EGF BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund Inc

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM N-CSR

CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANIES

Investment Company Act file number: 811-21793

 

Name of Fund:

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

Fund Address:

100 Bellevue Parkway, Wilmington, DE 19809

Name and address of agent for service: John M. Perlowski, Chief Executive Officer, BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc., 50 Hudson Yards, New York, NY 10001

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (800) 882-0052, Option 4

Date of fiscal year end: 12/31/2023

Date of reporting period: 06/30/2023

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Item 1 – Report to Stockholders

(a) The Report to Shareholders is attached herewith.

 

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		JUNE 30, 2023

 

 

		2023 Semi-Annual Report (Unaudited)

 

 

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not FDIC Insured • May Lose Value • No Bank Guarantee

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Supplemental Information (unaudited)

 

Section 19(a) Notices

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.’s (EGF) (the “Fund”) amounts and sources of distributions reported are estimates and are being provided pursuant to regulatory requirements and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund’s investment experience during the remainder of its fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will provide a Form 1099-DIV each calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

June 30, 2023

 

		Total Cumulative Distributions for the Fiscal Period																						% Breakdown of the Total Cumulative Distributions for the Fiscal Period
Fund Name		Net Income				Net Realized Capital Gains Short-Term				Net Realized Capital Gains Long-Term				Return of     Capital (a)				Total Per Common Share						Net Income				Net Realized Capital Gains Short-Term				Net Realized Capital Gains Long-Term				Return of Capital				Total Per Common Share
EGF		$	0.139733			$	—			$	—			$	0.106267			$	0.246000						57	%			—	%			—	%			43	%			100	%

 

(a)

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its net income and net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of the distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of the shareholder’s investment in the Fund is returned to the shareholder. A return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with “yield” or “income.” When distributions exceed total return performance, the difference will reduce the Fund’s net asset value per share.

Section 19(a) notices for the Fund, as applicable, are available on the BlackRock website at blackrock.com.

Section 19(b) Disclosure

The Fund, acting pursuant to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) exemptive order and with the approval of the Fund’s Board of Directors (the “Board”), has adopted a managed distribution plan, consistent with its investment objectives and policies, to support a level distribution of income, capital gains and/or return of capital (the “Plan”). In accordance with the Plan, the Fund currently distributes the following fixed amounts per share on a monthly basis:

 

Fund Name		Amount Per Common Share
EGF		$	0.041000

The fixed amounts distributed per share are subject to change at the discretion of the Fund’s Board. Under its Plan, the Fund will distribute all available net income to its shareholders as required by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). If sufficient income (inclusive of net income and short-term capital gains) is not earned on a monthly basis, the Fund will distribute long-term capital gains and/or return of capital to shareholders in order to maintain a level distribution. Each monthly distribution to shareholders is expected to be at the fixed amount established by the Board; however, the Fund may make additional distributions from time to time, including additional capital gain distributions at the end of the taxable year, if required to meet requirements imposed by the Code and/or the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”).

Shareholders should not draw any conclusions about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of these distributions or from the terms of the Plan. The Fund’s total return performance is presented in its financial highlights table.

The Board may amend, suspend or terminate the Fund’s Plan at any time without prior notice to the Fund’s shareholders if it deems such actions to be in the best interests of the Fund or its shareholders. The suspension or termination of the Plan could have the effect of creating a trading discount (if the Fund’s stock is trading at or above net asset value) or widening an existing trading discount. The Fund is subject to risks that could have an adverse impact on its ability to maintain level distributions. Examples of potential risks include, but are not limited to, economic downturns impacting the markets, changes in interest rates, decreased market volatility, companies suspending or decreasing corporate dividend distributions and changes in the Code.

 

 

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T H I S   P A G E   I S   N O T   P A R T   O F   Y O U R   F U N D   R E P O R T		3

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Table of Contents

 

		Page
Supplemental Information			2
The Markets in Review			3
Semi-Annual Report:
The Benefits and Risks of Leveraging			5
Option Over-Writing Strategy			6
Derivative Financial Instruments			6
Fund Summary			7
Financial Statements:
Schedule of Investments			9
Statement of Assets and Liabilities			16
Statement of Operations			17
Statements of Changes in Net Assets			18
Statement of Cash Flows			19
Financial Highlights			20
Notes to Financial Statements			21
Disclosure of Investment Advisory Agreement			30
Additional Information			33
Glossary of Terms Used in this Report			36

 

 

4

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The Benefits and Risks of Leveraging

 

The Fund may utilize leverage to seek to enhance the distribution rate on, and net asset value (“NAV”) of, its common shares (“Common Shares”). However, there is no guarantee that these objectives can be achieved in all interest rate environments.

In general, the concept of leveraging is based on the premise that the financing cost of leverage, which is based on short-term interest rates, is normally lower than the income earned by the Fund on its longer-term portfolio investments purchased with the proceeds from leverage. To the extent that the total assets of the Fund (including the assets obtained from leverage) are invested in higher-yielding portfolio investments, the Fund’s shareholders benefit from the incremental net income. The interest earned on securities purchased with the proceeds from leverage (after paying the leverage costs) is paid to shareholders in the form of dividends, and the value of these portfolio holdings (less the leverage liability) is reflected in the per share NAV.

To illustrate these concepts, assume the Fund’s capitalization is $100 million and it utilizes leverage for an additional $30 million, creating a total value of $130 million available for investment in longer-term income securities. If prevailing short-term interest rates are 3% and longer-term interest rates are 6%, the yield curve has a strongly positive slope. In this case, the Fund’s financing costs on the $30 million of proceeds obtained from leverage are based on the lower short-term interest rates. At the same time, the securities purchased by the Fund with the proceeds from leverage earn income based on longer-term interest rates. In this case, the Fund’s financing cost of leverage is significantly lower than the income earned on the Fund’s longer-term investments acquired from such leverage proceeds, and therefore the holders of Common Shares (“Common Shareholders”) are the beneficiaries of the incremental net income.

However, in order to benefit shareholders, the return on assets purchased with leverage proceeds must exceed the ongoing costs associated with the leverage. If interest and other costs of leverage exceed the Fund’s return on assets purchased with leverage proceeds, income to shareholders is lower than if the Fund had not used leverage. Furthermore, the value of the Fund’s portfolio investments generally varies inversely with the direction of long-term interest rates, although other factors can influence the value of portfolio investments. In contrast, the amount of the Fund’s obligations under its leverage arrangement generally does not fluctuate in relation to interest rates. As a result, changes in interest rates can influence the Fund’s NAV positively or negatively. Changes in the future direction of interest rates are very difficult to predict accurately, and there is no assurance that the Fund’s intended leveraging strategy will be successful.

The use of leverage also generally causes greater changes in the Fund’s NAV, market price and dividend rates than comparable portfolios without leverage. In a declining market, leverage is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV and market price of the Fund’s shares than if the Fund were not leveraged. In addition, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities at inopportune times or at distressed values in order to comply with regulatory requirements applicable to the use of leverage or as required by the terms of leverage instruments, which may cause the Fund to incur losses. The use of leverage may limit the Fund’s ability to invest in certain types of securities or use certain types of hedging strategies. The Fund incurs expenses in connection with the use of leverage, all of which are borne by shareholders and may reduce income to the shareholders. Moreover, to the extent the calculation of the Fund’s investment advisory fees includes assets purchased with the proceeds of leverage, the investment advisory fees payable to the Fund’s investment adviser will be higher than if the Fund did not use leverage.

The Fund may utilize leverage through reverse repurchase agreements as described in the Notes to Financial Statements, if applicable.

Under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), the Fund is permitted to borrow money (including through the use of TOB Trusts) or issue debt securities up to 33 1/3% of its total managed assets. The Fund may voluntarily elect to limit its leverage to less than the maximum amount permitted under the 1940 Act.

 

 

T H E   B E N E F I T S   A N D   R I S K S   O F   L E V E R A G I N G		5

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Option Over-Writing Strategy		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

In general, the goal of the Fund is to provide shareholders with current income and gains. The Fund seeks to pursue this goal primarily by investing in a portfolio of U.S. Government and U.S. Agency securities and utilizing an option over-writing strategy in an effort to generate current gains from option premiums and to enhance each Fund’s risk-adjusted return. The Fund’s objectives cannot be achieved in all market conditions.

The Fund writes call options on individual U.S. Government and U.S. Agency securities or on baskets of such securities or on interest rate swaps (“swaptions”) and may write call options on other debt securities. When writing (selling) a call option, the Fund grants the counterparty the right to buy an underlying reference security or enter into a defined transaction (e.g., a swap contract, in the case of the swaption) at an agreed-upon price (“strike price”) within an agreed upon time period. The Fund receives cash premiums from the counterparties upon writing (selling) the option or swaption, which along with net investment income and net realized gains, if any, are generally available to support current or future distributions paid by the Fund. During the option term, the counterparty may elect to exercise the option if the market value of the underlying reference security or underlying contract rises above the strike price, and the Fund is obligated to sell the security or contract to the counterparty at the strike price, realizing a gain or loss. If the option remains unexercised upon its expiration, the Fund realizes gains equal to the premiums received.

Writing call options and swaptions entails certain risks, which include but are not limited to, the following: an increase in the value of the underlying security above the strike price can result in the exercise of a written option (sale by the Fund to the counterparty) when the Fund might not otherwise have sold the security; exercise of the option by the counterparty may result in a sale below the current market value and in a gain or loss realized by the Fund; writing call options and swaptions limits the potential appreciation on the underlying interest rate swap or security and the yield on the Fund could decline; if current market interest rates fall below the strike price, the counterparty could exercise a written swaption when the Fund might not otherwise have entered into an interest rate swap; the Fund is bound by the terms of the underlying interest rate swap agreement upon exercise of the option by the counterparty which can result in a loss to the Fund in excess of the premium received. The premium that the Fund receives from writing a call option or swaption may not be sufficient to offset the potential appreciation on the underlying equity security or interest rate swap above the strike price of the option that could have otherwise been realized by the Fund. As such, an option over-writing strategy may outperform the general fixed-income market in rising or flat interest rate environments (when bond prices are steady or falling) but underperform in a falling interest rate environment (when bond prices are rising).

The Fund intends to write call options and swaptions to varying degrees depending upon market conditions. Please refer to the Schedule of Investments and the Notes to Financial Statements for details of written call options and swaptions.

Derivative Financial Instruments

The Fund may invest in various derivative financial instruments. These instruments are used to obtain exposure to a security, commodity, index, market, and/or other assets without owning or taking physical custody of securities, commodities and/or other referenced assets or to manage market, equity, credit, interest rate, foreign currency exchange rate, commodity and/or other risks. Derivative financial instruments may give rise to a form of economic leverage and involve risks, including the imperfect correlation between the value of a derivative financial instrument and the underlying asset, possible default of the counterparty to the transaction or illiquidity of the instrument. Pursuant to Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act, among other things, the Fund must either use derivative financial instruments with embedded leverage in a limited manner or comply with an outer limit on fund leverage risk based on value-at-risk. The Fund’s successful use of a derivative financial instrument depends on the investment adviser’s ability to predict pertinent market movements accurately, which cannot be assured. The use of these instruments may result in losses greater than if they had not been used, may limit the amount of appreciation the Fund can realize on an investment and/or may result in lower distributions paid to shareholders. The Fund’s investments in these instruments, if any, are discussed in detail in the Notes to Financial Statements.

 

 

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Fund Summary as of June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

Investment Objective

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.’s (EGF) (the “Fund”) investment objective is to provide shareholders with current income and gains. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in a portfolio of U.S. Government securities and U.S. Government Agency securities, including U.S. Government mortgage-backed securities, that pay interest in an attempt to generate current income, and by employing a strategy of writing (selling) call options on individual or baskets of U.S. Government securities, U.S. Government Agency securities or other debt securities held by the Fund.

No assurance can be given that the Fund’s investment objective will be achieved.

Fund Information

 

Symbol on New York Stock Exchange		EGF
Initial Offering Date		October 31, 2005
Current Distribution Rate on Closing Market Price as of June 30, 2023 ($ 9.55)(a)		5.15%
Current Monthly Distribution per Common Share(b)		$0.041000
Current Annualized Distribution per Common Share(b)		$0.492000

 

(a)

Current distribution rate on closing market price is calculated by dividing the current annualized distribution per share by the closing market price. The current distribution rate may consist of income, net realized gains and/or a return of capital. Past performance is not an indication of future results.

(b)

The distribution rate is not constant and is subject to change. A portion of the distribution may be deemed a return of capital or net realized gain.

Market Price and Net Asset Value Per Share Summary

 

		06/30/23				12/31/22				Change				High				Low
Closing Market Price		$	9.55			$	9.68				(1.34	)%		$	10.40			$	9.45
Net Asset Value			10.34				10.38				(0.39	)			10.74				10.24

Performance

Returns for the period ended June 30, 2023 were as follows:

 

						Average Annual Total Returns
			6-month				1 Year				5 Years				10 Years
Fund at NAV(a)(b)			2.09	%			(1.47	)%			(1.52	)%			0.13	%
Fund at Market Price(a)(b)			1.10				(4.49	)			(2.03	)			0.22
ICE BofA 1-3 Year U.S. Treasury Index(c)			0.97				0.13				0.95				0.77
FTSE Government/Mortgage Index(d)			1.71				(2.00	)			0.31				0.84
ICE BofA 1-10 Year U.S. Treasury Index(e)			1.70				(3.97	)			0.29				0.86

 

(a)

All returns reflect reinvestment of dividends and/or distributions at actual reinvestment prices. Performance results reflect the Fund’s use of leverage, if any.

(b)

The Fund’s discount to NAV widened during the period, which accounts for the difference between performance based on market price and performance based on NAV.

(c)

An unmanaged index comprised of Treasury securities with maturities ranging from one to three years.

(d)

An unmanaged index that tracks the performance of U.S. dollar-denominated bonds issued in the U.S. investment-grade bond market. The index includes U.S. Treasury, government sponsored, and collateralized securities and provides a reliable representation of the U.S. investment-grade bond market.

(e)

An index that is a subset of ICE BofA U.S. Treasury Index including all securities with a remaining term to final maturity less than 10 years. ICE BofA U.S. Treasury Index tracks the performance of US dollar denominated sovereign debt publicly issued by the U.S. government in its domestic market.

Performance results may include adjustments made for financial reporting purposes in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. Past performance is not an indication of future results.

The Fund is presenting the performance of one or more indices for informational purposes only. The Fund is actively managed and does not seek to track or replicate the performance of any index. The index performance shown is not intended to be indicative of the Fund’s investment strategies, portfolio components or past or future performance.

More information about the Fund’s historical performance can be found in the “Closed End Funds” section of blackrock.com.

The following discussion relates to the Fund’s absolute performance based on NAV:

What factors influenced performance?

Performance is reviewed on an absolute basis due to the Fund’s unique strategy, which entails writing call options on individual or baskets of U.S. government securities or interest rates. The index returns listed above are for reference purposes only, as these indices do not reflect an option writing strategy.

The Fund’s exposure to mortgage-backed securities (“MBS”), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), U.S. Treasuries and U.S. investment grade corporate bonds contributed positively to performance.

The Fund’ utilized derivatives during the period including interest rate swaptions as a hedge against long U.S. Treasury positions and as a means to manage duration, spread exposure and yield curve positioning. The use of swaps continues to be an efficient interest rate management tool and should be viewed in the context of their overall

 

 

F U N D    S U M M A R Y		7

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Fund Summary as of June 30, 2023 (continued)		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

contribution to risk reduction as well as performance. During the period, the use of swaps and Treasury futures detracted from performance. The Fund’s cash position had no material impact on performance.

Describe recent portfolio activity.

Over the reporting period, the Fund purchased U.S. Treasuries and used swaptions to generate incremental yield. The Fund held a diversified exposure to U.S. Treasuries (where it was underweight the benchmark), U.S. agencies with a preference for callable securities which have recently presented attractive yields, agency MBS and CLOs. The Fund’s exposure to subordinated bank debt was trimmed as overall portfolio risk was reduced in anticipation of slowing economic growth. Leverage was reduced to zero so that funding costs would not outweigh the income earned on underlying assets. The Fund increased exposure to MBS on market volatility which led to wider spreads and a more attractive entry point.

The Fund’s practice of maintaining a specified level of monthly distributions to shareholders did not have a material impact on the Fund’s investment strategy.

Describe portfolio positioning at period end.

At period end, the Fund continued to utilize its options writing strategy as a way to manage duration and generate incremental yield.

The views expressed reflect the opinions of BlackRock as of the date of this report and are subject to change based on changes in market, economic or other conditions. These views are not intended to be a forecast of future events and are no guarantee of future results.

Overview of the Fund’s Total Investments

 

(a)	Excludes short-term securities.

(b)

For financial reporting purposes, credit quality ratings shown above reflect the highest rating assigned by either S&P Global Ratings or Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. if ratings differ. These rating agencies are independent, nationally recognized statistical rating organizations and are widely used. Investment grade ratings are credit ratings of BBB/Baa or higher. Below investment grade ratings are credit ratings of BB/Ba or lower. Investments designated N/R are not rated by either rating agency. Unrated investments do not necessarily indicate low credit quality. Credit quality ratings are subject to change.

(c)

The investment adviser evaluates the credit quality of not-rated investments based upon certain factors including, but not limited to, credit ratings for similar investments and financial analysis of sectors, individual investments and/or issuer. Using this approach, the investment adviser has deemed U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities and U.S. Treasury Obligations as AAA/Aaa.

*	Includes one or more investment categories that individually represents less than 1.0% of the Fund’s total investments. Please refer to the Schedule of Investments for details.

 

 

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited)  June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)

 

 

 

S C H E D U L E   O F   I N V E S T M E N T S		9

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited) (continued) June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)

 

 

 

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited) (continued) June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF) (Percentages shown are based on Net Assets)

 

 

Affiliates

Investments in issuers considered to be affiliate(s) of the Fund during the six months ended June 30, 2023 for purposes of Section 2(a)(3) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, were as follows:

 

Affiliated Issuer		Value at 12/31/22				Purchases at Cost				Proceeds from Sales				Net Realized Gain (Loss)				Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)				Value at 06/30/23				Shares Held at 06/30/23				Income				Capital Gain Distributions from Underlying Funds
BlackRock Liquidity Funds, T-Fund, Institutional Class		$	1,738,499			$	—			$	(1,023,337	)(a)		$	—			$	—			$	715,162				715,162			$	41,754			$	—

 

(a)

Represents net amount purchased (sold).

Derivative Financial Instruments Outstanding as of Period End

Futures Contracts

 

Description		Number of Contracts				Expiration Date				Notional Amount (000)				Value/ Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)
Long Contracts
10-Year U.S. Ultra Long Treasury Note			3				09/20/23			$	356			$	(4,177	)
Ultra U.S. Treasury Bond			9				09/20/23				1,226				8,773
2-Year U.S. Treasury Note			1				09/29/23				203				(2,690	)
5-Year U.S. Treasury Note			62				09/29/23				6,643				(113,214	)
															(111,308	)
Short Contracts
10-Year Japanese Government Treasury Bonds			1				09/12/23				1,029				(4,559	)
10-Year U.S. Treasury Note			5				09/20/23				562				9,603
															5,044
														$	(106,264	)

 

 

S C H E D U L E    O F   I N V E S T M E N T S		11

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited) (continued) June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

OTC Interest Rate Swaptions Written

 

Paid by the Fund

Received by the Fund

Expiration

Exercise

Notional

Description

Rate

Frequency

Rate

Frequency

Counterparty

Date

Rate

Amount (000)

Value

Call

10-Year Interest Rate Swap, 07/30/33

3.56%

Semi-Annual

1-Day SOFR, 1.09%

Quarterly

Bank of America N.A.

07/28/23

3.56

%

USD

3,801

$

(35,470

)

2-Year Interest Rate Swap, 07/30/25

4.73%

Semi-Annual

1-Day SOFR, 1.09%

Quarterly

Bank of America N.A.

07/28/23

4.73

USD

18,246

(51,751

)

30-Year Interest Rate Swap, 07/30/53

3.22%

Semi-Annual

1-Day SOFR, 1.09%

Quarterly

Bank of America N.A.

07/28/23

3.22

USD

1,520

(28,451

)

5-Year Interest Rate Swap, 07/30/28

3.87%

Semi-Annual

1-Day SOFR, 1.09%

Quarterly

Bank of America N.A.

07/28/23

3.87

USD

6,842

(38,968

)

$

(154,640

)

Centrally Cleared Interest Rate Swaps

 

Upfront

Premium

Unrealized

Paid by the Fund

Received by the Fund

Effective

Termination

Notional

Paid

Appreciation

Rate

Frequency

Rate

Frequency

Date

Date

Amount (000)

Value

(Received)

(Depreciation)

2.87%

Annual

1-Day SOFR, 1.09

%

Annual

N/A

05/11/42

USD

300

$

24,459

$

7

$

24,452

OTC Credit Default Swaps — Sell Protection

 

Reference Obligation/ Index		Financing Rate Received by the Fund				Payment Frequency				Counterparty				Termination Date				Credit    Rating(a)				Notional    Amount (000)(b)								Value				Upfront Premium Paid (Received)				Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)
CMBX.NA.9			3.00	%			Monthly				Goldman Sachs International				09/17/58				N/R				USD				26			$	(6,190	)		$	(2,749	)		$	(3,441	)

 

(a)

Using the rating of the issuer or the underlying securities of the index, as applicable, provided by S&P Global Ratings.

(b)

The maximum potential amount the Fund may pay should a negative credit event take place as defined under the terms of the agreement.

Balances Reported in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities for Centrally Cleared Swaps, OTC Swaps and Options Written

 

Description		Swap Premiums Paid				Swap Premiums Received				Unrealized Appreciation				Unrealized Depreciation				Value
Centrally Cleared Swaps(a)		$	7			$	—			$	24,452			$	—			$	—
OTC Swaps			—				(2,749	)			—				(3,441	)			—
Options Written			N/A				N/A				14,659				(1,299	)			(154,640	)

 

(a)

Includes cumulative appreciation (depreciation) on centrally cleared swaps, as reported in the Schedule of Investments. Only current day’s variation margin is reported within the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and is net of any previously paid (received) swap premium amounts.

 

 

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited) (continued) June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

Derivative Financial Instruments Categorized by Risk Exposure

As of period end, the fair values of derivative financial instruments located in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities were as follows:

 

		Commodity Contracts				Credit Contracts				Equity Contracts				Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts				Interest Rate Contracts				Other Contracts				Total
Assets — Derivative Financial Instruments
Futures contracts
Unrealized appreciation on futures contracts(a)		$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	18,376			$	—			$	18,376
Swaps — centrally cleared
Unrealized appreciation on centrally cleared swaps(a)			—				—				—				—				24,452				—				24,452
		$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	42,828			$	—			$	42,828
Liabilities — Derivative Financial Instruments
Futures contracts
Unrealized depreciation on futures contracts(a)		$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	124,640			$	—			$	124,640
Options written
Options written at value			—				—				—				—				154,640				—				154,640
Swaps — OTC
Unrealized depreciation on OTC swaps; Swap premiums received			—				6,190				—				—				—				—				6,190
		$	—			$	6,190			$	—			$	—			$	279,280			$	—			$	285,470

 

(a)

Net cumulative unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on futures contracts and centrally cleared swaps, if any, are reported in the Schedule of Investments. In the Statement of Assets and Liabilities, only current day’s variation margin is reported in receivables or payables and the net cumulative unrealized appreciation (depreciation) is included in accumulated earnings (loss).

For the period ended June 30, 2023, the effect of derivative financial instruments in the Statement of Operations was as follows:

 

		Commodity Contracts				Credit Contracts				Equity Contracts				Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts				Interest Rate Contracts				Other Contracts				Total
Net Realized Gain (Loss) from:
Futures contracts		$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	48,097			$	—			$	48,097
Forward foreign currency exchange contracts			—				—				—				328				—				—				328
Options written			—				—				—				—				226,553				—				226,553
Swaps			—				(7,249	)			—				—				(50,146	)			—				(57,395	)
		$	—			$	(7,249	)		$	—			$	328			$	224,504			$	—			$	217,583
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on:
Futures contracts		$	—			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	(196,706	)		$	—			$	(196,706	)
Options written			—				—				—				—				(19,004	)			—				(19,004	)
Swaps			—				6,890				—				—				71,636				—				78,526
		$	—			$	6,890			$	—			$	—			$	(144,074	)		$	—			$	(137,184	)

Average Quarterly Balances of Outstanding Derivative Financial Instruments

 

Futures contracts:
Average notional value of contracts — long		$	9,784,614
Average notional value of contracts — short		$	2,831,597
Forward foreign currency exchange contracts:
Average amounts purchased — in USD		$	2,150
Options:
Average notional value of swaption contracts written		$	30,596,500
Credit default swaps:
Average notional value — sell protection		$	26,000
Interest rate swaps:
Average notional value — pays fixed rate		$	300,000
Average notional value — receives fixed rate		$	—	(a)

 

(a)

Derivative not held at any quarter-end. The risk exposure table serves as an indicator of activity during the period.

For more information about the Fund’s investment risks regarding derivative financial instruments, refer to the Notes to Financial Statements.    

 

 

S C H E D U L E    O F   I N V E S T M E N T S		13

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited) (continued) June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

Derivative Financial Instruments — Offsetting as of Period End

The Fund’s derivative assets and liabilities (by type) were as follows:

 

		Assets				Liabilities
Derivative Financial Instruments
Futures contracts		$	16,460			$	—
Options			—				154,640
Swaps — centrally cleared			—				1,399
Swaps — OTC(a)			—				6,190
Total derivative assets and liabilities in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities			16,460				162,229
Derivatives not subject to a Master Netting Agreement or similar agreement (“MNA”)			(16,460	)			(1,399	)
Total derivative assets and liabilities subject to an MNA		$	—			$	160,830

 

(a)

Includes unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on OTC swaps and swap premiums (paid/received) in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

The following table presents the Fund’s derivative liabilities by counterparty net of amounts available for offset under an MNA and net of the related collateral pledged by the Fund:

 

Counterparty			Derivative Liabilities Subject to an MNA by Counterparty				Derivatives Available for Offset				Non-Cash Collateral Pledged				Cash Collateral Pledged				Net Amount of Derivative Liabilities	(a)
Bank of America N.A		$	154,640			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	154,640
Goldman Sachs International			6,190				—				—				—				6,190
		$	160,830			$	—			$	—			$	—			$	160,830

 

(a)

Net amount represents the net amount payable due to counterparty in the event of default. Net amount may be offset further by the options written receivable/payable on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

Fair Value Hierarchy as of Period End

Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of financial instruments. For a description of the input levels and information about the Fund’s policy regarding valuation of financial instruments, refer to the Notes to Financial Statements.

The following table summarizes the Fund’s financial instruments categorized in the fair value hierarchy. The breakdown of the Fund’s financial instruments into major categories is disclosed in the Schedule of Investments above.

 

		Level 1								Level 2								Level 3								Total
Assets
Investments
Long-Term Investments
Asset-Backed Securities		$	—							$	4,472,563							$	—							$	4,472,563
Corporate Bonds			—								362,471								—								362,471
Non-Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities			—								2,565,898								—								2,565,898
Preferred Securities
Capital Trusts			—								355,335								—								355,335
U.S. Government Sponsored Agency Securities			—								27,855,811								—								27,855,811
U.S. Treasury Obligations			—								6,048,593								—								6,048,593
Short-Term Securities
Money Market Funds			715,162								—								—								715,162
Liabilities
Investments
TBA Sale Commitments			—								(473,891	)							—								(473,891	)
		$	715,162							$	41,186,780							$	—							$	41,901,942
Derivative Financial Instruments(a)
Assets
Interest Rate Contracts		$	18,376							$	24,452							$	—							$	42,828

 

 

14		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Schedule of Investments (unaudited) (continued) June 30, 2023		BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (EGF)

 

Fair Value Hierarchy as of Period End (continued)

 

		Level 1								Level 2								Level 3								Total
Liabilities
Credit Contracts		$	—							$	(3,441	)						$	—							$	(3,441	)
Interest Rate Contracts			(124,640	)							(154,640	)							—								(279,280	)
		$	(106,264	)						$	(133,629	)						$	—							$	(239,893	)

 

(a)

Derivative financial instruments are swaps, futures contracts and options written. Swaps and futures contracts are valued at the unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on the instrument and options written are shown at value.

See notes to financial statements.

 

 

S C H E D U L E    O F   I N V E S T M E N T S		15

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Statement of Assets and Liabilities (unaudited) 

June 30, 2023

 

 

 

		EGF
ASSETS
Investments, at value — unaffiliated(a)		$	41,660,671
Investments, at value — affiliated(b)			715,162
Cash pledged:
Futures contracts			164,000
Centrally cleared swaps			25,000
Foreign currency, at value(c)			8,616
Receivables:
Investments sold			674
Options written			168,000
TBA sale commitments			474,927
Dividends — affiliated			5,265
Interest — unaffiliated			321,017
Variation margin on futures contracts			16,460
Total assets			43,559,792
LIABILITIES
Bank overdraft			2,534
Options written, at value(d)			154,640
TBA sale commitments, at value(e)			473,891
Payables:
Investments purchased			2,075,392
Accounting services fees			4,372
Custodian fees			2,628
Income dividend distributions			420
Investment advisory fees			37,332
Directors’ and Officer’s fees			79
Other accrued expenses			16,822
Principal payups			45,036
Professional fees			35,463
Transfer agent fees			11,314
Variation margin on centrally cleared swaps			1,399
Swap premiums received			2,749
Unrealized depreciation on OTC swaps			3,441
Total liabilities			2,867,512
Commitments and contingent liabilities
NET ASSETS		$	40,692,280
NET ASSETS CONSIST OF
Paid-in capital(f)(g)(h)		$	71,319,965
Accumulated loss			(30,627,685	)
NET ASSETS		$	40,692,280
Net asset value(f)(g)(h)		$	10.34
(a) Investments, at cost — unaffiliated		$	44,553,411
(b) Investments, at cost — affiliated		$	715,162
(c)  Foreign currency, at cost		$	8,930
(d) Premiums received		$	168,000
(e) Proceeds from TBA sale commitments		$	474,927
(f)  Shares outstanding			3,935,211
(g) Shares authorized			200 million
(h) Par value		$	0.10

See notes to financial statements.

 

 

16		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Statement of Operations (unaudited) 

Six Months Ended June 30, 2023

 

		EGF
INVESTMENT INCOME
Dividends — affiliated		$	41,754
Interest — unaffiliated			947,493
Total investment income			989,247
EXPENSES
Investment advisory			217,891
Professional			34,772
Custodian			13,201
Transfer agent			10,863
Printing and postage			6,503
Accounting services			4,746
Registration			4,123
Directors and Officer			746
Miscellaneous			16,057
Total expenses excluding interest expense			308,902
Interest expense			167,807
Total expenses			476,709
Less:
Fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Manager			(77,630	)
Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed			399,079
Net investment income			590,168
REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS)
Net realized gain (loss) from:
Investments — unaffiliated			(3,105,439	)
Forward foreign currency exchange contracts			328
Foreign currency transactions			(6,953	)
Futures contracts			48,097
Options written			226,553
Swaps			(57,395	)
			(2,894,809	)
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on:
Investments — unaffiliated			3,232,722
Foreign currency translations			4,406
Futures contracts			(196,706	)
Options written			(19,004	)
Swaps			78,526
			3,099,944
Net realized and unrealized gain			205,135
NET INCREASE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS		$	795,303

See notes to financial statements.

 

 

F I N A N C I A L   S T A T E M E N T S		17

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Statements of Changes in Net Assets

 

						EGF
		Six Months Ended 06/30/23 (unaudited)								Year Ended 12/31/22
INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS
OPERATIONS
Net investment income						$	590,168			$	1,094,975
Net realized gain (loss)							(2,894,809	)			373,280
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)							3,099,944				(9,433,661	)
Net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting from operations							795,303				(7,965,406	)
DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS(a)
From net investment income							(968,062	)(b)			(1,061,068	)
Return of capital							—				(798,630	)
Decrease in net assets resulting from distributions to shareholders							(968,062	)			(1,859,698	)
CAPITAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS
Redemption of shares resulting from a repurchase offer							—				(2,098,085	)(c)
NET ASSETS
Total decrease in net assets							(172,759	)			(11,923,189	)
Beginning of period							40,865,039				52,788,228
End of period						$	40,692,280			$	40,865,039

 

(a)	Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations.

(b)	A portion of the distributions from net investment income may be deemed a return of capital or net realized gain at fiscal year-end.

(c)	Net of repurchase fees of $43,494.

See notes to financial statements.

 

 

18		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Statement of Cash Flows (unaudited)

Six Months Ended June 30, 2023

 

		EGF
CASH PROVIDED BY (USED FOR) OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net increase in net assets resulting from operations		$	795,303
Adjustments to reconcile net increase in net assets resulting from operations to net cash provided by operating activities:
Proceeds from sales of long-term investments and principal paydowns/payups			59,719,977
Purchases of long-term investments			(42,718,381	)
Net proceeds from sales of short-term securities			1,023,337
Amortization of premium and accretion of discount on investments and other fees			(44,126	)
Premiums paid on closing options written			(957,787	)
Premiums received from options written			1,183,500
Net realized loss on investments and options written			2,878,886
Net unrealized appreciation on investments, options written and swaps			(3,225,014	)
(Increase) Decrease in Assets
Receivables
Dividends — affiliated			(776	)
Interest — unaffiliated			160,944
Variation margin on futures contracts			57,703
Variation margin on centrally cleared swaps			1,628
Prepaid expenses			345
Increase (Decrease) in Liabilities
Payables
Accounting services fees			760
Custodian fees			(1,777	)
Interest expense			(21,979	)
Investment advisory fees			4,337
Directors’ and Officer’s fees			(26	)
Other accrued expenses			5,677
Professional fees			(22,428	)
Transfer agent fees			(1,494	)
Variation margin on futures contracts			(4,270	)
Variation margin on centrally cleared swaps			1,399
Swap premiums received			(10,589	)
Net cash provided by operating activities			18,825,149
CASH PROVIDED BY (USED FOR) FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Cash dividends paid to shareholders			(967,642	)
Increase in bank overdraft			2,534
Net borrowing of reverse repurchase agreements			(18,173,750	)
Net cash used for financing activities			(19,138,858	)
CASH IMPACT FROM FOREIGN EXCHANGE FLUCTUATIONS
Cash impact from foreign exchange fluctuations			4,406
CASH AND FOREIGN CURRENCY
Net decrease in restricted and unrestricted cash and foreign currency			(309,303	)
Restricted and unrestricted cash and foreign currency at beginning of period			506,919
Restricted and unrestricted cash and foreign currency at end of period		$	197,616
SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURE OF CASH FLOW INFORMATION
Cash paid during the period for interest expense		$	189,786
RECONCILIATION OF RESTRICTED AND UNRESTRICTED CASH AND FOREIGN CURRENCY AT THE END OF PERIOD TO THE STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
Cash pledged
Futures contracts		$	164,000
Centrally cleared swaps			25,000
Foreign currency at value			8,616
		$	197,616

See notes to financial statements.

 

 

F I N A N C I A L   S T A T E M E N T S		19

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Financial Highlights

(For a share outstanding throughout each period)

 

		EGF
		Six Months Ended 06/30/23 (unaudited)								Year Ended 12/31/22								Year Ended 12/31/21								Year Ended 12/31/20								Year Ended 12/31/19								Year Ended 12/31/18
Net asset value, beginning of period						$	10.38							$	12.74							$	13.34							$	13.52							$	13.48							$	13.96
Net investment income(a)							0.15								0.27								0.29								0.33								0.33								0.30
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)(b)							0.06								(2.18	)							(0.40	)							(0.02	)							0.20								(0.29	)
Net increase (decrease) from investment operations							0.21								(1.91	)							(0.11	)							0.31								0.53								0.01
Distributions(c)
From net investment income							(0.25	)(d)							(0.26	)							(0.30	)							(0.33	)							(0.30	)							(0.31	)
Return of capital							—								(0.19	)							(0.19	)							(0.16	)							(0.19	)							(0.18	)
Total distributions							(0.25	)							(0.45	)							(0.49	)							(0.49	)							(0.49	)							(0.49	)
Net asset value, end of period						$	10.34							$	10.38							$	12.74							$	13.34							$	13.52							$	13.48
Market price, end of period						$	9.55							$	9.68							$	12.57							$	13.46							$	13.15							$	12.98
Total Return(e)
Based on net asset value							2.09	%(f)							(14.92	)%							(0.75	)%							2.41	%							4.13	%							0.27	%
Based on market price							1.10	%(f)							(19.59	)%							(2.94	)%							6.25	%							5.18	%							0.59	%
Ratios to Average Net Assets(g)
Total expenses							2.34	%(h)							2.17	%							1.38	%							1.37	%							1.90	%							1.53	%
Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed							1.96	%(h)							1.74	%							1.02	%							1.02	%							1.52	%							1.18	%
Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense							1.13	%(h)							1.14	%							1.00	%							0.93	%							0.97	%							0.90	%
Net investment income							2.89	%(h)							2.37	%							2.21	%							2.45	%							2.44	%							2.17	%
Supplemental Data
Net assets, end of period (000)						$	40,692							$	40,865							$	52,788							$	56,832							$	64,004							$	70,901
Borrowings outstanding, end of period (000)						$	—							$	18,178							$	12,336							$	10,952							$	16,258							$	15,635
Portfolio turnover rate(i)							81	%							181	%							116	%							3	%							17	%							70	%

 

(a)	Based on average shares outstanding.

(b)	Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) per share amounts include repurchase fees of $0.01 for each of the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and $0.03 for each of the years ended December 31, 2018 through December 31, 2020.

(c)	Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations.

(d)	A portion of the distributions from net investment income may be deemed a return of capital or net realized gain at fiscal year-end.

(e)	Total returns based on market price, which can be significantly greater or less than the net asset value, may result in substantially different returns. Where applicable, excludes the effects of any sales charges and assumes the reinvestment of distributions at actual reinvestment prices.

(f)	Not annualized.

(g)	Excludes fees and expenses incurred indirectly as a result of investments in underlying funds.

(h)	Annualized.

(i)	Includes mortgage dollar roll transactions (“MDRs”). Additional information regarding portfolio turnover rate is as follows:

 

See notes to financial statements.

 

 

20		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited)

 

 

1.	ORGANIZATION

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). The Fund is registered as a diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund is organized as a Maryland corporation. The Fund determines and makes available for publication the net asset value (“NAV”) of its Common Shares on a daily basis.

The Fund, together with certain other registered investment companies advised by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager”) or its affiliates, is included in a complex of funds referred to as the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex.

 

2.	SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”), which may require management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities in the financial statements, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of increases and decreases in net assets from operations during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The Fund is considered an investment company under U.S. GAAP and follows the accounting and reporting guidance applicable to investment companies. Below is a summary of significant accounting policies:

Investment Transactions and Income Recognition: For financial reporting purposes, investment transactions are recorded on the dates the transactions are executed. Realized gains and losses on investment transactions are determined using the specific identification method. Dividend income and capital gain distributions, if any, are recorded on the ex-dividend dates. Non-cash dividends, if any, are recorded on the ex-dividend dates at fair value. Interest income, including amortization and accretion of premiums and discounts on debt securities, is recognized daily on an accrual basis.

Foreign Currency Translation: The Fund’s books and records are maintained in U.S. dollars. Securities and other assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars using exchange rates determined as of the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). Purchases and sales of investments are recorded at the rates of exchange prevailing on the respective dates of such transactions. Generally, when the U.S. dollar rises in value against a foreign currency, the investments denominated in that currency will lose value; the opposite effect occurs if the U.S. dollar falls in relative value.

The Fund does not isolate the effect of fluctuations in foreign exchange rates from the effect of fluctuations in the market prices of investments for financial reporting purposes. Accordingly, the effects of changes in exchange rates on investments are not segregated in the Statement of Operations from the effects of changes in market prices of those investments, but are included as a component of net realized and unrealized gain (loss) from investments. The Fund reports realized currency gains (losses) on foreign currency related transactions as components of net realized gain (loss) for financial reporting purposes, whereas such components are generally treated as ordinary income for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

Collateralization: If required by an exchange or counterparty agreement, the Fund may be required to deliver/deposit cash and/or securities to/with an exchange, or broker-dealer or custodian as collateral for certain investments.

Distributions: Distributions paid by the Fund are recorded on the ex-dividend dates. Subject to the Fund’s managed distribution plan, the Fund intends to make monthly cash distributions to shareholders, which may consist of net investment income, and net realized and unrealized gains on investments and/or return of capital.

The character of distributions is determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations, which may differ from U.S. GAAP. The portion of distributions that exceeds the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, which are measured on a tax basis, will constitute a non-taxable return of capital.

Deferred Compensation Plan: Under the Deferred Compensation Plan (the “Plan”) approved by the Board of Directors of the Fund (the “Board”), the directors who are not “interested persons” of the Fund, as defined in the 1940 Act (“Independent Directors”), may defer a portion of their annual complex-wide compensation. Deferred amounts earn an approximate return as though equivalent dollar amounts had been invested in common shares of certain funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex selected by the Independent Directors. This has the same economic effect for the Independent Directors as if the Independent Directors had invested the deferred amounts directly in certain funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex.

The Plan is not funded and obligations thereunder represent general unsecured claims against the general assets of the Fund, as applicable. Deferred compensation liabilities, if any, are included in the Directors’ and Officer’s fees payable in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and will remain as a liability of the Fund until such amounts are distributed in accordance with the Plan. Net appreciation (depreciation) in the value of participants’ deferral accounts is allocated among the participating funds in the Fixed-Income Complex and reflected as Directors and Officer expense on the Statement of Operations. The Directors and Officer expense may be negative as a result of a decrease in value of the deferred accounts.

Indemnifications: In the normal course of business, the Fund enters into contracts that contain a variety of representations that provide general indemnification. The Fund’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown because it involves future potential claims against the Fund, which cannot be predicted with any certainty.

Other: Expenses directly related to the Fund are charged to the Fund. Other operating expenses shared by several funds, including other funds managed by the Manager, are prorated among those funds on the basis of relative net assets or other appropriate methods.

 

3.	INVESTMENT VALUATION AND FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

Investment Valuation Policies: The Fund’s investments are valued at fair value (also referred to as “market value” within the financial statements) each day that the Fund is open for business and, for financial reporting purposes, as of the report date. U.S. GAAP defines fair value as the price a fund would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer

 

 

N O T E S   T O   F I N A N C I A L   S T A T E M E N T S		21

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The Board has approved the designation of the Fund’s Manager as the valuation designee for the Fund. The Fund determines the fair values of its financial instruments using various independent dealers or pricing services under the Manager’s policies. If a security’s market price is not readily available or does not otherwise accurately represent the fair value of the security, the security will be valued in accordance with the Manager’s policies and procedures as reflecting fair value. The Manager has formed a committee (the “Valuation Committee”) to develop pricing policies and procedures and to oversee the pricing function for all financial instruments, with assistance from other BlackRock pricing committees.

Fair Value Inputs and Methodologies: The following methods and inputs are used to establish the fair value of the Fund’s assets and liabilities:

 

•

Fixed-income investments for which market quotations are readily available are generally valued using the last available bid price or current market quotations provided by independent dealers or third-party pricing services. Pricing services generally value fixed-income securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional round lot size, but a fund may hold or transact in such securities in smaller, odd lot sizes. Odd lots may trade at lower prices than institutional round lots. The pricing services may use matrix pricing or valuation models that utilize certain inputs and assumptions to derive values, including transaction data (e.g., recent representative bids and offers), market data, credit quality information, perceived market movements, news, and other relevant information. Certain fixed-income securities, including asset-backed and mortgage related securities may be valued based on valuation models that consider the estimated cash flows of each tranche of the entity, establish a benchmark yield and develop an estimated tranche specific spread to the benchmark yield based on the unique attributes of the tranche. The amortized cost method of valuation may be used with respect to debt obligations with sixty days or less remaining to maturity unless the Manager determines such method does not represent fair value.

 

•

Investments in open-end U.S. mutual funds (including money market funds) are valued at that day’s published NAV.

 

•

Futures contracts are valued based on that day’s last reported settlement or trade price on the exchange where the contract is traded.

 

•

Exchange-traded options are valued at the mean between the last bid and ask prices at the close of the options market in which the options trade. An exchange-traded option for which there is no mean price is valued at the last bid (long positions) or ask (short positions) price. If no bid or ask price is available, the prior day’s price will be used, unless it is determined that the prior day’s price no longer reflects the fair value of the option. Over-the-counter (“OTC”) options and options on swaps (“swaptions”) are valued by an independent pricing service using a mathematical model, which incorporates a number of market data factors, such as the trades and prices of the underlying instruments.

 

•

Swap agreements are valued utilizing quotes received daily by independent pricing services or through brokers, which are derived using daily swap curves and models that incorporate a number of market data factors, such as discounted cash flows, trades and values of the underlying reference instruments.

If events (e.g., market volatility, company announcement or a natural disaster) occur that are expected to materially affect the value of such investment, or in the event that application of these methods of valuation results in a price for an investment that is deemed not to be representative of the market value of such investment, or if a price is not available, the investment will be valued by the Valuation Committee in accordance with the Manager’s policies and procedures as reflecting fair value (“Fair Valued Investments”). The fair valuation approaches that may be used by the Valuation Committee include market approach, income approach and cost approach. Valuation techniques such as discounted cash flow, use of market comparables and matrix pricing are types of valuation approaches and are typically used in determining fair value. When determining the price for Fair Valued Investments, the Valuation Committee seeks to determine the price that the Fund might reasonably expect to receive or pay from the current sale or purchase of that asset or liability in an arm’s-length transaction. Fair value determinations shall be based upon all available factors that the Valuation Committee deems relevant and consistent with the principles of fair value measurement.

Fair Value Hierarchy: Various inputs are used in determining the fair value of financial instruments. These inputs to valuation techniques are categorized into a fair value hierarchy consisting of three broad levels for financial reporting purposes as follows:

 

•

Level 1 – Unadjusted price quotations in active markets/exchanges for identical assets or liabilities that the Fund has the ability to access;

 

•

Level 2 – Other observable inputs (including, but not limited to, quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in markets that are active, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the assets or liabilities (such as interest rates, yield curves, volatilities, prepayment speeds, loss severities, credit risks and default rates) or other market–corroborated inputs); and

 

•

Level 3 – Unobservable inputs based on the best information available in the circumstances, to the extent observable inputs are not available (including the Valuation Committee’s assumptions used in determining the fair value of financial instruments).

The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in Level 3. The inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the fair value hierarchy classification is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. Investments classified within Level 3 have significant unobservable inputs used by the Valuation Committee in determining the price for Fair Valued Investments. Level 3 investments include equity or debt issued by privately held companies or funds that may not have a secondary market and/or may have a limited number of investors. The categorization of a value determined for financial instruments is based on the pricing transparency of the financial instruments and is not necessarily an indication of the risks associated with investing in those securities.

 

4.	SECURITIES AND OTHER INVESTMENTS

Asset-Backed and Mortgage-Backed Securities: Asset-backed securities are generally issued as pass-through certificates or as debt instruments. Asset-backed securities issued as pass-through certificates represent undivided fractional ownership interests in an underlying pool of assets. Asset-backed securities issued as debt instruments,

 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

which are also known as collateralized obligations, are typically issued as the debt of a special purpose entity organized solely for the purpose of owning such assets and issuing such debt. Asset-backed securities are often backed by a pool of assets representing the obligations of a number of different parties. The yield characteristics of certain asset-backed securities may differ from traditional debt securities. One such major difference is that all or a principal part of the obligations may be prepaid at any time because the underlying assets (i.e., loans) may be prepaid at any time. As a result, a decrease in interest rates in the market may result in increases in the level of prepayments as borrowers, particularly mortgagors, refinance and repay their loans. An increased prepayment rate with respect to an asset-backed security will have the effect of shortening the maturity of the security. In addition, a fund may subsequently have to reinvest the proceeds at lower interest rates. If a fund has purchased such an asset-backed security at a premium, a faster than anticipated prepayment rate could result in a loss of principal to the extent of the premium paid.

For mortgage pass-through securities (the “Mortgage Assets”) there are a number of important differences among the agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. Government that issue mortgage-related securities and among the securities that they issue. For example, mortgage-related securities guaranteed by Ginnie Mae are guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest by Ginnie Mae and such guarantee is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. However, mortgage-related securities issued by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, including Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae guaranteed mortgage pass-through certificates, which are solely the obligations of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, are not backed by or entitled to the full faith and credit of the United States, but are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury.

Non-agency mortgage-backed securities are securities issued by non-governmental issuers and have no direct or indirect government guarantees of payment and are subject to various risks. Non-agency mortgage loans are obligations of the borrowers thereunder only and are not typically insured or guaranteed by any other person or entity. The ability of a borrower to repay a loan is dependent upon the income or assets of the borrower. A number of factors, including a general economic downturn, acts of God, terrorism, social unrest and civil disturbances, may impair a borrower’s ability to repay its loans.

Multiple Class Pass-Through Securities: Multiple class pass-through securities, including collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”) and commercial mortgage-backed securities, may be issued by Ginnie Mae, U.S. Government agencies or instrumentalities or by trusts formed by private originators of, or investors in, mortgage loans. In general, CMOs are debt obligations of a legal entity that are collateralized by a pool of residential or commercial mortgage loans or mortgage pass-through securities (the “Mortgage Assets”). The payments on these are used to make payments on the CMOs or multiple pass-through securities. Multiple class pass-through securities represent direct ownership interests in the Mortgage Assets. Classes of CMOs include interest only (“IOs”), principal only (“POs”), planned amortization classes and targeted amortization classes. IOs and POs are stripped mortgage-backed securities representing interests in a pool of mortgages, the cash flow from which has been separated into interest and principal components. IOs receive the interest portion of the cash flow while POs receive the principal portion. IOs and POs can be extremely volatile in response to changes in interest rates. As interest rates rise and fall, the value of IOs tends to move in the same direction as interest rates. POs perform best when prepayments on the underlying mortgages rise since this increases the rate at which the principal is returned and the yield to maturity on the PO. When payments on mortgages underlying a PO are slower than anticipated, the life of the PO is lengthened and the yield to maturity is reduced. If the underlying Mortgage Assets experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, a fund’s initial investment in the IOs may not fully recoup.

Capital Securities and Trust Preferred Securities: Capital securities, including trust preferred securities, are typically issued by corporations, generally in the form of interest-bearing notes with preferred securities characteristics. In the case of trust preferred securities, an affiliated business trust of a corporation issues these securities, generally in the form of beneficial interests in subordinated debentures or similarly structured securities. The securities can be structured with either a fixed or adjustable coupon that can have either a perpetual or stated maturity date. For trust preferred securities, the issuing bank or corporation pays interest to the trust, which is then distributed to holders of these securities as a dividend. Dividends can be deferred without creating an event of default or acceleration, although maturity cannot take place unless all cumulative payment obligations have been met. The deferral of payments does not affect the purchase or sale of these securities in the open market. These securities generally are rated below that of the issuing company’s senior debt securities and are freely callable at the issuer’s option.

TBA Commitments: TBA commitments are forward agreements for the purchase or sale of securities, including mortgage-backed securities for a fixed price, with payment and delivery on an agreed upon future settlement date. The specific securities to be delivered are not identified at the trade date. However, delivered securities must meet specified terms, including issuer, rate and mortgage terms. When entering into TBA commitments, a fund may take possession of or deliver the underlying mortgage-backed securities but can extend the settlement or roll the transaction. TBA commitments involve a risk of loss if the value of the security to be purchased or sold declines or increases, respectively, prior to settlement date, if there are expenses or delays in connection with the TBA transactions, or if the counterparty fails to complete the transaction.

In order to better define contractual rights and to secure rights that will help a fund mitigate its counterparty risk, TBA commitments may be entered into by a fund under Master Securities Forward Transaction Agreements (each, an “MSFTA”). An MSFTA typically contains, among other things, collateral posting terms and netting provisions in the event of default and/or termination event. The collateral requirements are typically calculated by netting the mark-to-market amount for each transaction under such agreement and comparing that amount to the value of the collateral currently pledged by a fund and the counterparty. Cash collateral that has been pledged to cover the obligations of a fund and cash collateral received from the counterparty, if any, is reported separately in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities as cash pledged as collateral for TBA commitments or cash received as collateral for TBA commitments, respectively. Non-cash collateral pledged by a fund, if any, is noted in the Schedule of Investments. Typically, a fund is permitted to sell, re-pledge or use the collateral it receives; however, the counterparty is not permitted to do so. To the extent amounts due to a fund are not fully collateralized, contractually or otherwise, a fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance.

Mortgage Dollar Roll Transactions: The Fund may sell TBA mortgage-backed securities and simultaneously contract to repurchase substantially similar (i.e., same type, coupon and maturity) securities on a specific future date at an agreed upon price. During the period between the sale and repurchase, a fund is not entitled to receive interest and principal payments on the securities sold. Mortgage dollar roll transactions are treated as purchases and sales and a fund realizes gains and losses on these transactions. Mortgage dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities that a fund is required to purchase may decline below the agreed upon repurchase price of those securities.

Reverse Repurchase Agreements: Reverse repurchase agreements are agreements with qualified third-party broker dealers in which a fund sells securities to a bank or broker-dealer and agrees to repurchase the same securities at a mutually agreed upon date and price. A fund receives cash from the sale to use for other investment purposes. During the term of the reverse repurchase agreement, a fund continues to receive the principal and interest payments on the securities sold. Certain agreements have no stated maturity and can be terminated by either party at any time. Interest on the value of the reverse repurchase agreements issued and outstanding is based upon

 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

competitive market rates determined at the time of issuance. A fund may utilize reverse repurchase agreements when it is anticipated that the interest income to be earned from the investment of the proceeds of the transaction is greater than the interest expense of the transaction. Reverse repurchase agreements involve leverage risk. If a fund suffers a loss on its investment of the transaction proceeds from a reverse repurchase agreement, a fund would still be required to pay the full repurchase price. Further, a fund remains subject to the risk that the market value of the securities repurchased declines below the repurchase price. In such cases, a fund would be required to return a portion of the cash received from the transaction or provide additional securities to the counterparty.

Cash received in exchange for securities delivered plus accrued interest due to the counterparty is recorded as a liability in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities at face value including accrued interest. Due to the short-term nature of the reverse repurchase agreements, face value approximates fair value. Interest payments made by a fund to the counterparties are recorded as a component of interest expense in the Statement of Operations. In periods of increased demand for the security, a fund may receive a fee for the use of the security by the counterparty, which may result in interest income to a fund.

For the six months ended June 30, 2023, the average daily amount of reverse repurchase agreements outstanding and the weighted average interest rate for the Fund were $10,623,027 and 2.80%, respectively.

Reverse repurchase transactions are entered into by a fund under Master Repurchase Agreements (each, an “MRA”), which permit a fund, under certain circumstances, including an event of default (such as bankruptcy or insolvency), to offset payables and/or receivables under the MRA with collateral held and/or posted to the counterparty and create one single net payment due to or from a fund. With reverse repurchase transactions, typically a fund and counterparty under an MRA are permitted to sell, re-pledge, or use the collateral associated with the transaction. Bankruptcy or insolvency laws of a particular jurisdiction may impose restrictions on or prohibitions against such a right of offset in the event of the MRA counterparty’s bankruptcy or insolvency. Pursuant to the terms of the MRA, a fund receives or posts securities and cash as collateral with a market value in excess of the repurchase price to be paid or received by a fund upon the maturity of the transaction. Upon a bankruptcy or insolvency of the MRA counterparty, a fund is considered an unsecured creditor with respect to excess collateral and, as such, the return of excess collateral may be delayed.

In the event the counterparty of securities under an MRA files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, a fund’s use of the proceeds from the agreement may be restricted while the counterparty, or its trustee or receiver, determines whether or not to enforce a fund’s obligation to repurchase the securities.

 

5.	DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The Fund engages in various portfolio investment strategies using derivative contracts both to increase the returns of the Fund and/or to manage its exposure to certain risks such as credit risk, equity risk, interest rate risk, foreign currency exchange rate risk, commodity price risk or other risks (e.g., inflation risk). Derivative financial instruments categorized by risk exposure are included in the Schedule of Investments. These contracts may be transacted on an exchange or OTC.

Futures Contracts: Futures contracts are purchased or sold to gain exposure to, or manage exposure to, changes in interest rates (interest rate risk) and changes in the value of equity securities (equity risk) or foreign currencies (foreign currency exchange rate risk).

Futures contracts are exchange-traded agreements between the Fund and a counterparty to buy or sell a specific quantity of an underlying instrument at a specified price and on a specified date. Depending on the terms of a contract, it is settled either through physical delivery of the underlying instrument on the settlement date or by payment of a cash amount on the settlement date. Upon entering into a futures contract, the Fund is required to deposit initial margin with the broker in the form of cash or securities in an amount that varies depending on a contract’s size and risk profile. The initial margin deposit must then be maintained at an established level over the life of the contract. Amounts pledged, which are considered restricted, are included in cash pledged for futures contracts in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

Securities deposited as initial margin are designated in the Schedule of Investments and cash deposited, if any, are shown as cash pledged for futures contracts in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Pursuant to the contract, the Fund agrees to receive from or pay to the broker an amount of cash equal to the daily fluctuation in market value of the contract (“variation margin”). Variation margin is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) and, if any, shown as variation margin receivable (or payable) on futures contracts in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. When the contract is closed, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations equal to the difference between the notional amount of the contract at the time it was opened and the notional amount at the time it was closed. The use of futures contracts involves the risk of an imperfect correlation in the movements in the price of futures contracts and interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates or underlying assets.

Forward Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts: Forward foreign currency exchange contracts are entered into to gain or reduce exposure to foreign currencies (foreign currency exchange rate risk).

A forward foreign currency exchange contract is an agreement between two parties to buy and sell a currency at a set exchange rate on a specified date. These contracts help to manage the overall exposure to the currencies in which some of the investments held by the Fund are denominated and in some cases, may be used to obtain exposure to a particular market. The contracts are traded OTC and not on an organized exchange.

The contract is marked-to-market daily and the change in market value is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. When a contract is closed, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations equal to the difference between the value at the time it was opened and the value at the time it was closed. Non-deliverable forward foreign currency exchange contracts are settled with the counterparty in cash without the delivery of foreign currency. The use of forward foreign currency exchange contracts involves the risk that the value of a forward foreign currency exchange contract changes unfavorably due to movements in the value of the referenced foreign currencies, and such value may exceed the amount(s) reflected in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Cash amounts pledged for forward foreign currency exchange contracts are considered restricted and are included in cash pledged as collateral for OTC derivatives in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. A Fund’s risk of loss from counterparty credit risk on OTC derivatives is generally limited to the aggregate unrealized gain netted against any collateral held by the Fund.

Options: The Fund may purchase and write call and put options to increase or decrease its exposure to the risks of underlying instruments, including equity risk, interest rate risk and/or commodity price risk and/or, in the case of options written, to generate gains from options premiums.

 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

A call option gives the purchaser (holder) of the option the right (but not the obligation) to buy, and obligates the seller (writer) to sell (when the option is exercised) the underlying instrument at the exercise or strike price at any time or at a specified time during the option period. A put option gives the holder the right to sell and obligates the writer to buy the underlying instrument at the exercise or strike price at any time or at a specified time during the option period.

Premiums paid on options purchased and premiums received on options written, as well as the daily fluctuation in market value, are included in investments at value – unaffiliated and options written at value, respectively, in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. When an instrument is purchased or sold through the exercise of an option, the premium is offset against the cost or proceeds of the underlying instrument. When an option expires, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations to the extent of the premiums received or paid. When an option is closed or sold, a gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations to the extent the cost of the closing transaction exceeds the premiums received or paid. When the Fund writes a call option, such option is typically “covered,” meaning that it holds the underlying instrument subject to being called by the option counterparty. When the Fund writes a put option, cash is segregated in an amount sufficient to cover the obligation. These amounts, which are considered restricted, are included in cash pledged as collateral for options written in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

 

•

Swaptions — The Fund may purchase and write options on swaps (“swaptions”) primarily to preserve a return or spread on a particular investment or portion of the Fund’s holdings, as a duration management technique or to protect against an increase in the price of securities it anticipates purchasing at a later date. The purchaser and writer of a swaption is buying or granting the right to enter into a previously agreed upon interest rate or credit default swap agreement (interest rate risk and/or credit risk) at any time before the expiration of the option.

In purchasing and writing options, the Fund bears the risk of an unfavorable change in the value of the underlying instrument or the risk that it may not be able to enter into a closing transaction due to an illiquid market. Exercise of a written option could result in the Fund purchasing or selling a security when it otherwise would not, or at a price different from the current market value.

Swaps: Swap contracts are entered into to manage exposure to issuers, markets and securities. Such contracts are agreements between the Fund and a counterparty to make periodic net payments on a specified notional amount or a net payment upon termination. Swap agreements are privately negotiated in the OTC market and may be entered into as a bilateral contract (“OTC swaps”) or centrally cleared (“centrally cleared swaps”).

For OTC swaps, any upfront premiums paid and any upfront fees received are shown as swap premiums paid and swap premiums received, respectively, in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities and amortized over the term of the contract. The daily fluctuation in market value is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on OTC Swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Payments received or paid are recorded in the Statement of Operations as realized gains or losses, respectively. When an OTC swap is terminated, a realized gain or loss is recorded in the Statement of Operations equal to the difference between the proceeds from (or cost of) the closing transaction and the Fund’s basis in the contract, if any. Generally, the basis of the contract is the premium received or paid.

In a centrally cleared swap, immediately following execution of the swap contract, the swap contract is novated to a central counterparty (the “CCP”) and the CCP becomes the Fund’s counterparty on the swap. The Fund is required to interface with the CCP through the broker. Upon entering into a centrally cleared swap, the Fund is required to deposit initial margin with the broker in the form of cash or securities in an amount that varies depending on the size and risk profile of the particular swap. Securities deposited as initial margin are designated in the Schedule of Investments and cash deposited is shown as cash pledged for centrally cleared swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Amounts pledged, which are considered restricted cash, are included in cash pledged for centrally cleared swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Pursuant to the contract, the Fund agrees to receive from or pay to the broker variation margin. Variation margin is recorded as unrealized appreciation (depreciation) and shown as variation margin receivable (or payable) on centrally cleared swaps in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Payments received from (paid to) the counterparty are amortized over the term of the contract and recorded as realized gains (losses) in the Statement of Operations, including those at termination.

 

•

Credit default swaps — Credit default swaps are entered into to manage exposure to the market or certain sectors of the market, to reduce risk exposure to defaults of corporate and/or sovereign issuers or to create exposure to corporate and/or sovereign issuers to which a fund is not otherwise exposed (credit risk).

The Fund may either buy or sell (write) credit default swaps on single-name issuers (corporate or sovereign), a combination or basket of single-name issuers or traded indexes. Credit default swaps are agreements in which the protection buyer pays fixed periodic payments to the seller in consideration for a promise from the protection seller to make a specific payment should a negative credit event take place with respect to the referenced entity (e.g., bankruptcy, failure to pay, obligation acceleration, repudiation, moratorium or restructuring). As a buyer, if an underlying credit event occurs, the Fund will either (i) receive from the seller an amount equal to the notional amount of the swap and deliver the referenced security or underlying securities comprising the index, or (ii) receive a net settlement of cash equal to the notional amount of the swap less the recovery value of the security or underlying securities comprising the index. As a seller (writer), if an underlying credit event occurs, the Fund will either pay the buyer an amount equal to the notional amount of the swap and take delivery of the referenced security or underlying securities comprising the index or pay a net settlement of cash equal to the notional amount of the swap less the recovery value of the security or underlying securities comprising the index.

 

•

Interest rate swaps — Interest rate swaps are entered into to gain or reduce exposure to interest rates or to manage duration, the yield curve or interest rate (interest rate risk).

Interest rate swaps are agreements in which one party pays a stream of interest payments, either fixed or floating, in exchange for another party’s stream of interest payments, either fixed or floating, on the same notional amount for a specified period of time. In more complex interest rate swaps, the notional principal amount may decline (or amortize) over time.

Swap transactions involve, to varying degrees, elements of interest rate, credit and market risks in excess of the amounts recognized in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Such risks involve the possibility that there will be no liquid market for these agreements, that the counterparty to the agreements may default on its obligation to perform or disagree as to the meaning of the contractual terms in the agreements, and that there may be unfavorable changes in interest rates and/or market values associated with these transactions.

 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

Master Netting Arrangements: In order to define its contractual rights and to secure rights that will help it mitigate its counterparty risk, the Fund may enter into an International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. Master Agreement (“ISDA Master Agreement”) or similar agreement with its counterparties. An ISDA Master Agreement is a bilateral agreement between the Fund and a counterparty that governs certain OTC derivatives and typically contains, among other things, collateral posting terms and netting provisions in the event of a default and/or termination event. Under an ISDA Master Agreement, the Fund may, under certain circumstances, offset with the counterparty certain derivative financial instruments’ payables and/or receivables with collateral held and/or posted and create one single net payment. The provisions of the ISDA Master Agreement typically permit a single net payment in the event of default including the bankruptcy or insolvency of the counterparty. However, bankruptcy or insolvency laws of a particular jurisdiction may impose restrictions on or prohibitions against the right of offset in bankruptcy, insolvency or other events.

Collateral Requirements: For derivatives traded under an ISDA Master Agreement, the collateral requirements are typically calculated by netting the mark-to-market amount for each transaction under such agreement and comparing that amount to the value of any collateral currently pledged by the Fund and the counterparty.

Cash collateral that has been pledged to cover obligations of the Fund and cash collateral received from the counterparty, if any, is reported separately in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities as cash pledged as collateral and cash received as collateral, respectively. Non-cash collateral pledged by the Fund, if any, is noted in the Schedule of Investments. Generally, the amount of collateral due from or to a counterparty is subject to a certain minimum transfer amount threshold before a transfer is required, which is determined at the close of business of the Fund. Any additional required collateral is delivered to/pledged by the Fund on the next business day. Typically, the counterparty is not permitted to sell, re-pledge or use cash and non-cash collateral it receives. The Fund generally agrees not to use non-cash collateral that it receives but may, absent default or certain other circumstances defined in the underlying ISDA Master Agreement, be permitted to use cash collateral received. In such cases, interest may be paid pursuant to the collateral arrangement with the counterparty. To the extent amounts due to the Fund from the counterparties are not fully collateralized, the Fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance. Likewise, to the extent the Fund has delivered collateral to a counterparty and stands ready to perform under the terms of its agreement with such counterparty, the Fund bears the risk of loss from a counterparty in the amount of the value of the collateral in the event the counterparty fails to return such collateral. Based on the terms of agreements, collateral may not be required for all derivative contracts.

For financial reporting purposes, the Fund does not offset derivative assets and derivative liabilities that are subject to netting arrangements, if any, in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

 

6.	INVESTMENT ADVISORY AGREEMENT AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS WITH AFFILIATES

Investment Advisory: The Fund entered into an Investment Advisory Agreement with the Manager, the Fund’s investment adviser and an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. (“BlackRock”), to provide investment advisory and administrative services. The Manager is responsible for the management of the Fund’s portfolio and provides the personnel, facilities, equipment and certain other services necessary to the operations of the Fund.

For such services, the Fund pays the Manager a monthly fee at an annual rate equal to 0.85% of the average daily value of the Fund’s net assets, plus the proceeds of any debt securities or outstanding borrowings used for leverage.

For purposes of calculating this fee, “net assets” mean the total assets of the Fund minus the sum of its accrued liabilities.

Expense Waivers: The Manager voluntarily agreed to waive a portion of its investment advisory fees equal to the annual rate of 0.30% of the Fund’s average daily net assets, plus the proceeds of any outstanding borrowings used for leverage. This amount is included in fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Manager in the Statement of Operations. During the six months ended June 30, 2023, the Manager waived $76,903 pursuant to this agreement.

The Manager contractually agreed to waive its investment advisory fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to the Manager indirectly through its investment in affiliated money market funds (the “affiliated money market fund waiver”) through June 30, 2024. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the Independent Directors, or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. These amounts are included in fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Manager in the Statement of Operations. For the six months ended June 30, 2023, the amount waived was $727.

The Manager contractually agreed to waive its investment advisory fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets invested in affiliated equity and fixed-income mutual funds and affiliated exchange-traded funds that have a contractual management fee through June 30, 2024. The agreement can be renewed for annual periods thereafter, and may be terminated on 90 days’ notice, each subject to approval by a majority of the Fund’s Independent Directors. For the six months ended June 30, 2023, there were no fees waived by the Manager pursuant to this arrangement.

Directors and Officers: Certain directors and/or officers of the Fund are directors and/or officers of BlackRock or its affiliates. The Fund reimburses the Manager for a portion of the compensation paid to the Fund’s Chief Compliance Officer, which is included in Directors and Officer in the Statement of Operations.

 

7.	PURCHASES AND SALES

For the six months ended June 30, 2023, purchases and sales of investments, including paydowns/payups and mortgage dollar rolls, excluding short-term securities, were as follows:

 

U.S. Government Securities

Other Securities

Fund Name

Purchases

Sales

Purchases

Sales

EGF

$  1,597,405

$  21,450,402

$  38,213,373

$  37,504,021

For the six months ended June 30, 2023, purchases and sales related to mortgage dollar rolls were $16,496,337 and $16,492,951, respectively.

 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

8.	INCOME TAX INFORMATION

It is the Fund’s policy to comply with the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, applicable to regulated investment companies, and to distribute substantially all of its taxable income to its shareholders. Therefore, no U.S. federal income tax provision is required.

The Fund files U.S. federal and various state and local tax returns. No income tax returns are currently under examination. The statute of limitations on the Fund’s U.S. federal tax returns generally remains open for a period of three years after they are filed. The statutes of limitations on the Fund’s state and local tax returns may remain open for an additional year depending upon the jurisdiction.

Management has analyzed tax laws and regulations and their application to the Fund as of June 30, 2023, inclusive of the open tax return years, and does not believe that there are any uncertain tax positions that require recognition of a tax liability in the Fund’s financial statements.

As of December 31, 2022, the Fund had non-expiring capital loss carryforwards available to offset future realized capital gains and qualified late-year losses as follows:

 

Fund Name			Non-Expiring Capital Loss Carryforwards	(a)			Qualified Late-Year Losses	(b)
EGF		$	(24,316,733	)		$	(13,515	)

 

(a)

Amounts available to offset future realized capital gains.

(b)

The Fund has elected to defer certain qualified late-year losses and recognize such losses in the next taxable year.

As of June 30, 2023, gross unrealized appreciation and depreciation based on cost of investments (including short positions and derivatives, if any) for U.S. federal income tax purposes were as follows:

 

Fund Name		Tax Cost				Gross Unrealized Appreciation				Gross Unrealized Depreciation				Net Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)
EGF		$	45,302,293			$	206,522			$	(3,203,839	)		$	(2,997,317	)

 

9.	PRINCIPAL RISKS

In the normal course of business, the Fund invests in securities or other instruments and may enter into certain transactions, and such activities subject the Fund to various risks, including among others, fluctuations in the market (market risk) or failure of an issuer to meet all of its obligations. The value of securities or other instruments may also be affected by various factors, including, without limitation: (i) the general economy; (ii) the overall market as well as local, regional or global political and/or social instability; (iii) regulation, taxation or international tax treaties between various countries; or (iv) currency, interest rate and price fluctuations. Local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues, recessions, or other events could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments.

The Fund may invest without limitation in illiquid or less liquid investments or investments in which no secondary market is readily available or which are otherwise illiquid, including private placement securities. The Fund may not be able to readily dispose of such investments at prices that approximate those at which the Fund could sell such investments if they were more widely traded and, as a result of such illiquidity, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions if necessary to raise funds to meet its obligations. Limited liquidity can also affect the market price of investments, thereby adversely affecting the Fund’s NAV and ability to make dividend distributions. Privately issued debt securities are often of below investment grade quality, frequently are unrated and present many of the same risks as investing in below investment grade public debt securities.

Market Risk: The Fund may be exposed to prepayment risk, which is the risk that borrowers may exercise their option to prepay principal earlier than scheduled during periods of declining interest rates, which would force the Fund to reinvest in lower yielding securities. The Fund may also be exposed to reinvestment risk, which is the risk that income from the Fund’s portfolio will decline if the Fund invests the proceeds from matured, traded or called fixed-income securities at market interest rates that are below the Fund portfolio’s current earnings rate.

Infectious Illness Risk: An outbreak of an infectious illness, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, may adversely impact the economies of many nations and the global economy, and may impact individual issuers and capital markets in ways that cannot be foreseen. An infectious illness outbreak may result in, among other things, closed international borders, prolonged quarantines, supply chain disruptions, market volatility or disruptions and other significant economic, social and political impacts.

Counterparty Credit Risk: The Fund may be exposed to counterparty credit risk, or the risk that an entity may fail to or be unable to perform on its commitments related to unsettled or open transactions, including making timely interest and/or principal payments or otherwise honoring its obligations. The Fund manages counterparty credit risk by entering into transactions only with counterparties that the Manager believes have the financial resources to honor their obligations and by monitoring the financial stability of those counterparties. Financial assets, which potentially expose the Fund to market, issuer and counterparty credit risks, consist principally of financial instruments and receivables due from counterparties. The extent of the Fund’s exposure to market, issuer and counterparty credit risks with respect to these financial assets is approximately their value recorded in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities, less any collateral held by the Fund.

A derivative contract may suffer a mark-to-market loss if the value of the contract decreases due to an unfavorable change in the market rates or values of the underlying instrument. Losses can also occur if the counterparty does not perform under the contract.

For OTC options purchased, the Fund bears the risk of loss in the amount of the premiums paid plus the positive change in market values net of any collateral held by the Fund should the counterparty fail to perform under the contracts. Options written by the Fund do not typically give rise to counterparty credit risk, as options written generally obligate

 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

the Fund, and not the counterparty, to perform. The Fund may be exposed to counterparty credit risk with respect to options written to the extent the Fund deposits collateral with its counterparty to a written option.

With exchange-traded options purchased and exchange-traded futures and centrally cleared swaps, there is less counterparty credit risk to the Fund since the exchange or clearinghouse, as counterparty to such instruments, guarantees against a possible default. The clearinghouse stands between the buyer and the seller of the contract; therefore, credit risk is limited to failure of the clearinghouse. While offset rights may exist under applicable law, the Fund does not have a contractual right of offset against a clearing broker or clearinghouse in the event of a default (including the bankruptcy or insolvency). Additionally, credit risk exists in exchange-traded futures and centrally cleared swaps with respect to initial and variation margin that is held in a clearing broker’s customer accounts. While clearing brokers are required to segregate customer margin from their own assets, in the event that a clearing broker becomes insolvent or goes into bankruptcy and at that time there is a shortfall in the aggregate amount of margin held by the clearing broker for all its clients, typically the shortfall would be allocated on a pro rata basis across all the clearing broker’s customers, potentially resulting in losses to the Fund.

Geographic/Asset Class Risk: A diversified portfolio, where this is appropriate and consistent with a fund’s objectives, minimizes the risk that a price change of a particular investment will have a material impact on the NAV of a fund. The investment concentrations within the Fund’s portfolio are disclosed in its Schedule of Investments.

The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in fixed-income securities and/or uses derivatives tied to the fixed-income markets. Changes in market interest rates or economic conditions may affect the value and/or liquidity of such investments. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will decrease as interest rates rise and increase as interest rates fall. The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the period of historically low interest rates that ended in March 2022. The Federal Reserve has recently been raising the federal funds rate as part of its efforts to address inflation. There is a risk that interest rates will continue to rise, which will likely drive down the prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities, and could negatively impact the Fund’s performance.

The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in securities of issuers located in the United States. A decrease in imports or exports, changes in trade regulations, inflation and/or an economic recession in the United States may have a material adverse effect on the U.S. economy and the securities listed on U.S. exchanges. Proposed and adopted policy and legislative changes in the United States may also have a significant effect on U.S. markets generally, as well as on the value of certain securities. Governmental agencies project that the United States will continue to maintain elevated public debt levels for the foreseeable future which may constrain future economic growth. Circumstances could arise that could prevent the timely payment of interest or principal on U.S. government debt, such as reaching the legislative “debt ceiling.” Such non-payment would result in substantial negative consequences for the U.S. economy and the global financial system. If U.S. relations with certain countries deteriorate, it could adversely affect issuers that rely on the United States for trade. The United States has also experienced increased internal unrest and discord. If these trends were to continue, they may have an adverse impact on the U.S. economy and the issuers in which the Fund invests.

The Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in securities backed by commercial or residential mortgage loans or in issuers that hold mortgage and other asset-backed securities. When a fund concentrates its investments in this manner, it assumes a greater risk of prepayment or payment extension by securities issuers. Changes in economic conditions, including delinquencies and/or defaults on assets underlying these securities, can affect the value, income and/or liquidity of such positions. Investment percentages in these securities are presented in the Schedule of Investments.

LIBOR Transition Risk: The Fund may be exposed to financial instruments that are tied to the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) to determine payment obligations, financing terms, hedging strategies or investment value. The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced that a majority of USD LIBOR settings will no longer be published after June 30, 2023. All other LIBOR settings and certain other interbank offered rates ceased to be published after December 31, 2021. The Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) has been used increasingly on a voluntary basis in new instruments and transactions. The Federal Reserve Board adopted regulations that provide a fallback mechanism by identifying benchmark rates based on SOFR that will replace LIBOR in certain financial contracts after June 30, 2023. The ultimate effect of the LIBOR transition process on the Fund is uncertain.

 

10.	CAPITAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS

The Fund is authorized to issue 200 million shares, all of which were initially classified as Common Shares. The Board is authorized, however, to reclassify any unissued Common Shares to Preferred Shares without the approval of Common Shareholders.

Common Shares

For the six months ended June 30, 2023, shares issued and outstanding remained constant.

The Fund participates in an open market share repurchase program (the “Repurchase Program”). From December 1, 2022, through November 30, 2023 the Fund may repurchase up to 5% of its outstanding common shares under the Repurchase Program, based on common shares outstanding as of the close of business on November 30, 2022, subject to certain conditions. The Repurchase Program has an accretive effect as shares are purchased at a discount to the Fund’s NAV. There is no assurance that the Fund will purchase shares in any particular amounts. For the six months ended June 30, 2023, the Fund did not repurchase any shares.

 

 

28		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Notes to Financial Statements (unaudited) (continued)

 

 

The Fund will make offers to purchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding shares at approximate 12 month intervals. Repurchase offer results for the year ended December 31, 2022 were as follows:

 

Commencement Date of Tender Offer Period(a)		Valuation Date				Number of Shares Tendered				Tendered Shares as a Percentage of Outstanding Shares				Number of Tendered Shares Purchased				Tendered Shares Purchased as a Percentage of Outstanding Shares				Purchase Price				Total Amount of Purchases
10/17/22			11/17/22				2,801,163				67.6	%			207,116				5.0	%			$10.1300				$2,098,085

 

(a)

Date the repurchase offer period began.

The amount of the repurchase offer is shown as redemption of shares resulting from a repurchase offer in the Statements of Changes in Net Assets. The Fund charged a 2% repurchase fee of the value of the shares that were repurchased to compensate the Fund for expenses directly related to the repurchase offer, which is included in the capital share transactions in the Statements of the Changes in Net Assets. Costs directly related to the repurchase offer, primarily mailing and printing costs, are shown as repurchase offer in the Statement of Operations.

 

11.	SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

Management’s evaluation of the impact of all subsequent events on the Fund’s financial statements was completed through the date the financial statements were issued and the following items were noted:

The Fund declared and paid or will pay distributions to Common Shareholders as follows:

 

Fund Name

Declaration Date

Record Date

Payable/ Paid Date

Dividend Per Common Share

EGF

07/03/23

07/14/23

07/31/23

$

0.041000

08/01/23

08/15/23

08/31/23

0.041000

 

 

N O T E S   T O   F I N A N C I A L   S T A T E M E N T S		29

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Disclosure of Investment Advisory Agreement

 

 

The Board of Directors (the “Board,” the members of which are referred to as “Board Members”) of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”) met on May 4, 2023 (the “May Meeting”) and June 1-2, 2023 (the “June Meeting”) to consider the approval to continue the investment advisory agreement (the “Agreement”) between the Fund and BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Manager” or “BlackRock”), the Fund’s investment adviser.

The Approval Process

Consistent with the requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), the Board considers the approval of the continuation of the Agreement for the Fund on an annual basis. The Board members who are not “interested persons” of the Fund, as defined in the 1940 Act, are considered independent Board members (the “Independent Board Members”). The Board’s consideration entailed a year-long deliberative process during which the Board and its committees assessed BlackRock’s various services to the Fund, including through the review of written materials and oral presentations, and the review of additional information provided in response to requests from the Independent Board Members. The Board had four quarterly meetings per year, each of which extended over a two-day period, as well as additional ad hoc meetings and executive sessions throughout the year, as needed. The committees of the Board similarly met throughout the year. The Board also had an additional one-day meeting to consider specific information regarding the renewal of the Agreement. In considering the renewal of the Agreement, the Board assessed, among other things, the nature, extent and quality of the services provided to the Fund by BlackRock, BlackRock’s personnel and affiliates, including (as applicable): investment management services; accounting oversight; administrative and shareholder services; oversight of the Fund’s service providers; risk management and oversight; and legal, regulatory and compliance services. Throughout the year, including during the contract renewal process, the Independent Board Members were advised by independent legal counsel, and met with independent legal counsel in various executive sessions outside of the presence of BlackRock’s management.

During the year, the Board, acting directly and through its committees, considered information that was relevant to its annual consideration of the renewal of the Agreement, including the services and support provided by BlackRock to the Fund and its shareholders. BlackRock also furnished additional information to the Board in response to specific questions from the Board. Among the matters the Board considered were: (a) investment performance for one-year, three-year, five-year, and/or since inception periods, as applicable, against peer funds, relevant benchmarks, and other performance metrics, as applicable, as well as BlackRock senior management’s and portfolio managers’ analyses of the reasons for any outperformance or underperformance relative to its peers, benchmarks, and other performance metrics, as applicable; (b) leverage management, as applicable; (c) fees, including advisory, administration, if applicable, and other amounts paid to BlackRock and its affiliates by the Fund for services; (d) Fund operating expenses and how BlackRock allocates expenses to the Fund; (e) the resources devoted to risk oversight of, and compliance reports relating to, implementation of the Fund’s investment objective, policies and restrictions, and meeting regulatory requirements; (f) BlackRock’s and the Fund’s adherence to applicable compliance policies and procedures; (g) the nature, character and scope of non-investment management services provided by BlackRock and its affiliates and the estimated cost of such services, as available; (h) BlackRock’s and other service providers’ internal controls and risk and compliance oversight mechanisms; (i) BlackRock’s implementation of the proxy voting policies approved by the Board; (j) execution quality of portfolio transactions; (k) BlackRock’s implementation of the Fund’s valuation and liquidity procedures; (l) an analysis of management fees paid to BlackRock for products with similar investment mandates across the open-end fund, closed-end fund, sub-advised mutual fund, collective investment trust and institutional separate account product channels, as applicable, and the similarities and differences between these products and the services provided as compared to the Fund; (m) BlackRock’s compensation methodology for its investment professionals and the incentives and accountability it creates, along with investment professionals’ investments in the fund(s) they manage; (n) periodic updates on BlackRock’s business; and (o) the Fund’s market discount/premium compared to peer funds.

Prior to and in preparation for the May Meeting, the Board received and reviewed materials specifically relating to the renewal of the Agreement. The Independent Board Members are continuously engaged in a process with their independent legal counsel and BlackRock to review the nature and scope of the information provided to the Board to better assist its deliberations. The materials provided in connection with the May Meeting included, among other things: (a) information independently compiled and prepared by Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (“Broadridge”), based on either a Lipper classification or Morningstar category, regarding the Fund’s fees and expenses as compared with a peer group of funds as determined by Broadridge (“Expense Peers”) and the investment performance of the Fund as compared with a peer group of funds (“Performance Peers”); (b) information on the composition of the Expense Peers and Performance Peers and a description of Broadridge’s methodology; (c) information on the estimated profits realized by BlackRock and its affiliates pursuant to the Agreement and a discussion of fall-out benefits to BlackRock and its affiliates; (d) a general analysis provided by BlackRock concerning investment management fees received in connection with other types of investment products, such as institutional accounts, sub-advised mutual funds, closed-end funds, and open-end funds, under similar investment mandates, as applicable; (e) a review of non-management fees; (f) the existence, impact and sharing of potential economies of scale, if any, with the Fund; (g) a summary of aggregate amounts paid by the Fund to BlackRock; and (h) various additional information requested by the Board as appropriate regarding BlackRock’s and the Fund’s operations.

At the May Meeting, the Board reviewed materials relating to its consideration of the Agreement and the Independent Board Members presented BlackRock with questions and requests for additional information. BlackRock responded to these questions and requests with additional written information in advance of the June Meeting.

At the June Meeting, the Board concluded its assessment of, among other things: (a) the nature, extent and quality of the services provided by BlackRock; (b) the investment performance of the Fund as compared to its Performance Peers and to other metrics, as applicable; (c) the advisory fee and the estimated cost of the services and estimated profits realized by BlackRock and its affiliates from their relationship with the Fund; (d) the Fund’s fees and expenses compared to its Expense Peers; (e) the existence and sharing of potential economies of scale; (f) any fall-out benefits to BlackRock and its affiliates as a result of BlackRock’s relationship with the Fund; and (g) other factors deemed relevant by the Board Members.

The Board also considered other matters it deemed important to the approval process, such as other payments made to BlackRock or its affiliates relating to securities lending and cash management, and BlackRock’s services related to the valuation and pricing of Fund portfolio holdings. The Board noted the willingness of BlackRock’s personnel to engage in open, candid discussions with the Board. The Board Members evaluated the information available to them on a fund-by-fund basis. The following paragraphs provide more information about some of the primary factors that were relevant to the Board’s decision. The Board Members did not identify any particular information, or any single factor as determinative, and each Board Member may have attributed different weights to the various items and factors considered.

A.  Nature, Extent and Quality of the Services Provided by BlackRock

 

 

30		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Disclosure of Investment Advisory Agreement (continued)

 

 

The Board, including the Independent Board Members, reviewed the nature, extent and quality of services provided by BlackRock, including the investment advisory services, and the resulting performance of the Fund. Throughout the year, the Board compared Fund performance to the performance of a comparable group of closed-end funds, relevant benchmarks, and performance metrics, as applicable. The Board met with BlackRock’s senior management personnel responsible for investment activities, including the senior investment officers. The Board also reviewed the materials provided by the Fund’s portfolio management team discussing the Fund’s performance, investment strategies and outlook.

The Board considered, among other factors, with respect to BlackRock: the experience of investment personnel generally and the Fund’s portfolio management team; research capabilities; investments by portfolio managers in the funds they manage; portfolio trading capabilities; use of technology; commitment to compliance; credit analysis capabilities; risk analysis and oversight capabilities; and the approach to training and retaining portfolio managers and other research, advisory and management personnel. The Board also considered BlackRock’s overall risk management program, including the continued efforts of BlackRock and its affiliates to address cybersecurity risks and the role of BlackRock’s Risk & Quantitative Analysis Group. The Board engaged in a review of BlackRock’s compensation structure with respect to the Fund’s portfolio management team and BlackRock’s ability to attract and retain high-quality talent and create performance incentives.

In addition to investment advisory services, the Board considered the nature and quality of the administrative and other non-investment advisory services provided to the Fund. BlackRock and its affiliates provide the Fund with certain administrative, shareholder and other services (in addition to any such services provided to the Fund by third parties) and officers and other personnel as are necessary for the operations of the Fund. In particular, BlackRock and its affiliates provide the Fund with administrative services including, among others: (i) responsibility for disclosure documents and periodic shareholder reports; (ii) preparing communications with analysts to support secondary market trading of the Fund; (iii) oversight of daily accounting and pricing; (iv) responsibility for periodic filings with regulators and stock exchanges; (v) overseeing and coordinating the activities of third-party service providers including, among others, the Fund’s custodian, fund accountant, transfer agent, and auditor; (vi) organizing Board meetings and preparing the materials for such Board meetings; (vii) providing legal and compliance support; (viii) furnishing analytical and other support to assist the Board in its consideration of strategic issues such as the merger, consolidation or repurposing of certain closed-end funds; and (ix) performing or managing administrative functions necessary for the operation of the Fund, such as tax reporting, expense management, fulfilling regulatory filing requirements, and shareholder call center and other services. The Board reviewed the structure and duties of BlackRock’s fund administration, shareholder services, and legal and compliance departments and considered BlackRock’s policies and procedures for assuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The Board considered the operation of BlackRock’s business continuity plans.

B.  The Investment Performance of the Fund and BlackRock

The Board, including the Independent Board Members, reviewed and considered the performance history of the Fund throughout the year and at the May Meeting. In preparation for the May Meeting, the Board was provided with reports independently prepared by Broadridge, which included an analysis of the Fund’s performance as of December 31, 2022, as compared to its Performance Peers. The performance information is based on net asset value (NAV), and utilizes Lipper data. Lipper’s methodology calculates a fund’s total return assuming distributions are reinvested on the ex-date at a fund’s ex-date NAV. Broadridge ranks funds in quartiles, ranging from first to fourth, where first is the most desirable quartile position and fourth is the least desirable. In connection with its review, the Board received and reviewed information regarding the investment performance of the Fund as compared to its Performance Peers and certain performance metrics (“Performance Metrics”). The Board and its Performance Oversight Committee regularly review and meet with Fund management to discuss the performance of the Fund throughout the year.

In evaluating performance, the Board focused particular attention on funds with less favorable performance records. The Board also noted that while it found the data provided by Broadridge generally useful, it recognized the limitations of such data, including in particular, that notable differences may exist between a fund and its Performance Peers (for example, the investment objectives and strategies). Further, the Board recognized that the performance data reflects a snapshot of a period as of a particular date and that selecting a different performance period could produce significantly different results. The Board also acknowledged that long-term performance could be impacted by even one period of significant outperformance or underperformance, and that a single investment theme could have the ability to disproportionately affect long-term performance.

The Board reviewed and considered the Fund’s performance relative to the Fund’s Performance Metrics. Based on an overall rating relative to the Performance Metrics, the Fund generally performed below expectations. The Board noted that BlackRock believes that the Performance Metrics are an appropriate performance comparison for the Fund, and that BlackRock has explained its rationale for this belief to the Board. The Board and BlackRock reviewed the Fund’s underperformance relative to the Performance Metrics.

C.  Consideration of the Advisory/Management Fees and the Estimated Cost of the Services and Estimated Profits Realized by BlackRock and its Affiliates from their Relationship with the Fund

The Board, including the Independent Board Members, reviewed the Fund’s contractual management fee rate compared with those of its Expense Peers. The contractual management fee rate represents a combination of the advisory fee and any administrative fees, before taking into account any reimbursements or fee waivers. The Board also compared the Fund’s total expense ratio, as well as its actual management fee rate as a percentage of managed assets, which is the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes) to those of its Expense Peers. The total expense ratio represents a fund’s total net operating expenses, excluding any investment related expenses. The total expense ratio gives effect to any expense reimbursements or fee waivers, and the actual management fee rate gives effect to any management fee reimbursements or waivers. The Board considered that the fee and expense information in the Broadridge report for the Fund reflected information for a specific period and that historical asset levels and expenses may differ from current levels, particularly in a period of market volatility. The Board considered the services provided and the fees charged by BlackRock and its affiliates to other types of clients with similar investment mandates, as applicable, including institutional accounts and sub-advised mutual funds (including mutual funds sponsored by third parties).

The Board received and reviewed statements relating to BlackRock’s financial condition. The Board reviewed BlackRock’s profitability methodology and was also provided with an estimated profitability analysis that detailed the revenues earned and the expenses incurred by BlackRock for services provided to the Fund. The Board reviewed BlackRock’s estimated profitability with respect to the Fund and other funds the Board currently oversees for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to available aggregate estimated profitability data provided for the prior two years. The Board reviewed BlackRock’s estimated profitability with respect to certain other U.S. fund complexes managed by the Manager and/or its affiliates. The Board reviewed BlackRock’s assumptions and methodology of allocating expenses in the estimated profitability analysis,

 

 

D I S C L O S U R E   O F   I N V E S T M E N T   A D V I S O R Y   A G R E E M E N T		31

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Disclosure of Investment Advisory Agreement (continued)

 

 

noting the inherent limitations in allocating costs among various advisory products. The Board recognized that profitability may be affected by numerous factors including, among other things, fee waivers and expense reimbursements by the Manager, the types of funds managed, precision of expense allocations and business mix. The Board thus recognized that calculating and comparing profitability at the individual fund level is difficult.

The Board noted that, in general, individual fund or product line profitability of other advisors is not publicly available. The Board reviewed BlackRock’s overall operating margin, in general, compared to that of certain other publicly traded asset management firms. The Board considered the differences between BlackRock and these other firms, including the contribution of technology at BlackRock, BlackRock’s expense management, and the relative product mix.

The Board considered whether BlackRock has the financial resources necessary to attract and retain high quality investment management personnel to perform its obligations under the Agreement and to continue to provide the high quality of services that is expected by the Board. The Board further considered factors including but not limited to BlackRock’s commitment of time and resources, assumption of risk, and liability profile in servicing the Fund, including in contrast to what is required of BlackRock with respect to other products with similar investment mandates across the open-end fund, closed-end fund, sub-advised mutual fund, collective investment trust, and institutional separate account product channels, as applicable.

The Board noted that the Fund’s contractual management fee rate ranked in the fourth quartile, and that the actual management fee rate and total expense ratio each ranked in the third quartile relative to the Expense Peers. In addition, the Board noted that BlackRock had agreed to voluntarily waive a portion of the advisory fee payable by the Fund. An advisory fee waiver has been in effect since 2013, the amount of which may have varied from time to time. After discussions between the Board, including Independent Board Members, and BlackRock, the Board and BlackRock agreed to a continuation of the current 30 basis points voluntary advisory fee waiver.

D. Economies of Scale

The Board, including the Independent Board Members, considered the extent to which economies of scale might be realized as the assets of the Fund increase. The Board also considered the extent to which the Fund benefits from such economies of scale in a variety of ways, and whether there should be changes in the advisory fee rate or breakpoint structure in order to enable the Fund to more fully participate in these economies of scale. The Board considered the Fund’s asset levels and whether the current fee was appropriate.

Based on the Board’s review and consideration of the issue, the Board concluded that most closed-end funds do not have fund level breakpoints because closed-end funds generally do not experience substantial growth after the initial public offering. Closed-end funds are typically priced at scale at a fund’s inception.

E. Other Factors Deemed Relevant by the Board Members

The Board, including the Independent Board Members, also took into account other ancillary or “fall-out” benefits that BlackRock or its affiliates may derive from BlackRock’s respective relationships with the Fund, both tangible and intangible, such as BlackRock’s ability to leverage its investment professionals who manage other portfolios and its risk management personnel, an increase in BlackRock’s profile in the investment advisory community, and the engagement of BlackRock’s affiliates as service providers to the Fund, including for administrative, securities lending and cash management services. With respect to securities lending, during the year the Board also considered information provided by independent third-party consultants related to the performance of each BlackRock affiliate as securities lending agent. The Board also considered BlackRock’s overall operations and its efforts to expand the scale of, and improve the quality of, its operations. The Board also noted that, subject to applicable law, BlackRock may use and benefit from third-party research obtained by soft dollars generated by certain registered fund transactions to assist in managing all or a number of its other client accounts.

In connection with its consideration of the Agreement, the Board also received information regarding BlackRock’s brokerage and soft dollar practices. The Board received reports from BlackRock which included information on brokerage commissions and trade execution practices throughout the year.

The Board noted the competitive nature of the closed-end fund marketplace, and that shareholders are able to sell their Fund shares in the secondary market if they believe that the Fund’s fees and expenses are too high or if they are dissatisfied with the performance of the Fund.

The Board also considered the various notable initiatives and projects BlackRock performed in connection with its closed-end fund product line. These initiatives included developing equity shelf programs; efforts to eliminate product overlap with fund mergers; ongoing services to manage leverage that has become increasingly complex; periodic evaluation of share repurchases and other support initiatives for certain BlackRock funds; and continued communication efforts with shareholders, fund analysts and financial advisers. With respect to the latter, the Independent Board Members noted BlackRock’s continued commitment to supporting the secondary market for the common shares of its closed-end funds through a comprehensive secondary market communication program designed to raise investor and analyst awareness and understanding of closed-end funds. BlackRock’s support services included, among other things: sponsoring and participating in conferences; communicating with closed-end fund analysts covering the BlackRock funds throughout the year; providing marketing and product updates for the closed-end funds; and maintaining and enhancing its closed-end fund website.

Conclusion

At the June Meeting, in a continuation of the discussions that occurred during the May Meeting, and as a culmination of the Board’s year-long deliberative process, the Board, including the Independent Board Members, unanimously approved the continuation of the Agreement between the Manager and the Fund for a one-year term ending June 30, 2024. Based upon its evaluation of all of the aforementioned factors in their totality, as well as other information, the Board, including the Independent Board Members, was satisfied that the terms of the Agreement were fair and reasonable and in the best interest of the Fund and its shareholders. In arriving at its decision to approve the Agreement, the Board did not identify any single factor or group of factors as all-important or controlling, but considered all factors together, and different Board Members may have attributed different weights to the various factors considered. The Independent Board Members were advised by independent legal counsel throughout the deliberative process.

 

 

32		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Additional Information

 

 

Fund Certification

The Fund is listed for trading on the NYSE and has filed with the NYSE its annual chief executive officer certification regarding compliance with the NYSE’s listing standards. The Fund filed with the SEC the certification of its chief executive officer and chief financial officer required by Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Integration

Although the Fund does not seek to implement a specific sustainability objective, strategy or process unless otherwise disclosed, Fund management will consider ESG factors as part of the investment process for the Fund. Fund management views ESG integration as the practice of incorporating financially material ESG data or information into investment processes with the objective of enhancing risk-adjusted returns. These ESG considerations will vary depending on the Fund’s particular investment strategies and may include consideration of third-party research as well as consideration of proprietary BlackRock research across the ESG risks and opportunities regarding an issuer. The ESG characteristics utilized in the Fund’s investment process are anticipated to evolve over time and one or more characteristics may not be relevant with respect to all issuers that are eligible for investment. Certain of these considerations may affect the Fund’s exposure to certain companies or industries. While Fund management views ESG considerations as having the potential to contribute to the Fund’s long-term performance, there is no guarantee that such results will be achieved.

Dividend Policy

The Fund’s policy is to make monthly distributions to shareholders. In order to provide shareholders with a more stable level of dividend distributions, the Fund employs a managed distribution plan (the “Plan”), the goal of which is to provide shareholders with consistent and predictable cash flows by setting distribution rates based on expected long-term returns of the Fund.

The distributions paid by the Fund for any particular month may be more or less than the amount of net investment income earned by the Fund during such month. Furthermore, the final tax characterization of distributions is determined after the year-end of the Fund and is reported in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders. Distributions can be characterized as ordinary income, capital gains and/or return of capital. The Fund’s taxable net investment income and net realized capital gains (“taxable income”) may not be sufficient to support the level of distributions paid. To the extent that distributions exceed the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, the excess may be treated as a non-taxable return of capital.

A return of capital is a return of a portion of an investor’s original investment. A return of capital is not expected to be taxable, but it reduces a shareholder’s tax basis in his or her shares, thus reducing any loss or increasing any gain on a subsequent disposition by the shareholder of his or her shares. It is possible that a substantial portion of the distributions paid during a calendar year may ultimately be classified as return of capital for U.S. federal income tax purposes when the final determination of the source and character of the distributions is made.

Such distributions, under certain circumstances, may exceed the Fund’s total return performance. When total distributions exceed total return performance for the period, the difference reduces the Fund’s total assets and net asset value (“NAV”) per share and, therefore, could have the effect of increasing the Fund’s expense ratio and reducing the amount of assets the Fund has available for long term investment.

General Information

The Fund does not make available copies of its Statement of Additional Information because the Fund’s shares are not continuously offered, which means that the Statement of Additional Information of the Fund has not been updated after completion of the Fund’s offerings and the information contained in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information may have become outdated.

The following information is a summary of certain changes since December 31, 2022. This information may not reflect all of the changes that have occurred since you purchased the Fund.

Except if noted otherwise herein, there were no changes to the Fund’s charter or by-laws that would delay or prevent a change of control of the Fund that were not approved by the shareholders.

In accordance with Section 23(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Fund may from time to time purchase shares of its common stock in the open market or in private transactions.

Quarterly performance, semi-annual and annual reports, current net asset value and other information regarding the Fund may be found on BlackRock’s website, which can be accessed at blackrock.com. Any reference to BlackRock’s website in this report is intended to allow investors public access to information regarding the Fund and does not, and is not intended to, incorporate BlackRock’s website in this report.

Electronic Delivery

Shareholders can sign up for e-mail notifications of quarterly statements, annual and semi-annual shareholder reports by enrolling in the electronic delivery program. Electronic copies of shareholder reports are available on BlackRock’s website.

To enroll in electronic delivery:

 

 

A D D I T I O N A L   I N F O R M A T I O N		33

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Additional Information (continued)

 

 

Shareholders Who Hold Accounts with Investment Advisers, Banks or Brokerages:

Please contact your financial adviser. Please note that not all investment advisers, banks or brokerages may offer this service.

Householding

The Fund will mail only one copy of shareholder documents, annual and semi-annual reports, Rule 30e-3 notices and proxy statements, to shareholders with multiple accounts at the same address. This practice is commonly called “householding” and is intended to reduce expenses and eliminate duplicate mailings of shareholder documents. Mailings of your shareholder documents may be householded indefinitely unless you instruct us otherwise. If you do not want the mailing of these documents to be combined with those for other members of your household, please call the Fund at (800) 882-0052.

Availability of Quarterly Schedule of Investments

The Fund files its complete schedule of portfolio holdings with the SEC for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year as an exhibit to its reports on Form N-PORT. The Fund’s Form N-PORT is available on the SEC’s website at sec.gov. Additionally, the Fund makes its portfolio holdings for the first and third quarters of each fiscal year available at blackrock.com/fundreports.

Availability of Proxy Voting Policies, Procedures and Voting Records

A description of the policies and procedures that the Fund uses to determine how to vote proxies relating to portfolio securities and information about how the Fund voted proxies relating to securities held in the Fund’s portfolio during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available without charge, upon request (1) by calling (800) 882-0052; (2) on the BlackRock website at blackrock.com; and (3) on the SEC’s website at sec.gov.

Availability of Fund Updates

BlackRock will update performance and certain other data for the Fund on a monthly basis on its website in the “Closed-end Funds” section of blackrock.com as well as certain other material information as necessary from time to time. Investors and others are advised to check the website for updated performance information and the release of other material information about the Fund. This reference to BlackRock’s website is intended to allow investors public access to information regarding the Fund and does not, and is not intended to, incorporate BlackRock’s website in this report.

BlackRock Privacy Principles

BlackRock is committed to maintaining the privacy of its current and former fund investors and individual clients (collectively, “Clients”) and to safeguarding their non-public personal information. The following information is provided to help you understand what personal information BlackRock collects, how we protect that information and why in certain cases we share such information with select parties.

If you are located in a jurisdiction where specific laws, rules or regulations require BlackRock to provide you with additional or different privacy-related rights beyond what is set forth below, then BlackRock will comply with those specific laws, rules or regulations.

BlackRock obtains or verifies personal non-public information from and about you from different sources, including the following: (i) information we receive from you or, if applicable, your financial intermediary, on applications, forms or other documents; (ii) information about your transactions with us, our affiliates, or others; (iii) information we receive from a consumer reporting agency; and (iv) from visits to our websites.

BlackRock does not sell or disclose to non-affiliated third parties any non-public personal information about its Clients, except as permitted by law or as is necessary to respond to regulatory requests or to service Client accounts. These non-affiliated third parties are required to protect the confidentiality and security of this information and to use it only for its intended purpose.

We may share information with our affiliates to service your account or to provide you with information about other BlackRock products or services that may be of interest to you. In addition, BlackRock restricts access to non-public personal information about its Clients to those BlackRock employees with a legitimate business need for the information. BlackRock maintains physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that are designed to protect the non-public personal information of its Clients, including procedures relating to the proper storage and disposal of such information.

Fund and Service Providers

 

 

 

34		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Additional Information (continued)

 

 

Fund and Service Providers (continued)

 

 

 

A D D I T I O N A L   I N F O R M A T I O N		35

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Glossary of Terms Used in this Report

 

 

Currency Abbreviation

 

USD		United States Dollar

 

Portfolio Abbreviation
CLO		Collateralized Loan Obligation
LIBOR		London Interbank Offered Rate
SOFR		Secured Overnight Financing Rate
TBA		To-Be-Announced

 

 

36		2 0 2 3   B L A C K R O C K   S E M I - A N N U A L   R E P O R T   T O   S H A R E H O L D E R S

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Want to know more?

blackrock.com    |    800-882-0052

This report is intended for current holders. It is not a prospectus. Past performance results shown in this report should not be considered a representation of future performance. Statements and other information herein are as dated and are subject to change.

EGF-06/23-SAR

 

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(b) Not Applicable

 

Item 2 –

Code of Ethics – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

 

Item 3 –

Audit Committee Financial Expert – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

 

Item 4 –

Principal Accountant Fees and Services – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

 

Item 5 –

Audit Committee of Listed Registrants – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

 

Item 6 –

Investments

(a) The registrant’s Schedule of Investments is included as part of the Report to Stockholders filed under Item 1(a) of this Form.

(b) Not Applicable due to no such divestments during the semi-annual period covered since the previous Form N-CSR filing.

 

Item 7 –

Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

 

Item 8 –

Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies

(a) Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

(b) As of the date of this filing, there have been no changes in any of the portfolio managers identified in the most recent annual report on Form N-CSR.

 

Item 9 –

Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers – Not Applicable due to no such purchases during the period covered by this report.

 

Item 10 –

Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders – There have been no material changes to these procedures.

 

Item 11 –

Controls and Procedures

(a) The registrant’s principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, have concluded that the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)) are effective as of a date within 90 days of the filing of this report based on the evaluation of these controls and procedures required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the 1940 Act and Rule 13a-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

(b) There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the 1940 Act) that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Item 12 –

Disclosure of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

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Item 13 –

Exhibits attached hereto

(a)(1) Code of Ethics – Not Applicable to this semi-annual report

(a)(2) Section 302 Certifications are attached

(a)(3) Any written solicitation to purchase securities under Rule 23c-1 – Not Applicable

(a)(4) Change in Registrant’s independent public accountant – Not Applicable

(b) Section 906 Certifications are attached

(c) Notices to the registrant’s common shareholders in accordance with the order under Section  6(c) of the 1940 Act granting an exemption from Section 19(b) of the 1940 Act and Rule 19b-1 under the 1940 Act, dated May 9, 2009¹ 

 

 

1

The Fund has received exemptive relief from the Securities and Exchange Commission permitting it to make periodic distributions of long-term capital gains with respect to its outstanding common stock as frequently as twelve times each year, and as frequently as distributions are specified by or in accordance with the terms of its outstanding preferred stock. This relief is conditioned, in part, on an undertaking by the Fund to make the disclosures to the holders of the Fund’s common shares, in addition to the information required by Section 19(a) of the 1940 Act and Rule 19a-1 thereunder. The Fund is likewise obligated to file with the SEC the information contained in any such notice to shareholders and, in that regard, has attached hereto copies of each such notice made during the period.

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Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

 

		By:		/s/ John M. Perlowski
				John M. Perlowski
				Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of
				BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

Date: August 25, 2023

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

		By:		/s/ John M. Perlowski
				John M. Perlowski
				Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of
				BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

Date: August 25, 2023

 

		By:		/s/ Trent Walker
				Trent Walker
				Chief Financial Officer (principal financial officer) of
				BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

Date: August 25, 2023

 

EX-99. CERT

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO RULE 30a-2(a) UNDER THE 1940 ACT AND SECTION 302 OF THE

SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

 

 

I, John M. Perlowski, Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc., certify that:

1.            I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.;

2.            Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

3.            Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.            The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the registrant and have:

a)            designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

b)            designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

c)            evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report based on such evaluation; and

d)            disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.            The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a)            all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and

b)            any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: August 25, 2023    

/s/ John M. Perlowski        

John M. Perlowski

Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

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EX-99. CERT

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO RULE 30a-2(a) UNDER THE 1940 ACT AND SECTION 302 OF THE

SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

 

 

I, Trent Walker, Chief Financial Officer (principal financial officer) of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc., certify that:

1.            I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.;

2.            Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

3.            Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.            The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the registrant and have:

a)            designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

b)            designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

c)            evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report based on such evaluation; and

d)            disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.            The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a)            all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and

b)            any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: August 25, 2023    

/s/ Trent Walker        

Trent Walker

Chief Financial Officer (principal financial officer) of

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

 

Exhibit 99.906CERT

Certification Pursuant to Rule 30a-2(b) under the 1940 Act and

Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1350, the undersigned officer of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (the “Registrant”), hereby certifies, to the best of his knowledge, that the Registrant’s Report on Form N-CSR for the period ended June 30, 2023 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and that the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Registrant.

Date: August 25, 2023

/s/ John M. Perlowski        

John M. Perlowski

Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer) of

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1350, the undersigned officer of BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc. (the “Registrant”), hereby certifies, to the best of his knowledge, that the Registrant’s Report on Form N-CSR for the period ended June 30, 2023 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and that the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Registrant.

Date: August 25, 2023

/s/ Trent Walker        

Trent Walker

Chief Financial Officer (principal financial officer) of

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund, Inc.

This certification is being furnished pursuant to Rule 30a-2(b) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and 18 U.S.C. § 1350 and is not being filed as part of the Form N-CSR with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund Inc.

Cusip: 09255K108

Ticker: EGF

 

Record Date			June 15, 2023
Pay Date			June 30, 2023
Distribution Amount per share		$	0.041000

The following table sets forth the estimated amounts of the current distribution and the cumulative distributions paid this fiscal year to date from the following sources: net income, net realized short-term capital gains, net realized long-term capital gains and return of capital. All amounts are expressed per common share.

 

		Current Distribution				% Breakdown  of the Current Distribution				Total Cumulative  Distributions for the Fiscal  Year to Date				% Breakdown of the Total   Cumulative Distributions for   the Fiscal Year to Date
Net Income		$	0.030828				75%			$	0.139733				57%
Net Realized Short-Term Capital Gains		$	-				0%			$	-				0%
Net Realized Long-Term Capital Gains		$	-				0%			$	-				0%
Return of Capital		$	0.010172				25%			$	0.106267				43%
Total (per common share)		$	0.041000				100%			$	0.246000				100%
Average annual total return (in relation to NAV) for the 5-year period ending on May 31, 2023															-1.47%
Annualized current distribution rate expressed as a percentage of NAV as of May 31, 2023															4.74%
Cumulative total return (in relation to NAV) for the fiscal year through May 31, 2023															1.95%
Cumulative fiscal year distributions as a percentage of NAV as of May 31, 2023															1.97%

You should not draw any conclusions about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of this distribution or from the terms of the Fund’s Managed Distribution Plan.

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its net income and net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in the Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with ‘yield’ or ‘income’.

When distributions exceed total return performance, the difference will reduce the Fund’s net asset value per share.

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this Notice are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund’s investment experience during its fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes.

Contact Number: 800-882-0052

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BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund Inc.

Cusip: 09255K108

Ticker: EGF

 

Record Date			July 14, 2023
Pay Date			July 31, 2023
Distribution Amount per share		$	0.041000

The following table sets forth the estimated amounts of the current distribution and the cumulative distributions paid this fiscal year to date from the following sources: net income, net realized short-term capital gains, net realized long-term capital gains and return of capital. All amounts are expressed per common share.

 

		Current Distribution				% Breakdown  of the Current Distribution				Total Cumulative  Distributions for the Fiscal  Year to Date				% Breakdown of the Total   Cumulative Distributions for   the Fiscal Year to Date
Net Income		$	0.032866				80%			$	0.172599				60%
Net Realized Short-Term Capital Gains		$	-				0%			$	-				0%
Net Realized Long-Term Capital Gains		$	-				0%			$	-				0%
Return of Capital		$	0.008134				20%			$	0.114401				40%
Total (per common share)		$	0.041000				100%			$	0.287000				100%
Average annual total return (in relation to NAV) for the 5-year period ending on June 30, 2023															-1.52%
Annualized current distribution rate expressed as a percentage of NAV as of June 30, 2023															4.76%
Cumulative total return (in relation to NAV) for the fiscal year through June 30, 2023															1.99%
Cumulative fiscal year distributions as a percentage of NAV as of June 30, 2023															2.38%

You should not draw any conclusions about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of this distribution or from the terms of the Fund’s Managed Distribution Plan.

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its net income and net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in the Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with ‘yield’ or ‘income’.

When distributions exceed total return performance, the difference will reduce the Fund’s net asset value per share.

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this Notice are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund’s investment experience during its fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes.

Contact Number: 800-882-0052

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BlackRock Enhanced Government Fund Inc.

Cusip: 09255K108

Ticker: EGF

 

Record Date			August 15, 2023
Pay Date			August 31, 2023
Distribution Amount per share		$	0.041000

The following table sets forth the estimated amounts of the current distribution and the cumulative distributions paid this fiscal year to date from the following sources: net income, net realized short-term capital gains, net realized long-term capital gains and return of capital. All amounts are expressed per common share.

 

		Current Distribution				% Breakdown  of the Current Distribution				Total Cumulative  Distributions for the Fiscal  Year to Date				% Breakdown of the Total   Cumulative Distributions for   the Fiscal Year to Date
Net Income		$	0.030741				75%			$	0.203340				62%
Net Realized Short-Term Capital Gains		$	-				0%			$	-				0%
Net Realized Long-Term Capital Gains		$	-				0%			$	-				0%
Return of Capital		$	0.010259				25%			$	0.124660				38%
Total (per common share)		$	0.041000				100%			$	0.328000				100%
Average annual total return (in relation to NAV) for the 5-year period ending on July 31, 2023															-1.47%
Annualized current distribution rate expressed as a percentage of NAV as of July 31, 2023															4.77%
Cumulative total return (in relation to NAV) for the fiscal year through July 31, 2023															2.11%
Cumulative fiscal year distributions as a percentage of NAV as of July 31, 2023															2.78%

You should not draw any conclusions about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of this distribution or from the terms of the Fund’s Managed Distribution Plan.

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its net income and net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when some or all of the money that you invested in the Fund is paid back to you. A return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Fund’s investment performance and should not be confused with ‘yield’ or ‘income’.

When distributions exceed total return performance, the difference will reduce the Fund’s net asset value per share.

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this Notice are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund’s investment experience during its fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes.

Contact Number: 800-882-0052

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