# Sprott Physical Silver Trust > Clarifo company profile — qualitative business description generated from > the company's filings. Financial statements, charts and ratios are > available on Clarifo (https://www.clarifo.com/fi/companies/Sprott Physical Silver Trust). ## Overview Sprott Physical Silver Trust is a closed-end mutual fund trust organized under Ontario law that holds physical silver bullion as its core asset. Its units trade on NYSE Arca and the Toronto Stock Exchange, giving investors exchange-traded exposure to allocated silver bullion through a trust structure. ## Products & services • Physically backed silver bullion trust units • Exchange-traded access to allocated silver • Physical metal holding and custody structure • Redeemable, transferable trust units - **Physical silver holdings** (99%) — Direct ownership exposure to unencumbered physical silver bullion held by the trust. - **Cash and other assets** (1%) — Minor cash balances and residual assets less liabilities supporting the trust structure. - Physically backed silver bullion trust units - Exchange-traded access to allocated silver - Physical metal holding and custody structure - Redeemable, transferable trust units ## Customers The trust sells to investors who want silver exposure without buying, storing, or insuring bullion themselves. Its unitholders typically include retail investors, wealth managers, and institutions that use listed trust units as a convenient commodity allocation or inflation hedge. Demand is tied to portfolio diversification, precious-metals exposure, and exchange-traded liquidity. - **Retail investors** (primary) — Buy listed trust units to gain simple, exchange-traded silver exposure. - **Wealth management clients** (secondary) — Use the trust as a portfolio diversifier and precious-metals allocation. - **Institutional investors** (secondary) — Use the trust for tactical or strategic exposure to physical silver. - Retail investors seeking listed silver exposure - Wealth managers building diversified commodity allocations - Institutions using silver as a portfolio hedge - Investors preferring bullion exposure without storage duties ## Geography The trust is organized in Ontario, Canada, and its units trade on both NYSE Arca and the TSX. Its assets are held through Canadian custodians, including the Royal Canadian Mint for physical bullion, while investors are located across the United States, Canada, and other markets that access the listed units. Geography matters mainly through listing access, custody structure, and cross-border investor demand rather than operating sites. - Organized under Ontario law in Canada - Listed on NYSE Arca and Toronto Stock Exchange - Bullion custody is handled in Canada - Investor demand is cross-border and exchange-driven ## Strategy The trust’s strategy is to maintain substantially all of its assets in long-term holdings of unencumbered physical silver bullion. This approach is designed to offer a secure, convenient, exchange-traded alternative to direct bullion ownership while avoiding short-term trading around silver prices. The structure emphasizes simplicity, allocable storage, and investor access through public markets. - **Hold fully allocated silver bullion** (short-term) — The trust’s mandate depends on direct physical backing and investor confidence in the asset base. - **Maintain exchange-traded accessibility** (medium-term) — Listed units make the trust usable for investors who want bullion exposure through public markets. - **Preserve custody and operational integrity** (medium-term) — Reliable custody and administration are central to a physically backed trust model. - Maintain substantially all assets in physical silver bullion - Provide exchange-traded bullion exposure to investors - Avoid speculation on short-term silver price changes - Preserve secure and convenient access to physical silver ## Risks The main risks come from silver price volatility, because the trust’s value moves with the market price of bullion it holds. There are also custody, operational, and exchange-trading risks tied to maintaining allocated metal, administering units, and preserving investor confidence in the trust structure. Tax, regulatory, and market-access issues can also affect how efficiently investors can use the product. - **Silver price volatility** [high] — The trust holds physical silver, so changes in bullion prices pass through directly to NAV and unit value. - **Custody and bullion integrity** [high] — The trust relies on third-party custodians and allocated holdings to maintain product credibility. - **Liquidity and market-discount risk** [medium] — Listed trust units may trade above or below underlying asset value depending on market conditions. - **Regulatory and tax changes** [medium] — Commodity trust structures can be affected by changes in tax treatment, listing rules, or investor access. - Silver price volatility directly drives NAV fluctuations - Custody and allocation failures could undermine investor confidence - Exchange-trading liquidity may vary with precious-metals demand - Cross-border tax or regulatory changes could affect unit demand - Commodity fund structures can face tracking and operational risk ## Accounting The trust measures physical bullion at fair value using published silver price quotations, so reported results can move sharply with market prices even when holdings do not change materially. Income, gains, and losses on bullion are recognized under a fair-value model, while small cash balances and receivables are carried at amortized cost. Because the trust is intended to distribute taxable income and is treated as not taxable in substance, taxes and deferred tax balances are not a major accounting driver. - **Fair value of physical bullion** — Primary driver of reported performance - **Unrealized and realized gains/losses** — Can dominate quarterly results - **Tax status and distributions** — Reduces deferred tax accounting complexity - Fair value measurement of silver bullion drives reported NAV - Market price changes create unrealized gains and losses - Trade-date accounting affects bullion transaction timing - Cash and receivables are minor but still affect net assets - Tax treatment reduces deferred tax balance complexity --- *Last updated: 2026-09-28T12:14:07.983714+00:00*