Common use of DERIVATIVE WARRANTS Clause in Contracts

DERIVATIVE WARRANTS. Time decay risk All things being equal, the value of a derivative warrant will decay over time as it approaches its expiry date. Derivative warrants should therefore not be viewed as long term investments. Volatility risk Prices of derivative warrants can increase or decrease in line with the implied volatility of underlying asset price. Investors should be aware of the underlying asset volatility. Callable Bull/Bear Contracts (CBBCs) Mandatory call risk Investors trading CBBCs should be aware of their intraday “knockout” or mandatory call feature. A CBBC will cease trading when the underlying asset value equals the mandatory call price/level as stated in the listing documents. Investors will only be entitled to the residual value of the terminated CBBC as calculated by the product issuer in accordance with the listing documents. Investors should also note that the residual value can be zero. Funding costs The issue price of a CBBC includes funding costs. Funding costs are gradually reduced over time as the CBBC moves towards expiry. The longer the duration of the CBBC, the higher the total funding costs. In the event that a CBBC is called, investors will lose the funding costs for the entire lifespan of the CBBC. Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) Market risk ETFs are typically designed to track the performance of certain indices, market sectors, or groups of assets such as stocks, bonds, or commodities. ETF managers may use different strategies to achieve this goal, but in general they do not have the discretion to take defensive positions in declining markets. Investors must be prepared to bear the risk of loss and volatility associated with the underlying index/assets. Tracking errors Tracking errors refer to the disparity in performance between an ETF and its underlying index/assets. Tracking errors can arise due to factors such as the impact of transaction fees and expenses incurred to the ETF, changes in composition of the underlying index/assets, and the ETF manager’s replication strategy. (The common replication strategies include full replication/representative sampling and synthetic replication which are discussed in more detail below.) Trading at discount or premium An ETF may be traded at a discount or premium to its Net Asset Value (NAV). This price discrepancy is caused by supply and demand factors, and may be particularly likely to emerge during periods of high market volatility and uncertainty. This phenomenon may also be observed for ETFs tracking specific markets or sectors that are subject to direct investment restrictions. Foreign exchange risk Investors trading ETFs with underlying assets not denominated in Hong Kong dollars are also exposed to exchange rate risk. Currency rate fluctuations can adversely affect the underlying asset value, also affecting the ETF price. Liquidity risk Securities Market Makers (SMMs) are Exchange Participants that provide liquidity to facilitate trading in ETFs. Although most ETFs are supported by one or more SMMs, there is no assurance that active trading will be maintained. In the event that the SMMs default or cease to fulfill their role, investors may not be able to buy or sell the product. Counterparty risk involved in ETFs with different replication strategies