What changed in this filing

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Item 1. Business

2021-03-01 compared with 2020-02-28 · 833 added, 493 removed, 47 unchanged (97% of the section changed)

The purpose of the Aberdeen Standard Silver ETF Trust (the “Trust”) is to own silver transferred to the Trust in exchange for shares issued by the Trust (“Shares”).

Each Share represents a fractional undivided beneficial interest in and ownership of the Trust.

purpose of the Aberdeen Standard Silver ETF Trust (the “Trust”) is to own silver transferred to the Trust in

exchange for shares issued by the Trust (“Shares”).

Each Share represents a fractional undivided beneficial interest

in and ownership of the Trust.

The assets of the Trust consist solely of silver bullion.

The Trust was formed on July 20, 2009 when an initial deposit of silver was made in exchange for the issuance of 2 Baskets (a “Basket”

The Trust was formed on

July 20, 2009 when an initial deposit of silver was made in exchange for the issuance of two Baskets (a “Basket”

consists of 50,000 Shares).

The number of shares that constitutes a Basket for the purpose of creations and redemptions was reduced from 100,000 Shares to 50,000 Shares effective on August 11, 2016.

The sponsor of the Trust is Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Sponsor LLC (the “Sponsor”) .

The trustee of the Trust is The Bank of New York Mellon (the “Trustee”).

Effective March 29, 2019, the Trust’s custodian is JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A.

(the “Custodian”).

Prior to March 29, 2019, the custodian wa s HSBC Bank plc.

The Trust’s Shares at redeemable value increase d from $ 339,734,175 at December 31, 2018 to $ 407,463,630 at December 31, 2019 , the Trust’s fiscal year end.

Outstanding Shares in the Trust increase d from 22,600,000 Shares at December 31, 2018 to 23,300,000 Shares outstanding at December 31, 2019 .

The Trust is not managed like a corporation or an active investment vehicle.

sponsor of the Trust is Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Sponsor LLC (the “Sponsor”).

The trustee of the Trust is

The Bank of New York Mellon (the “Trustee”).

The number of shares that constitutes a Basket for the purpose of creations

and redemptions was reduced from 100,000 Shares to 50,000 Shares effective on August 11, 2016.

Trust’s Shares at redeemable value increased from $407,463,630 at December 31, 2019 to $863,664,235 at December 31, 2020,

the Trust’s fiscal year end.

Outstanding Shares in the Trust increased from 23,300,000 Shares at December 31, 2019 to 33,750,000

Shares outstanding at December 31, 2020.

Trust is not managed like a corporation or an active investment vehicle.

The Trust has no directors, officers or employees.

It does not engage in any activities designed to obtain a profit from or to improve the losses caused by changes in the price of silver.

The silver held by the Trust will only be delivered to pay the remuneration due to the Sponsor (the “Sponsor’s Fee”), distributed to Authorized Participants (defined below) in connection with the redemption of Baskets or sold (1) on an as-needed basis to pay Trust expenses not assumed by the Sponsor, (2) in the event the Trust terminates and liquidates its assets, or (3) as otherwise required by law or regulation.

The Trust has no fixed termination date.

The Trust is not registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and is not required to register under such act.

The Trust does not and will not hold or trade in commodities futures contracts, “commodity interests”

or any other instruments regulated by the Commodity Exchange Act (the “CEA”), as administered by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) and the National Futures Association (“NFA”) .

The Trust is not a commodity pool for purposes of the CEA and the Shares are not “commodity interests”, and neither the Sponsor nor the Trustee is subject to regulation as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading advisor in connection with the Shares.

The Sponsor of the registrant maintains an Internet websit e at www.aberdeenstandard.com/en-us/us/investor/fund-centre through which the registrant’s annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, are made available free of charge as soon as reasonably practicable after they have been filed or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).

Additional information regarding the Trust may also be found on the SEC’s EDGAR database at www.sec.gov.

Trust Objective

The investment objective of the Trust is for the Shares to reflect the performance of the price of silver bullion, less the expenses of the Trust’s operations.

The Shares are intended to constitute a simple and cost-effective means of making an investment similar to an investment in silver.

An investment in physical silver requires expensive and sometimes complicated arrangements in connection with the assay, transportation, warehousing and insurance of the metal.

Traditionally, such expense and complications have resulted in investments in physical silver being efficient only in amounts beyond the reach of many investors.

The Shares provide institutional and retail investors with a simple and cost-efficient means, with minimal credit risk, of gaining investment benefits similar to those of holding silver bullion.

does not engage in any activities designed to obtain a profit from or to improve the losses caused by changes in the price of silver.

The silver held by the Trust will only be delivered to pay the remuneration due to the Sponsor (the “Sponsor’s

Fee”), distributed to Authorized Participants (defined below) in connection with the redemption of Baskets or sold (1) on

an as-needed basis to pay Trust expenses not assumed by the Sponsor, (2) in the event the Trust terminates and liquidates its

assets, or (3) as otherwise required by law or regulation.

Trust is not registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and is not required to register under

The Trust does not and will not hold or trade in commodities futures contracts, “commodity interests” or

any other instruments regulated by the Commodity Exchange Act (the “CEA”), as administered by the Commodity Futures

Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) and the National Futures Association (“NFA”).

The Trust is not a commodity

pool for purposes of the CEA and the Shares are not “commodity interests,” and neither the Sponsor nor the Trustee

is subject to regulation as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading advisor in connection with the Shares.

has no fixed termination date.

Sponsor of the registrant maintains an Internet website at www.aberdeenstandardetfs.us through which the registrant’s annual

reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a)

or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, are made available free of charge as soon as

reasonably practicable after they have been filed or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).

Additional information regarding the Trust may also be found on the SEC’s EDGAR database at www.sec.gov.

investment objective of the Trust is for the Shares to reflect the performance of the price of silver bullion, less the expenses

of the Trust’s operations.

The Shares are intended to constitute a simple and cost-effective means of making an investment

similar to an investment in physical silver.

An investment in physical silver requires expensive and sometimes complicated

arrangements in connection with the assay, transportation, warehousing and insurance of the metal.

Traditionally, such expense

and complications have resulted in investments in physical silver being efficient only in amounts beyond the reach of many

Shares are intended to provide institutional and retail investors with a simple and cost-efficient means, with minimal credit

risk, of gaining investment benefits similar to those of holding silver bullion.

The Shares offer an investment that:

Is Easily Accessible .

The Shares trade on the NYSE Arca and provide institutional and retail investors with indirect access to the silver market.

Easily Accessible .

The Shares trade on the NYSE Arca and provide institutional and retail investors with indirect access to

the silver bullion market.

The Shares are bought and sold on the NYSE Arca like any other exchange-listed securities.

1 unchanged sentence

New York time.

Is Relatively Cost Effective.

The Sponsor expects that, for many investors, costs associated with buying and selling the Shares in the secondary market and the payment of the Trust’s ongoing expenses will be lower than the costs associated with buying and selling silver bullion and storing and insuring silver bullion in a traditional allocated silver bullion account.

Has Minimal Credit Risk .

The Shares represent an interest in physical bullion owned by the Trust (other than an amount held in unallocated form which is not sufficient to make up a whole bar or which is held temporarily to effect a creation or redemption of Shares).

Physical bullion of the Trust in the Custodian’s possession is not subject to borrowing arrangements with third parties.

Other than the silver temporarily being held in an unallocated silver account with the Custodian, the physical bullion of the Trust is not subject to counterparty or credit risks.

Risk Factors—Silver held in the Trust’s unallocated silver account and any Authorized Participant’s unallocated silver account is not segregated from the Custodian’s assets...

These contrasts with most other financial products that gain exposure to bullion through the use of derivatives that are subject to counterparty and credit risks.

Investing in the Shares does not insulate the investor from certain risks, including price volatility.

Risk Factors .”

Overview of the Silver Industry

This section provides a brief introduction to the silver industry by looking at some of the key participants, detailing the primary sources of demand and supply and outlining the role of the “official”

sector (i.e., central banks) in the market.

In this annual report, the term “ounces”

refers to troy ounces.

Market Participants

The participants in the world silver market may be classified in the following sectors:

the mining and producer sector, the banking sector, the official sector, the investment sector, and the manufacturing sector.

Relatively Cost Effective .

The Sponsor expects that, for many investors, costs associated with buying and selling the Shares

in the secondary market and the payment of the Trust’s ongoing expenses will be lower than the costs associated with buying

and selling silver bullion and storing and insuring silver bullion in a traditional allocated silver account.

Minimal Credit Risk .

The Shares represent an interest in physical bullion owned by the Trust (other than an amount held

in unallocated form which is not sufficient to make up a whole bar of which is held temporarily to effect a creation or

redemption of Shares).

Physical bullion of the Trust in the Custodian’s possession is not subject to borrowing

arrangements with third parties.

Other than the silver temporarily being held in an unallocated silver account with

the Custodian, the physical bullion of the Trust is not subject to counterparty or credit risks.

Factors—Silver held in the Trust’s unallocated silver account and any Authorized Participant’s

unallocated silver account is not segregated from the Custodian’s assets...” This contrasts with most

other financial products that gain exposure to bullion through the use of derivatives that are subject to counterparty and

credit risks.

in the Shares does not insulate the investor from certain risks, including price volatility.

See “Risk Factors.”

of the Silver Industry

section provides a brief introduction to the silver industry by looking at some of the key participants, detailing the

primary sources of demand and supply and, outlining the role of the

“official” sector (i.e., central banks) in the market.

this annual report, the term “ounces” refers to troy ounces.

participants in the world silver market may be classified in the following sectors:

the mining and producer sector, the banking

sector, the official sector, the investment sector, and the manufacturing sector.

A brief description of each follows.

Mining and Producer Sector

This group includes mining companies that specialize in silver and silver production, mining companies that produce silver as a by-product of other production (such as a copper or gold producer), scrap merchants and recyclers.

Banking Sector

Bullion banks provide a variety of services to the silver market and its participants, thereby facilitating interactions between other parties.

Services provided by the bullion banking community include traditional banking products as well as mine financing, physical silver purchases and sales, hedging and risk management, inventory management for industrial users and consumers and silver leasing.

The Official Sector

There are no official statistics published by the International Monetary Fund, Bank of International Settlements, or national banks on silver holdings by national governments.

and Producer Sector

group includes mining companies that specialize in silver and silver production, mining companies that produce silver as a by-product

of other production (such as a copper or gold producer), scrap merchants and recyclers.

banks provide a variety of services to the silver market and its participants, thereby facilitating interactions between other

Services provided by the bullion banking community include traditional banking products as well as mine financing, physical

silver purchases and sales, hedging and risk management, inventory management for industrial users and consumers and silver leasing.

Official Sector

are no official statistics published by the International Monetary Fund, Bank of International Settlements, or national banks

on silver holdings by national governments.

The main reason for this is that silver is generally not recognized as a reserve asset.

Consequently, there are very limited silver stocks held by governments.

According to The Silver Institute’s World Silver Survey 201 9 , at the end of 201 8 government-held silver bullion stocks total 89.1 million ounces.

The Investment Sector

This sector includes the investment and trading activities of both professional and private investors and speculators.

These participants range from large hedge and mutual funds to day-traders on futures exchanges, and retail-level coin collectors.

The Manufacturing Sector

The fabrication and manufacturing sector represents all the commercial and industrial users of silver.

Industrial applications comprise the largest use of silver.

The jewelry and silverware sector is the second largest, followed by the photographic industry (although the latter has been declining over a number of years as a result of the spread of digital photography).

The following table sets forth a summary of the world silver supply and demand for the period from 200 9 to 201 8 and is based on information reported by the World Silver Survey 201 9 , published by The Silver Institute .

(in millions of ounces)

Mine Production

Net Government Sales

Net Hedging Supply

Industrial Fabrication

Electrical & Electronics

Brazing Alloys & Solders

Ethylene Oxide

Other Industrial

ETP Inventory Build

Exchange Inventory Build

According to The Silver Institute World Silver Survey

2020, at the end of 2019, government-held silver bullion stocks total 89.1 million ounces.

Investment Sector

sector includes the investment and trading activities of both professional and private investors and speculators.

These participants

range from large hedge and mutual funds to day-traders on futures exchanges, and retail-level coin collectors.

Manufacturing Sector

fabrication and manufacturing sector represents all the commercial and industrial users of silver.

Industrial applications comprise

the largest use of silver.

The jewelry and silverware sector is the second largest, followed by the photographic industry (although

the latter has been declining over a number of years as a result of the spread of digital photography).

Silver Supply and Demand 2010-2019

following table sets forth a summary of the world silver supply and demand for the period from 2010 to 2019 and is based

on information reported by the World Silver Survey 2020, published by The Silver Institute.

millions of ounces)

Government Sales

Hedging Supply

& Electronics

Alloys & Solders

Inventory Build

The Silver Institute - World Silver Survey 2020

The following are some of the main characteristics of the silver market illustrated by the table.

Like gold, silver has also been used as a currency in the past.

However, the main difference between gold and silver is that while approximately half of gold demand is used for jewelry, approximately half of silver fabrication demand is used for industrial applications.

New mine production accounts for approximately 8 5 % of total silver supply.

following are some of the main characteristics of the silver market illustrated by the table.

gold, silver has also been used as a currency in the past.

However, the main difference between gold and silver is that while

approximately half of gold demand is used for jewelry, approximately half of silver fabrication demand is used for industrial

applications.

mine production accounts for approximately 82% of total silver supply.

Recycled silver accounts for around 17% of total supply.

Recycled silver increased to 4,707 tons in 2018, ending a six year period of declining recycling supply.

The total of producer hedging, government sales and implied “net disinvestment”

has been in decline but together account for the balance of total supply.

Industrial applications and jewelry demand accounted for over 7 3 % of total demand in 201 8 .

Photography has been taking a lower share of overall silver demand falling from 8% in 200 9 to 4% in 201 8 , while photovoltaic demand has risen in recent years accounting for 7 % in 201 8 .

I nvestment in coins and bars has amounted to 1 7 % of demand in 201 8 .

Historical chart of the price of Silver

The price of silver is volatile and fluctuations are expected to have a direct impact on the value of the Shares.

However, movements in the price of silver in the past are not a reliable indicator of future movements.

Movements may be influenced by various factors, including announcements from central banks regarding a country’s reserve silver holdings, agreements among central banks, political uncertainties around the world, and economic concerns.

The following chart illustrates the movements in the price of an ounce of silver in dollars from December 31, 200 9 to December 31, 201 9 and is based on information provided by Bloomberg:

Between 2003 and 2011, the price of silver increased due to a number of factors.

Among such factors are the decline in the U.S.

Dollar against other currencies, a surge in investment demand in commodities as an asset class generally, strength in fabrication demand, and the low level of forward selling by mining companies.

Since the global financial crisis that started in 2008, investors have increasingly been using silver as a store of value to counter the effects of an increase in paper money by major reserve currency central banks.

However, since 2011, when prices peaked at $48.44 per ounce, prices have trended downwards, albeit with multiple upwards rallies (that have often lasted several months).

The total of producer hedging, government sales and implied “net disinvestment” has been in decline but together account

for the balance of total supply.

applications and jewelry demand accounted for over 68% of total demand in 2019.

Photography has been taking a lower share of overall

silver demand falling from 6% in 2010 to 3% in 2019, while photovoltaic demand has risen in recent years accounting for 9%

Investment in coins and bars has amounted to 18% of demand in 2019.

chart of the price of Silver

price of silver is volatile and fluctuations are expected to have a direct impact on the value of the Shares.

However, movements

in the price of silver in the past are not a reliable indicator of future movements.

Movements may be influenced by various factors,

including announcements from central banks regarding a country’s reserve silver holdings, agreements among central banks,

political uncertainties around the world, and economic concerns.

The following chart illustrates the movements in the price of

an ounce of silver in dollars from December 31, 2010 to December 31, 2020 and is based on information provided by Bloomberg:

Starting in early 2011, when prices peaked at $48.44 per ounce, silver prices began a downward trend, albeit with multiple upwards rallies

(that have often lasted several months).

The rise in the value of the U.S.

Dollar, sluggish industrial growth and a tame inflation environment (which has led some investors to revise their expectations of the effects of monetary expansion) are some of the drivers behind the fall in silver prices since 2011.

In 201 9 silver prices rose 16.7 %, closing at $ 18.05 per ounce, largely driven by a reduction in U.S.

interest rates.

Operation of the Silver Bullion Market

The global trade in silver bullion consists of Over-the-Counter (“OTC”) transactions in spot, forwards, and options and other derivatives, together with exchange-traded futures and options.

Global Over-The-Counter Market

The OTC silver market includes spot, forward, and option and other derivative transactions conducted on a principal-to-principal basis.

Dollar, sluggish industrial growth and a tame inflation

environment (which led some investors to revise their expectations of the effects of monetary expansion) were some of the

drivers behind the fall in silver prices from 2011 to 2019.

Silver reversed course in 2020, as prices rose 46.75%, closing at

$26.49 per ounce.

The global pandemic caused

by COVID-19 contributed to the large returns, as increased stimulus and uncertainty, coupled with a low US dollar and interest

rates, increased the appeal of silver.

of the Silver Bullion Market

global trade in silver consists of Over-the-Counter (“OTC”) transactions in spot, forwards, and options and other

derivatives, together with exchange-traded futures and options.

Over-The-Counter Market

OTC silver market includes spot, forward, and option and other derivative transactions conducted on a principal-to-principal basis.

While this is a global, nearly 24-hour per day market, its main centers are London (the biggest venue) and New York.

Market makers, as well as others in the OTC market, trade with each other and with their clients on a principal-to-principal basis.

All risks and issues of credit are between the parties directly involved in the transaction.

Market makers include the market making members of the London Bullion Market Association (“LBMA”), the trade association that acts as the coordinator for activities conducted on behalf of its members and other participants in the London bullion market.

The twelve market-making members of the LBMA are:

Market makers,

as well as others in the OTC market, trade with each other and with their clients on a principal-to-principal basis.

and issues of credit are between the parties directly involved in the transaction.

Market makers include the market making members

of the London Bullion Market Association (“LBMA”), the trade association that acts as the coordinator for activities

conducted on behalf of its members and other participants in the London bullion market.

The twelve market-making members of the

BNP Paribas SA, Citibank N.A.

(through its London Branch), HSBC Bank USA, N.A.

(London Branch), Goldman Sachs International, ICBC Standard Bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank, The Bank of Nova Scotia-Scotia Mocatta, Merrill Lynch International Bank Limited, Morgan Stanley & Co.

International plc, Standard Chartered Bank, Toronto-Dominion Bank and UBS AG.

The OTC market provides a relatively flexible market in terms of quotes, price, size, destinations for delivery and other factors.

Bullion dealers customize transactions to meet clients’

requirements.

The OTC market has no formal structure and no open outcry meeting place.

Mining companies, central banks, manufacturers of jewelry and industrial products, together with investors and speculators, tend to transact their business through one of these market centers.

Centers such as Dubai and several cities in the Far East also transact substantial OTC market business, typically involving jewelry and small bars of silver (1 kilogram or less) and will hedge their exposure by selling into one of these main OTC centers.

Bullion dealers have offices around the world and most of the world’s major bullion dealers are either members or associate members of the LBMA.

There are a further 7 4 full members, plus a number of associate members around the world.

The number of LBMA market-making, clearing and full members reported in this annual report are as of the date of this annual report.

These numbers may change from time to time as new members are added and existing members drop out.

In the OTC market for silver, the standard size of trades between market makers is 100,000 ounces.

Liquidity in the OTC market can vary from time to time during the course of the 24-hour trading day.

Fluctuations in liquidity are reflected in adjustments to dealing spreads—the differential between a dealer’s “buy”

and “sell”

The period of greatest liquidity in the bullion markets generally occurs at the time of day when trading in the European time zones overlaps with trading in the United States, which is when OTC market trading in London, New York, Zurich and other centers coincides with futures and options trading on the Commodity Exchange, Inc.

(“COMEX”).

HSBC, Goldman Sachs International, ICBC Standard Bank Plc, JPMorgan Chase Bank, The Bank

of Nova Scotia, Merrill Lynch International, Morgan Stanley & Co.

International Ltd, Standard Chartered Bank, Toronto-Dominion

Bank and UBS AG.

The OTC market provides a relatively flexible market in terms of quotes, price, size, destinations for delivery

and other factors.

Bullion dealers customize transactions to meet clients’ requirements.

The OTC market has no formal structure

and no open outcry meeting place.

Mining companies, central banks, manufacturers of jewelry and industrial products, together

with investors and speculators, tend to transact their business through one of these market centers.

Centers such as Dubai and

several cities in the Far East also transact substantial OTC market business, typically involving jewelry and small bars of silver

(1 kilogram or less) and will hedge their exposure by selling into one of these main OTC centers.

Bullion dealers have offices

around the world and most of the world’s major bullion dealers are either members or associate members of the LBMA.

are a further 74 full members, plus a number of associate members around the world.

The number of LBMA market-making, clearing

and full members reported in this annual report are as of the date of this annual report.

These numbers may change from time to

time as new members are added and existing members drop out.

In the OTC market for silver, the standard size of trades between

market makers is 100,000 ounces.

Liquidity in the OTC market can vary from time to time during the course of the 24-hour trading

Fluctuations in liquidity are reflected in adjustments to dealing spreads—the differential between a dealer’s

“buy” and “sell” prices.

The period of greatest liquidity in the bullion markets generally occurs at the

time of day when trading in the European time zones overlaps with trading in the United States, which is when OTC market trading

in London, New York, Zurich and other centers coincides with futures and options trading on the Commodity Exchange, Inc.

This period lasts for approximately four hours each New York business day morning.

The London Silver Bullion Market

Although the market for physical silver is distributed globally, most OTC market trades are cleared through London.

In addition to coordinating market activities, the LBMA acts as the principal point of contact between the market and its regulators.

A primary function of the LBMA is its involvement in the promotion of refining standards by maintenance of the “Good Delivery List,”

which is a list of LBMA accredited refiners of silver.

The LBMA also coordinates market clearing and vaulting, promotes good trading practices and develops standard documentation.

The term “loco London”

silver refers to silver physically held in London that meets the specifications for weight, dimensions, fineness (or purity), identifying marks (including the assay stamp of a LBMA acceptable refiner) and appearance set forth in “The Good Delivery Rules for Gold and Silver Bars”

published by the LBMA.

Silver bars meeting these requirements are described in this prospectus from time to time as “Silver Good Delivery Bars.”

The unit of trade in London is the troy ounce, whose conversion between grams is:

London Silver Bullion Market

the market for physical silver is distributed globally, most OTC market trades are cleared through London.

In addition to coordinating

market activities, the LBMA acts as the principal point of contact between the market and its regulators.

A primary function of

the LBMA is its involvement in the promotion of refining standards by maintenance of the “Good Delivery List,” which

is a list of LBMA accredited refiners of silver.

The LBMA also coordinates market clearing and vaulting, promotes good trading

practices and develops standard documentation.

term “loco London” silver refers to silver physically held in London that meets the specifications for weight, dimensions,

fineness (or purity), identifying marks (including the assay stamp of a LBMA acceptable refiner) and appearance set forth in “The

Good Delivery Rules for Gold and Silver Bars” published by the LBMA.

Silver bars meeting these requirements are described

in this prospectus from time to time as “Silver Good Delivery Bars.” The unit of trade in London is the troy ounce,

whose conversion between grams is:

1,000 grams equals 32.1507465 troy ounces and 1 troy ounce equals 31.1034768 grams.

A Silver Good Delivery Bar is acceptable for delivery in settlement of a transaction on the OTC market.

A Silver Good Delivery Bar must contain between 750 troy ounces and 1,100 troy ounces of silver with a minimum fineness (or purity) of 999.0 parts per 1,000.

Good Delivery Bar is acceptable for delivery in settlement of a transaction on the OTC market.

A Silver Good Delivery Bar must

contain between 750 troy ounces and 1,100 troy ounces of silver with a minimum fineness (or purity) of 999.0 parts per 1,000.

A Silver Good Delivery Bar must also bear the stamp of one of the refiners who are on the LBMA-approved list.

Unless otherwise specified, the silver spot price always refers to that of a Silver Good Delivery Bar.

Business is generally conducted over the phone and through electronic dealing systems.

On July 14, 2017, the LBMA announced that ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) had been selected to be the third-party administrator for the “LBMA Silver Price”.

Effective from October 2, 2017, IBA is providing the auction platform and methodology as well as the overall administration and governance for the LBMA Silver Price benchmark.

IBA operates an “equilibrium auction”, which is an electronic, tradable and auditable, over-the-counter auction for LBMA-authorized participating silver bullion banks or market makers and sponsored clients of direct participants (“silver participants”) that establishes a reference silver price for that day’s trading, often referred to as the “LBMA Silver Price”.

The LBMA Silver Price equilibrium auction operated by CME Group Inc.

and Thomson Reuters prior to October 2, 2017 was selected by the LBMA as the silver valuation replacement for the London silver fix previously determined by the London Silver Market Fixing Ltd.

that was discontinued on August 14, 2014.

The LBMA Silver Price has become a widely used benchmark for daily silver prices and is quoted by various financial information sources as the London silver fix was previously.

The LBMA Silver Price is the result of an “equilibrium auction”

because it establishes a price for a troy ounce of Silver Good Delivery Bars that clears the maximum amount of bids and offers for silver entered by order-submitting silver participants each day.

IBA uses ICE’s front-end system, WebICE, as the technology platform that allows direct participants, as well as sponsored clients of direct participants, to manage their orders in the auction in real time via their own desktops.

As the IBA electronic silver auction market develops, IBA expects to admit additional silver participants to the order submission process.

Unless otherwise

specified, the silver spot price always refers to that of a Silver Good Delivery Bar.

Business is generally conducted over the

phone and through electronic dealing systems.

July 14, 2017, the LBMA announced that ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) had been selected to be the third-party

administrator for the “LBMA Silver Price”.

Effective from October 2, 2017, IBA is providing the auction platform and

methodology as well as the overall administration and governance for the LBMA Silver Price benchmark.

IBA operates an “equilibrium

auction”, which is an electronic, tradable and auditable, over-the-counter auction for LBMA-authorized participating silver

bullion banks or market makers and sponsored clients of direct participants (“silver participants”) that establishes

a reference silver price for that day’s trading, often referred to as the “LBMA Silver Price”.

The LBMA Silver

Price equilibrium auction operated by CME Group Inc.

and Refinitiv prior to October 2, 2017 was selected by the LBMA as

the silver valuation replacement for the London silver fix previously determined by the London Silver Market Fixing Ltd.

was discontinued on August 14, 2014.

The LBMA Silver Price has become a widely used benchmark for daily silver prices and is quoted

by various financial information sources as the London silver fix was previously.

LBMA Silver Price is the result of an “equilibrium auction” because it establishes a price for a troy ounce of Silver

Good Delivery Bars that clears the maximum amount of bids and offers for silver entered by order-submitting silver participants

IBA uses ICE’s front-end system, WebICE, as the technology platform that allows direct participants, as well as

sponsored clients of direct participants, to manage their orders in the auction in real time via their own desktops.

electronic silver auction market develops, IBA expects to admit additional silver participants to the order submission process.

The benchmark is published when the auction finishes, typically a few minutes after 12:00 noon (London time).

At the opening of each auction, IBA in the role of auction chairman (“Chairman”) announces an opening price (in U.S.

Dollars), that takes into account current market conditions and begins auction rounds, with an expected duration of at least 30 seconds each.

During each auction round, participants may enter the volume they wish to buy or sell at that price, and such orders will be part of the price formation.

the opening of each auction, IBA in the role of auction chairman (“Chairman”) announces an opening price (in U.S.

Dollars), that takes into account current market conditions and begins auction rounds, with an expected duration of at least 30

seconds each.

During each auction round, participants may enter the volume they wish to buy or sell at that price, and such orders

will be part of the price formation.

Aggregate bid and offer volume is shown live on WebICE.

At the end of each auction round, the total net volume is calculated.

If this “imbalance”

is larger than the imbalance tolerance (normally 500,000 oz.) then the Chairman sets a new price (based on the current market conditions, and the direction and magnitude of the imbalance in the round) and begins a new auction round.

If the imbalance is less than the tolerance, then the auction is complete with all volume tradeable at that price.

At the end of each auction round,

the total net volume is calculated.

If this “imbalance” is larger than the imbalance tolerance (normally 500,000 oz.)

then the Chairman sets a new price (based on the current market conditions, and the direction and magnitude of the imbalance in

the round) and begins a new auction round.

If the imbalance is less than the tolerance, then the auction is complete with all

volume tradeable at that price.

The price is then set in U.S.

Dollars and also converted into other currencies, including Australian Dollars, British Pounds, Canadian Dollars, Euros, Onshore and Offshore Yuan, Indian Rupees, Japanese Yen, Malaysian Ringgit, Russian Rubles, Singapore Dollars, South African Rand, Swiss Francs, New Taiwan Dollars, Thai Baht and Turkish Lira.

The auction is run at 12:00 noon (London time).

During the auction, the price at the start of each round, and the volumes at the end of each round are available through major market data vendors.

Dollars and also converted into other currencies, including Australian

Dollars, British Pounds, Canadian Dollars, Euros, Onshore and Offshore Yuan, Indian Rupees, Japanese Yen, Malaysian Ringgit, Russian

Rubles, Singapore Dollars, South African Rand, Swiss Francs, New Taiwan Dollars, Thai Baht and Turkish Lira.

The auction is run

at 12:00 noon (London time).

the auction, the price at the start of each round, and the volumes at the end of each round are available through major market

data vendors.

As soon as the auction finishes, the final prices and volumes are available through major market data vendors.

IBA also publishes transparency reports, detailing the prices, volumes and times for each round of the auction.

These transparency reports are available through major market data vendors and IBA when the auction finishes.

The process can also be observed real-time through a WebICE screen.

also publishes transparency reports, detailing the prices, volumes and times for each round of the auction.

These transparency

reports are available through major market data vendors and IBA when the auction finishes.

The process can also be observed real-time

through a WebICE screen.

The auction mechanism provides a complete audit trail.

As of August 1, 2017, there were seven direct participants in the LBMA Silver Price administered by CME Group and Thomson Reuters.

As of February 1 8 , 20 20 , there are 1 2 direct participants participating in the auction process that determines the LBMA Silver Price.

Since April 1, 2015, the LBMA Silver Price has been regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) in the United Kingdom (“UK”).

are currently twelve direct participants who have been accredited to contribute to the LBMA Silver Price:

Citibank N.A.

Branch, Coin 'N Things Inc., Goldman Sachs International plc, HSBC Bank USA NA, INTL FC Stone, Jane Street Global Trading LLC,

JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A London Branch, Koch Supply and Trading LP, Marex Financial Limited, Morgan Stanley, Standard Chartered

Bank and The Toronto Dominion Bank.

April 1, 2015, the LBMA Silver Price has been regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) in the United Kingdom

IBA is authorized as a regulated benchmark administrator by the FCA.

Under the UK benchmark regulation, the governance structure for a regulated benchmark must include an Oversight Committee, made up of market participants, industry bodies, direct participant representatives, infrastructure providers and the administrator (i.e., IBA).

Through the Oversight Committee the LBMA continues to have significant involvement in the oversight of the auction process, including, among other matters, changes to the methodology and accreditation of direct participants.

The price discovery process for the LBMA Silver Price is subject to surveillance by IBA.

IBA has been formally assessed against the IOSCO Principles for Financial Benchmarks (the “IOSCO Principles”).

In order to meet the IOSCO Principles, the price discovery used for the LBMA Silver Price benchmark is auditable and transparent.

The LBMA Silver Price is viewed as a full and fair representation of all market interest at the conclusion of the auction.

IBA’s auction process is similar to CME Group’s auction process, which in turn was similar to the non-electronic process previously used to establish the London silver fix where the London silver fix process adjusted the silver price up or down until all the buy and sell orders are matched, at which time the price was declared fixed.

Nevertheless, the LBMA Silver Price has several advantages over the previous London silver fix.

IBA’s auction process is fully transparent in real-time to direct participants and sponsored clients and, at the close of each auction, to the general public.

IBA’s auction process is also fully auditable since an audit trail exists for every change made in the process.

Moreover, the audit trail and active surveillance of the auction process by IBA, as well as the FCA’s oversight of IBA, deters manipulative and abusive conduct in establishing each day’s LBMA Silver Price.

Since August 15, 2014, the Sponsor determined that the London silver fix, which ceased to be published as of that date, would be an inappropriate basis for valuing silver bullion received upon purchase of the Trust’s Shares, delivered upon redemption of the Trust’s Shares and otherwise held by the Trust on a daily basis, and that the LBMA Silver Price is an appropriate alternative for determining the value of the Trust’s silver each trading day.

The Sponsor also determined that the LBMA Silver Price fairly represent s the commercial value of silver bullion held by the Trust and that the “Benchmark Price”

(as defined in the Trust Agreement) as of any day is the LBMA Silver Price for such day.

Futures Exchanges

The most significant silver futures exchanges are the COMEX, a designated contract market with the CME Group, and the Tokyo Commodity Exchange (“TOCOM”).

Future exchanges seek to provide a neutral, regulated marketplace for the trading of derivatives contracts for commodities.

Future contracts are defined by the exchange for each commodity.

For each commodity traded, this contract specifies the precise quality and quantity standards.

The contract’s terms and conditions also define the location and timing of physical delivery.

An exchange does not buy or sell those contracts, but seeks to offer a transparent forum where members, on their own behalf or on the behalf of customers, can trade the contracts in a safe, efficient and orderly manner.

During regular trading hours at the COMEX, the commodity contracts are traded on CME Globex system, an electronic auction in which all bids, offers and trades must be publicly announced to all members and upon execution, centrally cleared.

Electronic trading is offered by the exchange except for a short break in the evening almost 24 hours a day, six days a week.

In addition to the public nature of the pricing, futures exchanges in the United States are regulated at two levels:

internal and external governmental supervision.

The internal is performed through self-regulation and consists of regular monitoring of the following:

Under the UK benchmark regulation, the

governance structure for a regulated benchmark must include an Oversight Committee, made up of market participants, industry bodies,

direct participant representatives, infrastructure providers and the administrator (i.e., IBA).

Through the Oversight Committee

the LBMA continues to have significant involvement in the oversight of the auction process, including, among other matters, changes

to the methodology and accreditation of direct participants.

The price discovery process for the LBMA Silver Price is subject

to surveillance by IBA.

IBA has been formally assessed against the IOSCO Principles for Financial Benchmarks (the “IOSCO

Principles”).

In order to meet the IOSCO Principles, the price discovery used for the LBMA Silver Price benchmark is auditable

and transparent.

LBMA Silver Price is viewed as a full and fair representation of all market interest at the conclusion of the auction.

auction process is similar to CME Group’s auction process, which in turn was similar to the non-electronic process previously

used to establish the London silver fix where the London silver fix process adjusted the silver price up or down until all the

buy and sell orders are matched, at which time the price was declared fixed.

Nevertheless, the LBMA Silver Price has several advantages

over the previous London silver fix.

IBA’s auction process is fully transparent in real-time to direct participants and

sponsored clients and, at the close of each auction, to the general public.

IBA’s auction process is also fully auditable

since an audit trail exists for every change made in the process.

Moreover, the audit trail and active surveillance of the auction

process by IBA, as well as the FCA’s oversight of IBA, deters manipulative and abusive conduct in establishing each day’s

LBMA Silver Price.

August 15, 2014, the Sponsor determined that the London silver fix, which ceased to be published as of that date, would be an

inappropriate basis for valuing silver bullion received upon purchase of the Trust’s Shares, delivered upon redemption of

the Trust’s Shares and otherwise held by the Trust on a daily basis, and that the LBMA Silver Price is an appropriate alternative

for determining the value of the Trust’s silver each trading day.

The Sponsor also determined that the LBMA Silver Price

fairly represents the commercial value of silver bullion held by the Trust and that the “Benchmark Price” (as defined

in the Trust Agreement) as of any day is the LBMA Silver Price for such day.

most significant silver futures exchanges are the COMEX, a designated contract market within the CME Group, and the Tokyo Commodity Exchange ("TOCOM").

Futures exchanges seek to provide a neutral, regulated marketplace for the trading of derivatives contracts for commodities.

contracts are defined by the exchange for each commodity.

For each commodity traded, this contract specifies the precise quality

and quantity standards.

The contract’s terms and conditions also define the location and timing of physical delivery.

exchange does not buy or sell those contracts, but seeks to offer a transparent forum where members, on their own behalf or on

the behalf of customers, can trade the contracts in a safe, efficient and orderly manner.

During regular trading hours at the

COMEX, the commodity contracts are traded on CME Globex system, an electronic;

a auction in which all bids, offers and trades

must be publicly announced to all members and, upon execution, centrally cleared.

Electronic trading is offered by the exchange

almost 24 hours a day (except for a short break in the evening), six days a week.

addition to the public nature of the pricing, futures exchanges in the United States are regulated at two levels:

external governmental supervision.

The internal is performed through self-regulation and consists of regular monitoring of the

the central algorithmic matching process to ensure that it is conducted in conformance with all exchange rules;

the orderly trading and settlement of futures and options;

the financial condition of all exchange member firms to ensure that they continuously meet financial commitments;

and the volume positions of commercial and non-commercial customers to ensure that physical delivery and other commercial commitments can be met, and that pricing is not being improperly affected by the size of any particular customer positions.

External governmental oversight is performed by the CFTC, which reviews all the rules and regulations of United States futures exchanges and clearing houses and monitors their enforcement.

Market Regulation

The global silver markets are overseen and regulated by both governmental and self-regulatory organizations.

In addition, certain trade associations have established rules and protocols for market practices and participants.

In the United Kingdom, responsibility for the regulation of the financial market participants, including the major participating members of the LBMA, falls under the authority of the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) as provided by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (“FSM Act”).

Under this act, all UK-based banks, together with other investment firms, are subject to a range of requirements, including fitness and properness, capital adequacy, liquidity, and systems and controls.

The FCA is responsible for regulating investment products, including derivatives, and those who deal in investment products.

Regulation of spot, commercial forwards, and deposits of silver not covered by the FSM Act is provided for by The London Code of Conduct for Non-Investment Products, which was established by market participants in conjunction with the Bank of England.

The TOCOM has authority to perform financial and operational surveillance on its members’

trading activities, scrutinize positions held by members and large-scale customers, and monitor the price movements of futures markets by comparing them with cash and other derivative markets’

To act as a Futures Commission Merchant Broker on the TOCOM, a broker must obtain a license from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (“METI”), the regulatory authority that oversees the operations of the TOCOM.

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) regulates trading in commodity contracts, such as futures, options and swaps.

In addition, under the Commodity Exchange Act of 1936 (“CEA”), the CFTC has jurisdiction to prosecute manipulation and fraud in any commodity (including precious metals) traded in the interstate commerce as spot as well as deliverable forwards.

orderly trading and settlement of futures and options;

the financial condition of all exchange member firms to ensure that they

continuously meet financial commitments;

and the volume positions of commercial and non-commercial customers to ensure that physical

delivery and other commercial commitments can be met, and that pricing is not being improperly affected by the size of any particular

customer positions.

External governmental oversight is performed by the CFTC, which reviews all the rules and regulations of United

States futures exchanges and clearing houses and monitors their enforcement.

global silver markets are overseen and regulated by both governmental and self-regulatory organizations.

In addition, certain

trade associations have established rules and protocols for market practices and participants.

In the United Kingdom, responsibility

for the regulation of the financial market participants, including the major participating members of the LBMA falls under

the authority of the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) as provided by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000

Under this act, all UK-based banks, together with other investment firms, are subject to a range of requirements,

including fitness and properness, capital adequacy, liquidity, and systems and controls.

FCA is responsible for regulating investment products, including derivatives, and those who deal in investment products.

of spot, commercial forwards, and deposits of silver not covered by the FSM Act is provided for by The London Code of Conduct

for Non-Investment Products, which was established by market participants in conjunction with the Bank of England.

TOCOM has authority to perform financial and operational surveillance on its members’ trading activities, scrutinize positions

held by members and large-scale customers, and monitor the price movements of futures markets by comparing them with cash and

other derivative markets’ prices.

To act as a Futures Commission Merchant Broker on the TOCOM, a broker must obtain a license

from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (“METI”), the regulatory authority that oversees the operations

of the TOCOM.

US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) regulates trading in commodity contracts, such as futures, options

In addition, under the Commodity Exchange Act of 1936 (“CEA”), the CFTC has jurisdiction to prosecute manipulation

and fraud in any commodity (including precious metals) traded in interstate commerce as spot as well as deliverable forwards.

The CFTC is the exclusive regulator of U.S.

commodity exchanges and clearing houses.

Secondary Market Trading

While the Trust’s investment objective is for the Shares to reflect the performance of silver bullion, less the expenses of the Trust, the Shares may trade in the secondary market on the NYSE Arca at prices that are lower or higher relative to their net asset value (the value of the Trust’s assets less its liabilities (“NAV”)) per Share.

The amount of the discount or premium in the trading price relative to the NAV per Share may be influenced by non-concurrent trading hours between the NYSE Arca, COMEX and the London bullion markets.

While the Shares will trade on the NYSE Arca until 4:00 p.m.

New York time, liquidity in the global silver market is reduced after the close of the COMEX at 1:30 p.m.

New York time.

As a result, during this time, trading spreads, and the resulting premium or discount, on the Shares may widen.

Valuation of Silver and Computation of Net Asset Value

On each day that the NYSE Arca is open for regular trading, as promptly as practicable after 4:00 p.m., New York time, on such day (“Evaluation Time”), the Trustee evaluates the silver held by the Trust and determine both the ANAV and the NAV of the Trust.

At the Evaluation Time, the Trustee values the Trust’s silver on the basis of that day’s “

LBMA Silver Price”

(the daily price of an ounce of silver determined by an electronic, over-the-counter auction that starts at 12:00 noon London, England time in which LBMA- accredited bullion banks or market makers participate), or, if no LBMA Silver Price is made on such day, the next most recent LBMA Silver Price determined prior to the Evaluation Time will be used, unless the Sponsor determines that such price is inappropriate as a basis for evaluation.

In the event the Sponsor determines that the LBMA Silver Price or such other publicly available price as the Sponsor may deem fairly represents the commercial value of the Trust’s silver is not an appropriate basis for evaluation of the Trust’s silver, it shall identify an alternative basis for such evaluation to be employed by the Trustee.

Neither the Trustee nor the Sponsor shall be liable to any person for the determination that the LBMA Silver Price or such other publicly available price is not appropriate as a basis for evaluation of the Trust’s silver or for any determination as to the alternative basis for such evaluation provided that such determination is made in good faith.

Operation of the Silver Bullion Market–The London Silver Bullion Market ”

for a description of the LBMA Silver Price.

Once the value of the silver has been determined, the Trustee subtracts all estimated accrued but unpaid fees (other than the fees accruing for such day on which the valuation takes place that are computed by reference to the value of the Trust or its assets), expenses and other liabilities of the Trust from the total value of the silver and any other assets of the Trust.

The resulting figure is the adjusted net asset value (the “ANAV”) of the Trust.

The ANAV of the Trust is used to compute the Sponsor’s Fee.

All fees accruing for the day on which the valuation takes place that are computed by reference to the value of the Trust or its assets shall be calculated using the ANAV calculated for such day.

The Trustee shall subtract from the ANAV the amount of accrued fees so computed for such day and the resulting figure is the NAV of the Trust.

The Trustee also determines the NAV per Share by dividing the NAV of the Trust by the number of the Shares outstanding as of the close of trading on the NYSE Arca (which includes the net number of any Shares created or redeemed on such evaluation day).

The Trustee’s estimation of accrued but unpaid fees, expenses and liabilities is conclusive upon all persons interested in the Trust and no revision or correction in any computation made under the Trust Agreement will be required by reason of any difference in amounts estimated from those actually paid.

The Sponsor and the Shareholders may rely on any evaluation furnished by the Trustee, and the Sponsor has no responsibility for the evaluation’s accuracy.

The determinations the Trustee makes will be made in good faith upon the basis of, and the Trustee will not be liable for any errors contained in, information reasonably available to it.

The Trustee will not be liable to the Sponsor, DTC, Authorized Participants, the Shareholders or any other person for errors in judgment.

However, the preceding liability exclusion will not protect the Trustee against any liability resulting from bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of its duties.

Trust Expenses

The Trust’s only ordinary recurring expense is the Sponsor’s Fee.

In exchange for the Sponsor’s Fee, the Sponsor has agreed to assume the following administrative and marketing expenses incurred by the Trust:

the Trustee’s monthly fee and out-of-pocket expenses, the Custodian’s fee and reimbursement of the Custodian’s expenses under the Custody Agreements (defined below), Exchange listing fees, SEC registration fees, printing and mailing costs, audit fees and up to $100,000 per annum in legal expenses.

The Sponsor also paid the costs of the Trust’s organization and the initial sale of the Shares, including the applicable SEC registration fees.

The Sponsor’s Fee accrues daily at an annualized rate equal to 0.45% of the ANAV of the Trust and is payable monthly in arrears.

The Sponsor, from time to time, may temporarily waive all or a portion of the Sponsor’s Fee at its discretion for a stated period of time.

The Sponsor has decided to waive a portion of the Sponsor’s Fee to reduce the Sponsor’s Fee to 0.30%.

Market Trading

the Trust’s investment objective is for the Shares to reflect the performance of silver bullion, less the expenses

of the Trust, the Shares may trade in the secondary market on the NYSE Arca at prices that are lower or higher relative to their

net asset value (the value of the Trust’s assets less its liabilities (“NAV”)) per Share.

The amount of the

discount or premium in the trading price relative to the NAV per Share may be influenced by non-concurrent trading hours between

the NYSE Arca, COMEX and the London silver markets.

While the Shares trade on the NYSE Arca until 4:00 PM New York time, liquidity

in the global silver market is reduced after the close of the COMEX at 1:30 PM New York time.

As a result, during this time,

trading spreads, and the resulting premium or discount, on the Shares may widen.

of Silver and Computation of Net Asset Value

each day that the NYSE Arca is open for regular trading, as promptly as practicable after 4:00 p.m., New York time,

on such day (“Evaluation Time”), the Trustee evaluates the silver held by the Trust and determine both the ANAV and

the NAV of the Trust.

the Evaluation Time, the Trustee values the Trust’s silver on the basis of that day’s “LBMA Silver Price”

(the daily price of an ounce of silver determined by an electronic, over-the-counter auction that starts at 12:00 noon London,

England time in which LBMA-accredited bullion banks or market makers participate), or, if no LBMA Silver Price is made

on such day, the next most recent LBMA Silver Price determined prior to the Evaluation Time will be used, unless the Sponsor

determines that such price is inappropriate as a basis for evaluation.

In the event the Sponsor determines that the LBMA Silver

Price or such other publicly available price as the Sponsor may deem fairly represents the commercial value of the Trust’s

silver is not an appropriate basis for evaluation of the Trust’s silver, it shall identify an alternative basis for such

evaluation to be employed by the Trustee.

Neither the Trustee nor the Sponsor shall be liable to any person for the determination

that the LBMA Silver Price or such other publicly available price is not appropriate as a basis for evaluation of the Trust’s

silver or for any determination as to the alternative basis for such evaluation provided that such determination is made in good

See “ Operation of the Silver Bullion Market–The London Silver Bullion Market ” for a description

of the LBMA Silver Price.

the value of the silver has been determined, the Trustee subtracts all estimated accrued but unpaid fees (other than the

fees accruing for such day on which the valuation takes place which are computed by reference to the value of the Trust or

its assets), expenses and other liabilities of the Trust from the total value of the silver and any other assets of

The resulting figure is the adjusted net asset value (“ANAV”) of the Trust.

The ANAV of the Trust is used

to compute the Sponsor’s Fee.

fees accruing for the day on which the valuation takes place which are computed by reference to the value of the Trust or

its assets shall be calculated using the ANAV calculated for such day.

The Trustee shall subtract from the ANAV the amount of

accrued fees so computed for such day and the resulting figure is the NAV of the Trust.

The Trustee also determines the NAV

per Share by dividing the NAV of the Trust by the number of the Shares outstanding as of the close of trading on the NYSE Arca

(which includes the net number of any Shares created or redeemed on such evaluation day).

Trustee’s estimation of accrued but unpaid fees, expenses and liabilities are conclusive upon all persons interested

in the Trust and no revision or correction in any computation made under the Trust Agreement will be required by reason of any

difference in amounts estimated from those actually paid.

Trust’s only ordinary recurring expense is the Sponsor’s Fee.

In exchange for the Sponsor’s Fee, the Sponsor

has agreed to assume the following administrative and marketing expenses incurred by the Trust:

the Trustee’s monthly fee

and out-of-pocket expenses, the Custodian’s fee and reimbursement of the Custodian’s expenses under the Custody Agreements,

Exchange listing fees, SEC registration fees, printing and mailing costs, audit fees and up to $100,000 per annum in legal expenses.

Sponsor’s Fee accrues daily at an annualized rate equal to 0.45% of the ANAV of the Trust and is payable monthly in arrears.

The Sponsor, from time to time, may temporarily waive all or a portion of the Sponsor’s Fee at its discretion for a stated

period of time.

The Sponsor has decided to waive a portion of the Sponsor’s Fee to reduce the Sponsor’s Fee to 0.30%.

This fee waiver has been in existence since the Trust was formed.

Presently, the Sponsor is continuing to waive a portion of its fee and reduce the Sponsor’s fee to 0.30%.

In the future, the Sponsor may continue its fee waiver, waive a larger or smaller portion of its fee or not renew its fee waiver.

If, at any point in the future, the Sponsor does not continue its partial fee waiver, the full Sponsor’s Fee will accrue and be paid to the Sponsor for subsequent periods.

The Sponsor is under no obligation to continue to waive all or part of the Sponsor’s Fee on an ongoing basis.

The Sponsor’s Fee is paid monthly by delivery of silver to an account maintained by the Custodian for the Sponsor on an unallocated basis.

The Trustee will, when directed by the Sponsor, and, in the absence of such direction, may, in its discretion, sell silver in such quantity and at such times as may be necessary to permit payment in cash of Trust expenses not assumed by the Sponsor.

The Trustee is authorized to sell silver at such times and in the smallest amounts required to permit such payments as they become due, it being the intention to avoid or minimize the Trust’s holdings of assets other than silver.

Accordingly, the amount of silver to be sold will vary from time to time depending on the level of the Trust’s expenses and the market price of silver.

The Custodian has agreed to purchase from the Trust, at the request of the Trustee, silver needed to cover Trust expenses not assumed by the Sponsor at a price at least equal to the price used by the Trustee to determine the value of the silver held by the Trust on the date of the sale.

The Sponsor’s Fee , net of waiver, for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $1,087,303 ( December 31, 2018 :

December 31, 2016:

$ 1,039 , 540 ).

Cash held by the Trustee pending payment of the Trust’s expenses will not bear any interest.

Deposit of Silver ;

Presently, the Sponsor is continuing to waive a portion of its

fee and reduce the Sponsor’s fee to 0.30%.

In the future, the Sponsor may continue its fee waiver, waive a larger or smaller

portion of its fee or not renew its fee waiver.

If, at any point in the future, the Sponsor does not continue its partial fee

waiver, the full Sponsor’s Fee will accrue and be paid to the Sponsor for subsequent periods.

The Sponsor is under no obligation

to continue to waive all or part of the Sponsor’s Fee on an ongoing basis.

Sponsor’s Fee is paid monthly by delivery of silver to an account maintained by the Custodian for the Sponsor on an unallocated

The Trustee will, when directed by the Sponsor, and, in the absence of such direction, may, in its discretion, sell silver

in such quantity and at such times as may be necessary to permit payment in cash of Trust expenses not assumed by the Sponsor.

The Trustee is authorized to sell silver at such times and in the smallest amounts required to permit such payments as they become

due, it being the intention to avoid or minimize the Trust’s holdings of assets other than silver.

Accordingly, the amount

of silver to be sold will vary from time to time depending on the level of the Trust’s expenses and the market price of

The Custodian has agreed to purchase from the Trust, at the request of the Trustee, silver needed to cover Trust expenses

not assumed by the Sponsor at a price at least equal to the price used by the Trustee to determine the value of the silver held

by the Trust on the date of the sale.

Sponsor’s Fee, net of waiver, for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $1,787,310 (December 31, 2019:

held by the Trustee pending payment of the Trust’s expenses will not bear any interest.

Issuance of Shares

The Trust creates and redeems Shares from time to time, but only in one or more Baskets of 50,000 Shares.

Only registered broker-dealers (or other securities market participants not required to register as broker-dealers such as banks or other financial institutions) who (1) are participants in the DTC and (2) have entered into written agreements with the Sponsor and the Trustee (each, an “Authorized Participant”) can deposit silver and receive Baskets of Shares in exchange.

The creation and redemption of Baskets is only made in exchange for the delivery to the Trust or the distribution by the Trust of the amount of silver represented by the Baskets being created or redeemed, the amount of which is based on the combined NAV of the number of Shares included in the Baskets being created or redeemed determined on the day the order to create or redeem Baskets is properly received.

All silver bullion deposited with the Custodian must be of at least a minimum fineness (or purity) of 999.0 parts per 1,000 and otherwise conform to the rules, regulations practices and customs of the LBMA, including the specifications for a London Good Delivery Bar.

Creation and redemption orders are accepted on “business days”

the NYSE Arca is open for regular trading.

Settlements of such orders requiring receipt or delivery, or confirmation of receipt or delivery, of silver in the United Kingdom when (1) banks in the United Kingdom, and (2) the London silver markets are regularly open for business.

If such banks or the London silver markets are not open for regular business for a full day, such a day will only be a “business day”

for settlement purposes if the settlement procedures can be completed by the end of such day.

On any business day, an Authorized Participant may place an order with the Trustee to purchase one or more Baskets.

Purchase orders must be placed no later than 3:59:59 p.m.

Trust creates and redeems Shares from time to time, but only in one or more Baskets of 50,000 Shares.

registered broker-dealers, or other securities market participants not required to register as broker-dealers such as banks or

other financial institutions, who (1) are participants in the DTC and (2) have entered into written agreements with the Sponsor

and the Trustee (each an “Authorized Participant”) can deposit silver and receive Baskets of Shares in exchange.

creation and redemption of Baskets is only made in exchange for the delivery to the Trust or the distribution by the Trust of

the amount of silver represented by the Baskets being created or redeemed, the amount of which is based on the combined NAV

of the number of Shares included in the Baskets being created or redeemed determined on the day the order to create or redeem

Baskets is properly received.

silver bullion deposited with the Custodian must be of at least a minimum fineness (or purity) of 999.0 parts per 1,000 and otherwise

conform to the rules, regulations practices and customs of the LBMA, including the specifications for a London Good Delivery Bar.

and redemption orders are accepted on “business days” the NYSE Arca is open for regular trading.

Settlements of such

orders requiring receipt or delivery, or confirmation of receipt or delivery, of silver in the United Kingdom, occurs

on “business days” when (1) banks in the United Kingdom, and (2) the London silver markets are regularly open for

If such banks or the London silver markets are not open for regular business for a full day, such a day will only be

a “business day” for settlement purposes if the settlement procedures can be completed by the end of such day.

any business day, an Authorized Participant may place an order with the Trustee to purchase one or more Baskets.

Purchase orders

must be placed no later than 3:59:59 p.m.

on each business day the NYSE Arca is open for regular trading.

A purchase order so received is effective on the date it is received in satisfactory form by the Trustee.

By placing a purchase order, an Authorized Participant agrees to deposit silver with the Trust, as described below.

Prior to the delivery of Baskets for a purchase order, the Authorized Participant must also have wired to the Trustee the non-refundable transaction fee due for the purchase order (as explained under “

Creation and Redemption Transaction Fee”

An Authorized Participant who places a purchase order is responsible for crediting its Authorized Participant Unallocated Account with the required silver deposit amount by the second business day in London following the purchase order date.

Upon receipt of the silver deposit amount, the Custodian, after receiving appropriate instructions from the Authorized Participant and the Trustee, will transfer on the second business day following the purchase order date the silver deposit amount from the Authorized Participant Unallocated Account to the unallocated silver account of the Trust established with the Custodian by the Unallocated Account Agreement between the Trustee and the Custodian (the “Trust Unallocated Account”) and the Trustee will direct the Depository Trust Company (the “DTC”) to credit the number of Baskets ordered to the Authorized Participant’s DTC account.

Acting on standing instructions given by the Trustee, the Custodian will transfer the silver deposit amount from the Trust Unallocated Account to the allocated silver account of the Trust established with the Custodian by the Allocated Account Agreement between the Trustee and the Custodian (the “Trust Allocated Account”) by transferring silver bars from its inventory to the Trust Allocated Account.

The Trust’s Unallocated Account Agreement and Allocated Account Agreement are referred to collectively as the “Custody Agreements.”

Withdrawal of Silver;

A purchase order so

received is effective on the date it is received in satisfactory form by the Trustee.

By placing a purchase order, an Authorized

Participant agrees to deposit silver with the Trust, as described below.

Prior to the delivery of Baskets for a purchase

order, the Authorized Participant must also have wired to the Trustee the non-refundable transaction fee due for the purchase

order (as explained under “Creation and Redemption Transaction Fee” below).

Authorized Participant who places a purchase order is responsible for crediting its Authorized Participant Unallocated Account,

with the required silver deposit amount by the second business day in London following the purchase order date.

of the silver deposit amount, the Custodian, after receiving appropriate instructions from the Authorized Participant and

the Trustee, will transfer on the second business day following the purchase order date the silver deposit amount from the

Authorized Participant Unallocated Account to the unallocated silver account of the Trust established with the Custodian

under the Unallocated Account Agreement between the Trustee and the Custodian (the “Trust Unallocated Account”) and

the Trustee will direct the Depository Trust Company (the “DTC”) to credit the number of Baskets ordered to the Authorized

Participant’s DTC account.

Acting on standing instructions given by the Trustee, the Custodian will transfer the silver

deposit amount from the Trust Unallocated Account to the allocated silver account of the Trust established with the Custodian

under the Allocated Account Agreement between the Trustee and the Custodian (the “Trust Allocated Account”), by transferring

specific silver bars from its inventory to the Trust Allocated Account.

The Trust’s Unallocated Account Agreement

and Allocated Account Agreement are referred to collectively as the “Custody Agreements.”

Redemption of Shares

The procedures by which an Authorized Participant can redeem one or more Baskets mirror the procedures for the creation of Baskets.

procedures by which an Authorized Participant can redeem one or more Baskets mirror the procedures for the creation of Baskets.

On any business day, an Authorized Participant may place an order with the Trustee to redeem one or more Baskets.

Redemption orders must be placed no later than 3:59:59 p.m.

Redemption orders

must be placed no later than 3:59:59 p.m.

on each business day the NYSE Arca is open for regular trading.

A redemption order so received is effective on the date it is received in satisfactory form by the Trustee.

The redemption procedures allow Authorized Participants to redeem Baskets and do not entitle an individual owner of beneficial interests in the Shares (a “Shareholder”) to redeem any Shares in an amount less than a Basket, or to redeem Baskets other than through an Authorized Participant.

By placing a redemption order, an Authorized Participant agrees to deliver the Baskets to be redeemed through DTC’s book-entry system to the Trust not later than the second business day following the effective date of the redemption order.

Prior to the delivery of the redemption distribution for a redemption order, the Authorized Participant must also have wired to the Trustee the non-refundable transaction fee due for the redemption order (as explained under “

Creation and Redemption Transaction Fee”

The redemption distribution from the Trust will consist of a credit to the redeeming Authorized Participant’s Authorized Participant Unallocated Account representing the amount of the silver held by the Trust evidenced by the Shares being redeemed.

Fractions of a fine ounce of silver included in the redemption distribution smaller than 0.001 of a fine ounce are disregarded.

Redemption distributions are subject to the deduction of any applicable tax or other governmental charges which may be due.

Creation and Redemption Transaction Fee

To compensate the Trustee for services in processing the creation and redemption of Baskets, an Authorized Participant is required to pay a transaction fee to the Trustee of $500 per order to create or redeem Baskets.

A redemption order so

received is effective on the date it is received in satisfactory form by the Trustee.

The redemption procedures allow Authorized

Participants to redeem Baskets and do not entitle an individual owner of beneficial interests in the Shares (a “Shareholder”)

to redeem any Shares in an amount less than a Basket, or to redeem Baskets other than through an Authorized Participant.

placing a redemption order, an Authorized Participant agrees to deliver the Baskets to be redeemed through DTC’s book-entry

system to the Trust not later than the second business day following the effective date of the redemption order.

delivery of the redemption distribution for a redemption order, the Authorized Participant must also have wired to the Trustee

the non-refundable transaction fee due for the redemption order (as explained under “Creation and Redemption Transaction

redemption distribution from the Trust consists of a credit to the redeeming Authorized Participant’s Authorized Participant

Unallocated Account, representing the amount of the silver held by the Trust evidenced by the Shares being redeemed.

of a fine ounce of silver included in the redemption distribution smaller than 0.001 of a fine ounce are disregarded.

distributions are subject to the deduction of any applicable tax or other governmental charges which may be due.

and Redemption Transaction Fee

compensate the Trustee for services in processing the creation and redemption of Baskets, an Authorized Participant is required

to pay a transaction fee to the Trustee of $500 per order to create or redeem Baskets.

An order may include multiple Baskets.

The transaction fee may be reduced, increased or otherwise changed by the Trustee with the consent of the Sponsor.

The Trustee shall notify DTC of any agreement to change the transaction fee and will not implement any increase in the fee for the redemption of Baskets until 30 days after the date of the notice.

Change in Settlement Cycle

Pursuant to an SEC rule amendment adopted in March 2017, the standard settlement cycle for most securities transactions by broker-dealers was shortened from three business days after the trade date (“T+3 Settlement”) to two business days following the trade date (“T+2 Settlement”), effective as of September 5, 2017.

Consistent with the rule amendment, beginning on September 5, 2017, the creation and redemption processes for the Trust changed from T+3 Settlement to T+2 Settlement.

Creation and redemption orders placed before September 5, 2017 were not subject to this change.

The Sponsor is a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly owned subsidiary of Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc .

(“ASII”).

shall notify DTC of any agreement to change the transaction fee and will not implement any increase in the fee for the redemption

of Baskets until 30 days after the date of the notice.

Sponsor is a Delaware limited liability company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc.

Aberdeen Standard Investments is a brand of the investment businesses of Standard Life Investments plc, its affiliates and subsidiaries.

In the United States, Aberdeen Standard Investments is the marketing name for the following affiliated, registered investment advisers:

ASII , Aberdeen Asset Managers Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments Australia Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments (Asia) Ltd., Aberdeen Capital Management, LLC, Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Advisors LLC and Standard Life Investments (Corporate Funds) Ltd.

The Sponsor’s office is located at c/o Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Sponsor LLC, 712 Fifth Avenue, 49 th Floor, New York, NY 10019.

Under the Delaware Limited Liability Company Act and the governing documents of the Sponsor, the sole member of the Sponsor, ASII, is not responsible for the debts, obligations and liabilities of the Sponsor solely by reason of being the sole member of the Sponsor.

The Sponsor’s Role

The Sponsor arranged for the creation of the Trust, the registration of the Shares for their public offering in the United States and the listing of the Shares on the NYSE Arca.

The Sponsor has agreed to assume the following administrative and marketing expenses incurred by the Trust:

the Trustee’s monthly fee and out-of-pocket expenses, the Custodian’s fee and the reimbursement of the Custodian’s expenses under the Custody Agreements, Exchange listing fees, SEC registration fees, printing and mailing costs, audit fees and up to $100,000 per annum in legal expenses.

The Sponsor also paid the costs of the Trust’s organization and the initial sale of the Shares, including the applicable SEC registration fees.

The Sponsor does not exercise day-to-day oversight over the Trustee or the Custodian.

The Sponsor may remove the Trustee and appoint a successor Trustee (i) if the Trustee ceases to meet certain objective requirements (including the requirement that it have capital, surplus and undivided profits of at least $150 million), (ii) if, having received written notice of a material breach of its obligations under the Trust Agreement, the Trustee has not cured the breach within 30 days, or (iii) if the Trustee refuses to consent to the implementation of an amendment to the Trust’s initial Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.

The Sponsor also has the right to replace the Trustee during the 90 days following any merger, consolidation or conversion in which the Trustee is not the surviving entity or, in its discretion, on the fifth anniversary of the creation of the Trust or on any subsequent third anniversary thereafter.

The Sponsor also has the right to approve any new or additional custodian that the Trustee may wish to appoint.

The Sponsor or one of its affiliates or agents (1) develops a marketing plan for the Trust on an ongoing basis, (2) prepares marketing materials regarding the Shares, including the content of the Trust’s website and (3) executes the marketing plan for the Trust.

The Bank of New York Mellon, a banking corporation organized under the laws of the State of New York with trust powers (“BNYM”), serves as the Trustee.

In the United States, Aberdeen Standard Investments is the marketing name for the following affiliated, registered investment

ASII, Aberdeen Asset Managers Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments Australia Ltd., Aberdeen Standard Investments (Asia)

Ltd., Aberdeen Capital Management, LLC, Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Advisors LLC and Standard Life Investments (Corporate

Sponsor’s office is located at c/o Aberdeen Standard Investments ETFs Sponsor LLC, 712 Fifth Avenue, 49th Floor, New York,

Under the Delaware Limited Liability Company Act and the governing documents of the Sponsor, the sole member of the

Sponsor, ASII, is not responsible for the debts, obligations and liabilities of the Sponsor solely by reason of being the sole

member of the Sponsor.

Sponsor’s Role

Sponsor arranged for the creation of the Trust, the registration of the Shares for their public offering in the United States

and the listing of the Shares on the NYSE Arca.

The Sponsor has agreed to assume the following administrative and marketing expenses

incurred by the Trust:

the Trustee’s monthly fee and out-of-pocket expenses, the Custodian’s fee and the reimbursement

of the Custodian’s expenses under the Custody Agreements, Exchange listing fees, SEC registration fees, printing and mailing

costs, audit fees and up to $100,000 per annum in legal expenses.

The Sponsor also paid the costs of the Trust’s organization

and the initial sale of the Shares, including the applicable SEC registration fees.

Sponsor does not exercise day-to-day oversight over the Trustee or the Custodian.

The Sponsor may remove the Trustee and appoint

a successor Trustee (i) if the Trustee ceases to meet certain objective requirements (including the requirement that it have capital,

surplus and undivided profits of at least $150 million), (ii) if, having received written notice of a material breach of its obligations

under the Trust Agreement, the Trustee has not cured the breach within 30 days, or (iii) if the Trustee refuses to consent to

the implementation of an amendment to the Trust’s initial Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.

The Sponsor also has

the right to replace the Trustee during the 90 days following any merger, consolidation or conversion in which the Trustee is

not the surviving entity or, in its discretion, on the fifth anniversary of the creation of the Trust or on any subsequent third

anniversary thereafter.

The Sponsor also has the right to approve any new or additional custodian that the Trustee may wish to

Sponsor or one of its affiliates or agents (1) develops a marketing plan for the Trust on an ongoing basis, (2) prepares marketing

materials regarding the Shares, including the content of the Trust’s website and (3) executes the marketing plan for the

Bank of New York Mellon, a banking corporation organized under the laws of the State of New York with trust powers (“BNYM”),

serves as the Trustee.

BNYM has a trust office at 2 Hanson Place, Brooklyn, New York 11217.

BNYM is subject to supervision by the New York State Financial Services Department and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

Information regarding creation and redemption Basket composition, NAV of the Trust, transaction fees and the names of the parties that have each executed an Authorized Participant Agreement may be obtained from BNYM.

A copy of the Trust Agreement is available for inspection at BNYM’s trust office identified above.

Under the Trust Agreement, the Trustee is required to have capital, surplus and undivided profits of at least $150 million.

BNYM is subject to supervision by

the New York State Financial Services Department and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

Information regarding

creation and redemption Basket composition, NAV of the Trust, transaction fees and the names of the parties that have each executed

an Authorized Participant Agreement may be obtained from BNYM.

A copy of the Trust Agreement is available for inspection at BNYM’s

trust office identified above.

Under the Trust Agreement, the Trustee is required to have capital, surplus and undivided profits

of at least $150 million.

As of December 31, 2020, the Trustee was in compliance with these conditions.

The Trustee’s Role

The Trustee is generally responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Trust, including keeping the Trust’s operational records.

The Trustee’s principal responsibilities include (1) transferring the Trust’s silver as needed to pay the Sponsor’s Fee in silver (silver transfers are expected to occur approximately monthly in the ordinary course), (2) valuing the Trust’s silver and calculating the NAV of the Trust and the NAV per Share, (3) receiving and processing orders from Authorized Participants to create and redeem Baskets

and coordinating the processing of such orders with the Custodian and DTC, (4) selling the Trust’s silver as needed to pay any extraordinary Trust expenses that are not assumed by the Sponsor, (5) when appropriate, making distributions of cash or other property to Shareholders, and (6) receiving and reviewing reports from or on the Custodian’s custody of and transactions in the Trust’s silver.

The Trustee shall, with respect to directing the Custodian, act in accordance with the instructions of the Sponsor.

If the Custodian resigns, the Trustee shall appoint an additional or replacement Custodian selected by the Sponsor.

The Trustee intends to regularly communicate with the Sponsor to monitor the overall performance of the Trust.

The Trustee does not monitor the performance of the Custodian or any other sub-custodian other than to review the reports provided by the Custodian pursuant to the Custody Agreements.

The Trustee, along with the Sponsor, will liaise with the Trust’s legal, accounting and other professional service providers as needed.

The Trustee will assist and support the Sponsor with the preparation of all periodic reports required to be filed with the SEC on behalf of the Trust.

The Trustee’s monthly fees and out-of-pocket expenses are paid by the Sponsor.

Affiliates of the Trustee may from time to time act as Authorized Participants or purchase or sell silver or Shares for their own account, as agent for their customers and for accounts over which they exercise investment discretion.

Affiliates of the Trustee are subject to the same transaction fee as other Authorized Participants.

The C ustodia n

Effective March 29, 2019, the Trust’s custodian is JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A.

(“JPMorgan”) (the “Custodian”).

Trustee’s Role

Trustee is generally responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Trust, including keeping the Trust’s operational

The Trustee’s principal responsibilities include (1) transferring the Trust’s silver as needed to pay

the Sponsor’s Fee in silver (silver transfers are expected to occur approximately monthly in the ordinary course),

(2) valuing the Trust’s silver and calculating the NAV of the Trust and the NAV per Share, (3) receiving and processing

orders from Authorized Participants to create and redeem Baskets and coordinating the processing of such orders with the Custodian

and DTC, (4) selling the Trust’s silver as needed to pay any extraordinary Trust expenses that are not assumed by the

Sponsor, (5) when appropriate, making distributions of cash or other property to Shareholders, and (6) receiving and reviewing

reports from or on the Custodian’s custody of and transactions in the Trust’s silver.

The Trustee shall, with respect

to directing the Custodian, act in accordance with the instructions of the Sponsor.

If the Custodian resigns, the Trustee shall

appoint an additional or replacement Custodian selected by the Sponsor.

The Trustee intends to regularly communicate with the

Sponsor to monitor the overall performance of the Trust.

The Trustee does not monitor the performance of the Custodian, or any

other sub-custodian other than to review the reports provided by the Custodian pursuant to the Custody Agreements.

along with the Sponsor, will liaise with the Trust’s legal, accounting and other professional service providers as needed.

The Trustee will assist and support the Sponsor with the preparation of all periodic reports required to be filed with the SEC

on behalf of the Trust.

Trustee’s monthly fees and out-of-pocket expenses are paid by the Sponsor.

of the Trustee may from time to time act as Authorized Participants or purchase or sell silver or Shares for their own account,

as agent for their customers and for accounts over which they exercise investment discretion.

Affiliates of the Trustee are subject

to the same transaction fee as other Authorized Participants.

March 29, 2019, the Trust’s custodian is JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A.

(“JPMorgan”) (the “Custodian”).

Prior to March 29, 2019, the custodian was HSBC Bank plc.

JPMorgan is a national banking association organized under t he laws of the United States of America.

JPMorgan is subject to supervision by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York an d the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

JPMorgan’s London office is regulated by the FCA and is located at 25 Bank Street , Canary Wharf , L ondon, E14 5JP, United Kingdom.

JPMorgan is a national banking association organized under the laws

of the United States of America.

JPMorgan is subject to supervision by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Federal Deposit

Insurance Corporation.

JPMorgan’s London office is regulated by the FCA and is located at 25 Bank Street, Canary Wharf,

London, E14 5JP, United Kingdom.

JPMorgan is a subsidiary of JPMorgan Chase & Co.

While the United Kingdom operations of the Cust odian are regulated by the FCA, the custodial services provided by the Custod ian and any sub-custodian under the Custody Agreements, are presently not a regulated activity subject to the supervision and rules of the FCA.

The Custodian’s Role

The Custodian is responsible for safekeeping of the Trust’s silver deposited with it by Authorized Participants in connection with the creation of Baskets.

While the United Kingdom operations of the

Custodian are regulated by the FCA, the custodial services provided by the Custodian and any sub-custodian under the Custody Agreements,

are presently not a regulated activity subject to the supervision and rules of the FCA.

Custodian’s Role

Custodian is responsible for safekeeping of the Trust’s silver deposited with it by Authorized Participants in connection

with the creation of Baskets.

The Custodian is also responsible for selecting sub-custodians, if any.

The Custodian facilitates the transfer of silver in and out of the Trust through the unallocated silver accounts it will maintain for each Authorized Participant and the unallocated and allocated silver accounts it will maintain for the Trust.

The Custodian holds the Trust’s allocated silver at a sub- custodian .

The Custodian is responsible for allocating specific bars of silver bullion to the Trust Allocated Account.

The Custodian provides the Trustee with regular reports detailing the silver transfers in and out of the Trust’s unallocated and allocated silver accounts and identifying the silver bars held in the Trust’s allocated silver account.

The Custodian’s fees and expenses under the Custody Agreements are paid by the Sponsor.

The Custodian and its affiliates may from time to time act as Authorized Participants or purchase or sell silver or Shares for their own account, as agent for their customers and for accounts over which they exercise investment discretion.

The Custodian and its affiliates are subject to the same transaction fee as other Authorized Participants.

Inspection of Silver

Under the Custody Agreements, the Trustee, the Sponsor and the Sponsor’s auditors and inspectors may, only up to twice a year, visit the premises of the Custodian for the purpose of examining the Trust’s silver and certain related records maintained by the Custodian.

The Trustee and the Sponsor have no right to visit the premises of any sub-custodian for the purposes of examining the Trust’s silver or any records maintained by the sub-custodian, and no sub-custodian is obligated to cooperate in any review the Trustee or the Sponsor may wish to conduct of the facilities, procedures, records or creditworthiness of such sub-custodian.

The Sponsor has exercised its right to visit the Custodian, in order to examine the records maintained by the Custodian.

Inspections were conducted by Inspectorate International Limited, a leading commodity inspection and testing company retained by the Sponsor, as of July 2 , 2019 and December 31, 2019 .

Description of the Shares

The Trustee is authorized under the Trust Agreement to create and issue an unlimited number of Shares.

The Trustee creates Shares only in Baskets (a Basket equals a block of 50,000 Shares) and only upon the order of an Authorized Participant.

The Shares represent units of fractional undivided beneficial interest in and ownership of the Trust and have no par value.

Any creation and issuance of Shares above the amount registered on the Trust’s then-current and effective registration statement with the SEC will require the registration of such additional Shares.

Description of Limited Rights

The Shares do not represent a traditional investment and Shareholders should not view them as similar to “shares”

of a corporation operating a business enterprise with management and a board of directors.

Shareholders do not have the statutory rights normally associated with the ownership of shares of a corporation, including, for example, the right to bring “oppression”

or “derivative”

The Custodian facilitates

the transfer of silver in and out of the Trust through the unallocated silver accounts it will maintain for each Authorized Participant

and the unallocated and allocated silver accounts it will maintain for the Trust.

The Custodian holds the Trust’s allocated

silver at a sub-custodian.

The Custodian is responsible for allocating specific bars of silver bullion to the Trust Allocated

The Custodian provides the Trustee with regular reports detailing the silver transfers in and out of the Trust’s

unallocated and allocated silver accounts and identifying the silver bars held in the Trust’s allocated silver account.

Custodian’s fees and expenses under the Custody Agreements are paid by the Sponsor.

Custodian and its affiliates may from time to time act as Authorized Participants or purchase or sell silver or Shares for their

own account, as agent for their customers and for accounts over which they exercise investment discretion.

The Custodian and its

affiliates are subject to the same transaction fee as other Authorized Participants.

the Custody Agreements, the Trustee, the Sponsor and the Sponsor’s auditors and inspectors may, only up to twice a year,

visit the premises of the Custodian for the purpose of examining the Trust’s silver and certain related records maintained

by the Custodian.

the Trustee and the Sponsor have no right to visit the premises of any sub-custodian for the purposes of examining

the Trust’s silver or any records maintained by the sub-custodian, and no sub-custodian is obligated to cooperate in any

review the Trustee or the Sponsor may wish to conduct of the facilities, procedures, records or creditworthiness of such sub-custodian.

Sponsor has exercised its right to visit the Custodian in order to examine the silver and the records maintained by them.

Inspections were conducted by Inspectorate International Limited, a leading commodity inspection and testing company retained

by the Sponsor, as of August 14, 2020.

Due to unprecedented social lock-down policies implemented in the UK and Switzerland to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, neither the

Sponsor, nor Inspectorate, were able to perform a physical inspection of the Trust's silver at December 31, 2020.

In lieu of a physical

inspection, the Sponsor performed alternative procedures to verify the silver held by the Trust at December 31, 2020.

These procedures

included confirmation of the silver bar list and total ounces of silver held by the Custodian at December 31, 2020, and an independent

recalculation of ounces of silver for each creation or redemption transaction from August 14, 2020, the date of the last physical inspection,

through December 31, 2020.

of the Shares

Trustee is authorized under the Trust Agreement to create and issue an unlimited number of Shares.

The Trustee creates Shares

only in Baskets (a Basket equals a block of 50,000 Shares) and only upon the order of an Authorized Participant.

The Shares represent

units of fractional undivided beneficial interest in and ownership of the Trust and have no par value.

Any creation and issuance

of Shares above the amount registered on the Trust’s then-current and effective registration statement with the SEC will

require the registration of such additional Shares.

of Limited Rights

Shares do not represent a traditional investment and Shareholders should not view them as similar to shares of a corporation operating

a business enterprise with management and a board of directors.

Shareholders do not have the statutory rights normally associated

with the ownership of shares of a corporation, including, for example, the right to bring “oppression” or “derivative”

All Shares are of the same class with equal rights and privileges.

Each Share is transferable, is fully paid and non-assessable and entitles the holder to vote on the limited matters upon which Shareholders may vote under the Trust Agreement.

The Shares do not entitle their holders to any conversion or pre-emptive rights, or, except as provided below, any redemption rights or rights to distributions.

Each Share is transferable, is fully paid and non-assessable

and entitles the holder to vote on the limited matters upon which Shareholders may vote under the Trust Agreement.

do not entitle their holders to any conversion or pre-emptive rights, or, except as provided below, any redemption rights or rights

to distributions.

Distributions

If the Trust is terminated and liquidated, the Trustee will distribute to the Shareholders any amounts remaining after the satisfaction of all outstanding liabilities of the Trust and the establishment of such reserves for applicable taxes, other governmental charges and contingent or future liabilities as the Trustee shall determine.

Shareholders of record on the record date fixed by the Trustee for a distribution will be entitled to receive their pro rata portion of any distribution.

Voting and Approvals

Under the Trust Agreement, Shareholders have no voting rights, except in limited circumstances.

The Trustee may terminate the Trust upon the agreement of Shareholders owning at least 75% of the outstanding Shares.

In addition, certain amendments to the Trust Agreement require advance notice to the Shareholders before the effectiveness of such amendments, but no Shareholder vote or approval is required for any amendment to the Trust Agreement.

Redemption of the Shares

The Shares may only be redeemed by or through an Authorized Participant and only in Baskets.

Book-Entry Form

Individual certificates will not be issued for the Shares.

Instead, one or more global certificates is deposited by the Trustee with DTC and registered in the name of Cede & Co., as nominee for DTC.

The global certificates evidence all of the Shares outstanding at any time.

Under the Trust Agreement, Shareholders are limited to (1) participants in DTC such as banks, brokers, dealers and trust companies (“DTC Participants”), (2) those who maintain, either directly or indirectly, a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant (“Indirect Participants”), and (3) those banks, brokers, dealers, trust companies and others who hold interests in the Shares through DTC Participants or Indirect Participants.

the Trust is terminated and liquidated, the Trustee will distribute to the Shareholders any amounts remaining after the satisfaction

of all outstanding liabilities of the Trust and the establishment of such reserves for applicable taxes, other governmental charges

and contingent or future liabilities as the Trustee shall determine.

Shareholders of record on the record date fixed by the Trustee

for a distribution will be entitled to receive their pro rata portion of any distribution.

and Approvals

the Trust Agreement, Shareholders have no voting rights, except in limited circumstances.

The Trustee may terminate the Trust

upon the agreement of Shareholders owning at least 75% of the outstanding Shares.

In addition, certain amendments to the Trust

Agreement require advance notice to the Shareholders before the effectiveness of such amendments, but no Shareholder vote or approval

is required for any amendment to the Trust Agreement.

of the Shares

Shares may only be redeemed by or through an Authorized Participant and only in Baskets.

certificates will not be issued for the Shares.

Instead, one or more global certificates is deposited by the Trustee with DTC

and registered in the name of Cede & Co., as nominee for DTC.

The global certificates evidence all of the Shares outstanding

Under the Trust Agreement, Shareholders are limited to (1) participants in DTC such as banks, brokers, dealers and

trust companies (DTC Participants), (2) those who maintain, either directly or indirectly, a custodial relationship with a DTC

Participant (Indirect Participants), and (3) those banks, brokers, dealers, trust companies and others who hold interests in the

Shares through DTC Participants or Indirect Participants.

The Shares are only transferable through the book-entry system of DTC.

Shareholders who are not DTC Participants may transfer their Shares through DTC by instructing the DTC Participant holding their Shares (or by instructing the Indirect Participant or other entity through which their Shares are held) to transfer the Shares.

Shareholders who are not DTC Participants may transfer their Shares through DTC by instructing the DTC Participant holding their

Shares (or by instructing the Indirect Participant or other entity through which their Shares are held) to transfer the Shares.

Transfers will be made in accordance with standard securities industry practice.

Custody of the Trust’s Silver

Custody of the silver bullion deposited with and held by the Trust is provided by a sub-custodian selected by the Custodian.

The Custodian is a market maker, clearer and approved weigher under the rules of the LBMA.

The Custodian is the custodian of the silver bullion credited to Trust Allocated Account in accordance with the Custody Agreements.

The Custodian segregates the silver bullion credited to the Trust Allocated Account from any other precious metal it holds or holds for others by entering appropriate entries in its books and records.

Under the Custody Agreements, the Trustee, the Sponsor and the Sponsor’s auditors and inspectors may inspect the vaults of the Custodian.

Inspection of Silver ”.

The Custodian, as instructed by the Trustee on behalf of the Trust, is authorized to accept, on behalf of the Trust, deposits of silver in unallocated form.

Acting on standing instructions specified in the Custody Agreements, the Custodian allocates silver deposited in unallocated form with the Trust by selecting bars of silver bullion for deposit to the Trust Allocated Account.

All silver bullion allocated to the Trust must conform to the rules, regulations, practices and customs of the LBMA.

The process of withdrawing silver from the Trust for a redemption of a Basket is the same general procedure as for depositing silver with the Trust for a creation of a Basket, only in reverse.

Each transfer of silver between the Trust Allocated Account and the Trust Unallocated Account connected with a creation or redemption of a Basket may result in a small amount of silver being held in the Trust Unallocated Account after the completion of the transfer.

In making deposits and withdrawals between the Trust Allocated Account and the Trust Unallocated Account, the Custodian will use commercially reasonable efforts to minimize the amount of silver held in the Trust Unallocated Account as of the close of each business day.

Deposit of Silver;

Issuance of Shares ”

Withdrawal of Silver;

Redemption of Shares .”

United States Federal Income Tax Consequences

The following discussion of the material US federal income tax consequences that generally applies to the purchase, ownership and disposition of Shares by a US Shareholder (as defined below), and certain US federal income tax consequences that may apply to an investment in Shares by a Non-US Shareholder (as defined below).

The discussion is based on the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as amended (the “Code”).

The discus sion below is based on the Code, United States Treasury Regulations (“Treasury Regulations”) promulgated under the Code and judicial and administrative interpretations of the Code, all as in effect on the date of this annual report and all of which are subject to change either prospectively or retroactively.

The tax treatment of Shareholders may vary depending upon their own particular circumstances.

Certain Shareholders (including broker-dealers, traders, banks and other financial institutions, insurance companies, real estate investment trusts, tax-exempt entities, Shareholders whose functional currency is not the US Dollar or other investors with special circumstances) may be subject to special rules not discussed below.

In addition, the following discussion applies only to investors who hold Shares as “capital assets”

within the meaning of Code section 1221 and not as part of a straddle, hedging transaction or a conversion or constructive sale transaction.

Moreover, the discussion below does not address the effect of any state, local or foreign tax law or any transfer tax on an owner of Shares.

Purchasers of Shares are urged to consult their own tax advisors with respect to all federal, state, local and foreign tax law or any transfer tax considerations potentially applicable to their investment in Shares, including substantial changes to the Code made in the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (P.L.

For purposes of this discussion, a “US Shareholder”

is a Shareholder that is:

An individual who is treated as a citizen or resident of the United States for US federal income tax purpose s;

A corporation (or other entity treated as a corporation for US federal tax purposes) created or organized in or under the laws of the United States or any political subdivision thereof;

An estate, the income of which is includible in gross income for US federal income tax purposes regardless of its source;

A trust, if a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more US persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust.

A Shareholder that is not a US Shareholder as defined above (other than a partnership, or an entity treated as a partnership for US federal tax purposes) generally is considered a “Non-US Shareholder”

for purposes of this discussion.

For US federal income tax purposes, the treatment of any beneficial owner of an interest in a partnership, including any entity treated as a partnership for US federal income tax purposes, generally depends upon the status of the partner and upon the activities of the partnership.

Partnerships and partners in partnerships should consult their tax advisors about the US federal income tax consequences of purchasing, owning and disposing of Shares.

Taxation of the Trust

The Trust is classified as a “grantor trust”

for US federal income tax purposes.

As a result, the Trust itself is not subject to US federal income tax.

Instead, the Trust’s income and expenses “flow through”

to the Shareholders, and the Trustee reports the Trust’s income, gains, losses and deductions to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) on that basis.

Taxation of US Shareholders

Shareholders generally are treated, for US federal income tax purposes, as if they directly owned a pro rata share of the underlying assets held by the Trust.

Shareholders are also treated as if they directly received their respective pro rata share of the Trust’s income, if any, and as if they directly incurred their respective pro rata share of the Trust’s expenses.

In the case of a Shareholder that purchases Shares for cash, its initial tax basis in its pro rata share of the assets held by the Trust at the time it acquires its Shares is equal to its cost of acquiring the Shares.

In the case of a Shareholder that acquires its Shares as part of a creation of a Basket, the delivery of silver to the Trust in exchange for the Shares is not a taxable event to the Shareholder, and the Shareholder’s tax basis and holding period for the Shares are the same as its tax basis and holding period for the silver delivered in exchange therefore (except to the extent of any cash contributed for such Shares).

For purposes of this discussion, it is assumed that all of a Shareholder’s Shares are acquired on the same date and at the same price per Share.

Shareholders that hold multiple lots of Shares, or that are contemplating acquiring multiple lots of Shares, should consult their tax advisors.

When the Trust sells or transfers silver, for example to pay expenses, a Shareholder generally will recognize gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between (1) the Shareholder’s pro rata share of the amount realized by the Trust upon the sale or transfer and (2) the Shareholder’s tax basis for its pro rata share of the silver that was sold or transferred.

Such gain or loss will generally be long-term or short-term capital gain or loss, depending upon whether the Shareholder has a holding period in its Shares of longer than one year.

A Shareholder’s tax basis for its share of any silver sold by the Trust generally will be determined by multiplying the Shareholder’s total basis for its Shares immediately prior to the sale, by a fraction the numerator of which is the amount of silver sold, and the denominator of which is the total amount of the silver held by the Trust immediately prior to the sale.

After any such sale, a Shareholder’s tax basis for its pro rata share of the silver remaining in the Trust will be equal to its tax basis for Shares immediately prior to the sale, less the portion of such basis allocable to its share of the silver that was sold.

Upon a Shareholder’s sale of some or all of its Shares, the Shareholder will be treated as having sold a pro rata share of the silver held in the Trust at the time of the sale.

Accordingly, the Shareholder generally will recognize a gain or loss on the sale in an amount equal to the difference between (1) the amount realized pursuant to the sale of the Shares, and (2) the Shareholder’s tax basis for the Shares sold, as determined in the manner described in the preceding paragraph.

A redemption of some or all of a Shareholder’s Shares in exchange for the underlying silver represented by the Shares redeemed generally will not be a taxable event to the Shareholder.

The Shareholder’s tax basis for the silver received in the redemption generally will be the same as the Shareholder’s tax basis for the Shares redeemed.

The Shareholder’s holding period with respect to the silver received should include the period during which the Shareholder held the Shares redeemed.

of the Trust’s Silver

of the silver bullion deposited with and held by the Trust is provided by a sub-custodian selected by the Custodian.

The Custodian

is a market maker, clearer and approved weigher under the rules of the LBMA.

Custodian is the custodian of the silver bullion credited to Trust Allocated Account in accordance with the Custody Agreements.

The Custodian segregates the silver bullion credited to the Trust Allocated Account from any other precious metal it holds or

holds for others by entering appropriate entries in its books and records.

Under the Custody Agreements, the Trustee, the Sponsor

and the Sponsor’s auditors and inspectors may inspect the vaults of the Custodian.

See “ Inspection of Silver ”.

Custodian, as instructed by the Trustee on behalf of the Trust, is authorized to accept, on behalf of the Trust, deposits of silver

in unallocated form.

Acting on standing instructions specified in the Custody Agreements, the Custodian allocates silver deposited

in unallocated form with the Trust by selecting bars of silver bullion for deposit to the Trust Allocated Account.

bullion allocated to the Trust must conform to the rules, regulations, practices and customs of the LBMA .

process of withdrawing silver from the Trust for a redemption of a Basket follows the same general procedure as for depositing silver

with the Trust for a creation of a Basket, only in reverse.

Each transfer of silver between the Trust Allocated Account and

the Trust Unallocated Account connected with a creation or redemption of a Basket may result in a small amount of silver

being held in the Trust Unallocated Account after the completion of the transfer.

In making deposits and withdrawals between the

Trust Allocated Account and the Trust Unallocated Account, the Custodian will use commercially reasonable efforts to minimize

the amount of silver held in the Trust Unallocated Account as of the close of each business day.

See “Deposit of Silver;

Issuance of Shares” and “Withdrawal of Silver;

Redemption of Shares.”

States Federal Income Tax Consequences

following discussion of the material US federal income tax consequences generally applies to the purchase, ownership and disposition

of Shares by a US Shareholder (as defined below), and certain US federal income tax consequences that may apply to an investment

in Shares by a Non-US Shareholder (as defined below).

The discussion is based on the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986

as amended (the “Code”).

The discussion below is based on the Code, United States Treasury Regulations (“Treasury

Regulations”) promulgated under the Code and judicial and administrative interpretations of the Code, all as in effect on

the date of this annual report and all of which are subject to change either prospectively or retroactively.

The tax treatment

of Shareholders may vary depending upon their own particular circumstances.

Certain Shareholders (including broker-dealers, traders,

banks and other financial institutions, insurance companies, real estate investment trusts, tax-exempt entities, Shareholders

whose functional currency is not the U.S.

Dollar or other investors with special circumstances) may be subject to special rules

not discussed below.

In addition, the following discussion applies only to investors who hold Shares as “capital assets”

within the meaning of Code section 1221 and not as part of a straddle, hedging transaction or a conversion or constructive sale

Moreover, the discussion below does not address the effect of any state, local or foreign tax law or any transfer

tax on an owner of Shares.

Purchasers of Shares are urged to consult their own tax advisors with respect to all federal, state,

local and foreign tax law or any transfer tax considerations potentially applicable to their investment in Shares, including substantial

changes to the Code made in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (P.L.

purposes of this discussion, a “US Shareholder” is a Shareholder that is:

individual who is treated as a citizen or resident of the United States for US federal income tax purposes;

corporation (or other entity treated as a corporation for US federal tax purposes) created or organized in or under the laws of

the United States or any political subdivision thereof;

estate, the income of which is includible in gross income for US federal income tax purposes regardless of its source;

trust, if a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one

or more US persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust.

Shareholder that is not a US Shareholder as defined above (other than a partnership, or an entity treated as a partnership for

US federal tax purposes) generally is considered a “Non-US Shareholder” for purposes of this discussion.

For US federal

income tax purposes, the treatment of any beneficial owner of an interest in a partnership, including any entity treated as a

partnership for US federal income tax purposes, generally depends upon the status of the partner and upon the activities of the

Partnerships and partners in partnerships should consult their tax advisors about the US federal income tax consequences

of purchasing, owning and disposing of Shares.

Trust is classified as a “grantor trust” for US federal income tax purposes.

As a result, the Trust itself is not

subject to US federal income tax.

Instead, the Trust’s income and expenses “flow through” to the Shareholders,

and the Trustee reports the Trust’s income, gains, losses and deductions to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”)

on that basis.

of US Shareholders

generally are treated, for US federal income tax purposes, as if they directly owned a pro rata share of the underlying assets

held by the Trust.

Shareholders are also treated as if they directly received their respective pro rata share of the Trust’s

income, if any, and as if they directly incurred their respective pro rata share of the Trust’s expenses.

In the case of

a Shareholder that purchases Shares for cash, its initial tax basis in its pro rata share of the assets held by the Trust at the

time it acquires its Shares is equal to its cost of acquiring the Shares.

In the case of a Shareholder that acquires its Shares

as part of a creation of a Basket, the delivery of silver to the Trust in exchange for the Shares is not a taxable event

to the Shareholder, and the Shareholder’s tax basis and holding period for the Shares are the same as its tax basis and

holding period for the silver delivered in exchange therefore (except to the extent of any cash contributed for such Shares).

For purposes of this discussion, it is assumed that all of a Shareholder’s Shares are acquired on the same date and at the

same price per Share.

Shareholders that hold multiple lots of Shares, or that are contemplating acquiring multiple lots of Shares,

should consult their tax advisors.

the Trust sells or transfers silver, for example to pay expenses, a Shareholder generally will recognize gain or loss in an amount

equal to the difference between (1) the Shareholder’s pro rata share of the amount realized by the Trust upon the sale or

transfer and (2) the Shareholder’s tax basis for its pro rata share of the silver that was sold or transferred.

or loss will generally be long-term or short-term capital gain or loss, depending upon whether the Shareholder has a holding period

in its Shares of longer than one year.

A Shareholder’s tax basis for its share of any silver sold by the Trust generally

will be determined by multiplying the Shareholder’s total basis for its Shares immediately prior to the sale, by a fraction

the numerator of which is the amount of silver sold, and the denominator of which is the total amount of the silver held by the

Trust immediately prior to the sale.

After any such sale, a Shareholder’s tax basis for its pro rata share of the silver

remaining in the Trust will be equal to its tax basis for Shares immediately prior to the sale, less the portion of such basis

allocable to its share of the silver that was sold.

a Shareholder’s sale of some or all of its Shares, the Shareholder will be treated as having sold a pro rata share of the silver

held in the Trust at the time of the sale.

Accordingly, the Shareholder generally will recognize a gain or loss on the sale in

an amount equal to the difference between (1) the amount realized pursuant to the sale of the Shares, and (2) the Shareholder’s

tax basis for the Shares sold, as determined in the manner described in the preceding paragraph.

redemption of some or all of a Shareholder’s Shares in exchange for the underlying silver represented by the Shares

redeemed generally will not be a taxable event to the Shareholder.

The Shareholder’s tax basis for the silver received

in the redemption generally will be the same as the Shareholder’s tax basis for the Shares redeemed.

The Shareholder’s

holding period with respect to the silver received should include the period during which the Shareholder held the Shares

A subsequent sale of the silver received by the Shareholder will be a taxable event.

An Authorized Participant and other investors may be able to re-invest, on a tax-deferred basis, in-kind redemption proceeds received from exchange-traded products that are substantially similar to the Trust in the Trust’s Shares.

Authorized Participants and other investors should consult their tax advisors as to whether and under what circumstances the reinvestment in the Shares of proceeds from substantially similar exchange-traded products can be accomplished on a tax-deferred basis.

Under current law, gains recognized by individuals, estates or trusts from the sale of “collectibles,”

including silver bullion, held for more than one year are taxed at a maximum federal income tax rate of 28%, rather than the 20% rate applicable to most other long-term capital gains.

For these purposes, gain recognized by an individual upon the sale of Shares held for more than one year, or attributable to the Trust’s sale of any silver bullion which the Shareholder is treated (through its ownership of Shares) as having held for more than one year, generally will be taxed at a maximum rate of 28%.

The tax rates for capital gains recognized upon the sale of assets held by an individual US Shareholder for one year or less or by a corporate taxpayer are generally the same as those at which ordinary income is taxed.

In addition, high-income individuals and certain trusts and estates, are subject to a 3.8% Medicare contribution tax that is imposed on net investment income and gain.

Authorized Participant and other investors may be able to re-invest, on a tax-deferred basis, in-kind redemption proceeds received

from exchange-traded products that are substantially similar to the Trust in the Trust’s Shares.

Authorized Participants

and other investors should consult their tax advisors as to whether and under what circumstances the reinvestment in the Shares

of proceeds from substantially similar exchange-traded products can be accomplished on a tax-deferred basis.

current law, gains recognized by individuals, estates or trusts from the sale of “collectibles,” including physical

silver, held for more than one year are taxed at a maximum federal income tax rate of 28%, rather than the 20% rate applicable

to most other long-term capital gains.

For these purposes, gains recognized by an individual upon the sale of Shares held for

more than one year, or attributable to the Trust’s sale of any physical silver which the Shareholder is treated (through

its ownership of Shares) as having held for more than one year, generally will be taxed at a maximum rate of 28%.

The tax rates

for capital gains recognized upon the sale of assets held by an individual US Shareholder for one year or less or by a corporate

taxpayer are generally the same as those at which ordinary income is taxed.

addition, high-income individuals and certain trusts and estates are subject to a 3.8% Medicare contribution tax that is imposed

on net investment income and gain.

Shareholders should consult their tax advisor regarding this tax.

Brokerage Fees and Trust Expenses

Any brokerage or other transaction fees incurred by a Shareholder in purchasing Shares is treated as part of the Shareholder’s tax basis in the Shares.

Similarly, any brokerage fee incurred by a Shareholder in selling Shares reduces the amount realized by the Shareholder with respect to the sale.

Shareholders will be required to recognize gain or loss upon a sale of silver by the Trust (as discussed above), even though some or all of the proceeds of such sale are used by the Trustee to pay Trust expenses.

Shareholders may deduct their respective pro rata share of each expense incurred by the Trust to the same extent as if they directly incurred the expense.

Shareholders who are individuals, estates or trusts, however, may be required to treat some or all of the expenses of the Trust, to the extent that such expenses may be deducted, as miscellaneous itemized deductions.

Under the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (P.L.

115-97), miscellaneous itemized deductions, including expense for the production of income, will not be deductible for either regular federal income tax or alternative minimum tax purposes for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 and before January 1, 2026.

Investment by Regulated Investment Companies

Mutual funds and other investment vehicles which are “regulated investment companies”

within the meaning of Code section 851 should consult with their tax advisors concerning (1) the likelihood that an investment in Shares, although they are a “security”

within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, may be considered an investment in the underlying silver for purposes of Code section 851(b), and (2) the extent to which an investment in Shares might nevertheless be consistent with preservation of their qualification under Code section 851.

We note that in recent administrative guidance, the IRS stated that it will no longer issue rulings under Code section 851(b) relating to the determination of whether or not an instrument or position is a “security”, but, instead, intends to defer to guidance from the SEC for such determination.

United States Information Reporting and Backup Withholding Tax for US and Non-US Shareholders

The Trustee or the appropriate broker will file certain information returns with the IRS, and provides certain tax-related information to Shareholders, in accordance with applicable Treasury Regulations.

Each Shareholder will be provided with information regarding its allocable portion of the Trust’s annual income (if any) and expenses.

A US Shareholder may be subject to US backup withholding tax in certain circumstances unless it provides its taxpayer identification number and complies with certain certification procedures.

Non-US Shareholders may have to comply with certification procedures to establish that they are not a US person in order to avoid the backup withholding tax.

The amount of any backup withholding will be allowed as a credit against a Shareholder’s US federal income tax liability and may entitle such a Shareholder to a refund, provided that the required information is furnished to the IRS.

Income Taxation of Non-US Shareholders

The Trust does not expect to generate taxable income except for gain (if any) upon the sale of silver.

A Non-US Shareholder generally is not subject to US federal income tax with respect to gain recognized upon the sale or other disposition of Shares, or upon the sale of silver by the Trust, unless (1) the Non-US Shareholder is an individual and is present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year of the sale or other disposition, and the gain is treated as being from United States sources;

or (2) the gain is effectively connected with the conduct by the Non-US Shareholder of a trade or business in the United States.

Taxation in Jurisdictions other than the United States

Prospective purchasers of Shares that are based in or acting out of a jurisdiction other than the United States are advised to consult their own tax advisers as to the tax consequences, under the laws of such jurisdiction (or any other jurisdiction not being the United States to which they are subject), of their purchase, holding, sale and redemption of or any other dealing in Shares and, in particular, as to whether any value added tax, other consumption tax or transfer tax is payable in relation to such purchase, holding, sale, redemption or other dealing.

ERISA and Related Considerations

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), and/or Code section 4975 impose certain requirements on certain employee benefit plans and certain other plans and arrangements, including individual retirement accounts and annuities, Keogh plans, and certain commingled investment vehicles or insurance company general or separate accounts in which such plans or arrangements are invested (collectively, “Plans”), and on persons who are fiduciaries with respect to the investment of “plan assets”

Government plans and some church plans are not subject to the fiduciary responsibility provisions of ERISA or the provisions of section 4975 of the Code, but may be subject to substantially similar rules under other federal law, or under state or local law (“Other Law”).

In contemplating an investment of a portion of Plan assets in Shares, the Plan fiduciary responsible for making such investment should carefully consider, taking into account the facts and circumstances of the Plan and the “

Risk Factors ”

discussed above and whether such investment is consistent with its fiduciary responsibilities under ERISA or Other Law, including, but not limited to:

(1) whether the investment is permitted under the Plan’s governing documents, (2) whether the fiduciary has the authority to make the investment, (3) whether the investment is consistent with the Plan’s funding objectives, (4) the tax effects of the investment on the Plan, and (5) whether the investment is prudent considering the factors discussed in this report.

In addition, ERISA and Code Section 4975 prohibit a broad range of transactions involving assets of a plan and persons who are “parties in interest”

under ERISA or “disqualified persons”

under Section 4975 of the Code.

A violation of these rules may result in the imposition of significant excise taxes and other liabilities.

Plans subject to Other Law may be subject to similar restrictions.

It is anticipated that the Shares will constitute “publicly offered securities”

as defined in the Department of Labor “Plan Asset Regulations,”

§2510.3-101 (b)(2) as modified by section 3(42) of ERISA.

Accordingly, pursuant to the Plan Asset Regulations, only Shares purchased by a Plan, and not an interest in the underlying assets held in the Trust, should be treated as assets of the Plan, for purposes of applying the “fiduciary responsibility”

rules of ERISA and the “prohibited transaction”

rules of ERISA and the Code.

Fiduciaries of plans subject to Other Law should consult legal counsel to determine whether there would be a similar result under the Other Law.

Investment by Certain Retirement Plans

Code section 408(m) provides that the acquisition of a “collectible”

by an individual retirement account (“IRA”) or a participant-directed account maintained under any plan that is tax-qualified under Code section 401(a) (“Tax Qualified Account”) is treated as a taxable distribution from the account to the owner of the IRA, or to the participant for whom the Tax Qualified Account is maintained, of an amount equal to the cost to the account of acquiring the collectible.

The term “collectible”

is defined to include, with certain exceptions, “any metal or gem”.

The IRS has issued several private letter rulings to the effect that a purchase by an IRA, or by a participant-directed account under a Code section 401(a) plan, of publicly-traded Shares in a trust holding precious metals will not be treated as resulting in a taxable distribution to the IRA owner or Tax Qualified Account participant under Code section 408(m).

However the private letter rulings provide that, if any of the Shares so purchased are distributed from the IRA or Tax Qualified Account to the IRA owner or Tax Qualified Account participant, or if any precious metal is received by such IRA or Tax Qualified Account upon the redemption of any of the Shares purchased by it, the Shares or precious metal so distributed will be subject to federal income tax in the year of distribution, to the extent provided under the applicable provisions of Code sections 408(d), 408(m) or 402.

Accordingly, potential IRA or Tax Qualified Account investors are urged to consult with their own professional advisors concerning the treatment of an investment in Shares under Code section 408(m).

Fees and Trust Expenses

brokerage or other transaction fees incurred by a Shareholder in purchasing Shares is treated as part of the Shareholder’s

tax basis in the Shares.

Similarly, any brokerage fee incurred by a Shareholder in selling Shares reduces the amount realized

by the Shareholder with respect to the sale.

will be required to recognize gain or loss upon a sale of silver by the Trust (as discussed above), even though some or all

of the proceeds of such sale are used by the Trustee to pay Trust expenses.

Shareholders may deduct their respective pro rata

share of each expense incurred by the Trust to the same extent as if they directly incurred the expense.

Shareholders who are

individuals, estates or trusts, however, may be required to treat some or all of the expenses of the Trust, to the extent that

such expenses may be deducted, as miscellaneous itemized deductions.

Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (P.L.

miscellaneous itemized deductions, including expenses for the production of income, will not be deductible for either regular

federal income tax or alternative minimum tax purposes for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 and before January

by Regulated Investment Companies

funds and other investment vehicles which are “regulated investment companies” within the meaning of Code section

851 should consult with their tax advisors concerning (1) the likelihood that an investment in Shares, although they are a “security”

within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, may be considered an investment in the underlying silver for purposes

of Code section 851(b), and (2) the extent to which an investment in Shares might nevertheless be consistent with preservation

of their qualification under Code section 851.

In recent administrative guidance, the IRS stated that it will no longer issue

rulings under Code section 851(b) relating to the determination of whether or not an instrument or position is a “security”,

but, instead, intends to defer to guidance from the SEC for such determination.

States Information Reporting and Backup Withholding Tax for US and Non-US Shareholders

Trustee or the appropriate broker will file certain information returns with the IRS, and provides certain tax-related information

to Shareholders, in accordance with applicable Treasury Regulations.

Each Shareholder will be provided with information regarding

its allocable portion of the Trust’s annual income (if any) and expenses.

US Shareholder may be subject to US backup withholding tax in certain circumstances unless it provides its taxpayer identification

number and complies with certain certification procedures.

Non-US Shareholders may have to comply with certification procedures

to establish that they are not a US person in order to avoid the backup withholding tax.

amount of any backup withholding tax will be allowed as a credit against a Shareholder’s US federal income tax liability

and may entitle such a Shareholder to a refund, provided that the required information is furnished to the IRS.

Taxation of Non-US Shareholders

Trust does not expect to generate taxable income except for gains (if any) upon the sale of silver.

A Non-US Shareholder generally

is not subject to US federal income tax with respect to gains recognized upon the sale or other disposition of Shares, or upon

the sale of silver by the Trust, unless (1) the Non-US Shareholder is an individual and is present in the United States for

183 days or more during the taxable year of the sale or other disposition, and the gain is treated as being from United States

or (2) the gain is effectively connected with the conduct by the Non-US Shareholder of a trade or business in the United

in Jurisdictions other than the United States

purchasers of Shares that are based in or acting out of a jurisdiction other than the United States are advised to consult their

own tax advisers as to the tax consequences, under the laws of such jurisdiction (or any other jurisdiction not being the United

States to which they are subject), of their purchase, holding, sale and redemption of or any other dealing in Shares and, in particular,

as to whether any value added tax, other consumption tax or transfer tax is payable in relation to such purchase, holding, sale,

redemption or other dealing.

and Related Considerations

Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), and/or Code section 4975 impose certain requirements

on certain employee benefit plans and certain other plans and arrangements, including individual retirement accounts and annuities,

Keogh plans, and certain commingled investment vehicles or insurance company general or separate accounts in which such plans

or arrangements are invested (collectively, “Plans”), and on persons who are fiduciaries with respect to the investment

of “plan assets” of a Plan.

Government plans and some church plans are not subject to the fiduciary responsibility

provisions of ERISA or the provisions of section 4975 of the Code, but may be subject to substantially similar rules under other

federal law, or under state or local law (“Other Law”).

contemplating an investment of a portion of Plan assets in Shares, the Plan fiduciary responsible for making such investment should

carefully consider, taking into account the facts and circumstances of the Plan and the “Risk Factors” discussed above

and whether such investment is consistent with its fiduciary responsibilities under ERISA or Other Law, including, but not limited

(1) whether the investment is permitted under the Plan’s governing documents, (2) whether the fiduciary has the authority

to make the investment, (3) whether the investment is consistent with the Plan’s funding objectives, (4) the tax effects

of the investment on the Plan, and (5) whether the investment is prudent considering the factors discussed in this report.

addition, ERISA and Code section 4975 prohibit a broad range of transactions involving assets of a plan and persons who are “parties

in interest” under ERISA or “disqualified persons” under section 4975 of the Code.

A violation of these rules

may result in the imposition of significant excise taxes and other liabilities.

Plans subject to Other Law may be subject to similar

restrictions.

is anticipated that the Shares will constitute “publicly offered securities” as defined in the Department of Labor

“Plan Asset Regulations,” §2510.3-101 (b)(2) as modified by section 3(42) of ERISA.

Accordingly, pursuant to

the Plan Asset Regulations, only Shares purchased by a Plan, and not an interest in the underlying assets held in the Trust, should

be treated as assets of the Plan, for purposes of applying the “fiduciary responsibility” rules of ERISA and the “prohibited

transaction” rules of ERISA and the Code.

Fiduciaries of plans subject to Other Law should consult legal counsel to determine

whether there would be a similar result under the Other Law.

by Certain Retirement Plans

section 408(m) provides that the acquisition of a “collectible” by an individual retirement account (“IRA”)

or a participant-directed account maintained under any plan that is tax-qualified under Code section 401(a) (“Tax Qualified

Account”) is treated as a taxable distribution from the account to the owner of the IRA, or to the participant for whom

the Tax Qualified Account is maintained, of an amount equal to the cost to the account of acquiring the collectible.

“collectible” is defined to include, with certain exceptions, “any metal or gem”.

The IRS has issued several

private letter rulings to the effect that a purchase by an IRA, or by a participant-directed account under a Code section 401(a)

plan, of publicly-traded shares in a trust holding precious metals will not be treated as resulting in a taxable distribution

to the IRA owner or Tax Qualified Account participant under Code section 408(m).

However the private letter rulings provide that,

if any of the Shares so purchased are distributed from the IRA or Tax Qualified Account to the IRA owner or Tax Qualified Account

participant, or if any precious metal is received by such IRA or Tax Qualified Account upon the redemption of any of the Shares

purchased by it, the Shares or precious metal so distributed will be subject to federal income tax in the year of distribution,

to the extent provided under the applicable provisions of Code sections 408(d), 408(m) or 402.

Accordingly, potential IRA or Tax

Qualified Account investors are urged to consult with their own professional advisors concerning the treatment of an investment

in Shares under Code section 408(m).

Compared sentence by sentence after normalising whitespace, quotation marks, case and digits, so re-formatting and restated figures do not read as changed language. Wording changes appear as one removal and one addition. The current filing and the prior one are authoritative.

What changed 10-K

Item 1. Business