The MerQube US Tech+ Vol Advantage Index
The MerQube US Tech+ Vol Advantage Index (the “Index”) was developed by MerQube (the “Index Sponsor” and “Index Calculation Agent”), in coordination with JPMS, and is maintained by the Index Sponsor and is calculated and published by the Index Calculation Agent. The Index was established on June 22, 2021. An affiliate of ours currently has a 10% equity interest in the Index Sponsor, with a right to appoint an employee of JPMS, another of our affiliates, as a member of the board of directors of the Index Sponsor.
Since February 9, 2024 (the “Amendment Effective Date”), the underlying asset to which the Index is linked (the “Underlying Asset”) has been an unfunded position in the QQQ Fund, calculated as the excess of the total return of the QQQ Fund over a notional financing cost. Prior to the Amendment Effective Date, the Underlying Asset was an unfunded rolling position in E-Mini Nasdaq-100 futures (the “Futures Contracts”).
The investment objective of the QQQ Fund is to seek to track the investment results, before fees and expenses, of the Nasdaq-100 Index®. For more information about the QQQ Fund and the Nasdaq-100 Index®, see “Background on the Invesco QQQ TrustSM, Series 1” and “Background on the Nasdaq-100 Index®,” respectively, in the accompanying underlying supplement.
The Index attempts to provide a dynamic rules-based exposure to the Underlying Asset, while targeting a level of implied volatility, with a maximum exposure to the Underlying Asset of 500% and a minimum exposure to the Underlying Asset of 0%. The Index is subject to a 6.0% per annum daily deduction, and the performance of the Underlying Asset is subject to a notional financing cost deducted daily.
On each weekly Index rebalance day, the exposure to the Underlying Asset is set equal to (a) the 35% implied volatility target (the “target volatility”) divided by (b) the one-week implied volatility of the QQQ Fund, subject to a maximum exposure of 500%. For example, if the implied volatility of the QQQ Fund is equal to 17.5%, the exposure to the Underlying Asset will equal 200% (or 35% / 17.5%) and if the implied volatility of the QQQ Fund is equal to 40%, the exposure to the Underlying Asset will equal 87.5% (or 35% / 40%). The Index’s exposure to the Underlying Asset will be greater than 100% when the implied volatility of the QQQ Fund is below 35%, and the Index’s exposure to the Underlying Asset will be less than 100% when the implied volatility of the QQQ Fund is above 35%. In general, the Index’s target volatility feature is expected to result in the volatility of the Index being more stable over time than if no target volatility feature were employed. No assurance can be provided that the volatility of the Index will be stable at any time. The Index uses the implied volatility of the QQQ Fund as a proxy for the realized volatility of the Underlying Asset.
The Index tracks the performance of the QQQ Fund, with distributions, if any, notionally reinvested, less the daily deduction of a notional financing cost. The notional financing cost is intended to approximate the cost of maintaining a position in the QQQ Fund using borrowed funds at a rate of interest equal to SOFR plus a spread of 0.50% per annum. SOFR, the Secured Overnight Financing Rate, is intended to be a broad measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight collateralized by Treasury securities. The Index is an “excess return” index and not a “total return” index because, as part of the calculation of the level of the Index, the performance of the QQQ Fund is reduced by the notional financing cost. The notional financing cost has been deducted from the performance of the QQQ Fund since the Amendment Effective Date.
The 6.0% per annum daily deduction and the notional financing cost will offset any appreciation of the Underlying Asset, will heighten any depreciation of the Underlying Asset and will generally be a drag on the performance of the Index. The Index will trail the performance of an identical index without such deductions.
Holding the estimated value of the notes and market conditions constant, the Call Premium Amounts, the Buffer Amount and the other economic terms available on the notes are more favorable to investors than the terms that would be available on a hypothetical note issued by us linked to an identical index without a daily deduction. However, there can be no assurance that any improvement in the terms of the notes derived from the daily deduction will offset the negative effect of the daily deduction on the performance of the Index. The return on the notes may be lower than the return on a hypothetical note issued by us linked to an identical index without a daily deduction.
The daily deduction and the volatility of the Index (as influenced by the Index’s target volatility feature) are two of the primary variables that affect the economic terms of the notes. Additionally, the daily deduction and volatility of the Index are two of the inputs our affiliates’ internal pricing models use to value the derivative or derivatives underlying the economic terms of the notes for purposes of determining the estimated value of the notes set forth on the cover of this pricing supplement. The daily deduction will effectively reduce the value of the derivative or derivatives underlying the economic terms of the notes. See “The Estimated Value of the Notes” and “Selected Risk Considerations — Risks Relating to the Estimated Value and Secondary Market Prices of the Notes” in this pricing supplement.
The Index is subject to risks associated with the use of significant leverage. The notional financing cost deducted daily will be magnified by any leverage provided by the Index. In addition, the Index may be significantly uninvested on any given day, and, in that case, will realize only a portion of any gains due to appreciation of the Underlying Asset on that day. The index deduction is deducted daily at a rate of 6.0% per annum, even when the Index is not fully invested.