Scope of Duties Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Custodian shall be under no duty or obligation to inquire into, and shall not be liable for:
(1) The acts or omissions of any agent appointed pursuant to Instructions of the Fund or its investment advisor including, but not limited to, any broker-dealer or other entity to hold any Assets of the Fund as collateral or otherwise pursuant to any investment strategy.
(2) The title, genuineness or validity of the issue of any Securities purchased by the Series, the legality of the purchase thereof, or the propriety of the amount paid therefor;
(3) The legality of the sale of any Securities by the Series or the propriety of the amount for which the same are sold;
(4) The legality of the issue or sale of any Shares, or the sufficiency of the amount to be received therefor;
(5) The legality of the redemption of any Shares, or the propriety of the amount to be paid therefor;
(6) The legality of the declaration or payment of any distribution of the Series; or
(7) The legality of any borrowing for temporary administrative or emergency purposes.
Terms of Appointment; Duties of the Bank 1.1 Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, each Trust, on behalf of its respective Funds, hereby employs and appoints the Bank to act as, and the Bank agrees to act as, its transfer agent for the authorized and issued shares of beneficial interest, no par value per share of the Funds (“Shares”), and as the Trust’s dividend disbursing agent.
1.2 The Bank agrees that it will perform the following services:
(a) In accordance with the terms and conditions of the form of Participant Agreement, attached hereto as Exhibit A, the Bank shall:
(i) Perform and facilitate the performance of purchases and redemption of Creation Units;
(ii) Prepare and transmit by means of DTC’s book-entry system payments for dividends and distributions declared by each Trust on behalf of the applicable Fund;
(iii) Maintain the record of the name and address of the Shareholder and the number of Shares issued by each Trust and held by the Shareholder;
(iv) Record the issuance of Shares of each Trust and maintain a record of the total number of Shares of the Funds outstanding. The Bank shall have no obligation, when recording the issuance of Shares, to monitor the issuance of such Shares or to take cognizance of any laws relating to the issue or sale of such Shares, which functions shall be the sole responsibility of each Trust;
(v) Prepare and transmit to each Trust and any designated administrator and to any applicable securities exchange (as specified to the Bank by the Trust) information with respect to purchases and redemptions of Shares;
(vi) On days that the Trusts may accept orders for purchases or redemptions, calculate and transmit to the Bank and the Trust’s administrator the number of outstanding Shares for each Fund;
(vii) On days that the Trusts may accept orders for purchases or redemptions (pursuant to the Participant Agreement), transmit to the Bank, the Trusts and DTC the amount of Shares purchased on such day;
(viii) Confirm to DTC the number of Shares issued to the Shareholder, as DTC may reasonably request;
(ix) Prepare and deliver other reports, information and documents to DTC as DTC may reasonably request;
(x) Extend the voting rights to the Shareholder and/or beneficial owners of Shares in accordance with the policies and procedures of DTC for book-entry only securities;
(xi) Maintain those books and records of each Trust specified by the Trusts in Schedule A attached hereto;
(xii) Prepare a monthly report of all purchases and redemptions during such month on a gross transaction basis. The monthly report shall show the counterpart and amount of each purchase on a daily basis net number of shares either redeemed or created for such Business Day;
(xiii) Receive from the Distributor (as defined in the Participant Agreement) purchase orders from Authorized Participants (as defined in the Participant Agreement) for Creation Unit aggregations of Shares received in good form and accepted by or on behalf of each Trust by the Distributor, transmit appropriate trade instructions to the National Securities Clearance Corporation, if applicable, and pursuant to such orders issue the appropriate number of Shares of the applicable Fund and hold such Shares in the account of the Shareholder for each of the respective Funds of each Trust;
(xiv) Receive from the Authorized Participants (as defined in the Participant Agreement) redemption requests, deliver the appropriate documentation thereof to The Bank of New York as custodian for each Trust, generate and transmit or cause to be generated and transmitted confirmation of receipt of such redemption requests to the Authorized Participants submitting the same; transmit appropriate trade instructions to the National Securities Clearance Corporation, if applicable, and redeem the appropriate number of Creation Unit Aggregations of Shares held in the account of the Shareholder;
(xv) Confirm the name, U.S. taxpayer identification number and principal place of business of each Authorized Participant; and
(b) In addition to, and neither in lieu nor in contravention of, the services set forth in the above paragraph (a), the Bank shall perform the customary services of a transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent, including, but not limited to: maintaining the account of the Shareholder, obtaining a list of DTC participants holding interests in the Global Certificate at the request of a Trust, mailing proxy materials, shareholder reports and prospectuses to the Shareholder or DTC participants or beneficial owners of Shares at the request of a Trust and those services set forth on Schedule A attached hereto.
(c) The following shall be delivered to DTC for delivery to beneficial owners in accordance with the procedures for book-entry only securities of DTC:
(i) Annual and semi-annual reports of the Trusts;
(ii) Proxies, proxy statements and other proxy soliciting materials;
(iii) Prospectus and amendments and supplements to the Prospectus, including stickers; and
(iv) Other communications as may be required by law or reasonably requested by a Trust.
(d) If the Shares are represented by individual Certificates, the Bank shall perform the services agreed to in writing by the Bank and the Trusts.
(e) The Bank shall provide additional services (if any) on behalf of a Trust (i.e., escheatment services) which may be agreed upon in writing between a Trust and the Bank.
(f) The Bank shall keep records relating to the services to be performed hereunder, in the form and manner as it may deem advisable. To the extent required by Section 31 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the Rules thereunder, the Bank agrees that all such records prepared or maintained by the Bank relating to the services to be performed by the Bank hereunder are the property of each respective Trust and will be preserved, maintained and made available in accordance with such Section and Rules, and will be surrendered promptly to that Trust on and in accordance with its request.
Administrative Duties of the Servicer SECTION 10.1. ADMINISTRATIVE DUTIES.
Duties of the Servicer The Servicer is hereby authorized to act as agent for the Trust and in such capacity shall manage, service, administer and make collections on the Receivables, and perform the other actions required by the Servicer under this Agreement. The Servicer agrees that its servicing of the Receivables shall be carried out in accordance with customary and usual procedures of institutions which service motor vehicle retail installment sale contracts or promissory notes and, to the extent more exacting, the degree of skill and attention that the Servicer exercises from time to time with respect to all comparable motor vehicle receivables that it services for itself or others. In performing such duties, so long as GM Financial is the Servicer, it shall substantially comply with the Servicing Policies and Procedures. The Servicer’s duties shall include, without limitation, collecting and posting all payments, responding to inquiries of Obligors on the Receivables, investigating delinquencies, sending payment invoices to Obligors, reporting any required tax information to Obligors, monitoring the Collateral, accounting for collections and furnishing monthly and annual statements to the Trust Collateral Agent and the Trustee with respect to distributions, and performing the other duties specified herein. The Servicer, or if GM Financial is no longer the Servicer, GM Financial, at the request of the Servicer, shall also administer and enforce all rights and responsibilities of the holder of the Receivables provided for in the Dealer Agreements (and shall maintain possession of the Dealer Agreements, to the extent it is necessary to do so), the Dealer Assignments and the Insurance Policies, to the extent that such Dealer Agreements, Dealer Assignments and Insurance Policies relate to the Receivables, the Financed Vehicles or the Obligors. To the extent consistent with the standards, policies and procedures otherwise required hereby, the Servicer shall follow its customary standards, policies, and procedures and shall have full power and authority, acting alone, to do any and all things in connection with such managing, servicing, administration and collection that it may deem necessary or desirable. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Servicer is hereby authorized and empowered by the Trust to execute and deliver, on behalf of the Trust, any and all instruments of satisfaction or cancellation, or of partial or full release or discharge, and all other comparable instruments, with respect to the Receivables and with respect to the Financed Vehicles; provided, however, that notwithstanding the foregoing, the Servicer shall not, except pursuant to an order from a court of competent jurisdiction, release an Obligor from payment of any unpaid amount under any Receivable or waive the right to collect the unpaid balance of any Receivable from the Obligor, except in accordance with the Servicer’s customary practices. The Servicer is hereby authorized to commence, in its own name or in the name of the Trust, a legal proceeding to enforce a Receivable pursuant to Section 4.3 or to commence or participate in any other legal proceeding (including, without limitation, a bankruptcy proceeding) relating to or involving a Receivable, an Obligor or a Financed Vehicle. If the Servicer commences or participates in such a legal proceeding in its own name, the Trust shall thereupon be deemed to have automatically assigned such Receivable to the Servicer solely for purposes of commencing or participating in any such proceeding as a party or claimant, and the Servicer is authorized and empowered by the Trust to execute and deliver in the Servicer’s name any notices, demands, claims, complaints, responses, affidavits or other documents or instruments in connection with any such proceeding. The Trust Collateral Agent and the Owner Trustee shall furnish the Servicer with any limited powers of attorney and other documents which the Servicer may reasonably request and which the Servicer deems necessary or appropriate and take any other steps which the Servicer may deem necessary or appropriate to enable the Servicer to carry out its servicing and administrative duties under this Agreement. As set forth in Section 9.3, in the event the Servicer fails to perform its obligations hereunder, the successor Servicer shall be responsible for the Servicer’s duties in this Agreement as if it were the Servicer, provided that the successor Servicer shall not be liable for the Servicer’s breach of its obligations.
Other Duties of OFI GLOBAL OFI GLOBAL shall, at its own expense, provide and supervise the activities of all administrative and clerical personnel as shall be required to provide effective corporate administration for the Fund, including the compilation and maintenance of such records with respect to its operations as may reasonably be required; the preparation and filing of such reports with respect thereto as shall be required by the Commission; composition of periodic reports with respect to its operations for the shareholders of the Fund; composition of proxy materials for meetings of the Fund’s shareholders and the composition of such registration statements as may be required by federal securities laws for continuous public sale of shares of the Fund. OFI GLOBAL shall, at its own cost and expense, also provide the Fund with adequate office space, facilities and equipment.
Acceptance and Performance of Duties under Serviced Appointments With respect to each Serviced Appointment of Xxxxx Bank, the Bank Assets Purchaser hereby accepts its engagement as Servicer and agrees to perform and discharge all Serviced Duties consistent with the terms hereof. With respect to each Serviced Appointment of Xxxxx Trust Company, the Delaware Trust Assets Purchaser (or the Bank Assets Purchaser, if required by Section 3.3) hereby accepts its engagement as Servicer and agrees to perform and discharge all Serviced Duties consistent with the terms hereof. On the terms and subject to the conditions set forth herein, including Article 8, effective as of the Closing, the Purchasers agree to discharge and perform when due the Assumed Servicing Liabilities.
Services and Duties of USBFS USBFS shall provide the following transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent services to the Fund:
A. Receive and process all orders for the purchase, exchange, transfer, and/or redemption of Fund shares in accordance with Rule 22c-1 under the 1940 Act, other applicable regulations, and as specified in the Fund's prospectus (the "Prospectus”).
B. Process purchase and redemption orders with prompt delivery, where appropriate, of payment and supporting documentation to the shareholder based on the shareholder’s or the Trust’s custodian instructions, and record the appropriate number of shares being held in the appropriate shareholder account.
C. Process redemption requests received in good order and, where relevant, deliver appropriate documentation to the Trust's custodian.
D. Pay proceeds upon receipt from the Trust's custodian, where relevant, in accordance with the instructions of redeeming shareholders.
E. Process transfers of shares in accordance with the shareholder's instructions, after receipt of appropriate documentation from the shareholder as specified in the Prospectus.
F. Prepare and transmit payments, or apply reinvestments for income dividends and capital gains distributions declared by the Trust with respect to a Fund, after deducting any amount required to be withheld by any applicable laws, rules and regulations and in accordance with shareholder instructions.
G. Serve as the Fund’s agent in connection with systematic plans including, but not limited to, systematic investment plans, systematic withdrawal plans, and systematic exchange plans.
H. Make changes to shareholder records, including, but not limited to, address and plan changes (e.g., systematic investment and withdrawal, dividend reinvestment).
I. Handle load and multi-class processing, including rights of accumulation and purchases by letters of intent in accordance with the Prospectus.
J. Record the issuance of shares of each Fund and maintain, pursuant to Rule 17Ad-10(e) promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), a record of the total number of shares of each Fund which are authorized, issued and outstanding.
K. Prepare ad-hoc reports as necessary at prevailing rates.
L. Mail shareholder reports and Prospectuses to current shareholders.
M. Prepare and file U.S. Treasury Department Forms 1099 and other appropriate information returns required with respect to dividends and distributions for all shareholders.
N. Provide shareholder account information upon shareholder or Trust requests and prepare and mail confirmations and statements of account to shareholders for all purchases, redemptions and other confirmable transactions as agreed upon with the Trust.
O. Mail and/or obtain shareholders’ certifications under penalties of perjury and pay on a timely basis to the appropriate federal or state authorities any taxes to be withheld on dividends and distributions paid by the Trust, all as required by applicable federal and state tax laws and regulations.
P. Answer correspondence from shareholders, securities brokers and others relating to USBFS’ duties hereunder within required time periods established by applicable regulation.
Q. Reimburse the Fund for all material losses resulting from “as of” processing errors for which USBFS is responsible in accordance with the “as of” processing guidelines set forth on Exhibit B hereto.
R. Calculate average assets held in shareholder accounts for purposes of paying Rule 12b-1 and/or shareholder servicing fees as directed by a Fund
S. Provide service and support to financial intermediaries including but not limited to trade placements, settlements, and corrections.
Services and Duties of the Distributor A. The Distributor agrees to sell Shares on a best efforts basis as agent for the Trust upon the terms and at the current offering price (plus sales charge, if any) described in the Prospectus. As used in this Agreement, the term “Prospectus” shall mean the current prospectus, including the statement of additional information, as both may be amended or supplemented, relating to the Fund and included in the currently effective registration statement (the “Registration Statement”) of the Trust filed under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”) and the 1940 Act. The Trust shall in all cases receive the net asset value per Share on all sales. If a sales charge is in effect, the Distributor shall remit the sales charge (or portion thereof) to broker-dealers who have sold Shares, as described in Section 2(G), below. In no event shall the Distributor be entitled to all or any portion of such sales charge.
B. During the continuous public offering of Shares, the Distributor will hold itself available to receive orders, satisfactory to the Distributor, for the purchase of Shares and will accept such orders on behalf of the Trust. Such purchase orders shall be deemed effective at the time and in the manner set forth in the Prospectus.
C. The Distributor, with the operational assistance of the Trust’s transfer agent, shall make Shares available for sale and redemption through the National Securities Clearing Corporation’s Fund/SERV System.
D. The Distributor acknowledges and agrees that it is not authorized to provide any information or make any representations other than as contained in the Prospectus and any sales literature specifically approved by the Trust.
E. The Distributor agrees to cooperate with the Trust or its agent in the development of all proposed advertisements and sales literature relating to the Fund. The Distributor agrees to review all proposed advertisements and sales literature for compliance with applicable laws and regulations, and shall file with appropriate regulators those advertisements and sales literature it believes are in compliance with such laws and regulations. The Distributor agrees to furnish to the Trust any comments provided by regulators with respect to such materials and to use its best efforts to obtain the approval of the regulators to such materials.
F. The Distributor, at its sole discretion, may repurchase Shares offered for sale by shareholders of the Fund. Repurchase of Shares by the Distributor shall be at the price determined in accordance with, and in the manner set forth in, the Prospectus. At the end of each business day, the Distributor shall notify the Trust and its transfer agent, by any appropriate means, of the orders for repurchase of Shares received by the Distributor since the last report, the amount to be paid for such Shares and the identity of the shareholders offering Shares for repurchase. The Trust reserves the right to suspend such repurchase right upon written notice to the Distributor. The Distributor further agrees to act as agent for the Trust to receive and transmit promptly to the Trust’s transfer agent, shareholder requests for redemption of Shares.
G. The Distributor may, in its discretion, enter into agreements with such qualified broker-dealers as it may select, in order that such broker-dealers also may sell Shares of the Fund. The form of any dealer agreement shall be approved by the Trust. To the extent there is a sales charge in effect, the Distributor shall pay the applicable sales charge (or portion thereof), or allow a discount, to the selling broker-dealer, as described in the Prospectus.
H. The Distributor shall devote its best efforts to effect sales of Shares of the Fund but shall not be obligated to sell any certain number of Shares.
I. The Distributor shall prepare reports for the Board regarding its activities under this Agreement as from time to time shall be reasonably requested by the Board, including reports regarding the use of any 12b-1 payments received by the Distributor.
J. The Distributor agrees to advise the Trust promptly in writing of the initiation of any proceedings against it by the SEC or its staff, the NASD or any state regulatory authority.
K. The Distributor shall monitor amounts paid under Rule 12b-1 plans and pursuant to sales loads to ensure compliance with applicable NASD rules.
Other Duties of OFI OFI shall, at its own expense, provide and supervise the activities of all administrative and clerical personnel as shall be required to provide effective corporate administration for the Fund, including the compilation and maintenance of such records with respect to its operations as may reasonably be required; the preparation and filing of such reports with respect thereto as shall be required by the Commission; composition of periodic reports with respect to its operations for the shareholders of the Fund; composition of proxy materials for meetings of the Fund's shareholders and the composition of such registration statements as may be required by federal securities laws for continuous public sale of shares of the Fund. OFI shall, at its own cost and expense, also provide the Fund with adequate office space, facilities and equipment.
Terms of Appointment/Duties of Price Associates Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, the Fund hereby employs and appoints Price Associates to provide, and Price Associates agrees to provide, the Accounting Services set forth in this Section A. It is agreed by the parties that Price Associates may subcontract or jointly contract with other parties, on behalf of the Funds, to perform certain of the functions and services described herein.
1. Maintain for each Fund a daily trial balance, a general ledger, subsidiary records and capital stock accounts;
2. Maintain for each Fund an investment ledger, including amortized bond and/or money market costs, foreign dollar denominated costs, and securities on loan where applicable;
3. Maintain for each Fund all records relating to the Fund’s income and expenses, gains and losses;
4. Provide for the daily valuation of each Fund’s portfolio securities and the computation of each Fund’s daily net asset value per share (“NAV”). Such daily valuations shall be made in accordance with the valuation policies established by each of the Fund's Board including, but not limited to, the utilization of such pricing valuation sources and/or pricing services as determined by the Boards. Price Associates shall have no liability for any losses or damages incurred by the Fund as a result of erroneous portfolio security evaluations provided by such designated sources and/or pricing services; provided that, Price Associates reasonably believes the prices are accurate, has adhered to its normal verification control procedures, and has otherwise met the standard of care as set forth in Article G of this Agreement;
5. Provide daily cash flow and transaction status information to each Fund’s adviser;
6. Authorize the payment of Fund expenses, either through instruction of custodial bank or utilization of custodian’s automated transfer system, manage the Fund’s inter-fund lending program and provide support for the Fund’s security lending program;
7. Prepare for each Fund such financial information that is reasonably necessary for shareholder reports, reports to the Board and to the officers of the Fund, reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and other Federal and state regulatory agencies as well as class action and other claims filings arising out of legal proceedings;
8. Provide each Fund with such advice that may be reasonably necessary to properly account for all financial transactions and to maintain the Fund's accounting procedures and records so as to insure compliance with generally accepted accounting principles and tax practices and rules;
9. Maintain for each Fund all records that may be reasonably required in connection with the audit performed by each Fund's independent accountant, the SEC, the IRS or such other Federal or state regulatory agencies;
10. Cooperate with each Fund’s independent public accountants and take all reasonable action in the performance of its obligations under the Agreement to assure that the necessary information is made available to such accountants for the expression of their opinion without any qualification as to the scope of their examination including, but not limited to, their opinion included in each such Fund’s annual report on Form N-CSR and annual amendment to Form N-1A;
11. Maintain adequate internal controls over financial reporting to provide complete and accurate financial information and disclosures that are certified by officers of the Funds. Provide sub-certifications, as requested by the officers of the Funds, for the adequacy of such controls and the completeness and accuracy of information included in Form N-CSR, Form N-Q, or any other form that may require certification;
12. Implement and maintain the systems, data storage and reporting necessary to perform the above services; and
13. Such other services as mutually agreed upon by the parties.
