iShares Silver Trust 10-K

Item 5. Market for Registrant ’ s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities. Market Information On December 4, 2008, the Shares commenced trading on NYSE Arca under the ticker symbol SLV. Prior to that, the Shares were traded on the American Stock Exchange, also under the ticker symbol SLV, since their initial public offering on April 21, 2006. Holders As of December 31, 2023, there were approximately 158 DTC participating shareholders of record of the Trust. Because most of the Trust’s Shares are held by brokers and other institutions on behalf of shareholders, we are unable to estimate the total number of shareholders represented by these record holders. Dividends The Trust did not declare any cash distributions to Shareholders during the fiscal years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. The Trust has no obligation to make periodic distributions to Shareholders. Use of Proceeds from Registered Securities Not applicable. Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuers and Affiliated Purchaser 44,300,000 Shares (886 Baskets) were redeemed during the fourth quarter of the year ended December 31, 2023. Period Total Number of Shares Redeemed Average Ounces of Silver Paid Per Share 10/01/23 to 10/31/23 21,200,000 $  0.9164 11/01/23 to 11/30/23 13,950,000 0.9160 12/01/23 to 12/31/23 9,150,000 0.9157 Total 44,300,000 $  0.9161 17 Table of Contents Item 6. [Reserved] Item 7. Management ’ s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations. This information should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes to financial statements included with this report. The discussion and analysis that follows may contain statements that relate to future events or future performance. In some cases, such forward‑looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions. Actual events or results may differ materially. These statements are based upon certain assumptions and analyses made by the Sponsor on the basis of its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Whether or not actual results and developments will conform to the Sponsor’s expectations and predictions, however, is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including the special considerations discussed below, general economic, market and business conditions, changes in laws or regulations, including those concerning taxes, made by governmental authorities or regulatory bodies, and other world economic and political developments. Although the Sponsor does not make forward-looking statements unless it believes it has a reasonable basis for doing so, the Sponsor cannot guarantee their accuracy. Except as required by applicable laws, neither the Trust nor the Sponsor is under a duty to update any of the forward‑looking statements to conform such statements to actual results or to a change in the Sponsor’s expectations or predictions. Introduction The Trust is a grantor trust formed under the laws of the State of New York. The Trust does not have any officers, directors, or employees, and is administered by the Trustee acting as trustee pursuant to the Trust Agreement between the Trustee and the Sponsor. The Trust issues Shares representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net assets. The assets of the Trust consist primarily of silver bullion held by a custodian as an agent of the Trust responsible only to the Trustee. The Trust is a passive investment vehicle and seeks to reflect generally the performance of the price of silver. The Trust seeks to reflect such performance before payment of the Trust’s expenses and liabilities. The Trust does not engage in any activities designed to obtain a profit from, or ameliorate losses caused by, changes in the price of silver. The Trust issues and redeems Shares only in exchange for silver, only in Baskets or integral multiples thereof, and only in transactions with Authorized Participants. A list of the current Authorized Participants is available from the Sponsor or the Trustee. Shares of the Trust trade on NYSE Arca under the ticker symbol SLV. 18 Table of Contents Valuation of Silver Bullion ; Computation of Net Asset Value On each business day, as soon as practicable after 4:00 p.m. (New York time), the Trustee evaluates the silver held by the Trust and determines the net asset value of the Trust and the NAV. The Trustee values the silver held by the Trust using the LBMA Silver Price. If there is no announced LBMA Silver Price on any day, the Trustee is authorized to use the most recently announced LBMA Silver Price unless the Trustee, in consultation with the Sponsor, determines that such price is inappropriate as a basis for evaluation. The LBMA Silver Price is used by the Trust because it is commonly used by the U.S. silver market as an indicator of the value of silver and is permitted to be used under the Trust Agreement. The use of an indicator of the value of silver bullion other than the LBMA Silver Price could result in materially different fair value pricing of the silver held by the Trust, and as such, could result in different cost or market adjustments or in different redemption value adjustments of the outstanding redeemable capital Shares. Having valued the silver held by the Trust, the Trustee then subtracts all accrued fees, expenses and other liabilities of the Trust from the total value of the silver held by the Trust and other assets held by the Trust. The result is the net asset value of the Trust. The Trustee computes NAV by dividing the net asset value of the Trust by the number of Shares outstanding on the date the computation is made. Liquidity The Trust is not aware of any trends, demands, conditions or events that are reasonably likely to result in material changes to its liquidity needs. In exchange for a fee, the Sponsor has agreed to assume most of the expenses incurred by the Trust. As a result, the only ordinary expense of the Trust during the period covered by this report was the Sponsor’s fee. The Trust’s only source of liquidity is its sales of silver. Critical Accounting Policies The financial statements and accompanying notes are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America. The preparation of these financial statements relies on estimates and assumptions that impact the Trust’s financial position and results of operations. These estimates and assumptions affect the Trust’s application of accounting policies. A description of the valuation of silver bullion, a critical accounting policy that the Trust believes is important to understanding its results of operations and financial position, is provided in the section entitled “Valuation of Silver Bullion; Computation of Net Asset Value” above. In addition, please refer to Note 2 to the financial statements included in this report for further discussion of the Trust’s accounting policies. Valuation of Silver Bullion Fair value of the silver bullion is based on the LBMA Silver Price. There are other indicators of the value of silver bullion that are available that could be different than that chosen by the Trust. The LBMA Silver Price is used by the Trust because it is commonly used by the U.S. silver market as an indicator of the value of silver and is permitted to be used under the Trust Agreement. The use of an indicator of the value of silver bullion other than the LBMA Silver Price could result in materially different fair value pricing of the silver in the Trust, and as such, could result in different cost or market adjustments or in different redemption value adjustments of the outstanding redeemable capital Shares. 19 Table of Contents The following chart shows the daily LBMA Silver Price, as applicable, for the periods from December 2018 through December 2023: Silver Prices (December 2018 - December 2023) Results of Operations The Year Ended December 31, 2023 The Trust’s net asset value decreased from $11,160,084,971 at December 31, 2022 to $10,389,177,775 at December 31, 2023, a 6.91% decrease for the year. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value resulted primarily from a decrease in the number of outstanding Shares which fell from 506,550,000 Shares at December 31, 2022 to 477,000,000 Shares at December 31, 2023, a consequence of 167,250,000 Shares (3,345 Baskets) being created and 196,800,000 Shares (3,936 Baskets) being redeemed during the year. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value was also affected by a decrease in the price of silver, which fell 0.67% from $23.95 at December 31, 2022 to $23.79 at December 31, 2023. The 1.13% decrease in the NAV from $22.03 at December 31, 2022 to $21.78 at December 31, 2023 was directly related to the 0.67% decrease in the price of silver. The NAV decreased slightly more than the price of silver on a percentage basis due to the Sponsor’s fees, which were $53,561,823 for the year, or 0.50% of the Trust’s average weighted assets of $10,709,743,724 during the year. The NAV of $23.91 on April 14, 2023 was the highest during the year, compared with a low during the year of $18.47 on March 10, 2023. Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations for the year ended December 31, 2023 was $128,982,872, resulting from an unrealized loss on investment in silver bullion of $361,918,369, and a net investment loss of $53,561,823, partially offset by a net realized gain of $282,624,263 on silver bullion distributed for the redemption of Shares and a net realized gain of $3,873,057 from investment in silver bullion sold to pay expenses. Other than the Sponsor’s fees of $53,561,823, the Trust had no expenses during the year ended December 31, 2023. The Year Ended December 31, 2022 The Trust’s net asset value decreased from $12,249,234,223 at December 31, 2021 to $11,160,084,971 at December 31, 2022, a 8.89% decrease for the year. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value resulted primarily from a decrease in the number of outstanding Shares which fell from 573,800,000 Shares at December 31, 2021 to 506,550,000 Shares at December 31, 2022, a consequence of 175,900,000 Shares (3,518 Baskets) being created and 243,150,000 Shares (4,863 Baskets) being redeemed during the year. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value was partially offset by an increase in the price of silver, which rose 3.72% from $23.09 at December 31, 2021 to $23.95 at December 31, 2022. 20 Table of Contents The 3.19% increase in the NAV from $21.35 at December 31, 2021 to $22.03 at December 31, 2022 was directly related to the 3.72% increase in the price of silver. The NAV increased slightly less than the price of silver on a percentage basis due to the Sponsor’s fees, which were $56,435,296 for the year, or 0.50% of the Trust’s average weighted assets of $11,283,899,960 during the year. The NAV of $24.18 on March 9, 2022 was the highest during the year, compared with a low during the year of $16.38 on September 1, 2022. Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations for the year ended December 31, 2022 was $18,017,230, resulting from an unrealized gain on investment in silver bullion of $215,447,290, a net realized loss of $176,990,635 on silver bullion distributed for the redemption of Shares, a net realized loss of $38,589 from investment in silver bullion sold to pay expenses, and a net investment loss of $56,435,296. Other than the Sponsor’s fees of $56,435,296, the Trust had no expenses during the year ended December 31, 2022. The Year Ended December 31, 2021 The Trust’s net asset value decreased from $14,791,792,720 at December 31, 2020 to $12,249,234,223 at December 31, 2021, a 17.19% decrease for the year. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value resulted primarily from a decrease in the price of silver, which fell 12.84% from $26.49 at December 31, 2020 to $23.09 at December 31, 2021. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value was also affected by a decrease in the number of outstanding Shares, which fell from 600,950,000 Shares at December 31, 2020 to 573,800,000 Shares at December 31, 2021, a consequence of 275,950,000 Shares (5,519 Baskets) being created and 303,100,000 Shares (6,062 Baskets) being redeemed during the year. The 13.25% decrease in the NAV from $24.61 at December 31, 2020 to $21.35 at December 31, 2021 was directly related to the 12.84% decrease in the price of silver. The NAV decreased slightly more than the price of silver on a percentage basis due to the Sponsor’s fees, which were $71,208,965 for the year, or 0.50% of the Trust’s average weighted assets of $14,234,642,101 during the year. The NAV of $27.48 on February 1, 2021 was the highest during the year, compared with a low during the year of $19.93 on September 30, 2021. Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations for the year ended December 31, 2021 was $2,110,330,231, resulting from an unrealized loss on investment in silver bullion of $3,401,406,431, and a net investment loss of $71,208,965, partially offset by a net realized gain of $1,349,023,048 on silver bullion distributed for the redemption of Shares and a net realized gain of $13,262,117 from investment in silver bullion sold to pay expenses. Other than the Sponsor’s fees of $71,208,965, the Trust had no expenses during the year ended December 31, 2021. Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk. Not applicable.