VictoryShares International Volatility Wtd ETF

VictoryShares International Volatility Wtd ETF (CIL) tracks the Nasdaq Victory International 500 Volatility Weighted Index. The index holds about 500 large, profitable companies in developed countries outside the US. The biggest companies don't get the most weight. The steadiest stocks get more, and the jumpiest get less. That approach costs 0.45% a year, far more than the 0.03% to 0.07% charged by most broad international index funds it overlaps with.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, CIL returned +8.5%, 9th of 9 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +7.3% and its 10-year +8.2%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 34.2% and regained its old high 7.8 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-16.0%); its best was 2025 (+33.0%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 36.3% (Jan 26, 2018 to Mar 18, 2020), recovered by Dec 3, 2020.

As of Dec 31, 2025, the fund held 511 securities; the ten largest made up 3.79% of assets, and 2.5% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

• Over the three months to Dec 31, 2025, investors withdrew a net $34.2M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +0.63%, +1.74%, +2.70%.

CIL follows an index run by Nasdaq, which is not affiliated with Victory Capital. The index starts with publicly traded companies based in developed countries outside the US, such as Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong and Australia. Emerging markets are excluded. It keeps only companies with positive earnings over the past twelve months, then picks the 500 largest by market capitalization (share price times shares outstanding).

Next comes the weighting. Volatility means how much a stock's price swings. For each stock, the index measures the swings in its daily price changes over the last 180 trading days. Calmer stocks get larger weights and jumpier ones get smaller weights. No single country can exceed 20% and no sector 25%. The index is rebuilt every March and September. The result is spread very evenly. As of December 31, 2025, the largest holding, CLP Holdings, was 0.46% of assets, and the top 10 together made up just 3.79%. Telstra, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Bank of Nova Scotia and Emera came next.

The fund doesn't have to own every stock in the index. Its managers use a statistical process to pick a representative sample, which held 511 stocks as of December 31, 2025. This means returns can drift from the index. The fund is passive: it doesn't take defensive positions when markets fall. Portfolio turnover was 27%.

• CIL charges 0.45% a year, versus an average of 0.08% for the similar funds below (9th of 9, cheapest first).
• Of that, 0.4% is the management fee; the rest covers other fund expenses.
• The fee includes a 0.15% waiver from the adviser, which may end.
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $46 in the first year and $736 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It adds about 500 developed-market companies outside the US, tilted toward steadier stocks, to a portfolio that may be mostly US-focused.

CIL could spread a stock portfolio beyond US companies. As of December 31, 2025, its largest country weights were Japan at 17.6% and Canada at 12.8%. The tilt toward steadier stocks did not prevent deep drops. The fund launched in 2015, so it has no record from 2008. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 34.2% and took about eight months to recover. In the 2022 bear market it fell 28.8% and needed 17 months to recover. Its worst calendar year was 2022, at -15.80%. Anyone drawing cash in a year like that would be cashing out shares at low prices.

Income is small: the trailing yield was 0.23% as of October 27, 2026, paid twice a year. Costs are 0.45% a year. On the SEC's standard $10,000 example, that is $46 after one year and $736 over ten. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.