Fund mergers and share class transfers - Columbia Threadneedle UK domiciled funds

Reason for the transfers/mergers

Columbia Threadneedle are mid-way through a process to transfer the assets of investors in certain funds within their UK fund range to equivalent funds in its established Luxembourg range. This is to ensure that its EU-based investors remain invested in funds that have a UCITS* status, because Columbia Threadneedle believe it is likely that when the UK leaves the European Union UK domiciled funds will lose this status. 

The transfer process includes 20 funds from the UK-based range with the launch of 13 new funds in the Luxembourg range. 6 of the UK funds will close in their entirety whilst the remaining 14 will see the CHF, EUR and USD currency share classes transfer across, leaving the GBP currency share classes to continue to operate in its UK range. 

In the case where the new Luxembourg share classes will only launch on the merger date, this means we will not able to offer you and your clients access to the Luxembourg receiving funds until after the mergers/transfers take place.

Funds where all currency classes will be merged into a Luxembourg domiciled variant during September and October 2018. The UK funds will then be closed

• Threadneedle Credit Opportunities Fund
• Threadneedle European Corporate Bond Fund
• Threadneedle High Yield Bond Fund
• Threadneedle Pan European Equity Dividend Fund
• Threadneedle Pan European Fund
• Threadneedle Pan European Smaller Companies Fund

Funds undergoing share transfers between October and December 2018. It is planned that only CHF, EUR and USD share classes will be transferred to a Luxembourg domiciled variant (subject to shareholder approval). GBP classes in the UK range will continue to operate

• Threadneedle American Extended Alpha Fund
• Threadneedle American Fund
• Threadneedle American Select Fund
• Threadneedle American Smaller Companies Fund (US)
• Threadneedle Asia Fund
• Threadneedle Global Emerging Markets Equity Fund
• Threadneedle European Select Fund
• Threadneedle European Smaller Companies Fund
• Threadneedle Global Equity Income Fund
• Threadneedle Global Extended Alpha Fund
• Threadneedle Global Select Fund
• Threadneedle UK Absolute Alpha Fund
• Threadneedle UK Equity Income Fund
• Threadneedle UK Fund

Investors affected by any of the above changes do not need to do anything as holdings will automatically transfer to the Luxembourg variant. However, if they do not want to be merged/transferred into the Luxembourg variant they can provide us with alternative dealing/switching instructions. 

More detailed information regarding the mergers and transfers can be found in the Columbia Threadneedle notifications opposite. 

*UCITS stands for Undertaking in Collective Investments in Transferable Securities. UCITS funds can be sold to any investor within the European Union under a harmonised regulatory regime. 

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For more information about Columbia Threadneedle visit www.columbiathreadneedle.com/