81 FR 7391 - Good Hill Partners LP and Good Hill ETF Trust; Notice of Application

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 28 (February 11, 2016)

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 28 (Thursday, February 11, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7391-7392]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-02764]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Investment Company Act Release No. 31986; File No. 812-14505]


Good Hill Partners LP and Good Hill ETF Trust; Notice of 
Application

February 5, 2016.
AGENCY:  Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'').

ACTION:  Notice of an application for an order under section 
12(d)(1)(J) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the ``Act'') for an 
exemption from sections 12(d)(1)(A), (B), and (C) of the Act and under 
sections 6(c) and 17(b) of the Act for an exemption from sections 
17(a)(1) and (2) of the Act. The requested order would permit certain 
registered open-end investment companies to acquire shares of certain 
registered open-end investment companies, registered closed-end 
investment companies, business development companies, as defined in 
section 2(a)(48) of the Act, and unit investment trusts (collectively, 
``Underlying Funds'') that are within and outside the same group of 
investment companies as the acquiring investment companies, in excess 
of the limits in section 12(d)(1) of the Act.

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Applicants:  Good Hill ETF Trust, a Massachusetts business trust that 
intends to register under the Act as an open-end management investment 
company with multiple series and Good Hill Partners LP, a Delaware 
limited partnership registered as an investment adviser under the 
Investment Advisers Act of 1940.

Filing Dates:  The application was filed on June 30, 2015 and amended 
on October 16, 2015.

Hearing or Notification of Hearing:  An order granting the requested 
relief will be issued unless the Commission orders a hearing. 
Interested persons may request a hearing by writing to the Commission's 
Secretary and serving applicants with a copy of the request, personally 
or by mail. Hearing requests should be received by the Commission by 
5:30 p.m. on March 1, 2016 and should be accompanied by proof of 
service on the applicants, in the form of an affidavit, or, for 
lawyers, a certificate of service. Pursuant to Rule 0-5 under the Act, 
hearing requests should state the nature of the writer's interest, any 
facts bearing upon the desirability of a hearing on the matter, the 
reason for the request, and the issues contested. Persons who wish to 
be notified of a hearing may request notification by writing to the 
Commission's Secretary.

ADDRESSES:  Secretary, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F 
Street NE., Washington, DC 20549-1090. Applicants: c/o William Hauf, 
Good Hill Partners LP, 1599 Post Road East, Westport, Connecticut 
06880.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Bruce R. MacNeil, Senior Counsel, at 
(202) 551-6817, or James M. Curtis, Branch Chief, at (202) 551-6712 
(Division of Investment Management, Chief Counsel's Office).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  The following is a summary of the 
application. The complete application may be obtained via the 
Commission's Web site by searching for the file

[[Page 7392]]

number, or for an applicant using the Company name box, at http://www.sec.gov/search/search.htm, or by calling (202) 551-8090.

Summary of the Application

    1. Applicants request an order to permit (a) a Fund \1\ (each a 
``Fund of Funds'') to acquire shares of Underlying Funds \2\ in excess 
of the limits in sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (C) of the Act and (b) the 
Underlying Funds that are registered open-end investment companies or 
series thereof, their principal underwriters and any broker or dealer 
registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to sell shares of 
the Underlying Fund to the Fund of Funds in excess of the limits in 
section 12(d)(1)(B) of the Act.\3\ Applicants also request an order of 
exemption under sections 6(c) and 17(b) of the Act from the prohibition 
on certain affiliated transactions in section 17(a) of the Act to the 
extent necessary to permit the Underlying Funds to sell their shares 
to, and redeem their shares from, the Funds of Funds.\4\ Applicants 
state that such transactions will be consistent with the policies of 
each Fund of Funds and each Underlying Fund and with the general 
purposes of the Act and will be based on the net asset values of the 
Underlying Funds.
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    \1\ Applicants request that the order apply to each existing and 
future series of Good Hill ETF Trust and to each existing and future 
registered open-end investment company or series thereof that is 
advised by Good Hill Partners LP or its successor or by any entity 
controlling, controlled by or under common control with Good Hill 
Partners LP or its successor and is part of the same ``group of 
investment companies'' as Good Hill ETF Trust (each, a ``Fund''). 
For purposes of the requested order, ``successor'' is limited to an 
entity that results from a reorganization into another jurisdiction 
or a change in the type of business organization. For purposes of 
the request for relief, the term ``group of investment companies'' 
means any two or more investment companies, including closed-end 
investment companies and business development companies, that hold 
themselves out to investors as related companies for purposes of 
investment and investor services.
    \2\ Certain of the Underlying Funds have obtained exemptions 
from the Commission necessary to permit their shares to be listed 
and traded on a national securities exchange at negotiated prices 
and, accordingly, to operate as an exchange-traded fund (``ETF'').
    \3\ Applicants represent that a Funds of Funds will not invest 
in reliance on the order in business development companies or 
closed-end investment companies that are not listed and traded on a 
national securities exchange.
    \4\ A Fund of Funds generally would purchase and sell shares of 
an Underlying Fund that operates as an ETF through secondary market 
transactions rather than through principal transactions with the 
Underlying Fund. Applicants nevertheless request relief from section 
17(a) to permit a Fund of Funds to purchase or redeem shares from 
the ETF. A Fund of Funds will purchase and sell shares of an 
Underlying Fund that is a closed-end fund through secondary market 
transactions at market prices rather than through principal 
transactions with the closed-end fund. Accordingly, applicants are 
not requesting section 17(a) relief with respect to transactions in 
shares of closed-end funds (including business development 
companies).
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    2. Applicants agree that any order granting the requested relief 
will be subject to the terms and conditions stated in the application. 
Such terms and conditions are designed to, among other things, help 
prevent any potential (i) undue influence over an Underlying Fund that 
is not in the same ``group of investment companies'' as the Fund of 
Funds through control or voting power, or in connection with certain 
services, transactions, and underwritings, (ii) excessive layering of 
fees, and (iii) overly complex fund structures, which are the concerns 
underlying the limits in sections 12(d)(1)(A), (B), and (C) of the Act.
    3. Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act provides that the Commission may 
exempt any person, security, or transaction, or any class or classes of 
persons, securities, or transactions, from any provision of section 
12(d)(1) if the exemption is consistent with the public interest and 
the protection of investors. Section 17(b) of the Act authorizes the 
Commission to grant an order permitting a transaction otherwise 
prohibited by section 17(a) if it finds that (a) the terms of the 
proposed transaction are fair and reasonable and do not involve 
overreaching on the part of any person concerned; (b) the proposed 
transaction is consistent with the policies of each registered 
investment company involved; and (c) the proposed transaction is 
consistent with the general purposes of the Act. Section 6(c) of the 
Act permits the Commission to exempt any persons or transactions from 
any provision of the Act if such exemption is necessary or appropriate 
in the public interest and consistent with the protection of investors 
and the purposes fairly intended by the policy and provisions of the 
Act.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Investment Management, 
pursuant to delegated authority.
Brent J. Fields,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-02764 Filed 2-10-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P