BGH Barings Global Short Duration High Yield Fund

Valuation of Instruments

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date.  A three-tier hierarchy is utilized to maximize the use of observable market data and minimize the use of unobservable inputs and to establish classification of fair value measurements for disclosure purposes.  Inputs refer broadly to the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, including assumptions about risk.  For example, market participants would consider the risk inherent in a particular valuation technique used to measure fair value, such as a pricing model, and/or the risk inherent in the inputs to the valuation technique.  Inputs may be observable or unobservable.  Observable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability and are developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of the reporting entity.  Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the reporting entity’s own assumptions about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability and are developed based on the best information available in the circumstances.  The three-tier hierarchy of inputs is summarized in the three broad levels listed below.

Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical securities

Level 2 – other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.)

Level 3 – significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments)

The availability of observable inputs can vary from security to security and is affected by a wide variety of factors, including, for example, the type of security, whether the security is new and not yet established in the marketplace, the liquidity of markets, and other characteristics particular to the security.  To the extent that valuation is based on models or inputs that are less observable or unobservable in the market, the determination of fair value requires more judgment.  Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in Level 3.

The inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy.  In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement falls in its entirety is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. The following is a summary of the inputs used as of September 30, 2024, in valuing the Fund’s investments:

Description		Level 1				Level 2				Level 3				Total Investments
Assets:
Equities:
Common Stocks		$	-			$	1,798,274			$	-			$	1,798,274
Warrants			-				-				59,307				59,307
Total Equities:			-				1,798,274				59,307				1,857,581
Fixed Income:
Asset-Backed Securities			-				30,712,878				-				30,712,878
Bank Loans			-				76,532,330				3,880,874				80,413,204
Convertible Bonds			-				1,347,506				-				1,347,506
Corporate Bonds			-				313,926,161				4,704,939				318,631,100
Total Fixed Income			-				422,518,875				8,585,813				431,104,688
Short Term Investments:
Insurance			-				-				-				-
Total Short Term Investments			-				-				-				-
Forward Foreign Exchange Contracts			-				-				-				-
Total Assets:		$	-			$	424,317,149			$	8,645,120			$	432,962,269
Liabilities:
Forward Foreign Exchange Contracts:		$	-			$	(417,977	)		$	-			$	(417,977	)
Total Liabilities:		$	-			$	(417,977	)		$	-			$	(417,977	)