Key Risks
An investment in the Securities involves significant risks. Investing in the Securities is not equivalent to a hypothetical investment in the underlying asset. Some of the key risks that apply to the Securities are summarized below, but we urge you to read the more detailed explanation of risks relating to the Securities in the “Risk Factors” section of the accompanying product supplement. We also urge you to consult your investment, legal, tax, accounting and other advisors concerning an investment in the Securities.
Risks Relating to Return Characteristics
♦Risk of loss at maturity — The Securities differ from ordinary debt securities in that UBS will not necessarily repay the principal amount of the Securities. You will be exposed to any decline in the level of the underlying asset from the initial level to the final level. If the underlying return is negative, you will lose a percentage of your principal amount equal to the underlying return and, in extreme situations, you could lose all of your initial investment.
♦The stated payout from the issuer applies only if you hold your Securities to maturity — You should be willing to hold your Securities to maturity. The stated payout by the issuer is available only if you hold your Securities to maturity. If you are able to sell your Securities prior to maturity in the secondary market, you may have to sell them at a loss relative to your initial investment even if the level of the underlying asset at such time is equal to or greater than the initial level.
♦The upside gearing applies only at maturity — You should be willing to hold your Securities to maturity. If you are able to sell your Securities prior to maturity in the secondary market, the price you receive will likely not reflect the full economic value of the upside gearing, subject to the maximum gain, and the percentage return you realize may be less than the then-current underlying return multiplied by the upside gearing, even if such return is positive and does not exceed the maximum gain. You can receive the full benefit of the upside gearing, subject to the maximum gain, only if you hold your Securities to maturity.
♦Your potential return on the Securities is limited to the maximum gain — The return potential of the Securities is limited to the maximum gain. Therefore, you will not benefit from any positive underlying return in excess of an amount that, when multiplied by the upside gearing, exceeds the maximum gain and your return on the Securities may be less than it would be in a hypothetical direct investment in the underlying asset.
♦No interest payments — UBS will not pay any interest with respect to the Securities.
♦Owning the Securities is not the same as owning the underlying asset — The return on your Securities may not reflect the return you would realize if you actually owned the underlying asset. For instance, you will not benefit from any positive underlying return in excess of an amount that, when multiplied by the upside gearing, exceeds the maximum gain. Furthermore, as an owner of the Securities, you will not receive or be entitled to receive any dividend payments or other distributions on the underlying asset during the term of the Securities, and any such dividends or distributions will not be factored into the calculation of the payment at maturity on your Securities. Similarly, you will not have voting rights or any other rights of a holder of the underlying asset.
Risks Relating to Characteristics of the Underlying Asset
♦Single equity risk — The return on the Securities, which may be negative, is directly linked to the performance of the underlying asset. The level of the underlying asset can rise or fall sharply due to factors specific to the underlying asset and its issuer (the “underlying asset issuer”), such as stock or commodity price volatility, earnings, financial conditions, corporate, industry and regulatory developments, management changes and decisions and other events, as well as general market factors, such as general stock and commodity market volatility and levels, interest rates and economic, political and other conditions. You, as an investor in the Securities, should conduct your own investigation into the underlying asset issuer and the underlying asset for your Securities. For additional information regarding the underlying asset and the underlying asset issuer, please see “Information About the Underlying Asset” herein and the underlying asset issuer's SEC filings referred to in that section. We urge you to review financial and other information filed periodically by the underlying asset issuer with the SEC.
♦There can be no assurance that the investment view implicit in the Securities will be successful — It is impossible to predict whether and the extent to which the level of the underlying asset will rise or fall and there can be no assurance that the final level will be equal to or greater than the initial level. The level of the underlying asset will be influenced by complex and interrelated political, economic, financial and other factors that affect the underlying asset issuer. You should be willing to accept the downside risks of owning equities in general and the underlying asset in particular, and the risk of losing some or all of your initial investment.
♦There is no affiliation between the underlying asset issuer and UBS, and UBS is not responsible for any disclosure by such issuer — We are not affiliated with the underlying asset issuer. We and our affiliates may currently, or from time to time in the future engage in business with the underlying asset issuer. However, we are not affiliated with the underlying asset issuer and are not responsible for such underlying asset issuer's public disclosure of information, whether contained in SEC filings or otherwise. You, as an investor in the Securities, should conduct your own investigation into the underlying asset and the underlying asset issuer. The underlying asset issuer is not involved in the Securities offered hereby in any way and has no obligation to take your interests into consideration for any reason, including when taking any corporate actions that might affect the market value of, and return on, your Securities.
Estimated Value Considerations
♦The issue price you pay for the Securities exceeds their estimated initial value — The issue price you pay for the Securities exceeds their estimated initial value as of the trade date due to the inclusion in the issue price of the underwriting discount, hedging costs, issuance and other costs and projected profits. As of the close of the relevant markets on the trade date, we have determined the estimated initial value of the Securities by reference to our internal pricing models and it is set forth in this pricing supplement. The pricing models used to determine the estimated initial value of the Securities incorporate certain variables, including the level and volatility of the underlying asset, any expected dividends on the underlying asset, prevailing interest rates, the term of the Securities and our internal funding rate. Our internal funding rate is typically lower than the rate we would pay to issue conventional fixed or floating rate debt securities of a similar term. The underwriting discount, hedging costs, issuance and other costs, projected profits and the difference in rates will reduce the economic value of the Securities to you. Due to these factors, the estimated initial value of the Securities as of the trade date is less than the issue price you pay for the Securities.
♦The estimated initial value is a theoretical price; the actual price at which you may be able to sell your Securities in any secondary market (if any) at any time after the trade date may differ from the estimated initial value — The value of your Securities at any time will vary based on many factors, including the factors described above and in “— Risks Relating to Characteristics of the Underlying Asset — Single equity risk” above and is impossible to predict. Furthermore, the pricing models that we use are proprietary and rely in part on certain assumptions about future events, which may prove to be incorrect. As a result, after the trade date, if you attempt to sell the Securities in the secondary market, the actual value you would receive may differ, perhaps materially, from the estimated initial value of the Securities determined by reference to our internal pricing models. The estimated initial value of the Securities does not represent a minimum or maximum price at which we or any of our affiliates would be willing to purchase your Securities in any secondary market at any time.