Strategy. The Fund consists of two main components. First, a majority of its portfolio, referred to herein as the Core Sleeve, operates as a fund-of-funds that invests primarily in mutual funds offered by Nationwide Variable Insurance Trust and unaffiliated exchange-traded funds (ETFs) (each, an Underlying Fund or collectively, Underlying Funds). Each Underlying Fund invests directly in equity or fixed-income securities, as appropriate to its investment objective and strategies. Certain Underlying Funds are actively managed, and other Underlying Funds are index funds, which means they seek to match the investment returns of specified stock or bond indices before the deduction of the Underlying Funds expenses. Some Underlying Funds use futures, swaps and options, which are derivatives, either to hedge against investment risks, … Show more… The Fund consists of two main components. First, a majority of its portfolio, referred to herein as the Core Sleeve, operates as a fund-of-funds that invests primarily in mutual funds offered by Nationwide Variable Insurance Trust and unaffiliated exchange-traded funds (ETFs) (each, an Underlying Fund or collectively, Underlying Funds). Each Underlying Fund invests directly in equity or fixed-income securities, as appropriate to its investment objective and strategies. Certain Underlying Funds are actively managed, and other Underlying Funds are index funds, which means they seek to match the investment returns of specified stock or bond indices before the deduction of the Underlying Funds expenses. Some Underlying Funds use futures, swaps and options, which are derivatives, either to hedge against investment risks, to obtain exposure to certain securities or groups of securities, to take short positions in certain securities, or otherwise to increase returns. The remainder of the Fund, referred to herein as the Volatility Overlay, invests in short-term fixed-income securities (or Underlying Funds that themselves invest in such securities) or is held in cash. In an attempt to manage the volatility of the Funds portfolio over a full market cycle, the Fund buys and sells stock index futures. For these purposes, a full market cycle can be measured from a point in the market cycle (e.g., a peak or trough) to the corresponding point in the next market cycle. The Funds short-term fixed-income securities and cash may be used to meet margin requirements and other obligations on the Funds derivative positions. The combination of the Core Sleeve and the Volatility Overlay is intended to result in a single Fund that is designed to offer traditional long-term asset allocation blended with a strategy that seeks to mitigate risk and manage the Funds volatility over a full market cycle. The Volatility Overlay may not be successful in reducing volatility, in particular, frequent or short-term volatility with little or no sustained market direction, and it is possible that the Volatility Overlay will result in underperformance or losses greater than if the Fund did not implement the Volatility Overlay. The level of volatility of the Funds portfolio reflects the degree to which the value of the Funds portfolio may be expected to rise or fall within a period of time. A high level of volatility means that the Funds value is expected to increase or decrease significantly over a period of time. A lower level of volatility means that the Funds value is not expected to fluctuate so significantly. The Fund is intended to be used primarily in connection with guaranteed benefits available through variable annuity contracts issued by Nationwide Life Insurance Company and Nationwide Life and Annuity Insurance Company (collectively, Nationwide Life), and is designed to help reduce a contract owners exposure to equity investments when equity markets are more volatile. The purpose of the Volatility Overlay is to minimize the costs and risks to Nationwide Life of supporting these guaranteed benefits. Although the reduction of equity exposure during periods of higher volatility is designed to decrease the risk of loss to your investment, it may prevent you from achieving higher investment returns. Further, the Funds use of leverage in its strategies may cause the Funds performance to be more volatile than if the Fund had not been leveraged. The Funds Core Sleeve seeks a high level of total return through investments in both equity and fixed-income securities by investing in Underlying Funds that invest in equity securities, such as common stocks of U.S. and international companies (including smaller companies) that the investment adviser believes offer opportunities for capital growth, and fixed-income securities (including mortgage-backed securities) in order to generate investment income. Consistent with this investment strategy, as of February 27, 2025, the Core Sleeve allocated approximately 52% of its net assets to equity securities (including international stocks and smaller company stocks) and approximately 48% of its net assets to bonds. Although the amount of the Funds assets allocated to the Core Sleeve was approximately 93% as of December 31, 2024, this amount may fluctuate within a general range of 90%100% of the Funds overall portfolio. Similarly, the amount of the Funds assets allocated to the Volatility Overlay may fluctuate within a general range of 0%10% in inverse correlation with the Core Sleeve, although this amount was approximately 7% as of December 31, 2024. The investment adviser generally buys or sells shares of Underlying Funds in order to meet or change target allocations or in response to shareholder redemption activity. The Volatility Overlay is designed to manage the volatility of the Funds portfolio over a full market cycle by using stock index futures to hedge against stock market risks and/or to increase or decrease the Funds overall exposure to equity markets. The Volatility Overlay also invests in short-term fixed-income securities (or Underlying Funds that themselves invest in such securities) that may be used to meet margin requirements and other obligations of the Funds futures positions and/or to reduce the Funds overall equity exposure. When volatility is high or stock market values are falling, the Volatility Overlay will typically seek to decrease the Funds equity exposure by holding fewer stock index futures or by taking short positions in stock index futures. A short sale strategy involves the sale by the Fund of securities it does not own with the expectation of purchasing the same securities at a later date at a lower price. When volatility is low or stock market values are rising, the Volatility Overlay may use stock index futures with the intention of maximizing stock market gains. These strategies may expose the Fund to leverage. Therefore, even though the Core Sleeve allocates close to 50% of its assets to equity investments, the Volatility Overlay will be used to increase or decrease the Funds overall equity exposure within a general range of 0% to 65%, depending on market conditions. Nationwide Fund Advisors (NFA) is the investment adviser to the Fund and is also responsible for managing the Core Sleeves investment in the Underlying Funds. Nationwide Asset Management, LLC, the Funds subadviser, is responsible for managing the Volatility Overlay. Although the Fund seeks to provide diversification across major asset classes, the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in a small number of issuers (i.e., one or more Underlying Funds). However, the Fund may invest directly in securities and derivatives in addition to investing in Underlying Funds. Further, most of the Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests are diversified. Show less