Emerging Markets Debt Fund

Please carefully consider the William Blair Funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. This and other information is contained in the Funds’ prospectus and summary prospectus, which you may obtain by calling 1-800-742-7272. Read the prospectus and summary prospectus carefully before investing. Investing includes the risk of loss.

The William Blair Funds are distributed by William Blair & Company, L.L.C., member FINRA/SIPC.

Risks: The Fund involves a high level of risk and may not be appropriate for everyone. The Fund’s return will vary, and you could lose money by investing in the Fund. Investing in the bond market is subject to certain risks including market, interest rate, issuer, credit, and inflation risk. Rising interest rates generally cause bond prices to fall. Sovereign debt securities are subject to the risk that an entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or principal on its sovereign debt because of cash flow problems, insufficient foreign reserves, or political or other considerations. High–yield, lower–rated, securities involve greater risk than higher–rated securities; portfolios that invest in them may be subject to greater levels of credit and liquidity risk than portfolios that do not. Investing in foreign denominated and/or domiciled securities may involve heightened risk due to currency fluctuations, and economic and political risks. These risks may be enhanced in emerging markets. Derivatives may be subject to certain risks such as leveraging, liquidity, interest rate, credit, counterparty, management and the risk of mispricing or improper valuation. The Fund is non-diversified and may be more susceptible to adverse developments affecting any single issuer held by the Fund.

For most recent net asset values and year-to-date total return information, please click here.

Top holdings are shown as a % of total net assets. Information about the Fund’s holdings should not be considered investment advice. There is no guarantee that the Fund will continue to hold any one particular security or stay invested in any one particular sector. Holdings are subject to change at any time. 

The JP Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index (EMBI) Global Diversified tracks the total return of U.S.-dollar denominated debt instruments issued by sovereign and quasi-sovereign entities. The index is unmanaged, does not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested in directly. Index information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable but JP Morgan does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. The index is used with permission. The index may not be copied, used, or distributed without JP Morgan’s prior written approval. Copyright JPMorgan Chase & Co. All rights reserved.

The Morningstar Emerging Markets Bond category represents the average annual composite performance of all mutual funds listed in the Emerging Markets Bond category by Morningstar.

The Morningstar Rating for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange- traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product’s monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10 year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods.
 
©2025 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.

Lipper Ratings are based on a Fund’s average annual total return.

Ratings and rankings are one measure of performance. Ratings may vary among share classes. Ratings reflect expense limitations in effect during the period, without such limitations returns would be lower. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

For your reference, this link contains additional notices and disclaimers required by our data suppliers.

Credit quality designations range from AAA (highest) to D (lowest). Credit quality ratings on underlying securities are received from S&P and Moody’s which are converted to the equivalent S&P major rating category for presentation purposes only. The portfolio itself has not been rated. The credit quality of securities in the portfolio and Index are sourced from Standard & Poor’s, Copyright © 2023, S&P Global Market Intelligence (and its affiliates, as applicable). Reproduction of any information, data or material, including ratings (“Content”) in any form is prohibited except with the prior written permission of the relevant party. Such party, its affiliates and suppliers (“Content Providers”) do not guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, completeness, timeliness or availability of any Content and are not responsible for any errors or omissions (negligent or otherwise), regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such Content. In no event shall Content Providers be liable for any damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including lost income or lost profit and opportunity costs) in connection with any use of the Content. A reference to a particular investment or security, a rating or any observation concerning an investment that is part of the Content is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold such investment or security, does not address the suitability of an investment or security and should not be relied on as investment advice. Credit ratings are statements of opinions and are not statements of fact.

Active spread duration: the difference between the effective spread duration contribution from a particular security or market segment to a portfolio, and the contribution to the portfolio’s benchmark. Effective spread duration is a measure of the sensitivity of a bond’s price with respect to sovereign spread movement. It approximately measures the percentage change in a bond’s price if spreads change by 100 bps. Duration distribution: is the portfolio’s allocation to different groups of bonds, where those groups are determined by the bonds’ effective interest rate duration. Effective interest rate duration is a measure of the sensitivity of a bond’s price with respect to a shift in U.S. interest rates. It approximately measures the percentage change in a bond’s price if U.S. interest rates change by 100 bps.

Any investment or strategy mentioned herein may not be appropriate for every investor. There can be no assurance that investment objectives will be met. Products and services listed are available only to residents of this jurisdiction and may only be available to certain categories of investors. The information on this website does not constitute an offer for products or services, or a solicitation of an offer to any persons outside of this jurisdiction who are prohibited from receiving such information under applicable laws and regulations. Nothing on this webpage should be construed as advice and is therefore not a recommendation to buy or sell shares.

William Blair Investment Management, LLC is an investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.