Upon Written Request, Copies Available From: Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-2736

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or “Commission”) is submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) this request for extension of the proposed collection of information described below.

Rule 17f-2 (17 CFR 270.17f-2), entitled “Custody of Investments by Registered Management Investment Company,” was adopted in 1940 under section 17(f) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-17(f)) (the “Act”), and was last amended materially in 1947. Rule 17f-2 establishes safeguards for arrangements in which a registered management investment company (“fund”) is deemed to maintain custody of its own assets, such as when the fund maintains its assets in a facility that provides safekeeping but not custodial services.^[1]

Form N-17f-2 (17 CFR 274.220) is entitled “Certificate of Accounting of Securities and Similar Investments in the Custody of Management Investment Companies.” Form N-17f-2 is the cover sheet for the accountant examination certificates prepared under rule 17f-2. Form N-17f-2 facilitates the filing process for accountant examination certificates. The form has a purely administrative purpose and does not require any additional information (beyond that required by rule 17f-2) to be collected. Form N-17f-2 increases the accessibility of the examination certificates to both Commission staff and interested investors by ensuring that the certificates are filed under the proper SEC file number and correct name of a fund.

The rule includes several recordkeeping or reporting requirements. The fund's directors must prepare a resolution designating not ( printed page 65817) more than five fund officers or responsible employees who may have access to the fund's assets. The designated access persons (two or more of whom must act jointly when handling fund assets) must prepare a written notation providing certain information about each deposit or withdrawal of fund assets, and must transmit the notation to another officer or director designated by the directors. Independent public accountants must verify the fund's assets three times each year, and two of those examinations must be unscheduled.^[2]

We estimate that approximately 194 funds file Form N-17f-2 each year,^[3] and that it takes approximately 2 hours per response to prepare and file Form N-17f-2 with the Commission. Commission staff further estimates that on average each fund files Form N-17f-2 approximately three times a year for a total annual hourly burden per fund of approximately 6 hours. Thus, the total annual burden for preparing and filing Form N-17f-2 is approximately 1,160 hours (an increase from the previously approved 990 hours). Commission staff estimates that it takes on average 1.25 hours of fund accountants at a cost of $243 per hour to prepare each Form N-17f-2 and 0.75 hours of clerical time at a cost of $125 per hour to file the form with the Commission for a total annual cost per fund of approximately $1,192.50. Therefore, we estimate the total cost of the hour burden for filing Form N-17f-2's collection of information requirements to be approximately $231,345.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB Control Number.

The public may view and comment on this information collection request at: www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAViewICR?​ref_​nbr=​202608-3235-002 or email comment to MBX.OMB.OIRA.SEC_desk_officer@omb.eop.gov within 30 days of the day after publication of this notice, by November 16, 2026.