TRANSFER AGENCY AND SERVICES AGREEMENT
THIS
AGREEMENT is made as of June 15, 2010, between GLG Investment Series Trust,
organized as a statutory trust under the laws of Delaware (the “Fund”), and ALPS
Fund Services, Inc., a Colorado corporation (“ALPS”).
WHEREAS,
the Fund is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended
(“1940 Act”), as an open-end, registered investment company, presently
consisting of the portfolios listed in Appendix A (the
“Portfolios”);
WHEREAS,
ALPS provides certain transfer agency services to investment companies, and the
Fund desires to appoint ALPS as its transfer agent, dividend disbursing agent
and agent in connection with certain other activities, and ALPS desires to
accept such appointment; and
WHEREAS,
ALPS provide certain interactive client services to investment companies, and
the Fund desires to utilize ALPS’ interactive client services to provide the
Fund’s shareholders with access to shareholder account information and real-time
transaction processing capabilities in accordance with the terms of this
Agreement.
NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and mutual covenants herein
contained, the parties hereto agree as follows.
1. ALPS Appointment and
Duties.
(a) The Fund
hereby appoints ALPS to provide the transfer agent and other specified services
set forth in Appendix
B hereto, as amended from time to time, upon the terms and conditions
hereinafter set forth. ALPS hereby accepts such appointment and
agrees to furnish such specified services.
(b) The Fund
hereby appoints ALPS to provide the interactive client services set forth in
Appendix C
(Transfer Agent Web Services), Appendix D (Transfer
Agent IVR Services) and Appendix E (ALPS
Virtual Access) attached hereto, as amended from time to time, upon the terms
and conditions hereinafter set forth. ALPS hereby accepts such
appointment and agrees to furnish such specified services.
(c) ALPS
shall for all purposes be deemed to be an independent contractor and shall,
except as otherwise expressly authorized in this Agreement, have no authority to
act for or represent the Fund in any way or otherwise be deemed an agent of the
Fund.
(d) ALPS may
employ or associate itself with any person or organization as ALPS believes to
be desirable in the performance of its duties hereunder; provided that, in such
event, the compensation of such persons or organizations shall be paid by and be
the sole responsibility of ALPS, and the Fund shall bear no cost or obligation
with respect thereto; and provided further that ALPS shall not be relieved of
any of its obligations under this Agreement in such event and shall be
responsible for all acts of any such persons or organizations taken in
furtherance of this Agreement to the same extent it would be for its own
acts.
2. ALPS Compensation;
Expenses.
(a) In
consideration for the services to be performed hereunder by ALPS, the Fund shall
pay ALPS the fees listed in the Fee Schedule attached
hereto. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement,
fees billed for the services to be performed by ALPS under this Agreement are
based on information provided by the Fund and such fees are subject to
renegotiation between the parties to the extent such information is determined
to be materially different from what the Fund originally provided to
ALPS. Notwithstanding the foregoing, during following each Term,
unless the parties shall otherwise agree and provided that the service mix and
volumes remain consistent as previously provided in the previous Term, the total
fee for all services shall equal the fee that would be charged for the same
services based on a fee rate (as reflected in a fee rate schedule) increased by
the percentage increase for the twelve-month period of such previous calendar
year of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers,
for the Denver-Boulder-Greeley area, as published bimonthly by the United States
Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, or, in the event that
publication of such Index is terminated, any successor or substitute index,
appropriately adjusted, applicable to both parties.
(b) ALPS will
bear all expenses in connection with the performance of its services under this
Agreement, except as otherwise provided herein. ALPS will not bear
any of the costs of Fund personnel. Other Fund expenses incurred
shall be borne by the Fund or the Fund’s investment adviser, including, but not
limited to, initial organization and offering expenses; litigation expenses;
taxes; costs of preferred shares; expenses of conducting repurchase offers for
the purpose of repurchasing Fund shares; administrative and accounting expenses;
custodial expenses; interest; Fund directors’ fees; brokerage fees and
commissions; state and federal registration fees; advisory fees; insurance
premiums; fidelity bond premiums; Fund and investment advisory related legal
expenses; costs of maintenance of Fund existence; printing and delivery of
materials in connection with meetings of the Fund’s directors; printing and
mailing of shareholder reports, prospectuses, statements of additional
information, other offering documents, supplements, proxy materials, and other
communications to shareholders; securities pricing data and expenses in
connection with electronic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission (the “SEC”).
3. Right to Receive
Advice.
(a) Advice of the Fund and
Service Providers. If ALPS is in doubt as to any action it
should or should not take, ALPS may request directions, advice or instructions
from the Fund or, as applicable, the Fund’s investment adviser, custodian or
other service providers.
(b) Advice of
Counsel. If ALPS is in doubt as to any question of law
pertaining to any action it should or should not take, ALPS may request advice
from counsel of its own choosing, who may be counsel for the Fund or the Fund’s
investment adviser (each, at the Fund’s expense) or ALPS (at the expense of
ALPS).
(c) Conflicting
Advice. In the event of a conflict between directions, advice
or instructions ALPS receives from the Fund or any authorized service provider
on behalf of the Fund and the advice ALPS receives from counsel, ALPS may in its
sole discretion rely upon the directions and follow the advice of
counsel. Upon request, ALPS will provide the Fund with a copy of the
advice of counsel received pursuant to Section 3(b).
4. Standard of Care; Limitation
of Liability; Indemnification.
(a) ALPS
shall be obligated to act in good faith and to exercise commercially reasonable
care and diligence in the performance of its duties under this Agreement,
including with regard to the processing of investments checks using mutually
agreed upon procedures. The parties agree that any encoding or
payment processing errors shall be governed by this standard of care and Section
4-209 of the Uniform Commercial Code is superseded by this Section 4 of this
Agreement.
(b) In the
absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, negligence or reckless disregard by
ALPS in the performance of its duties, obligations or responsibilities set forth
in this Agreement, ALPS and its affiliates, including their respective officers,
directors, agents and employees, shall not be liable for, and the Fund agrees to
indemnify, defend and hold harmless such persons from, all taxes, charges,
expenses, disbursements, assessments, claims, losses, damages, penalties,
actions, suits, judgments and liabilities (including, without limitation,
attorneys’ fees and disbursements and liabilities arising under applicable
federal and state laws) arising directly or indirectly from the
following:
(i) the
inaccuracy of factual information furnished to ALPS by the Fund or the Fund’s
investment adviser or custodian or any authorized third party on behalf of the
Fund;
(ii) any
reasonable error of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss suffered by the
Fund in connection with the matters to which this Agreement
relates;
(iii) ALPS’
reliance on any instruction, direction, notice, instrument or other information
provided by the Fund or the Fund’s investment adviser or custodian or any
authorized third party on behalf of the Fund that ALPS reasonably believes to be
genuine;
(iv) failure
to satisfy requests to cancel or amend payment orders, if ALPS receives such
requests without reasonable time to comply with such requests;
(v) failure
to detect any erroneous payment order, provided that ALPS complies with the
payment order instructions as received and with the Security Procedure (as
defined below);
(vi) lost
interest with respect to the refundable amount of an unauthorized payment order,
unless ALPS is notified of the unauthorized payment order within 30 days of
notification by ALPS of the acceptance of such payment order; or
(vii) any other
action or omission to act which ALPS properly takes in connection with the
provision of services to the Fund pursuant to this Agreement.
(c) ALPS
shall indemnify and hold harmless the Fund, the Fund’s investment adviser and
their respective officers, directors, agents and employees from and against any
and all taxes, charges, expenses, disbursements, assessments, claims, losses,
damages, penalties, actions, suits, judgments and liabilities (including,
without limitation, attorneys’ fees and disbursements and liabilities arising
under applicable federal and state laws) arising directly or indirectly from
ALPS’ willful misfeasance, bad faith, negligence or reckless disregard in the
performance of its duties, obligations or responsibilities set forth in this
Agreement.
(d) Notwithstanding
anything in this Agreement to the contrary, neither party shall be liable under
this Agreement to the other party hereto for any punitive, consequential,
special or indirect losses or damages. Any indemnification payable by
a party to this Agreement shall be net of insurance maintained by the
indemnified party as of the time the claim giving rise to indemnity hereunder is
alleged to have arisen to the extent it covers such claim.
(e) In any
case in which either party (the “Indemnifying Party”) may be asked to indemnify
or hold the other party (the “Indemnified Party”) harmless, the Indemnified
Party will notify the Indemnifying Party promptly after identifying any
situation which it believes presents or appears likely to present a claim for
indemnification against the Indemnifying Party although the failure to do so
shall not prevent recovery by the Indemnified Party and shall keep the
Indemnifying Party advised with respect to all developments concerning such
situation. The Indemnifying Party shall have the option to defend the
Indemnified Party against any claim which may be the subject of this
indemnification, and, in the event that the Indemnifying Party so elects, such
defense shall be conducted by counsel chosen by the Indemnifying Party and
reasonably satisfactory to the Indemnified Party, and thereupon the Indemnifying
Party shall take over complete defense of the claim and the Indemnified Party
shall sustain no further legal or other expenses in respect of such
claim. The Indemnified Party will not confess any claim or make any
compromise in any case in which the Indemnifying Party will be asked to provide
indemnification, except with the Indemnifying Party’s prior written
consent.
5. Force
Majeure. No party shall be liable for losses, delays,
failures, errors, interruptions or losses of data in its performance of its
obligations under this Agreement if and to the extent it is caused, directly or
indirectly, by reason of circumstances beyond their reasonable control,
including without limitation, acts of God, action or inaction of civil or
military authority, war, terrorism, riot, fire, flood, sabotage, labor disputes,
elements of nature or non-performance by a third party. In any such
event, the non-performing party shall be excused from any further performance
and observance of obligations so affected only for so long as such circumstances
prevail and such party continues to use commercially reasonable efforts to
recommence performance or observance as soon as practicable.
6. Activities of
ALPS. The services of ALPS under this Agreement are not to be
deemed exclusive, and ALPS shall be free to render similar services to
others. The Fund recognizes that from time to time directors,
officers and employees of ALPS may serve as directors, officers and employees of
other corporations or businesses (including other investment companies) and that
such other corporations and businesses may include ALPS as part of their name
and that ALPS or its affiliates may enter into administrative, bookkeeping,
pricing agreements or other agreements with such other corporations and
businesses.
7. Accounts and
Records. The accounts and records maintained by ALPS shall be
the property of the Fund. ALPS shall prepare, maintain and preserve
such accounts and records as required by the 1940 Act and other applicable
securities laws, rules and regulations. ALPS shall surrender such
accounts and records to the Fund, in the form in which such accounts and records
have been maintained or preserved, promptly upon receipt of instructions from
the Fund. The Fund shall have access to such accounts and records at
all times during ALPS’ normal business hours. Upon the reasonable
request of the Fund, copies of any such books and records shall be provided by
ALPS to the Fund at the Fund’s expense. ALPS shall assist the Fund,
the Fund’s independent auditors, or, upon approval of the Fund, any regulatory
body, in any requested review of the Fund’s accounts and records, and reports by
ALPS or its independent accountants concerning its accounting system and
internal auditing controls will be open to such entities for audit or inspection
upon reasonable request. In the event ALPS receives a request or
demand for the inspection of records relating specifically to the Fund, ALPS
will promptly notify the Fund of such request in writing and obtain instructions
from the Fund as to the handling of such request.
8. Confidential and Proprietary
Information. In accordance with Regulation S-P and other
relevant rules and regulations, ALPS agrees that it will, on behalf of itself
and its officers and employees, treat all transactions contemplated by this
Agreement, and all records and information relative to the Fund and its current
and former shareholders and other information germane thereto, as confidential
and as proprietary information of the Fund and not to use, sell, transfer, or
divulge such information or records to any person for any purpose other than
performance of its duties hereunder, except after prior notification to and
approval in writing from the Fund, which approval shall not be unreasonably
withheld. Approval may not be withheld where ALPS may be exposed to
civil, regulatory or criminal proceedings for failure to comply, when requested
to divulge such information by duly constituted authorities, or when requested
by the Fund. When requested to divulge such information by duly
constituted authorities, ALPS shall use reasonable commercial efforts to request
confidential treatment of such information. ALPS shall have in place
and maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards reasonably designed
to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of, and to prevent
unauthorized access to or use of records and information relating to the Fund
and its current and former shareholders.
9. Compliance with Rules and
Regulations. ALPS shall comply (and to the extent ALPS takes
or is required to take action on behalf of the Fund hereunder shall cause the
Fund to comply) with all applicable requirements of the 1940 Act, the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as amended (the “1934 Act”), and other applicable laws, rules, regulations,
orders and code of ethics, as well as all investment restrictions, policies and
procedures adopted by the Fund of which ALPS has knowledge (it being understood
that ALPS is deemed to have knowledge of all investment restrictions, policies
or procedures set out in the Fund’s public filings or otherwise provided to
ALPS). Except as set out in this Agreement, ALPS assumes no
responsibility for such compliance by the Fund. ALPS shall maintain
at all times a program reasonably designed to prevent violations of the federal
securities laws (as defined in Rule 38a-1 under the 0000 Xxx) with respect to
the services provided, and shall provide to the Fund a certification to such
effect no less than annually or as otherwise reasonably requested by the
Fund. ALPS shall make available its compliance personnel and shall
provide at its own expense summaries and other relevant materials relating to
such program as reasonably requested by the Fund.
10. Confidentiality.
(a) Confidential
Information. Each of the parties hereby acknowledges that in
the course of performing its obligations hereunder, the other may disclose to it
certain information and know-how of a technical, financial, operational or other
sort that is nonpublic and otherwise confidential or proprietary to the
disclosing party. Each party acknowledges that any such proprietary
or confidential information disclosed to it is of considerable commercial value
and that the disclosing party would likely be economically or otherwise
disadvantaged or harmed by the direct or indirect use or disclosure thereof,
except as specifically authorized by the disclosing party. Each party
therefore agrees to keep in strict confidence all such information that may from
time to time be disclosed to it, and agrees not to use such information except
as expressly permitted hereby or to disclose such information to any third party
for any purpose without the prior consent of the other. The
provisions of this Section 10(a) shall not apply to any information if and to
the extent it was (i) independently developed by the receiving party as
evidenced by documentation in such party’s possession, (ii) lawfully received by
it free of restrictions from another source having the right to furnish the
same, (iii) generally known or available to the public without breach of this
Agreement by the receiving party or (iv) known to the receiving party free of
restriction at the time of such disclosure. The parties agree that
immediately upon termination of this Agreement, without regard to the reason for
such termination, the parties shall forthwith return to one another all written
materials and computer software that are the property of the other
party.
ALPS
agrees that it will, on behalf of itself and its officers and employees, treat
all transactions contemplated by this Agreement, and all records and information
relative to the Fund and its current and former shareholders and other
information germane thereto, as confidential and as proprietary information of
the Fund and not to use, sell, transfer or divulge such information or records
to any person for any purpose other than performance of its duties hereunder,
except after prior notification to and approval in writing from the Fund, which
approval shall not be unreasonably withheld. Approval may not be
withheld where ALPS may be exposed to civil, regulatory or criminal proceedings
for failure to comply, when requested to divulge such information by duly
constituted authorities, or when requested by the Fund. When
requested to divulge such information by duly constituted authorities, ALPS
shall use reasonable commercial efforts to request confidential treatment of
such information. ALPS shall have in place and maintain physical,
electronic and procedural safeguards reasonably designed to protect the
security, confidentiality and integrity of, and to prevent unauthorized access
to or use of records and information relating to the Fund and its current and
former shareholders.
(b) Specific
Performance. Each of the parties agrees that the non-breaching
party would not have an adequate remedy at law in the event of the other party’s
breach or threatened breach of its obligations under Section 10(a), and that the
non-breaching party would suffer irreparable injury and damage as a result of
any such breach. Accordingly, in the event either party breaches or
threatens to breach the obligations set forth in Section 10(a), in addition to
and not in lieu of any legal or other remedies such party may pursue hereunder
or under applicable law, each party hereby consents to the granting of equitable
relief (including the issuance of a temporary restraining order, preliminary
injunction or permanent injunction) against it by a court of competent
jurisdiction, without the necessity of proving actual damages or posting any
bond or other security therefore, prohibiting any such breach or threatened
breach. In any proceeding upon a motion for such equitable relief, a
party’s ability to answer in damages shall not be interposed as a defense to the
granting of such equitable relief.
11. Representations and
Warranties of ALPS. ALPS represents and warrants to the Fund
that:
(a) It is
duly organized and existing as a corporation and in good standing under the laws
of the State of Colorado.
(b) It is
empowered under applicable laws and by its Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws
to enter into and perform this Agreement.
(c) All
requisite corporate proceedings have been taken to authorize it to enter into
and perform this Agreement.
(d) It has
and will continue to have access to the necessary facilities, equipment and
personnel to perform its duties and obligations under this Agreement in
accordance with industry standards.
(e) It is,
and will continue to be, registered as a transfer agent under the 1934
Act.
(f) It has
adopted and implemented written policies and procedures reasonably designed to
prevent violations of the Federal Securities Laws (as defined under the rules
related to the 0000 Xxx) related to the services provided by ALPS to the
Fund. It will review, no less frequently than annually, the adequacy
of the policies and procedures and the effectiveness of their implementation and
will report to the Fund any material changes made to the policies and procedures
since the date of the last report, and any material changes made to the policies
and procedures recommended as a result of the annual review. It will
provide the Fund with an annual report of each Material Compliance Matter (as
defined under the rules related to the 0000 Xxx) that occurred since the date of
the last report.
(g) It will
impose and collect any redemption fees imposed by the portfolios of the Fund in
accordance with the terms set forth in the prospectus.
(h) It will
establish and maintain facilities and procedures reasonably acceptable to the
Fund for safekeeping of check forms and facsimile signature imprinting devices,
if any; and for the preparation or use, and for keeping account of, such
certificates, forms and devices.
(i) It will
maintain insurance which covers such risks and is in such amounts, with such
deductibles and exclusions, sufficient for compliance by ALPS with all
requirements of law and sufficient for ALPS to perform its obligations under
this Agreement; and all such policies are in full force and effect and are with
financially sound and reputable insurance companies, funds or
underwriters.
(j) In the
event of the termination of this Agreement, ALPS shall provide reasonable
cooperation to the Fund in the movement of all records (in all media) and
materials of the Fund and the conversion of the shareholders accounts to a
successor transfer agent.
12. Representations and
Warranties of the Fund. The Fund represents and warrants to
ALPS that:
(a) It is a
statutory trust duly organized and existing and in good standing under the laws
of the state of Delaware and is registered with the SEC as an open-end,
registered investment company.
(b) It is
empowered under applicable laws and by its Declaration of Trust and Bylaws to
enter into and perform this Agreement.
(c) The Board
of Trustees of the Fund has duly authorized it to enter into and perform this
Agreement.
(d) A
registration statement under the 1933 Act and the 1940 Act is currently, or will
be upon commencement of operations, effective and will remain effective, and
appropriate state securities law filings have been made and will continue to be
made, with respect to all shares of the Fund being offered for
sale.
(e) Notwithstanding
anything in this Agreement to the contrary, the Fund agrees not to make any
modifications to its registration statement or adopt any policies which would
affect materially the obligations or responsibilities of ALPS hereunder without
the prior written approval or ALPS, which approval shall not be unreasonably
withheld or delayed except that no approval shall be required for the Fund to
make any modifications to its registration statement required in order to
reasonably comply with the 1933 Act, 1940 Act or any other applicable laws,
rules or regulations.
13. Wire Transfer Operating
Guidelines/Article 4A of the Uniform Commercial Code.
(a) Obligation of
Sender. ALPS is authorized to promptly debit the appropriate
Fund account(s) upon the receipt of a payment order in compliance with the
security procedure agreed to between ALPS and the Fund (the “Security
Procedure”) and in the amount of money that ALPS has been instructed to
transfer. ALPS shall execute payment orders in compliance with the
Security Procedure and with the Fund instructions on the execution date provided
that such payment order is received by the customary deadline for processing
such a request, unless the payment order specifies a later time. All
payment orders and communications received after the customary deadline will be
deemed to have been received the next business day.
(b) Security
Procedure. The Fund must notify ALPS immediately of any change
in the Fund’s authorized personnel with respect to the Security
Procedure. ALPS shall verify the authenticity of all Fund
instructions according to the Security Procedure. ALPS is authorized
to make exceptions to the Security Procedure if instructed by the
Fund. For purposes of this Section 13 only, instructions received
from representatives of the Fund’s investment adviser will be considered to be
instructions from the Fund.
(c) Account
Numbers. ALPS shall process all payment orders on the basis of
the account number contained in the payment order. In the event of a
discrepancy between any name indicated on the payment order and the account
number, the account number shall take precedence and govern.
(d) Rejection. ALPS
reserves the right to decline to process or delay the processing of a payment
order (i) which is in excess of the collected balance in the account to be
charged at the time of ALPS’ receipt of such payment order; (ii) if initiating
such payment order would cause ALPS, in ALPS’ sole judgment, to exceed any
volume, aggregate dollar, network, time, credit or similar limits which are
applicable ALPS; or (iii) if ALPS, in good faith, is unable to satisfy itself
that the transaction has been properly authorized.
(e) ACH Credit
Entries/Provisional Payments. When the Fund initiates or
receives Automated Clearing House credit and debit entries pursuant to these
guidelines and the rules of the National Automated Clearing House Association
and the New England Clearing House Association, ALPS will act as an Originating
Depository Financial Institution and/or Receiving Depository Financial
Institution, as the case may be, with respect to such
entries. Credits given by ALPS with respect to an ACH credit entry
are provisional until ALPS receives final settlement for such entry from the
Federal Reserve Bank. If ALPS does not receive such final settlement,
the Fund agrees that ALPS shall receive a refund of the amount credited to the
Fund in connection with such entry, and the party making payment to the Fund via
such entry shall not be deemed to have paid the amount of the
entry.
(f) Confirmation. Confirmation
of ALPS’ execution of payment orders shall ordinarily be provided within twenty
four (24) hours’ notice of which may be delivered through ALPS’ information
systems, or by facsimile or call-back. The Fund must report any
objections to the execution of an order within thirty (30) days.
14. ALPS’ Interactive Client
Services.
(a) Security
Procedures. ALPS may, but shall not be required to, modify the
security procedures with respect to interactive client services provided by ALPS
to the Fund under this Agreement set forth in Appendix G from time
to time to the extent it believes, in good faith, that such modifications will
enhance the security of the ALPS’ interactive client services. All
data and information transmissions via the ALPS’ interactive client services are
for informational purposes only, and are not intended to satisfy regulatory
requirements or comply with any laws, rules, requirements or standards of any
federal, state or local governmental authority, agency or industry regulatory
body, including the securities industry, which compliance is the sole
responsibility of the Fund.
(b) Proprietary
Rights.
(i) ALPS’
Property. The Fund acknowledges and agrees that it obtains no
rights in or to any of the software, hardware, processes, trade secrets,
proprietary information or distribution and communication networks of
ALPS. Any software ALPS provides to the Fund pursuant to this
Agreement shall be used by the Fund only during the term of this Agreement and
only in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement to provide connectivity
to and through ALPS, and shall not be used by the Fund to provide connectivity
to or through any other system or person or organization. Any
interfaces and software developed by ALPS shall not be used to connect the Fund
to any transfer agency system or any other person or organization without ALPS’
prior written approval. Except with ALPS’ consent or in conformity
with federal copyright laws, the Fund shall not copy, decompile or reverse
engineer any software provided to the Fund by ALPS. The Fund also
agrees not to take any action which would mask, delete or otherwise alter any of
ALPS’ on-screen disclaimers and copyright, trademark and service xxxx
notifications provided by ALPS, in writing, from time to time, or any “point and
click” features relating to user acknowledgment and acceptance of such
disclaimers and notifications.
(ii) Investment Company Web
Site. The web pages that make up the Investment Company Web
Site (as defined below) contain intellectual property, including, but not
limited to, copyrighted works, trademarks and trade dress, that is the property
of the Fund. The Fund retains all rights in the intellectual property
that resides on the Investment Company Web Site, not including any intellectual
property provided by or otherwise obtained from ALPS. To the extent
that the intellectual property of the Fund is duplicated within the site
maintained by ALPS for use by Fund shareholders (“ALPS’ Web Site”) to replicate
the “look and feel,” trade dress or other aspect of the appearance or
functionality of the Investment Company Web Site, the Fund grants to ALPS a
non-exclusive, non-transferable license to such intellectual property for the
duration of this Agreement. This license is limited to the
intellectual property of the Fund needed to replicate the appearance of the
Investment Company Web Site and does not extend to any other intellectual
property owned by the Fund. For purposes of this Agreement
“Investment Company Web Site” shall mean the collection of electronic documents
or pages residing on the computer system of an Internet Service Provider (“ISP”)
hired by the Fund connected to the Internet and accessible by hypertext link
through the World Wide Web, where persons or organizations may view information
about the Portfolio and access the various transaction screens provided by the
Fund.
(iii) Fund’s IP Warranty to
ALPS. The Fund warrants to ALPS that the Fund owns or has
sufficient license or other legal rights in all intellectual property (a) to the
Investment Company Web Site or (b) used by the Fund with respect to, or in
connection with, the Investment Company Web Site, and such use by the Fund does
not infringe or otherwise violate the trademarks, copyrights or other
intellectual property rights of any other party. The Fund
acknowledges and agrees that the Fund has and will maintain sufficient license
or other legal rights to the Investment Company Web Site and for its use of the
Investment Company Web Site at its sole expense and that ALPS is in no way
responsible for obtaining or maintaining such license or rights or liable for
any violations of trademarks, copyrights or other intellectual property right of
any other party with respect to the Investment Company Web Site or for the
Fund’s use of the Investment Company Web Site. In the event the Fund
receives notice that the use of the Investment Company Web Site is or may be
infringing upon the rights of any party, the Fund agrees to promptly notify
ALPS. The Fund agrees to indemnify and hold harmless ALPS and its
affiliates, officers, directors, agents and employees against any and all
charges, expenses, disbursements, claims, losses, damages, penalties, actions,
suits, judgments and liabilities (including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees
and disbursements) arising directly or indirectly from any claim, action or
proceeding that the use of the Investment Company Web Site infringes on a third
party’s intellectual property rights.
(iv) ALPS’ IP Warranty to
Fund. Except with respect to the design and graphical elements
(including, but not limited to, images and fonts) and Web pages provided to ALPS
by the Fund, ALPS warrants to the Fund that ALPS owns or has sufficient license
or other legal rights in all software and intellectual property used by ALPS at
its facilities to provide the interactive client service, and such use by ALPS
does not infringe or otherwise violate the U.S. copyrights of any other
party. In the event one or more ALPS’ interactive client services are
not useable by the Fund as a result of a breach of the foregoing warranty, then
ALPS will use reasonable commercial efforts to: (a) procure for the
Fund the right to continue using the ALPS’ interactive client service or
infringing portion thereof, or (b) modify the ALPS’ interactive client service
so that it becomes non-infringing but has substantially the same capabilities,
or (c) replace the ALPS’ interactive client service or infringing part thereof
by other systems of similar capability within a reasonable period of time under
the circumstances. If ALPS is not able to satisfy the foregoing
requirements, then, as the sole remedy, the Fund will be entitled to terminate
this Agreement immediately.
15. Documents. The
Fund has furnished or will furnish, upon request, ALPS with copies of the Fund’s
[Articles of Incorporation/Declaration of Trust], advisory agreement, custodian
agreement, transfer agency agreement, administration agreement, current
prospectus, statement of additional information, periodic Fund reports and all
forms relating to any plan, program or service offered by the
Fund. The Fund shall furnish, within a reasonable time period, to
ALPS a copy of any amendment or supplement to any of the above-mentioned
documents. Upon request, the Fund shall furnish promptly to ALPS any
additional documents necessary or advisable to perform its functions
hereunder. As used in this Agreement the terms “registration
statement,” “prospectus” and “statement of additional information” shall mean
any registration statement, prospectus and statement of additional information
filed by the Fund with the SEC and any amendments and supplements thereto that
are filed with the SEC.
16. Consultation Between the
Parties. ALPS and the Fund shall regularly consult with each
other regarding ALPS’ performance of its obligations under this
Agreement. In connection therewith, the Fund shall submit to ALPS at
a reasonable time in advance of filing with the SEC reasonably final copies of
any amended or supplemented registration statement (including exhibits) under
the 1933 Act and the 1940 Act; provided, however, that nothing contained in this
Agreement shall in any way limit the Fund’s right to file at any time such
amendments to any registration statement and/or supplements to any prospectus or
statement of additional information, of whatever character, as the Fund may deem
advisable, such right being in all respects absolute and
unconditional.
17. Business Interruption
Plan. ALPS shall maintain in effect a business interruption
plan and enter into any agreements necessary with appropriate parties making
reasonable provisions for emergency use of electronic data processing equipment
customary in the industry. In the event of equipment failures, ALPS
shall, at no additional expense to the Fund, take commercially reasonable steps
to minimize service interruptions.
18. Customer Identification
Program. To help the government fight the funding of terrorism
and money laundering activities, federal law requires each financial institution
to obtain, verify and record information that identifies each person who opens
an account with that financial institution. Consistent with this
requirement, ALPS will request each party’s name, address, taxpayer
identification number or other government-issued identification number, and if
such party is a natural person, that party’s date of birth. ALPS may
also ask for additional identifying information, and ALPS may take steps to
verify the authenticity and accuracy of these data elements.
19. Duration and Termination of
this Agreement.
(a) Initial
Term. This Agreement shall become effective as of commencement
of the Fund’s investment operations (the “Start Date”) and shall continue
thereafter throughout the period that ends two (2) years after the Start Date
(the “Initial Term”). Until the end of the Initial Term, this
Agreement may be terminated without penalty only by agreement of the parties or
for cause pursuant to Section 19(c) hereof.
(b) Renewal
Term. If not sooner terminated, this Agreement shall renew at
the end of the Initial Term and shall thereafter continue for successive annual
periods until terminated by either party upon not less than sixty (60) days’
written notice prior to the expiration of the Initial Term or the then current
renewal term or for cause pursuant to Section 19(c) hereof.
(c) Cause. Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary elsewhere in this Agreement, the Fund may terminate
this Agreement for cause immediately at any time, without penalty, without
default and without the payment of any Termination Payment or other liquidated
damages. For purposes of this Section 19, “cause” shall
mean:
(i) willful
misfeasance, bad faith, negligence or reckless disregard on the part of ALPS in
the performance of its duties, obligations and responsibilities set forth in
this Agreement;
(ii) in the
event ALPS is no longer permitted to perform its duties, obligations or
responsibilities hereunder pursuant to applicable law or regulatory,
administrative or judicial proceedings against ALPS which result in a
determination that ALPS has violated, or has caused the Fund to violate, in any
material respect any applicable law, rule, regulation, order or code of ethics,
or any material investment restriction, policy or procedure adopted by the Fund
of which ALPS had knowledge (it being understood that ALPS is deemed to have
knowledge of all investment restrictions, policies or procedures set out in the
Fund’s public filings or otherwise provided to ALPS); or
(iii) financial
difficulties on the part of ALPS which are evidenced by the authorization or
commencement of, or involvement by way of pleading, answer, consent or
acquiescence in, a voluntary or involuntary case under Title 11 of the United
States Code, as from time to time in effect, or any applicable law other than
said Title 11, of any jurisdiction relating to the liquidation or reorganization
of debtors or to the modification or alteration of the rights of
creditors.
(d) Deliveries Upon
Termination. Upon termination of this Agreement, ALPS agrees
to cooperate in the orderly transfer of transfer agency duties and shall deliver
to the Fund or as otherwise directed by the Fund (in the case of termination by
the Fund, at the expense of the Fund) all records and other documents made or
accumulated in the performance of its duties for the Fund
hereunder. In the event ALPS gives notice of termination under this
Agreement, it will continue to provide the services contemplated hereunder after
such termination at the contractual rate for up to 120 days, provided that the
Fund uses all reasonable commercial efforts to appoint such replacement on a
timely basis. In no event will ALPS be required to assist any new
service or system provider in modifying or altering the ALPS’ or the new agent’s
system or software.
20. Assignment. This
Agreement shall extend to and shall be binding upon the parties hereto and their
respective successors and permitted assigns; provided, however, that this
Agreement shall not be assignable by the Fund without the prior written consent
of ALPS, or by ALPS without the prior written consent of the Fund.
21. Governing
Law. The provisions of this Agreement shall be construed and
interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of Colorado and the 1940
Act and the rules thereunder. To the extent that the laws of the
State of Colorado conflict with the 1940 Act or such rules, the latter shall
control.
22. Names. The
obligations of the Fund entered into in the name or on behalf thereof by any
director, shareholder, representative or agent thereof are made not
individually, but in such capacities, and are not binding upon any of the
directors, shareholders, representatives or agents of the Fund personally, but
bind only the property of the Fund, and all persons dealing with the Fund must
look solely to the property of the Fund for the enforcement of any claims
against the Fund.
23. Amendments to this
Agreement. This Agreement may only be amended by the parties
in writing.
24. Notices. All
notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing, shall be deemed
to have been given when received or when sent by telex or facsimile, and shall
be given to the following addresses (or such other addresses as to which notice
is given):
To
ALPS:
ALPS Fund
Services, Inc.
0000
Xxxxxxxx, Xxxxx 0000
Xxxxxx,
Xxxxxxxx 00000
Attn: General
Counsel
Fax: (000)
000-0000
To the
Fund:
000 Xxxx
Xxx.
Xxx Xxxx,
XX 00000
Attn: Compliance
Fax:
25. Counterparts. This
Agreement may be executed by the parties hereto on any number of counterparts,
and all of said counterparts taken together shall be deemed to constitute one
and the same instrument.
26. Entire
Agreement. This Agreement embodies the entire agreement and
understanding among the parties and supersedes all prior agreements and
understandings relating to the subject matter hereof; provided, however, that
ALPS may embody in one or more separate documents its agreement, if any, with
respect to delegated duties and oral instructions.
27. Severability. If
any provision or provisions of this Agreement shall be held invalid, unlawful,
or unenforceable, the validity, legality, and enforceability of the remaining
provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired.
|
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement as of the day
and year first above written.
By:
|
||
Name: Xxxxxxxxx
San Xxxxxx
|
||
Title: Trustee
|
||
ALPS
FUND SERVICES, INC.
|
||
By:
|
||
Name: Xxxxxx
X. May
|
||
Title: President
|
|
|
APPENDIX
A
LIST OF
PORTFOLIOS
GLG
International Small Cap Fund – Institutional Class
|
APPENDIX
B
TRANSFER AGENCY
SERVICES
Shareholder
Servicing
·
|
Handle
800-line phone calls on recorded
lines
|
·
|
Design
and maintain fulfillment database
|
·
|
Compile
monthly reports on call statistics
|
·
|
Provide
automated telephone services via ALPS’ IVR
system
|
Transfer
Agency
·
|
Establish
and maintain shareholder accounts
|
·
|
Process
and record purchase and redemption
orders
|
·
|
Process
dividends and capital gains distributions and mail
notices
|
·
|
Perform
NSCC processing
|
·
|
Produce
and mail confirmations account statements and reports to
shareholders
|
·
|
Process
year-end shareholder tax reporting
|
·
|
Perform
required AML and CIP services
|
·
|
AVA: TA
Web & Shareholder Data Access
(SDA)
|
|
APPENDIX
C
TRANSFER AGENT WEB
SERVICES
1.
|
Transfer Agent Web
Services. The Fund has requested, and ALPS will provide,
Transfer Agent Web Services (“TA Web”) as one of the ALPS’ interactive
client services provided pursuant to the terms of this
Agreement. Through TA Web, Fund’s shareholders may interact
with the Fund’s transfer agent via the Internet. This
interaction includes the ability to review account information and
initiate transaction requests. If selected by the Fund, the
following functions may also be included as part of TA
Web.
|
|
(a)
|
e-Delivery. Through
e-Delivery, shareholders will have the option to discontinue printed and
mailed shareholder statements and shareholder tax forms in favor of
electronic ones.
|
|
(b)
|
Web-Documents. Through
Web-Documents, shareholders will have the option to discontinue printed
and mailed Regulatory Documents in favor of electronic
ones. “Regulatory Documents” shall mean the prospectus, annual
report, semi-annual report and any other document required under
applicable federal securities law to be delivered by the Fund to
shareholders.
|
|
(c)
|
On-Line Account
Applications. Through On-Line Account Applications,
prospective shareholders will have the option to establish an account with
the Fund electronically in lieu of a mailed
application.
|
2.
|
ALPS’
Responsibilities. In connection with its performance of
TA Web, ALPS shall:
|
|
(a)
|
receive
transaction and new account requests electronically transmitted to the TA
Web via the Internet following execution of a link from the Investment
Company Web Site to TA Web and route transaction requests to the ALPS’
transfer agency system;
|
|
(b)
|
for
each transaction request received, route transaction and new account
information from the ALPS’ transfer agency system to TA Web to be viewed
by users;
|
|
(c)
|
initiate
the design, processing and maintenance of TA Web
services;
|
|
(d)
|
provide
technical support for all TA Web services, including: testing,
quality control review, generation and
storage;
|
|
(e)
|
periodically
review the e-mail list for completeness and accuracy;
and
|
|
(f)
|
provide
a detailed proposal, including cost and a timeline, for any custom design
or programming requested by the
Fund.
|
3.
|
Fund
Responsibilities. In connection with its use of TA Web,
the Fund, through its service providers,
shall:
|
|
(a)
|
provide
all computers, telecommunications equipment and other equipment and
software reasonably necessary to develop and maintain the Investment
Company Web Site;
|
|
(b)
|
design
and develop the Investment Company Web Site functionality necessary to
facilitate and maintain the hypertext links to TA Web and the various
transaction web pages and otherwise make the Investment Company Web Site
available to shareholders;
|
|
(c)
|
review,
approve and provide ALPS with reasonable notification of modifications to
any shareholder statements, Regulatory Documents and any other documents,
agreements or disclosures that the Fund transmits to its shareholders
e-delivery;
|
|
(d)
|
provide
ALPS with a contact for receipt of enhancement and maintenance
notices;
|
|
(e)
|
provide
ALPS with a completed TA Web questionnaire, which includes a list of site
functionality options and trading
rules;
|
|
(f)
|
provide
ALPS with such other written instructions as it may request from time to
time relating to the performance of ALPS’ obligations hereunder;
and
|
|
(g)
|
provide
written guidance for any custom graphic design or programmatic
modifications that exceed the basic
offering.
|
|
APPENDIX
D
TRANSFER AGENT IVR
SERVICES
1.
|
Transfer Agent
Interactive Voice Response (“IVR”) Services. The Fund
has requested, and ALPS will provide, Transfer Agent IVR Services (“TA
IVR”) as one of the ALPS’ interactive client services provided pursuant to
the terms of this Agreement. Through TA IVR, shareholders may
retrieve account information and submit transaction requests directly to
the Fund’s transfer agent via the telephone as described further in this
Appendix.
|
2.
|
ALPS’
Responsibilities. In connection with its performance of
TA IVR, ALPS shall:
|
|
(a)
|
receive
transaction requests submitted via telephone to the TA IVR processing
server and route transaction requests to the ALPS’ transfer agency
system;
|
|
(b)
|
for
each transaction request received, route transaction information from the
ALPS’ transfer agency system to the IVR server to be heard by users;
and
|
|
(c)
|
provide
a detailed proposal, including cost and a timeline, for any custom design
or programming requested by the
Fund.
|
3.
|
Fund
Responsibilities. In connection with its use of TA IVR,
the Fund shall:
|
|
(a)
|
complete
a configuration form clearly designating which features and controls
should be used in the Fund’s
implementation;
|
|
(b)
|
provide
ALPS with such other written instructions as its may request from time to
time relating to the performance of ALPS’ obligations
hereunder;
|
|
(c)
|
provide
ALPS with: a contact for receipt of enhancement and maintenance
notices and a completed IVR questionnaire that includes a list of site
functionality options and trading rules;
and
|
|
(d)
|
provide
written guidance for any custom graphic design or programmatic
modifications.
|
|
APPENDIX
E
ALPS VIRTUAL
ACCESS
1.
|
ALPS Virtual
Access. The Fund has requested, and ALPS will provide,
access to ALPS Virtual Access (“AVA”), an ALPS proprietary platform that
provides web-based access to information and data maintained on behalf of
the Fund and maintains a complete audit trail of all activity on the
site. Through AVA, the Fund may have, based on the third-party
services offered under separate contract: (i) shareholder data
access, which interfaces with the transfer agency system and allows data
retrieval and updates; (ii) Portfolio data access, which provides daily
Portfolio and securities detail and permits the Fund to create and save
its own customized reports; (iii) access to AdLit, which permits the Fund
to submit sales/marketing pieces for review by ALPS’ compliance and tracks
the progress of the review; and (iv) links to PolicyIQ, which provides the
Fund with access to ALPS’ policies and procedures and also provides the
Fund with regulatory updates.
|
2.
|
ALPS’
Responsibilities. In connection with its performance of
AVA, ALPS shall:
|
|
(a)
|
provide
technical support for AVA services, including: testing, quality
control review, generation, and storage
information;
|
|
(b)
|
establish,
based on the Fund’s direction, user accounts with access to Fund’s data
and information;
|
|
(c)
|
periodically
review the list of users with access to Fund’s information and make the
list available to the Fund for review;
and
|
|
(d)
|
provide
a detailed proposal, including cost and a timeline, for any custom design
or programming requested by the
Fund.
|
3.
|
Fund
Responsibilities. In connection with its use of AVA, the
Fund, through its service providers,
shall:
|
|
(a)
|
provide
all computers, telecommunications equipment and other equipment and
software reasonably necessary to access the AVA
site;
|
|
(b)
|
review,
approve and provide users for access to the AVA site, including any
limitations to access based on
function;
|
|
(c)
|
periodically
review users list and make any necessary modifications, including the
removal of users that should no longer have access to the Fund’s
information;
|
|
(d)
|
provide
ALPS with a contact for receipt of enhancement and maintenance
notices;
|
|
(e)
|
provide
ALPS with a completed AVA questionnaire, which includes a list of site
functionality options and trading
rules;
|
|
(f)
|
provide
ALPS with such other written instructions as it may request from time to
time relating to the performance of ALPS’ obligations hereunder;
and
|
|
(g)
|
provide
written guidance for any custom graphic design or programmatic
modifications.
|
4.
|
Options
Selection. AVA options are dependent of the services
agreements in place with ALPS. Access will be granted to any
service area that is both available to and selected by the
Fund.
|
|
FEE
SCHEDULE
COMPENSATION
1.
|
Transfer Agency
Services (Appendix B)
|
Annual
Fee: $50,000 annual base fee per Portfolio
Fees are
billable on a monthly basis at the rate of 1/12 of the annual fee. A
charge is made for an account in the month that an account opens.
Annual Open Account
Fee:
Open
Accounts
|
Fees
Per Account
|
0 -
50,000
|
$9
|
Greater
than 50,000
|
$9
|
Annual Inactive Account
Fee:
$0 per
inactive account (an inactive account is an account with a zero balance that has
had activity in the last eighteen months)
Annual Closed Account
Fee:
$0 per
closed account (a closed account is an account with a zero balance that has not
had activity in the last eighteen months)
2.
|
Transfer Agent Web
Services (Appendix C)
|
Fees for
a basic shareholder site configuration are included in the fees set forth in
this Appendix under Transfer Agency Services above. A basic
shareholder site configuration includes the following:
|
(a)
|
A
single instance of TA Web that is configured to match the color and logo
found on the Fund marketing site;
|
|
(b)
|
Any
changes to the wording used throughout the site, including terms of use
and shareholder agreement;
|
|
(c)
|
Access
to all existing functionality as well as new functionality that may be
made available to Fund; and
|
|
(d)
|
An
implementation phase during which Fund is able to review and comment on
shareholder site before it is made available to the
shareholders.
|
Any
graphical or programmatic modifications beyond what is offered or requested
after the initial establishment of the TA Web Site will be completed based on an
approved proposal that includes a statement of work, a timeline and the
associated fees. Fees are billed on a time and materials basis at
then-current billing rates.
3.
|
Transfer Agent IVR
Services (Appendix D)
|
Fees for
a basic TA IVR instance are included in the fees set forth in this Appendix
under Transfer Agency Services above. A basic instance includes the
following:
|
(a)
|
A
single instance of IVR that is linked to the Fund’s identity using audio
prompt;
|
|
(b)
|
Access
to all existing functionality as well as new functionality that may be
made available to Fund; and
|
|
(c)
|
An
implementation phase during which Fund is able to review and comment on
IVR configuration before it is made available to the
shareholders.
|
Any call
flow modifications beyond what is offered or requested after the initial
establishment of the TA IVR instance will be completed based on an approved
proposal that includes a statement of work, a timeline and the associated
fees. Fees are billed on a time and materials basis at then-current
billing rates.
4.
|
ALPS Virtual Access
(Appendix E)
|
Fees for
Fund and third-party access to AVA are included in the fees set forth in this
Appendix under Transfer Agency Services above. This access includes
the following:
|
(a)
|
User
ids for an unlimited number of Fund employees and approved third
parties;
|
|
(b)
|
Technical
support and training for all Fund employees’
and
|
|
(c)
|
An
implementation phase during which Fund is able to review the data
available on AVA, review the current list of users with access to its
shareholder information, request new users to be added and determine what
update functionality (if any) will be
required.
|
Any
functionality modifications beyond what is offered or requested after the
initial establishment of the Fund on AVA will be completed based on an approved
proposal that includes a statement of work, a timeline and the associated
fees. Fees are billed on a time and materials basis at then-current
billing rates.
* * * *
*
Out-of-Pocket
Fees:
In
addition, the Fund agrees to pay ALPS its out-of-pocket expenses including, but
not limited to, SAS70 control review reports, travel expenses to Board meetings
and on-site supervisory reviews, board book/materials printing and mailing,
fulfillment costs, confirmations and investor statements, postage, statement
paper, NSCC interface fees, wire fees and other bank charges, 22c-2 fees, sales
reporting and customized programming/enhancements and other out-of-pocket
expenses incurred by ALPS in connection with the performance of its duties to
the funds. Postage for mailing of dividends, Fund reports and other
mailings to all shareholder accounts shall be advanced to ALPS by the Fund at
least seven (7) days prior to the mailing date of such
materials. ALPS will seek advance approval before incurring any
out-of-pocket expenses that are out of the ordinary course of
business.
LATE CHARGES: All
invoices are due and payable upon receipt. Any invoices not paid
within thirty (30) days of the invoice date are subject to a one percent (1%)
per month financing charge on any unpaid balance but only to the extent
permitted by law.
|
APPENDIX
F
[RESERVED]
|
APPENDIX
G
SECURITY
PROCEDURES
1.
|
User Access and
Authentication (“TA Web”)
|
Initial
authentication of a shareholder user in TA Web is accomplished through entry of
the uniquely identifiable information know to the shareholder. The
shareholder then creates his or her own User ID and password to access TA
Web. The user ID cannot be the same as the user’s social security
number, must not contain prohibited characters, and must be of a minimum
length. The user ID and password minimum and maximum lengths can be
set at the fund group level. A minimum of eight (8) characters in
length and a requirement of at least one non-alpha character are recommended for
the password.
The user
ID will lockout after three failures. A lockout needs to be reset by
an authorized representative in shareholder services. Prior to
lockout, a shareholder may change a forgotten password by answering the custom
question provided at initial authentication. If the shareholder
chooses not to create a custom question and answer, he or she will need to call
and have an authorized representative reset his or her password.
User Access and
Authentication (“TA IVR”)
Authentication
of a shareholder user in TA IVR is based on account number, password and,
optionally, social security number.
An
account number is required and is used as the identification (ID) of the
shareholder. A password is required and is used as the access to the
entered account. This is the shareholder’s personal identification
number (PIN). A social security number is an optional entry
requirement controlled by the Fund to add another level of authentication to
access the entered account number.
To
utilize the TA IVR, a shareholder must call the Fund’s shareholder services line
and request: (a) that the service be enabled for his or her account
and (b) a user id and password. The above authentication information
will need to be provided in order to successfully complete the
request.
User Access and
Authentication (“AVA”)
Access to
AVA is limited to the Fund, its designated representatives and those third-party
firms that are authorized by the Fund. All new users will need to be
authorized, including the allowed level of access, by a designated Fund
contact. Once authorized, a user will be provided with a user ID and
password.
The user
ID will lockout after three failures. A lockout needs to be reset by
an authorized representative in AVA support. Prior to lockout, a user
may change a forgotten password by answering the custom question provided at
initial authentication. If the user chooses not to create a custom
question and answer, he or she will need to call and have an authorized
representative in AVA support reset his or her password.
2.
|
Encryption
|
The web
servers run secure sockets layer (“SSL”). The purpose of using SSL is
to encrypt data transmissions through the ALPS’ Web Site and block
communications through the ALPS’ Web Site from Internet browsers that do not
support SSL data encryption. The standard level of encryption
supported by the ALPS’ Web Site is 128-bit. ALPS also uses a
certificate from a major provider of server authentication
services.
Sensitive
Fund data that is exchanged within TA Web user sessions is stored with a minimum
of 128-bit encryption. This includes any data passed via URL within
the application. Character validation methods are also employed to
ensure that only appropriate data is passed to related databases.
3.
|
Network Access
Control
|
A
computer referred to as a “firewall” is located between the Internet backbone
connection and the Internet accessible application hosting equipment (“web
servers”). The purpose of the firewall is to control the connectivity
to the web servers at the port level. This equipment is located in a
secure and environmentally controlled data center. Changes to the
configuration of this computer are administered by authorized ALPS’ IT
staff. This equipment will not interrogate data, and its only
function is to limit the type of traffic accessing the web servers to the suite
of hyper-text transfer protocols (“HTTP”) transmissions. Ports on the
router are configured to be consistent with ports on the web
servers. All other ports on the router other than those configured
for the web servers are not accessible from the Internet.
The web
servers utilize adequate and appropriate software and hardware. All
services and functions within the web servers’ operating system are deactivated
with the exception of services and functions which support TA Web or
AVA. The general purpose of this feature is to prevent external users
from entering commands or running processes on the web servers. All
ports on the web servers, except those required by TA Web or AVA, are
disabled. Directory structures are “hidden” from the
user. Services that provide directory information are also
deactivated.
ALPS’
administrators gain access to the web servers through a directly connected
physical console or through the internal network via ALPS Secure
ID.
TA Web
and AVA are programmed to terminate the session/transaction between the
shareholder and the application if data authentication fails. All
successful and unsuccessful sessions are logged.
4.
|
Limitation of
Users
|
Access by
ALPS’ personnel to the web servers is restricted within ALPS to a limited number
of users based upon ALPS’ system administration requirements, as determined by
appropriate ALPS’ systems managers from time to time.
5.
|
Independence of the
Fund’s Location on the Web
Servers
|
Independence
of the Fund’s presence on the web servers is accomplished by establishing
Fund-specific session variables that logically separate Fund
data. Access to web forms, style-sheets and data is governed by this
structure. The base transaction code required by ALPS’ interactive
client services is, however, shared by all data set partitions.
Each Fund
URL on the web servers will identify a separate Fund presence. Access
to the Fund presence on the web servers must be through the Investment Company
Web Site.
Book
marking of HTML pages within the Fund’s site on the web servers is not
allowed.
6.
|
Security
Review
|
Application
security assessments and network penetration tests are performed on a periodic
basis to ensure that code generated by ALPS meets industry standards and best
practices.
7.
|
Right to
Audit
|
The Fund
is allowed to audit, at its expense, the collection of electronic documents or
pages residing on ALPS’ computer system relating to the Fund’s implementation of
the TA Web service, if any, linked to the Internet and accessible by hypertext
link through the World Wide Web, where the transaction data fields and related
screens provided by ALPS may be viewed by Users who access the ALPS Web Site
once in each 12-month period and any associated systems or networks within TA
Web relating to the Fund’s implementation, after providing an audit plan to ALPS
and upon ALPS’ consent thereto. The audit may include review of
configurations, audit trails and maintenance of systems and software within TA
Web associated with the Fund’s TA Web site on the ALPS’ Web
server. Tools that may be used for the audit may include network
security tools; provided that ALPS may specify the time at which any tool is
used if ALPS reasonably believes that such tool may affect system
performance. The audit will be coordinated through ALPS, and ALPS
will be entitled to observe all audit activity. Additionally, ALPS
shall be entitled to all results of an audit. The Fund will not
perform any action that may interfere with the uptime or stability of ALPS’
systems or networks. The Fund and its review team will be considered
authorized users, and ALPS will not seek prosecution under any computer crime or
other applicable statutes for such activity, as long as the Fund has provided
ALPS a written audit plan, ALPS has approved the written audit plan and the
audit was executed in accordance with the written audit plan.
8.
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Fund Specific
Requirements
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It may be
necessary to modify the security procedures to enable Fund to comply with its
own internal policies. In these cases, procedures would be modified
to be no less restrictive than the above. These changes may result in
an increase to the fees or out-of-pocket fees being billed to Fund.