severe losses, reduced liquidity and
increased trading costs. These events
Index-Related Risk. There is no will have an impact on the Fund and its
guarantee that the Fund’s investment investments and could impact the
results will have a high degree of Fund’s ability to purchase or sell
correlation to those of the Underlying securities or cause elevated tracking
Index or that the Fund will achieve its error and increased premiums or
investment objective. Market discounts to the Fund’s NAV. Other
disruptions and regulatory restrictions infectious illness outbreaks in the future
could have an adverse effect on the may result in similar impacts.
Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to
the required levels in order to track the Infrastructure Industry Risk.
Underlying Index. Errors in index data, Companies in the infrastructure
index computations or the construction industry may be subject to a variety of
of the Underlying Index in accordance factors that could adversely affect their
with its methodology may occur from business or operations, including high
S-5Table of Contents
interest costs in connection with capital investment strategy may not produce
construction programs, high degrees of the intended results.
leverage, costs associated with Market Risk. The Fund could lose
governmental, environmental and other money over short periods due to short-
regulations, the level of government term market movements and over
spending on infrastructure projects, and longer periods during more prolonged
other factors. The stock prices of market downturns. Local, regional or
transportation companies may be global events such as war, acts of
affected by supply and demand for their terrorism, the spread of infectious
specific product, government illness or other public health issue,
regulation, world events and economic recessions, or other events could have a
conditions. The profitability of energy significant impact on the Fund and its
companies is related to worldwide investments and could result in
energy prices, exploration, and increased premiums or discounts to the
production spending. Utilities Fund’s NAV.
companies face intense competition,
which may have an adverse effect on Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces
their profit margins, and the rates numerous market trading risks,
charged by regulated utility companies including the potential lack of an active
are subject to review and limitation by market for Fund shares, losses from
governmental regulatory commissions. trading in secondary markets, periods of
high volatility and disruptions in the
Issuer Risk. The performance of the creation/redemption process. ANY OF
Fund depends on the performance of THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS,
individual securities to which the Fund MAY LEAD TO THE FUND’S SHARES
has exposure. Changes in the financial TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR
condition or credit rating of an issuer of DISCOUNT TO NAV.
those securities may cause the value of
the securities to decline. National Closed Market Trading Risk.
To the extent that the underlying
Large-Capitalization Companies Risk. securities and/or other assets held by
Large-capitalization companies may be the Fund trade on foreign exchanges or
less able than smaller capitalization in foreign markets that may be closed
companies to adapt to changing market when the securities exchange on which
conditions. Large-capitalization the Fund’s shares trade is open, there
companies may be more mature and are likely to be deviations between the
subject to more limited growth potential current price of such an underlying
compared with smaller capitalization security and the last quoted price for
companies. During different market the underlying security (i.e., the Fund’s
cycles, the performance of large- quote from the closed foreign market).
capitalization companies has trailed the These deviations could result in
overall performance of the broader premiums or discounts to the Fund’s
securities markets. NAV that may be greater than those
Management Risk. As the Fund will not experienced by other ETFs.
fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund
subject to the risk that BFA’s may invest a large percentage of its
assets in securities issued by or
S-6Table of Contents
representing a small number of issuers. privatizing, certain entities and
As a result, the Fund’s performance industries. Privatized entities may lose
may depend on the performance of a money or be re-nationalized.
small number of issuers. Reliance on Trading Partners Risk.
Non-U.S. Securities Risk. Investments The Fund invests in countries or regions
in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are whose economies are heavily
subject to the risks associated with dependent upon trading with key
investing in those non-U.S. markets, partners. Any reduction in this trading
such as heightened risks of inflation or may have an adverse impact on the
nationalization. The Fund may lose Fund’s investments. Through its
money due to political, economic and holdings of securities of certain issuers,
geographic events affecting issuers of the Fund is specifically exposed to U.S.
non-U.S. securities or non-U.S. Economic Risk.
markets. In addition, non-U.S. securities Risk of Investing in China.
markets may trade a small number of Investments in Chinese securities,
securities and may be unable to including certain Hong Kong-listed
respond effectively to changes in securities, subject the Fund to risks
trading volume, potentially making specific to China. Investments in certain
prompt liquidation of holdings difficult Hong Kong-listed securities may also
or impossible at times. The Fund is subject the Fund to exposure to
specifically exposed to Asian Chinese companies. China may be
Economic Risk. subject to considerable degrees of
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed economic, political and social instability.
to operational risks arising from a China is an emerging market and
number of factors, including, but not demonstrates significantly higher
limited to, human error, processing and volatility from time to time in
communication errors, errors of the comparison to developed markets. Over
Fund’s service providers, counterparties the last few decades, the Chinese
or other third-parties, failed or government has undertaken reform of
inadequate processes and technology economic and market practices and has
or systems failures. The Fund and BFA expanded the sphere of private
seek to reduce these operational risks ownership of property in China.
through controls and procedures. However, Chinese markets generally
However, these measures do not continue to experience inefficiency,
address every possible risk and may be volatility and pricing anomalies resulting
inadequate to address significant from governmental influence, a lack of
operational risks. publicly available information and/or
Passive Investment Risk. The Fund is political and social instability. Internal
not actively managed, and BFA generally social unrest or confrontations with
does not attempt to take defensive other neighboring countries, including
positions under any market conditions, military conflicts in response to such
including declining markets. events, may also disrupt economic
development in China and result in a
Privatization Risk. Some countries in greater risk of currency fluctuations,
which the Fund invests have privatized, currency non-convertibility, interest rate
or have begun the process of fluctuations and higher rates of
S-7Table of Contents
inflation. China has experienced investments based on investor
security concerns, such as terrorism protection considerations.
and strained international relations. Risk of Investing in Emerging
Additionally, China is alleged to have Markets. The Fund’s investments in
participated in state-sponsored emerging market issuers may be
cyberattacks against foreign companies subject to a greater risk of loss than
and foreign governments. Actual and investments in issuers located or
threatened responses to such activity, operating in more developed markets.
including purchasing restrictions, Emerging markets may be more likely to
sanctions, tariffs or cyberattacks on the experience inflation, political turmoil
Chinese government or Chinese and rapid changes in economic
companies, may impact China’s conditions than more developed
economy and Chinese issuers of markets. Companies in many emerging
securities in which the Fund invests. markets are not subject to the same
Incidents involving China’s or the degree of regulatory requirements,
region’s security may cause uncertainty accounting standards or auditor
in Chinese markets and may adversely oversight as companies in more
affect the Chinese economy and the developed countries, and as a result,
Fund’s investments. Export growth information about the securities in
continues to be a major driver of which the Fund invests may be less
China’s rapid economic growth. reliable or complete. Emerging markets
Reduction in spending on Chinese often have less reliable securities
products and services, institution of valuations and greater risk associated
additional tariffs or other trade barriers with custody of securities than
(including as a result of heightened developed markets. There may be
trade tensions or a trade war between significant obstacles to obtaining
China and the U.S., or in response to information necessary for investigations
actual or alleged Chinese cyber activity) into or litigation against companies and
or a downturn in any of the economies shareholders may have limited legal
of China’s key trading partners may remedies. The Fund is not actively
have an adverse impact on the Chinese managed and does not select
economy. Chinese companies, including investments based on investor
Chinese companies that are listed on protection considerations.
U.S. exchanges, are not subject to the
same degree of regulatory Risk of Investing in Russia. Investing
requirements, accounting standards or in Russian securities involves significant
auditor oversight as companies in more risks, including legal, regulatory and
developed countries, and as a result, economic risks that are specific to
information about the Chinese Russia. In addition, investing in Russian
securities in which the Fund invests may securities involves risks associated with
be less reliable or complete. There may the settlement of portfolio transactions
be significant obstacles to obtaining and loss of the Fund’s ownership rights
information necessary for investigations in its portfolio securities as a result of
into or litigation against Chinese the system of share registration and
companies and shareholders may have custody in Russia. A number of
limited legal remedies. The Fund is not jurisdictions, including the U.S., Canada
actively managed and does not select and the European Union (the “EU”),
S-8Table of Contents
have imposed economic sanctions on for the Fund and negative tax
certain Russian individuals and Russian consequences for its shareholders.
corporate entities. Additionally, Russia Structural Risk. The countries in which
is alleged to have participated in state- the Fund invests may be subject to
sponsored cyberattacks against foreign considerable degrees of economic,
companies and foreign governments. political and social instability.
Actual and threatened responses to
such activity, including purchasing Thematic Investing Risk. The Fund
restrictions, sanctions, tariffs or relies on the Index Provider for the
cyberattacks on the Russian identification of securities for inclusion
government or Russian companies, may in the Underlying Index that reflect
impact Russia’s economy and Russian themes and sub-themes and its
issuers of securities in which the Fund performance may suffer if such
invests. securities are not correctly identified or
if a theme or sub-theme develops in an
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may unexpected manner. Performance may
engage in securities lending. Securities also suffer if the stocks included in the
lending involves the risk that the Fund Underlying Index do not benefit from
may lose money because the borrower the development of such themes or sub-
of the loaned securities fails to return themes. Performance may also be
the securities in a timely manner or at impacted by the inclusion of non-theme-
all. The Fund could also lose money in relevant exposures in the Underlying
the event of a decline in the value of Index. There is no guarantee that the
collateral provided for loaned securities Underlying Index will reflect the theme
or a decline in the value of any and sub-theme exposures intended.
investments made with cash collateral.
These events could also trigger adverse Tracking Error Risk. The Fund may be
tax consequences for the Fund. subject to tracking error, which is the
divergence of the Fund’s performance
Security Risk. Some countries and from that of the Underlying Index.
regions in which the Fund invests have Tracking error may occur because of
experienced security concerns, such as differences between the securities and
terrorism and strained international other instruments held in the Fund’s
relations. Incidents involving a country’s portfolio and those included in the
or region’s security may cause Underlying Index, pricing
uncertainty in its markets and may differences (including, as applicable,
adversely affect its economy and the differences between a security’s price
Fund’s investments. at the local market close and the Fund’s
Small Fund Risk. When the Fund’s size valuation of a security at the time of
is small, the Fund may experience low calculation of the Fund’s NAV),
trading volume and wide bid/ask transaction costs incurred by the Fund,
spreads. In addition, the Fund may face the Fund’s holding of uninvested cash,
the risk of being delisted if the Fund differences in timing of the accrual of or
does not meet certain conditions of the the valuation of dividends or interest,
listing exchange. Any resulting the requirements to maintain pass-
liquidation of the Fund could cause the through tax treatment, portfolio
Fund to incur elevated transaction costs transactions carried out to minimize the
S-9Table of Contents
distribution of capital gains to Valuation Risk. The price the Fund
shareholders, acceptance of custom could receive upon the sale of a security
baskets, changes to the Underlying or other asset may differ from the
Index or the costs to the Fund of Fund’s valuation of the security or other
complying with various new or existing asset and from the value used by the
regulatory requirements. This risk may Underlying Index, particularly for
be heightened during times of increased securities or other assets that trade in
market volatility or other unusual low volume or volatile markets or that
market conditions. Tracking error also are valued using a fair value
may result because the Fund incurs fees methodology as a result of trade
and expenses, while the Underlying suspensions or for other reasons. In
Index does not. INDEX ETFs THAT addition, the value of the securities or
TRACK INDICES WITH SIGNIFICANT other assets in the Fund’s portfolio may
WEIGHT IN EMERGING MARKETS change on days or during time periods
ISSUERS MAY EXPERIENCE HIGHER when shareholders will not be able to
TRACKING ERROR THAN OTHER INDEX purchase or sell the Fund’s shares.
ETFs THAT DO NOT TRACK SUCH Authorized Participants who purchase
INDICES. or redeem Fund shares on days when
Utilities Sector Risk. The utilities the Fund is holding fair-valued securities
sector is subject to significant may receive fewer or more shares, or
government regulation and oversight. lower or higher redemption proceeds,
Deregulation, however, may subject than they would have received had the
utility companies to greater competition Fund not fair-valued securities or used a
and may reduce their profitability. different valuation methodology. The
Companies in the utilities sector may be Fund’s ability to value investments may
adversely affected due to increases in be impacted by technological issues or
fuel and operating costs, rising costs of errors by pricing services or other third-
financing capital construction and the party service providers.
cost of complying with regulations,
among other factors.
S-10Table of Contents
Performance Information
The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar
year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume
that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance
(before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the
future. Supplemental information about the Fund’s performance is shown under the
heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the
Prospectus. If BFA had not waived certain Fund fees during certain periods, the Fund’s
returns would have been lower.
Year-by-Year Returns1 (Years Ended December 31)
30%
21.30% 20.05%
18.68%
20% 15.81%
10% 3.46% 5.57%
0%
-2.11%
-10%
-12.77% -13.67% -12.99%
-20%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1
The Fund’s year-to-date return as of June 30, 2020 was -30.07%.
The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 14.67% in the
1st quarter of 2012; the worst was -24.76% in the 3rd quarter of 2011.
Updated performance information, including the Fund’s current NAV, may be obtained
by visiting our website at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-
2737) (toll free).
S-11Table of Contents
Average Annual Total Returns
(for the periods ended December 31, 2019)
One Year Five Years Ten Years
(Inception Date: 6/16/2009)
Return Before Taxes 15.81% 1.97% 3.44%
Return After Taxes on Distributions1 15.16% 1.38% 2.87%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund
Shares1 9.69% 1.47% 2.74%
S&P Emerging Markets Infrastructure IndexTM (Index
returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses, or
taxes) 16.42% 2.25% 3.62%
1
After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual
U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.
Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those
shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors
who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual
retirement accounts (“IRAs”). Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund
shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same
character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares.
As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares may exceed
Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.
S-12Table of Contents
Management Tax Information
Investment Adviser. BlackRock Fund The Fund intends to make distributions
Advisors. that may be taxable to you as ordinary
Portfolio Managers. Rachel Aguirre, income or capital gains, unless you are
Jennifer Hsui, Alan Mason, Greg Savage investing through a tax-deferred
and Amy Whitelaw (the “Portfolio arrangement such as a 401(k) plan or
Managers”) are primarily responsible for an IRA, in which case, your distributions
the day-to-day management of the generally will be taxed when withdrawn.
Fund. Each Portfolio Manager Payments to Broker-Dealers
supervises a portfolio management
team. Ms. Aguirre, Ms. Hsui, Mr. Mason,
and Other Financial
Mr. Savage and Ms. Whitelaw have been Intermediaries
Portfolio Managers of the Fund since If you purchase shares of the Fund
2018, 2012, 2016, 2009 and 2018, through a broker-dealer or other
respectively. financial intermediary (such as a bank),
BFA or other related companies may
Purchase and Sale of Fund pay the intermediary for marketing
Shares activities and presentations,
The Fund is an ETF. Individual shares of educational training programs,
the Fund may only be bought and sold in conferences, the development of
the secondary market through a broker- technology platforms and reporting
dealer. Because ETF shares trade at systems or other services related to the
market prices rather than at NAV, sale or promotion of the Fund. These
shares may trade at a price greater than payments may create a conflict of
NAV (a premium) or less than NAV (a interest by influencing the broker-dealer
discount). An investor may incur costs or other intermediary and your
attributable to the difference between salesperson to recommend the Fund
the highest price a buyer is willing to over another investment. Ask your
pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) salesperson or visit your financial
and the lowest price a seller is willing to intermediary’s website for more
accept for shares of the Fund (ask) information.
when buying or selling shares in the
secondary market (the “bid-ask
spread”).
S-13Table of Contents
[THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK]Table of Contents
More Information About the Fund
This Prospectus contains important information about investing in the Fund. Please
read this Prospectus carefully before you make any investment decisions. Additional
information regarding the Fund is available at www.iShares.com.
BFA is the investment adviser to the Fund. Shares of the Fund are listed for trading on
The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“NASDAQ”). The market price for a share of the Fund
may be different from the Fund’s most recent NAV.
ETFs are funds that trade like other publicly-traded securities. The Fund is designed to
track an index. Similar to shares of an index mutual fund, each share of the Fund
represents an ownership interest in an underlying portfolio of securities and other
instruments intended to track a market index. Unlike shares of a mutual fund, which
can be bought and redeemed from the issuing fund by all shareholders at a price based
on NAV, shares of the Fund may be purchased or redeemed directly from the Fund at
NAV solely by Authorized Participants and only in aggregations of a specified number
of shares (“Creation Units”). Also unlike shares of a mutual fund, shares of the Fund
are listed on a national securities exchange and trade in the secondary market at
market prices that change throughout the day.
The Fund invests in a particular segment of the securities markets and seeks to track
the performance of a securities index that is not representative of the market as a
whole. The Fund is designed to be used as part of broader asset allocation strategies.
Accordingly, an investment in the Fund should not constitute a complete investment
program.
An index is a financial calculation, based on a grouping of financial instruments, and is
not an investment product, while the Fund is an actual investment portfolio. The
performance of the Fund and the Underlying Index may vary for a number of reasons,
including transaction costs, non-U.S. currency valuations, asset valuations, corporate
actions (such as mergers and spin-offs), timing variances and differences between the
Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Index resulting from the Fund’s use of
representative sampling or from legal restrictions (such as diversification
requirements) that apply to the Fund but not to the Underlying Index. From time to
time, the Index Provider may make changes to the methodology or other adjustments
to the Underlying Index. Unless otherwise determined by BFA, any such change or
adjustment will be reflected in the calculation of the Underlying Index performance on
a going-forward basis after the effective date of such change or adjustment. Therefore,
the Underlying Index performance shown for periods prior to the effective date of any
such change or adjustment will generally not be recalculated or restated to reflect
such change or adjustment.
“Tracking error” is the divergence of the Fund’s performance from that of the
Underlying Index. BFA expects that, over time, the Fund’s tracking error will not exceed
5%. Because the Fund uses a representative sampling indexing strategy, it can be
expected to have a larger tracking error than if it used a replication indexing strategy.
“Replication” is an indexing strategy in which a fund invests in substantially all of the
1Table of Contents
securities in its underlying index in approximately the same proportions as in the
underlying index.
The Fund may borrow as a temporary measure for extraordinary or emergency
purposes, including to meet redemptions or to facilitate the settlement of securities or
other transactions. The Fund does not intend to borrow money in order to leverage its
portfolio.
An investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and it is not insured or guaranteed by
the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency, BFA or
any of its affiliates.
The Fund’s investment objective and the Underlying Index may be changed without
shareholder approval.
A Further Discussion of Principal Risks
The Fund is subject to various risks, including the principal risks noted below, any of
which may adversely affect the Fund’s NAV, trading price, yield, total return and ability
to meet its investment objective. You could lose all or part of your investment in the
Fund, and the Fund could underperform other investments. The order of the below risk
factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.
Asian Economic Risk. Many Asian economies have experienced rapid growth and
industrialization in recent years, but there is no assurance that this growth rate will be
maintained. Other Asian economies, however, have experienced high inflation, high
unemployment, currency devaluations and restrictions, and over-extension of credit.
Geopolitical hostility, political instability, and economic or environmental events in any
one Asian country may have a significant economic effect on the entire Asian region,
as well as on major trading partners outside Asia. Any adverse event in the Asian
markets may have a significant adverse effect on some or all of the economies of the
countries in which the Fund invests. Many Asian countries are subject to political risk,
including political instability, corruption and regional conflict with neighboring
countries. North Korea and South Korea each have substantial military capabilities,
and historical tensions between the two countries present the risk of war. Escalated
tensions involving the two countries and any outbreak of hostilities between the two
countries, or even the threat of an outbreak of hostilities, could have a severe adverse
effect on the entire Asian region. Certain Asian countries have developed increasingly
strained relationships with the U.S., and if these relations were to worsen, they could
adversely affect Asian issuers that rely on the U.S. for trade. In addition, many Asian
countries are subject to social and labor risks associated with demands for improved
political, economic and social conditions. These risks, among others, may adversely
affect the value of the Fund’s investments.
Asset Class Risk. The securities and other assets in the Underlying Index or in the
Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to other securities or indexes that
track other countries, groups of countries, regions, industries, groups of industries,
markets, asset classes or sectors. Various types of securities, currencies and indexes
may experience cycles of outperformance and underperformance in comparison to the
general financial markets depending upon a number of factors including, among other
2Table of Contents
things, inflation, interest rates, productivity, global demand for local products or
resources, and regulation and governmental controls. This may cause the Fund to
underperform other investment vehicles that invest in different asset classes.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an Authorized Participant may
engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund, and none of
those Authorized Participants is obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption
transactions. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as Authorized
Participants on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other market participants). To the
extent that Authorized Participants exit the business or are unable to proceed with
creation or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other Authorized
Participant is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units, Fund shares
may be more likely to trade at a premium or discount to NAV and possibly face trading
halts or delisting. Authorized Participant concentration risk may be heightened
because ETFs, such as the Fund, that invest in securities issued by non-U.S. issuers or
other securities or instruments that are less widely traded often involve greater
settlement and operational issues and capital costs for Authorized Participants, which
may limit the availability of Authorized Participants.
Concentration Risk. The Fund may be susceptible to an increased risk of loss,
including losses due to adverse events that affect the Fund’s investments more than
the market as a whole, to the extent that the Fund’s investments are concentrated in
the securities and/or other assets of a particular issuer or issuers, country, group of
countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The Fund
may be more adversely affected by the underperformance of those securities and/or
other assets, may experience increased price volatility and may be more susceptible to
adverse economic, market, political or regulatory occurrences affecting those
securities and/or other assets than a fund that does not concentrate its investments.
Currency Risk. Because the Fund’s NAV is determined on the basis of the U.S. dollar,
investors may lose money if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund
invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on
repatriation of such currency, even if such currency value of the Fund’s holdings in that
market increases. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change
quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the Fund’s NAV may change quickly and without
warning.
Custody Risk. Custody risk refers to the risks inherent in the process of clearing and
settling trades, as well as the holding of securities by local banks, agents and
depositories. Low trading volumes and volatile prices in less developed markets may
make trades harder to complete and settle, and governments or trade groups may
compel local agents to hold securities in designated depositories that may not be
subject to independent evaluation. Local agents are held only to the standards of care
of their local markets. In general, the less developed a country’s securities markets
are, the higher the degree of custody risk.
Cybersecurity Risk. With the increased use of technologies such as the internet to
conduct business, the Fund, Authorized Participants, service providers and the
relevant listing exchange are susceptible to operational, information security and
related “cyber” risks both directly and through their service providers. Similar types of
3Table of Contents
cybersecurity risks are also present for issuers of securities in which the Fund invests,
which could result in material adverse consequences for such issuers and may cause
the Fund’s investment in such portfolio companies to lose value. Unlike many other
types of risks faced by the Fund, these risks typically are not covered by insurance. In
general, cyber incidents can result from deliberate attacks or unintentional events.
Cyber incidents include, but are not limited to, gaining unauthorized access to digital
systems (e.g., through “hacking” or malicious software coding) for purposes of
misappropriating assets or sensitive information, corrupting data, or causing
operational disruption. Cyberattacks may also be carried out in a manner that does not
require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on
websites (i.e., efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users).
Recently, geopolitical tensions may have increased the scale and sophistication of
deliberate attacks, particularly those from nation-states or from entities with nation-
state backing.
Cybersecurity failures by or breaches of the systems of the Fund’s adviser, distributor
and other service providers (including, but not limited to, index and benchmark
providers, fund accountants, custodians, transfer agents and administrators), market
makers, Authorized Participants or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests,
have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially
resulting in: financial losses, interference with the Fund’s ability to calculate its NAV,
disclosure of confidential trading information, impediments to trading, submission of
erroneous trades or erroneous creation or redemption orders, the inability of the Fund
or its service providers to transact business, violations of applicable privacy and other
laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other
compensation costs, or additional compliance costs. In addition, cyberattacks may
render records of Fund assets and transactions, shareholder ownership of Fund
shares, and other data integral to the functioning of the Fund inaccessible or
inaccurate or incomplete. Substantial costs may be incurred by the Fund in order to
resolve or prevent cyber incidents in the future. While the Fund has established
business continuity plans in the event of, and risk management systems to prevent,
such cyber incidents, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems,
including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified and that prevention
and remediation efforts will not be successful or that cyberattacks will go undetected.
Furthermore, the Fund cannot control the cybersecurity plans and systems put in place
by service providers to the Fund, issuers in which the Fund invests, the Index Provider,
market makers or Authorized Participants. The Fund and its shareholders could be
negatively impacted as a result.
Energy Sector Risk. The success of companies in the energy sector may be cyclical
and highly dependent on energy prices. The market value of securities issued by
companies in the energy sector may decline for the following reasons, among others:
changes in the levels and volatility of global energy prices, energy supply and demand,
and capital expenditures on exploration and production of energy sources; exchange
rates, interest rates, economic conditions, and tax treatment; and energy conservation
efforts, increased competition and technological advances. Companies in this sector
may be subject to substantial government regulation and contractual fixed pricing,
which may increase the cost of doing business and limit the earnings of these
4Table of Contents
companies. A significant portion of the revenues of these companies may depend on a
relatively small number of customers, including governmental entities and utilities. As
a result, governmental budget constraints may have a material adverse effect on the
stock prices of companies in this sector. Energy companies may also operate in, or
engage in, transactions involving countries with less developed regulatory regimes or a
history of expropriation, nationalization or other adverse policies. Energy companies
also face a significant risk of liability from accidents resulting in injury or loss of life or
property, pollution or other environmental problems, equipment malfunctions or
mishandling of materials and a risk of loss from terrorism, political strife or natural
disasters. Any such event could have serious consequences for the general population
of the affected area and could have an adverse impact on the Fund’s portfolio and the
performance of the Fund. Energy companies can be significantly affected by the supply
of, and demand for, specific products (e.g., oil and natural gas) and services,
exploration and production spending, government subsidization, world events and
general economic conditions. Energy companies may have relatively high levels of debt
and may be more likely than other companies to restructure their businesses if there
are downturns in energy markets or in the global economy.
Equity Securities Risk. The Fund invests in equity securities, which are subject to
changes in value that may be attributable to market perception of a particular issuer or
to general stock market fluctuations that affect all issuers. Investments in equity
securities may be more volatile than investments in other asset classes. The
Underlying Index is comprised of common stocks, which generally subject their
holders to more risks than preferred stocks and debt securities because common
stockholders’ claims are subordinated to those of holders of preferred stocks and debt
securities upon the bankruptcy of the issuer.
Geographic Risk. Some of the companies in which the Fund invests are located in
parts of the world that have historically been prone to natural disasters, such as
earthquakes, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, droughts, floods, hurricanes or tsunamis,
and are economically sensitive to environmental events. Any such event may adversely
impact the economies of these geographic areas or business operations of companies
in these geographic areas, causing an adverse impact on the value of the Fund.
Index-Related Risk. The Fund seeks to achieve a return that corresponds generally to
the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Underlying Index as
published by the Index Provider. There is no assurance that the Index Provider or any
agents that may act on its behalf will compile the Underlying Index accurately, or that
the Underlying Index will be determined, composed or calculated accurately. While the
Index Provider provides descriptions of what the Underlying Index is designed to
achieve, neither the Index Provider nor its agents provide any warranty or accept any
liability in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of the Underlying Index or
its related data, and they do not guarantee that the Underlying Index will be in line with
the Index Provider’s methodology. BFA’s mandate as described in this Prospectus is to
manage the Fund consistently with the Underlying Index provided by the Index Provider
to BFA. BFA does not provide any warranty or guarantee against the Index Provider’s or
any agent’s errors. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the
data used to compile the Underlying Index may occur from time to time and may not
5Table of Contents
be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all,
particularly where the indices are less commonly used as benchmarks by funds or
managers. In addition, there may be heightened risks associated with the adequacy
and reliability of the information the Index Provider uses given the Fund’s exposure to
emerging markets, as certain emerging markets may have less information available or
less regulatory oversight. Such errors may negatively or positively impact the Fund and
its shareholders. For example, during a period where the Underlying Index contains
incorrect constituents, the Fund would have market exposure to such constituents and
would be underexposed to the Underlying Index’s other constituents. Shareholders
should understand that any gains from Index Provider errors will be kept by the Fund
and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from Index Provider errors will
be borne by the Fund and its shareholders.
Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled
rebalance, which could cause the Underlying Index to vary from its normal or expected
composition. The postponement of a scheduled rebalance in a time of market volatility
could mean that constituents that would otherwise be removed at rebalance due to
changes in market capitalizations, issuer credit ratings, or other reasons may remain,
causing the performance and constituents of the Underlying Index to vary from those
expected under normal conditions. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index
Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Underlying
Index due to reaching certain weighting constraints, unusual market conditions or in
order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents. When the
Underlying Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt
to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Index, any
transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be
borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. Therefore, errors and additional ad
hoc rebalances carried out by the Index Provider or its agents to the Underlying Index
may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund.
Industrials Sector Risk. The value of securities issued by companies in the industrials
sector may be adversely affected by supply and demand changes related to their
specific products or services and industrials sector products in general. The products
of manufacturing companies may face obsolescence due to rapid technological
developments and frequent new product introduction. Global events, trade disputes
and changes in government regulations, economic conditions and exchange rates may
adversely affect the performance of companies in the industrials sector. Companies in
the industrials sector may be adversely affected by liability for environmental damage
and product liability claims. The industrials sector may also be adversely affected by
changes or trends in commodity prices, which may be influenced by unpredictable
factors. Companies in the industrials sector, particularly aerospace and defense
companies, may also be adversely affected by government spending policies because
companies in this sector tend to rely to a significant extent on government demand for
their products and services.
Infectious Illness Risk. An outbreak of an infectious respiratory illness, COVID-19,
caused by a novel coronavirus that was first detected in December 2019 has spread
globally. The impact of this outbreak has adversely affected the economies of many
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