Ishares Gold Trust (IAU) risk factors, FY2025 10-K

Risks Related to Gold

1. 01Actual or perceived disruptions in the processes used to determine the LBMA Gold Price PM, or lack of confidence in that benchmark, may adversely affect the return on your investment in the Shares (if any)
2. 02Because the objective of the Trust is to reflect the performance of the price of gold, any disruptions affecting the processes related to how the market determines the price of gold will have an effect on the value of the Shares
3. 03Investors should keep in mind that electronic markets are not exempt from failures, as the experiences of the initial public offerings of Facebook and BATS Global Markets illustrate
4. 04The LBMA Gold Price AM and LBMA Gold Price PM are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority of the United Kingdom (the “FCA”)
5. 05Future governmental decisions may have significant impact on the price of gold, which may result in a significant decrease or increase in the value of the net assets and the net asset value of the Trust
6. 06Because the Trust holds only gold, an investment in the Trust may be more volatile than an investment in a more broadly diversified portfolio

Risks Related to the Shares

1. 07Because the Shares are created to reflect the price of the gold held by the Trust, the market price of the Shares will be as unpredictable as the price of gold has historically been. This creates the potential for losses, regardless of whether you hold Shares for a short-, mid- or long-term period
2. 08Conversely, several factors may trigger a temporary increase in the price of gold prior to your investment in the Shares. If that is the case, you will be buying Shares at prices affected by the temporarily high prices of gold, and you may incur losses when the causes for the temporary increase disappear
3. 09Furthermore, although gold has been used as a portfolio diversifier due to its historically low-to-negative correlation with stocks and bonds, diversification does not ensure against, nor can it prevent against, risk of loss
4. 10The Trust is a passive investment vehicle. The Trust is not actively managed and will be affected by a general decline in the price of gold
5. 11The result obtained by subtracting the Trust’s expenses and liabilities on any day from the price of the gold owned by the Trust on that day is the net asset value of the Trust which, when divided by the number of Shares outstanding on that day, results in the NAV
6. 12The costs inherent in buying or selling the Shares may detract significantly from investment results
7. 13An investment in the Shares may be adversely affected by competition from other methods of investing in gold
8. 14The Trust is designed to have a perpetual existence; however, if certain events occur, at any time, the Trustee will have to terminate the Trust
9. 15In the event that one or more Authorized Participants that have substantial interests in Shares withdraw from participation, the liquidity of the Shares will likely decrease, which could adversely affect the market price of the Shares and result in your incurring a loss on your investment in Shares
10. 16Authorized Participants with large holdings may choose to terminate the Trust
11. 17The lack of an active trading market for the Shares may result in losses on your investment at the time of disposition of your Shares
12. 18As an owner of Shares, you will not have the protections normally associated with ownership of shares in an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act, or the protections afforded by the CEA
13. 19The value of the Shares will be adversely affected if the Trust is required to indemnify the Sponsor or the Custodian as contemplated in the Trust Agreement and the Custodian Agreement

Risks Related to the Trust and Its Operations

1. 20The Trust is exposed to various operational risks
2. 21The Trust may be negatively impacted by the effects of the spread of illnesses or other public health emergencies on the global economy and the markets and service providers relevant to the performance of the Trust
3. 22The Sponsor and its affiliates manage other accounts, funds or trusts, including those that invest in physical gold bullion or other precious metals, and conflicts of interest may occur, which may reduce the value of the net assets of the Trust, the NAV and the trading price of the Shares
4. 23The Sponsor and the Trustee may agree to amend the Trust Agreement without the consent of the Shareholders

Risks Related to the Custody of Gold

1. 24The gold bullion custody operations of the Custodian are not subject to specific governmental regulatory supervision
2. 25The value of the Shares will be adversely affected if gold owned by the Trust is lost or damaged in circumstances in which the Trust is not in a position to recover the corresponding loss
3. 26Any loss of gold owned by the Trust will result in a corresponding loss in the NAV and it is reasonable to expect that such loss will also result in a decrease in the value at which the Shares are traded on NYSE Arca
4. 27Gold transferred to the Trust in connection with the creation of Baskets may not be of the quality required under the Trust Agreement. The Trust will sustain a loss if the Trustee inadvertently issues Shares in exchange for gold of inferior quality and that loss will adversely affect the value of all existing Shares
5. 28The Trust’s lack of insurance protection and the Shareholders’ limited rights of legal recourse against the Trust, the Trustee, the Sponsor, the Custodian and any sub-custodian expose the Shareholders to the risk of loss of the Trust’s gold for which no person is liable