AB 2020 Form 10-K

of 162% and 163%, respectively. For a discussion of certain risks associated with the reduction of the required minimum asset coverage ratio applicable to the Fund, see “ Risk Factors — Risks Related to The Fund’s Business and Structure — The SBCAA allows the Fund to incur additional leverage, which may increase the risk of investing with the Fund. ” Critical Accounting Policies Valuation of Investments The Fund measures the value of its investments at fair value accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosure , or “ASC Topic 820,” issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or “FASB.” Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The audit committee of the Board (the “Audit Committee”) is also responsible for assisting the Board in valuing investments that are not publicly traded or for which current market values are not readily available. Investments for which market quotations are readily available are valued using market quotations, which are generally obtained from independent pricing services, broker-dealers or market makers. With respect to portfolio investments for which market quotations are not readily available, the Board, with the assistance of the Adviser and its senior investment team and independent valuation firms, is responsible for determining in good faith the fair value in accordance with the valuation policy approved by the Board. If more than one valuation method is used to measure fair value, the results are evaluated and weighted, as appropriate, considering the reasonableness of the range indicated by those results. The Fund considers a range of fair values based upon the valuation techniques utilized and selects the value within that range that was most representative of fair value based on current market conditions as well as other factors the Adviser’s senior investment team considers relevant. ASC Topic 820 specifies a hierarchy of valuation techniques based on whether the inputs to those valuation techniques are observable or unobservable. ASC Topic 820 also provides guidance regarding a fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes information used to measure fair value and the effect of fair value measurements on earnings and provides for enhanced disclosures determined by the level within the hierarchy of information used in the valuation. In accordance with ASC Topic 820, these inputs are summarized in the three levels listed below: • Level 1 – Quoted prices in active markets for identical investments. • Level 2 – Other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar investments, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.). • Level 3 – Significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments at the reporting date). The level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement is categorized in its entirety is determined on the basis of the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. For this purpose, the significance of an input is assessed against the fair value measurement in its entirety. If a fair value measurement uses observable inputs that require significant adjustment based on unobservable inputs, that measurement is a Level 3 measurement. If a fair value measurement uses price data vendors or observable market price quotations, that measurement is a Level 2 measurement. Assessing the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment, considering factors specific to the asset or liability. The determination of what constitutes “observable” requires significant judgment by the Fund. The Fund considers observable data to be that market data that is readily available, regularly distributed or updated, reliable and verifiable, not proprietary, and provided by independent sources that are actively involved in the relevant market. Because of the inherent uncertainty of valuation for all fair value investments and interests, the Board’s determination of fair value may differ from the values that would have been used had a ready market existed, or that could have been (or will be) realized in an actual sale, and such differences could be material. The value of any investment on any valuation date is intended to represent the fair value of such investment on such date based upon the amount at which the investment could be exchanged between willing parties, other than in a forced liquidation sale, and reflects the Board’s determination of fair value using the methodology described herein. Any valuation of an investment may not reflect the actual amount received by the Fund upon the liquidation of such investment. The Fund’s investments will be primarily loans made to middle-market companies. These investments are mostly considered Level 3 assets under ASC Topic 820 because there is not usually a known or accessible market or market indices for these types of debt instruments and, thus, the Adviser’s senior investment team must estimate the fair value of these investment securities based on models utilizing unobservable inputs. 81