Correspondence 0001445546-25-003953 from FIRST TRUST EXCHANGE-TRADED FUND VIII (CIK 0001667919)
FIRST TRUST EXCHANGE-TRADED FUND VIII (CIK 0001667919)
Date: June 6, 2025 · CIK: 0001667919 · Accession: 0001445546-25-003953
AI Filing Summary & Sentiment
File numbers found in text: 333-210186, 811-23147
Show Raw Text
CORRESP
1
filename1.htm
Chapman and Cutler LLP
320 South Canal Street, 27th Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60606
T 312.845.3000
F 312.701.2361
www.chapman.com
June 6, 2025
VIA EDGAR CORRESPONDENCE
Emily Rowland
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, N.E.
Washington, D.C. 20549
Re:
First
Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII (the “Trust”)
File
Nos. 333-210186; 811-23147
Dear Ms. Rowland:
This letter responds
to your comments regarding the registration statement filed on Form N-1A for First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund VIII (the “Registrant”
or “Trust”) with the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Staff”) on April 2, 2025
(the “Registration Statement”). The Registration Statement relates to the FT Vest Laddered Enhance & Moderate Buffer
ETF (the “Fund”), a series of the Trust. Capitalized terms used herein, but not otherwise defined, have the meanings
ascribed to them in the Registration Statement.
Comment
1 – General
The Staff reminds
the Registrant and its management that they are responsible for the accuracy and adequacy of the disclosures, notwithstanding any review,
comments, action or absence of action by the Staff. Where a comment is made in one location, it is applicable to all similar disclosures
appearing elsewhere in the Registration Statement. Please ensure that corresponding changes are made to all similar disclosure.
Please provide responses
to all of the Staff’s comments on EDGAR at least five business days before the effective date of the Registration Statement. Once
the correspondence is filed, please provide notice by email and include a redline showing any changes.
Response
to Comment 1
The Registrant confirms
that corresponding changes made in response to the Staff’s comments have been made to any similar disclosure throughout the Registration
Statement, that it will update the series of class identifiers on EDGAR to reflect the ticker symbol, when available, and that it will
provide the Staff with a response letter in the form of correspondence at least five business days before effectiveness. The Registrant
further confirms it will provide a copy of the correspondence and corresponding redline of the Registration Statement to the Staff once
filed.
Comment
2 – Principal Investment Strategies
The Staff
notes the following disclosure set forth in the section entitled “Principal Investment Strategies”:
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will
invest substantially all of its assets in the Underlying ETFs, which seek to provide investors with returns (before fees and expenses)
of approximately twice any positive price return of SPY, up to a predetermined upside cap, while providing a buffer (before fees and expenses)
against the first 15% of SPY losses, over a defined one-year period.
Please consider enhancing
this disclosure to align with similar disclosure in the “Enhanced Return Risk” set forth in the section entitled “Principal
Risks.”
Response
to Comment 2
Pursuant to the Staff’s
comment, the referenced disclosure has been revised accordingly.
Comment
3 – Principal Investment Strategies
The Staff
notes the following disclosure set forth in the section entitled “Principal Investment Strategies”:
Each Underlying ETF’s website provides
important information (including Target Outcome Period start and end dates and the cap (both gross and net of fees) and buffer both at
the start of the Underlying ETF’s Target Outcome Period and on any particular day relative to the end of the Target Outcome Period).
Please consider inserting
“(both gross and net of fees)” after “buffer.”
Response
to Comment 3
The Registrant respectfully
declines to add the requested disclosure. As previously discussed with the Staff, returns after application of the buffers of the Underlying
ETFs are reduced by fees and expenses. However, the buffer itself represents a fixed level of protection against losses, and this level
does not change based on fees. For example, the Underlying ETFs provide a 15% buffer. The buffer provided to investors in the Underlying
ETFs will always be 15%, irrespective of fees and expenses, but the returns to investors after application of the buffer will be reduced
by fees and expenses. Therefore, the Registrant believes that the current disclosure accurately reflects the operation of the buffer for
the Underlying ETFs, but for clarity, will add disclosure noting that the buffer of each Underlying ETF is before taking into account
the Underlying ETF’s fees and expenses charged to its shareholders. The Registrant further confirms that the reference to “(both
gross and net of fees)” as describing the buffer will be removed from the corresponding disclosure in the registration statement
for the FT Vest Laddered Max Buffer ETF.
2
Comment
4 – Principal Risks
The Staff
notes the following disclosure in “Capped Upside Risk” set forth in the section entitled “Principal Risks”:
An investor like the
Fund that holds Underlying ETF shares through multiple Target Outcome Periods may fail to experience gains comparable to those of SPY
over time because at the end of each Target Outcome Period, a new cap will be established based on the then current price of SPY and any
gains above the prior cap will be forfeit. Moreover, the annual imposition of a new cap on future gains may make it difficult to recoup
any losses from prior Target Outcome Periods such that, over multiple Target Outcome Periods, the Underlying ETFs may have losses that
exceed those of SPY.
Please consider using
this disclosure to enhance the similar disclosure set forth in the section entitled “Principal Investment Strategies.”
Response
to Comment 4
Pursuant to the Staff’s
comment, the referenced disclosure has been revised accordingly.
Comment
5 – Principal Risks
The Staff notes “Current
Market Conditions Risk” set forth in the section entitled “Principal Risks”:
As a means to fight
inflation, which remains at elevated levels, the Federal Reserve and certain foreign central banks have raised interest rates; however,
the Federal Reserve has recently lowered interest rates and may continue to do so.
Please consider updating
this disclosure to reflect the current interest rate environment.
Response
to Comment 5
The Registrant has
thoughtfully considered the Staff’s comment and respectfully declines to revise the disclosure as it believes the disclosure as
currently stated is accurate and appropriate for investor comprehension. However, the Registrant will continue to monitor for any necessary
revisions to the disclosure.
3
Comment
6 – Principal Risks
Please consider adding
a risk disclosure relating to “New Fund Risk.”
Response
to Comment 6
Pursuant to the Staff’s
comment, a “New Fund Risk” has been added to the section entitled “Principal Risks.”
Comment
7 – Additional Information on the Fund’s Investment Objective and Strategies
The Staff notes the
following disclosure set forth in the section entitled “Additional Information on the Fund’s Investment Objective and Strategies—The
Underlying ETFs”:
There is no guarantee
that the final cap set for a Target Outcome Period will be within the anticipated cap range.
Please supplementally
explain what the “anticipated cap range” is referring to.
Response
to Comment 7
The Registrant notes
that each Underlying ETF notifies its shareholders of an anticipated cap range for the upcoming Target Outcome Period approximately one
week before the start of that period. This anticipated cap range represents the expected cap for the Underlying ETF during the next Target
Outcome Period and is determined based on market data from the preceding 10 days.
Comment
8 – Additional Information on the Fund’s Investment Objective and Strategies
The Staff notes the
disclosure in the third bullet point set forth in the section entitled “Additional Information on the Fund’s Investment Objective
and Strategies—Buffer and Cap.” Please consider revising this disclosure to align with the same bullet point disclosure set
forth in other similar target outcome funds (e.g., FT Vest Laddered Max Buffer ETF).
Response
to Comment 8
In accordance with
the Staff’s comment, the disclosure has been revised as follows:
“In the
graph above, the dotted line represents SPY’s performance, and the blue and orange lines represent the hypothetical return profile
(before fees and expenses) sought by the Underlying ETF in relation to SPY’s indicated performance. The blue line rising above 0%
represents approximately twice the price return of SPY and the orange line represents the 15% buffer.”
4
Comment 9 – Statement of Additional Information
The Staff notes the
lack of disclosure relating to FLEX Options and related risks in the section entitled “Investment Risks.” Please consider
adding such risk disclosure to this section.
Response
to Comment 9
The Registrant has
considered the Staff’s comment and respectfully declines to add back risk disclosure relating to FLEX Options to the section entitled
“Investment Risks” in the statement of additional information. The Registrant notes that risk disclosure regarding FLEX Options
(which was previously disclosed in the statement of additional information) is now described in the Prospectus, which the Registrant believes
is appropriate for investor comprehension.
********
Please call me at
(312) 845-3721 if you have any questions or issues you would like to discuss regarding these matters.
Sincerely yours,
Chapman and Cutler llp
By:
/s/ Daniel J. Fallon
Daniel J. Fallon
5