**iShares Silver Trust reports first-quarter asset decline as redemptions outpace creations** iShares Silver Trust (SLV) reported that its net assets fell during the quarter ended March 31, 2026, primarily because investors redeemed more shares than were created, even as the price of silver rose modestly. The trust’s net asset value declined to **$35.67 billion** at March 31, 2026, from **$38.05 billion** at December 31, 2025, a decrease of **6.24%**. SLV, a passive grantor trust sponsored by **iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC** and administered by **The Bank of New York Mellon** as trustee, holds silver bullion and seeks to reflect the performance of silver before expenses. Its shares trade on NYSE Arca under the ticker **SLV** and represent fractional undivided beneficial interests in the trust’s net assets. The trust issues and redeems shares only with authorized participants, only in exchange for silver, and only in blocks of **50,000 shares**, known as baskets. During the first quarter, SLV issued **102.9 million shares**, equal to **2,058 baskets**, while redeeming **143.85 million shares**, equal to **2,877 baskets**. As a result, shares outstanding declined by **40.95 million**, from **582.95 million shares** at December 31, 2025, to **542.0 million shares** at March 31, 2026. The trust disclosed under Item 2 that there were **no unregistered sales of equity securities**, and that the quarter’s redemptions were: **50.15 million shares** in January at an average of **0.9064 ounces of silver per share**, **50.65 million shares** in February at **0.9060 ounces per share**, and **43.05 million shares** in March at **0.9057 ounces per share**. The decline in assets was partly offset by a higher silver price. The price of silver used by the trust rose **0.97%**, from **$71.99** at December 31, 2025, to **$72.69** at March 31, 2026. SLV’s net asset value per share increased **0.83%**, from **$65.27** to **$65.81**, with the smaller percentage gain reflecting the impact of the sponsor’s fee. The trust reported that its NAV reached a quarterly high of **$107.35** on January 29, 2026, and a low of **$60.88** on March 23, 2026. For the quarter, SLV recorded a **net increase in net assets from operations of $497.4 million**. That result included a **net realized gain of $26.3 million** from silver bullion sold to pay expenses and a **net realized gain of $5.99 billion** on silver bullion distributed for share redemptions. These gains were largely offset by a **$5.47 billion unrealized loss** on silver bullion and a **net investment loss of $52.7 million**, reflecting the sponsor’s fee. The sponsor’s fee was the trust’s only ordinary expense for the period and represented about **0.12%** of average weighted assets of **$42.77 billion**. The filing also reported that SLV had **no legal proceedings**, no defaults upon senior securities, and no mine-safety disclosures. The trust said there were **no material changes** to previously disclosed risk factors and that its disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of March 31, 2026. Because SLV is a commodity trust rather than an operating company, the quarter’s key developments center on bullion holdings, creations and redemptions of shares, the silver price, expenses, and resulting changes in net asset value.