iShares Silver Trust - Quarter Report: 2023 June (Form 10-Q)

PART I – FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. Financial Statements

iShares® Silver Trust

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (Unaudited)

At June 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022

See notes to financial statements.

iShares® Silver Trust

Statements of Operations (Unaudited)

For the three and six months ended June 30, 2023 and 2022

See notes to financial statements.

iShares® Silver Trust

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Unaudited)

For the three and six months ended June 30, 2023

See notes to financial statements.

iShares® Silver Trust

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Unaudited)

For the three and six months ended June 30, 2022

See notes to financial statements.

iShares® Silver Trust

Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)

For the six months ended June 30, 2023 and 2022

See notes to financial statements.

iShares® Silver Trust

Schedules of Investments (Unaudited)

At June 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022

See notes to financial statements.

iShares® Silver Trust

Notes to Financial Statements (Unaudited)

June 30, 2023

1 - Organization

The iShares Silver Trust (the “Trust”) was organized on April 21, 2006 as a New York trust. The trustee is The Bank of New York Mellon (the “Trustee”), which is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Trust. The Trust’s sponsor is iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”). The Trust is governed by the provisions of the Third Amended and Restated Depositary Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”) executed by the Trustee and the Sponsor as of January 31, 2022. The Trust issues units of beneficial interest (“Shares”) representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net assets.

The Trust 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 is designed to provide a vehicle for investors to make an investment similar to an investment in silver.

The accompanying unaudited financial statements were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions for Form 10-Q and the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). In the opinion of management, all material adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair statement of the interim period financial statements, have been made. Interim period results are not necessarily indicative of results for a full-year period. These financial statements and the notes thereto should be read in conjunction with the Trust’s financial statements included in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as filed with the SEC on February 23, 2023.

The Trust qualifies as an investment company solely for accounting purposes and not for any other purpose and follows the accounting and reporting guidance under the Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946, Financial Services - Investment Companies, but is not registered, and is not required to be registered, as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

2 - Significant Accounting Policies

The following significant accounting policies are consistently followed by the Trust in the preparation of its financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Certain statements and captions in the financial statements for the prior periods have been changed to conform to the current financial statement presentation.

JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., London branch (the “Custodian”), is responsible for the safekeeping of silver bullion owned by the Trust.

Fair value of the silver bullion held by the Trust is based on the price per ounce of silver determined in an electronic auction consisting of one or more 30‑second rounds hosted by ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) that begins at 12:00 p.m. (London time) and published shortly thereafter on each day that the London silver market is open for business (such price, 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.

Gain or loss on sales of silver bullion is calculated on a trade date basis using the average cost method.

The following tables summarize activity in silver bullion for the three months ended June 30, 2023 and 2022:

The following tables summarize activity in silver bullion for the six months ended June 30, 2023 and 2022:

On each business day, as soon as practicable after 4:00 p.m. (New York time), the net asset value of the Trust is obtained by subtracting all accrued fees, expenses and other liabilities of the Trust from the fair value of the silver and other assets held by the Trust. The Trustee computes the net asset value per Share by dividing the net asset value of the Trust by the number of Shares outstanding on the date the computation is made.

Trust Shares are issued and redeemed continuously in aggregations of 50,000 Shares in exchange for silver bullion rather than cash. Individual investors cannot purchase or redeem Shares in direct transactions with the Trust. The Trust only transacts with registered broker-dealers that are eligible to settle securities transactions through the book-entry facilities of the Depository Trust Company and that have entered into a contractual arrangement with the Trustee and the Sponsor governing, among other matters, the creation and redemption of Shares (such broker-dealers, the “Authorized Participants”). Holders of Shares of the Trust may redeem their Shares at any time acting through an Authorized Participant and in the prescribed aggregations of 50,000 Shares; provided, that redemptions of Shares may be suspended during any period while regular trading on NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE Arca”) is suspended or restricted, or in which an emergency exists as a result of which delivery, disposal or evaluation of silver is not reasonably practicable.

The per Share amount of silver exchanged for a purchase or redemption represents the per Share amount of silver held by the Trust, after giving effect to its liabilities.

When silver bullion is exchanged in settlement of a redemption, it is considered a sale of silver bullion for accounting purposes.

The Trust is treated as a grantor trust for federal income tax purposes and, therefore, no provision for federal income taxes is required. Any interest, expenses, gains and losses are passed through to the holders of Shares of the Trust.

The Sponsor has analyzed applicable tax laws and regulations and their application to the Trust as of June 30, 2023 and does not believe that there are any uncertain tax positions that require recognition of a tax liability.

3 - Trust Expenses

The Sponsor’s fee is accrued daily at an annualized rate equal to 0.50% of the net asset value of the Trust, paid monthly in arrears. The Sponsor has agreed to assume the following administrative and marketing expenses incurred by the Trust: the Trustee’s fee and reimbursement for its reasonable out-of-pocket expenses, the Custodian’s fee, NYSE Arca listing fees, SEC registration fees, printing and mailing costs, audit fees and expenses, and, effective January 31, 2022, up to $500,000 per annum in legal fees and expenses. Prior to January 31, 2022, the Sponsor had agreed to assume up to $100,000 per annum in legal fees and expenses. The Sponsor may determine in its sole discretion to assume legal fees and expenses of the Trust in excess of the amount required under the Trust Agreement. To the extent that the Sponsor does not voluntarily assume such fees and expenses, they will be the responsibility of the Trust.

4 - Related Parties

The Sponsor and the Trustee are considered to be related parties to the Trust. The Trustee’s fee is paid by the Sponsor and is not a separate expense of the Trust.

5 - Indemnification

The Trust Agreement provides that the Trustee shall indemnify the Sponsor, its directors, employees and agents against, and hold each of them harmless from, any loss, liability, cost, expense or judgment (including reasonable fees and expenses of counsel) (i) caused by the negligence or bad faith of the Trustee or (ii) arising out of any information furnished in writing to the Sponsor by the Trustee expressly for use in the registration statement, or any amendment thereto or periodic or other report filed with the SEC relating to the Shares that is not materially altered by the Sponsor.

The Trust Agreement provides that the Sponsor and its shareholders, directors, officers, employees, affiliates (as such term is defined under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended) and subsidiaries shall be indemnified from the Trust and held harmless against any loss, liability or expense incurred without their (1) negligence, bad faith, willful misconduct or willful malfeasance arising out of or in connection with the performance of their obligations under the Trust Agreement or any actions taken in accordance with the provisions of the Trust Agreement or (2) reckless disregard of their obligations and duties under the Trust Agreement.

The Trust has agreed that the Custodian will only be responsible for any loss or damage suffered by the Trust as a direct result of the Custodian’s negligence, fraud or willful default in the performance of its duties.

6 - Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

In the normal course of business, the Trust may enter into contracts with service providers that contain general indemnification clauses. The Trust’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown as this would involve future claims that may be made against the Trust that have not yet occurred.

7 - Concentration Risk

Substantially all of the Trust’s assets are holdings of silver bullion, which creates a concentration risk associated with fluctuations in the price of silver. Accordingly, a decline in the price of silver will have an adverse effect on the value of the Shares of the Trust. Factors that may have the effect of causing a decline in the price of silver include a change in economic conditions (such as a recession); a significant increase in the hedging activities of silver producers; significant changes in the attitude of speculators, investors and other market participants towards silver; global silver supply and demand; global or regional political, economic or financial events and situations; investors’ expectations with respect to the rate of inflation; interest rates; investment and trading activities of hedge funds and commodity funds; other economic variables such as income growth, economic output, and monetary policies; and investor confidence.

8 - Financial Highlights

The following financial highlights relate to investment performance and operations for a Share outstanding for the three and six months ended June 30, 2023 and 2022.

9 - Investment Valuation

U.S. GAAP defines fair value as the price the Trust would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The Trust’s policy is to value its investment at fair value.

Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of assets and liabilities. Inputs may be based on independent market data (“observable inputs”) or they may be internally developed (“unobservable inputs”). These inputs are categorized into a disclosure hierarchy consisting of three broad levels for financial reporting purposes. The level of a value determined for an asset or liability within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of any input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are as follows:

At June 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the value of the silver bullion held by the Trust is categorized as Level 1.

Item 2. 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 in Item 1 of Part I of this Form 10‑Q. 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 disclosure 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 iShares Silver Trust (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 Bank of New York Mellon (the “Trustee”) acting as trustee pursuant to the Third Amended and Restated Depositary Trust Agreement (the “Trust Agreement”) between the Trustee and iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC, the sponsor of the Trust (the “Sponsor”). The Trust issues units of beneficial interest (“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 aggregations of 50,000 Shares (a “Basket”) or integral multiples thereof, and only in transactions with registered broker-dealers that have previously entered into an agreement with the Sponsor and the Trustee governing the terms and conditions of such issuance (such broker-dealers, the “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, Inc. under the ticker symbol SLV.

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 net asset value per Share (“NAV”). The Trustee values the silver held by the Trust using the price per ounce of silver determined in an electronic auction hosted by ICE Benchmark Administration (“IBA”) that begins at 12:00 p.m. (London time) and published shortly thereafter, on the day the valuation takes place (such price, 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.

Results of Operations

The Quarter Ended June 30, 2023

The Trust’s net asset value decreased from $11,076,935,913 at March 31, 2023 to $10,514,622,364 at June 30, 2023, a 5.08% decrease. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value resulted primarily from a decrease in the price of silver, which fell 5.94% from $23.89 at March 31, 2023 to $22.47 at June 30, 2023. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value was partially offset by the increase in the number of outstanding Shares, which rose from 504,650,000 Shares at March 31, 2023 to 509,850,000 Shares at June 30, 2023, a consequence of 38,750,000 Shares (775 Baskets) being created and 33,550,000 Shares (671 Baskets) being redeemed during the quarter.

The 6.06% decrease in the NAV from $21.95 at March 31, 2023 to $20.62 at June 30, 2023 is directly related to the 5.94% 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 $14,120,304 for the quarter, or 0.12% of the Trust’s average weighted assets of $11,319,966,216 during the quarter. The NAV of $23.91 on April 14, 2023 was the highest during the quarter, compared with a low during the quarter of $20.51 on June 23, 2023.

Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations for the quarter ended June 30, 2023 was $678,980,354, resulting from an unrealized loss on investment in silver bullion of $745,821,212 and a net investment loss of $14,120,304, partially offset by a net realized gain of $79,642,405 on silver bullion distributed for the redemption of Shares and a net realized gain of $1,318,757 from investment in silver bullion sold to pay expenses. Other than the Sponsor’s fees of $14,120,304, the Trust had no expenses during the quarter.

The Six-Month Period Ended June 30, 2023

The Trust’s net asset value decreased from $11,160,084,971 at December 31, 2022 to $10,514,622,364 at June 30, 2023, a 5.78% decrease. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value resulted primarily from a decrease in the price of silver, which fell 6.18% from $23.95 at December 31, 2022 to $22.47 at June 30, 2023. The decrease in the Trust’s net asset value was partially offset by the increase in the number of outstanding Shares, which rose from 506,550,000 Shares at December 31, 2022 to 509,850,000 Shares at June 30, 2023, a consequence of 100,800,000 Shares (2,016 Baskets) being created and 97,500,000 Shares (1,950 Baskets) being redeemed during the period.

The 6.40% decline in the NAV from $22.03 at December 31, 2022 to $20.62 at June 30, 2023 is directly related to the 6.18% 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 $27,253,934 for the period, or 0.25% of the Trust’s average weighted assets of $10,987,324,871 during the period. The NAV of $23.91 on April 14, 2023 was the highest during the period, compared with a low during the quarter of $18.47 on March 10, 2023.

Net decrease in net assets resulting from operations for the six months ended June 30, 2023 was $757,892,368, resulting from an unrealized loss on investment in silver bullion of $861,552,911 and a net investment loss of $27,253,934, partially offset by a net realized gain of $128,819,679 on silver distributed for the redemption of Shares and a net realized gain of $2,094,798 from silver bullion sold to pay expenses. Other than the Sponsor’s fees of $27,253,934, the Trust had no expenses during the period.

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.

Not applicable.

Item 4. Controls and Procedures.

The duly authorized officers of the Sponsor performing functions equivalent to those a principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Trust would perform if the Trust had any officers, with the participation of the Trustee, have evaluated the effectiveness of the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures, and have concluded that the disclosure controls and procedures of the Trust were effective as of the end of the period covered by this report to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in the reports that the Trust files or submits under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the applicable rules and forms, and that it is accumulated and communicated to the duly authorized officers of the Sponsor performing functions equivalent to those a principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the Trust would perform if the Trust had any officers, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

There are inherent limitations to the effectiveness of any system of disclosure controls and procedures, including the possibility of human error and the circumvention or overriding of the controls and procedures.

There were no changes in the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting.

PART II - OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1. Legal Proceedings.

None.

Item 1A. Risk Factors

There have been no material changes to the Risk Factors last reported under Part I, Item 1A of the registrant’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 23, 2023.

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

a) None.

b) Not applicable.

c) 33,550,000 Shares (671 Baskets) were redeemed during the quarter ended June 30, 2023.

Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities

None.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

Item 5. Other Information.

Not applicable.

Item 6. Exhibits

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned in the capacities* indicated thereunto duly authorized.

iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC,
Sponsor of the iShares Silver Trust (registrant)

Shannon Ghia
Director, President and Chief Executive Officer
(Principal executive officer)

Bryan Bowers
Director and Chief Financial Officer
(Principal financial and accounting officer)

*    The registrant is a trust and the persons are signing in their respective capacities as officers of iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC, the Sponsor of the registrant.