TORONTO - Sprott Inc. (NYSE/TSX: SII) ('Sprott' or the 'Company') today announced its financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021.
Management commentary
'During the third quarter of 2021, Sprott demonstrated the strength of our strategy and continued to deliver strong financial results despite precious metals trading sideways for most of the period,' said Peter Grosskopf, CEO of Sprott. 'Subsequent to quarter-end, we surpassed $20 billion in AUM, a new historic high for Sprott, reached in large part due to the efforts of our employee team.'
'In July we completed the acquisition of Uranium Participation Corp. and launched the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust ('SPUT'), which has grown to $1.6 billion in assets,' added Mr. Grosskopf. 'In November, subsequent to the end of the third quarter, we announced that we are further expanding our uranium franchise with an agreement to acquire exclusive licensing rights to the index tracked by the North Shore Global Uranium ETF ('URNM'), which has the potential to result in a transaction that could add approximately $900 million in AUM. We believe URNM is a perfect complement to SPUT, which has quickly become the largest and most in-demand physical uranium vehicle in the world.'
Non-IFRS Financial Measures
This press release includes financial terms (including AUM, net revenues, net commissions, net fees, expenses, adjusted base EBITDA, net compensation and net sales) that the Company utilizes to assess the financial performance of its business that are not measures recognized under International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS'). These non-IFRS measures should not be considered alternatives to performance measures determined in accordance with IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers.
Fund Reorganization Information
Subject to the approval of a reorganization by both the Board of Trustees of the Exchange Traded Concepts Trust, of which URNM is a series, and shareholders of URNM, it is anticipated that URNM would be reorganized into a newly created series of the Sprott Funds Trust, the Sprott Uranium Miners ETF, which series will be advised by Sprott Asset Management and sub-advised by ALPS Advisors, Inc. A Registration Statement for the Sprott Uranium Miners ETF has been filed with the SEC but is not yet effective. Information contained therein is subject to completion or amendment. Fund securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy be accepted prior to the time the Registration Statement becomes effective.
Investors and shareholders of URNM are urged to carefully read the proxy statement/prospectus to be filed with the SEC in connection with the reorganization in its entirety when it becomes available because it will contain important information about the fund reorganization. The proxy statement/prospectus will not constitute an offer to buy or sell securities in any jurisdiction where such offer or sale is not permitted. Shareholders may obtain a free copy of the proxy statement/prospectus (when it becomes available) at the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov.
This information shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. This press release is also not intended to solicit a proxy from any shareholder of URNM. The solicitation of the purchase or sale of securities or of proxies to effect the fund reorganization will only be made by a definitive proxy statement/prospectus.
Investors should consider a fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses before investing. The prospectus and the summary prospectus contain this and other information about the fund. To obtain a prospectus or a summary prospectus of a series of the Sprott Funds Trust, contact your financial advisor or download and/or request one at https://sprott.com/investment-strategies/mining-equity-funds/ or call Sprott Asset Management at 888.622.1813; the prospectus and summary prospectus for URNM can be obtained from your financial advisor, by calling 877-URNM-ETF (876-6383), or at https://urnmetf.com/investor-materials. Please read the prospectus and/or summary prospectus carefully before investing. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
URNM is advised by Exchange Traded Concepts, LLC ('ETC') and distributed by SEI Investments Distribution Co., FINRA Member, (1 Freedom Valley Drive, Oaks, PA 19456), which is not affiliated with ETC, North Shore Indices, Inc. or any affiliates. Investments in URNM are not insured by the FDIC or any other governmental agency, are subject to risks, including a possible loss of the principal amount invested. ALPS Distributors, Inc. will be the distributor for the Sprott Uranium Miners ETF and is a registered broker-dealer and FINRA Member.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release contain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (collectively referred to herein as the 'Forward-Looking Statements') within the meaning of applicable Canadian and U.S. securities laws. The use of any of the words 'expect', 'anticipate', 'continue', 'estimate', 'may', 'will', 'project', 'should', 'believe', 'plans', 'intends' and similar expressions are intended to identify Forward-Looking Statements. In particular, but without limiting the forgoing, this press release contains Forward-Looking Statements pertaining to: (i) the potential purchase by Sprott Asset Management LP of assets relating to managing the North Shore Global Uranium Mining ETF (URNM) and (ii) the declaration, payment and designation of dividends and confidence that our business will support the dividend level without impacting our ability to fund future growth initiatives.
Although the Company believes that the Forward-Looking Statements are reasonable, they are not guarantees of future results, performance or achievements. A number of factors or assumptions have been used to develop the Forward-Looking Statements, including, without limitation: (i) the impact of increasing competition in each business in which the Company operates will not be material; (ii) quality management will be available; (iii) the effects of regulation and tax laws of governmental agencies will be consistent with the current environment and (iv) the impact of COVID-19 and (v) those assumptions disclosed under the heading 'Critical Accounting Estimates, Judgments and Changes in Accounting Policies' in the Company's MD&A for the period ended September 30, 2021. Actual results, performance or achievements could vary materially from those expressed or implied by the Forward-Looking Statements should assumptions underlying the Forward-Looking Statements prove incorrect or should one or more risks or other factors materialize, including: (i) difficult market conditions; (ii) poor investment performance; (iii) failure to continue to retain and attract quality staff; (iv) employee errors or misconduct resulting in regulatory sanctions or reputational harm; (v) performance fee fluctuations; (vi) a business segment or another counterparty failing to pay its financial obligation; (vii) failure of the Company to meet its demand for cash or fund obligations as they come due; (viii) changes in the investment management industry; (ix) failure to implement effective information security policies, procedures and capabilities; (x) lack of investment opportunities; (xi) risks related to regulatory compliance; (xii) failure to manage risks appropriately; (xiii) failure to deal appropriately with conflicts of interest; (xiv) competitive pressures; (xv) corporate growth which may be difficult to sustain and may place significant demands on existing administrative, operational and financial resources; (xvi) failure to comply with privacy laws; (xvii) failure to successfully implement succession planning; (xviii) foreign exchange risk relating to the relative value of the U.S. dollar; (xix) litigation risk; (xx) failure to develop effective business resiliency plans; (xxi) failure to obtain or maintain sufficient insurance coverage on favorable economic terms; (xxii) historical financial information being not necessarily indicative of future performance; (xxiii) the market price of common shares of the Company may fluctuate widely and rapidly; (xxiv) risks relating to the Company's investment products; (xxv) risks relating to the Company's proprietary investments; (xxvi) risks relating to the Company's lending business; (xxvii) risks relating to the Company's brokerage business; (xxviii) the potential risk that the transaction and the related fund reorganization will not be approved by the Board of Trustees of Exchange Traded Concepts Trust, by the Board of Trustees of Sprott Funds Trust or by the shareholders of URNM; (xxix) failure to, in a timely manner, or at all, obtain the other necessary approvals for the transaction and related fund reorganization; (xxx) failure of the parties to otherwise satisfy the conditions to complete the transaction and related fund reorganization; (xxxi) the effect of the announcement of the transaction and related transaction on URNM generally and other customary risks associated with transactions of this nature; (xxxii) those risks described under the heading 'Risk Factors' in the Company's annual information form dated February 25, 2021 and (xxxiii) those risks described under the headings 'Managing financial risks' and 'Managing non-financial risks' in the Company's MD&A for the period ended September 30, 2021. In addition, the payment of dividends is not guaranteed and the amount and timing of any dividends payable by the Company will be at the discretion of the Board of Directors of the Company and will be established on the basis of the Company's earnings, the satisfaction of solvency tests imposed by applicable corporate law for the declaration and payment of dividends, and other relevant factors. The Forward-Looking Statements speak only as of the date hereof, unless otherwise specifically noted, and the Company does not assume any obligation to publicly update any Forward-Looking Statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be expressly required by applicable securities laws.
About Sprott
Sprott is a global leader in precious metal and real asset investments. With offices in Toronto, New York, and London, Sprott is dedicated to providing investors with specialized investment strategies that include Exchange Listed Products, Managed Equities, Lending, and Brokerage. Sprott's common shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol (NYSE:SII) and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol.
Contact:
Glen Williams
Tel: (416) 943-4394
Email: gwilliams@sprott.com
SPROTT INC. 
