After you accept your invitation, there are three things to do, in this order.
1. Open your Cache brokerage account
You do this through the Transfer Stock step in the portal. This account is opened in your own name through Cache Securities and is where your shares are held until the fund close.
A few things people ask at this point:
You still own your shares. Nothing about your ownership changes when they move.
This account will not appear inside your existing brokerage login. It is visible in Cache.
The Transfer Stock step stays locked for a short time until your account number is generated. That clears on its own.
2. Transfer your shares in
There are two routes, and which one applies depends on where your shares are held today. The portal gives you instructions for your specific brokerage.
ACATS, where Cache pulls the position from your brokerage. Typically three to five business days, and your cost basis transfers automatically.
DTC, where you push the shares from your brokerage. Typically one to two business days, but cost basis does not transfer automatically, so you will supply your lot detail in the portal.
Two things worth handling as you set up the transfer:
You can choose which lots to contribute. The app guides you through selecting the lots that will transfer, using the tax lot relief method that suits you, such as first in first out, low cost, or specific identification. Most investors contribute their lowest-basis lots; your tax adviser can help you choose. For a partial transfer, it is worth confirming your current brokerage's own lot relief setting too, so the lots that leave match the lots you selected.
If your shares are held in a company stock plan or equity compensation account, export your lot details first. These accounts are commonly rejected for ACATS, so DTC is usually the route and your basis will need to be supplied manually.
3. Confirm your cost basis and sign your documents
Once your shares arrive, you confirm your cost basis in the portal, then review and sign your subscription documents.
Cost basis is the most common reason someone misses a close, so it is worth getting to this step early rather than close to a deadline.
What happens next
About two days before the close, you receive an inspection report showing the fund's current holdings and composition. It does not commit you to anything. You can still step back at that point, even after signing your subscription documents, and you would simply move to a later close or revoke your contribution.
On the close date, your contribution is valued at the closing price on the exchange date, not the price on the day you transferred, and your shares are automatically absorbed into the fund after market close.
Your current step and your close date are always shown on your invitation in the portal. If something looks stuck for more than a week after your brokerage confirms it sent the shares, contact us and we will look at it directly.