AVESTA TRUST, 497, 1998-01-07

AVESTA TRUST
497, 1998-01-07

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<PAGE>
Filed pursuant to Rule 497(c)
Registration File Nos. 33-9421 and 811-5526

PROSPECTUS
CHASE FUNDS

INVESTMENT STRATEGIES:

CHASE MONEY MARKET FUND: CURRENT INCOME
CHASE SHORT-INTERMEDIATE TERM
U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND: INCOME
CHASE U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND: INCOME
CHASE INTERMEDIATE TERM BOND FUND: INCOME
CHASE INCOME FUND: INCOME
CHASE BALANCED FUND: INCOME AND GROWTH
CHASE EQUITY INCOME FUND: GROWTH AND INCOME
CHASE CORE EQUITY FUND: TOTAL RETURN
CHASE EQUITY GROWTH FUND: CAPITAL GROWTH
CHASE SMALL CAPITALIZATION FUND: CAPITAL GROWTH

PREMIER SHARES

January 1, 1998

This Prospectus explains concisely what you should know before investing. Please
read it carefully and keep it for future reference. You can find more detailed
information about the Funds in their January 1, 1998 Statement of Additional
Information, as amended periodically (the 'SAI'). For a free copy of the SAI,
call the Chase Funds Service Center at 1-800-62-CHASE. The SAI has been filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the 'Commission') and is
incorporated into this Prospectus by reference. In addition, the Commission
maintains a Web site (http://www.sec.gov) that contains the SAI, the Funds'
reports to shareholders and other information regarding the Funds which has been
electronically filed with the Commission.

THESE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED BY THE SECURITIES AND
EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION, NOR HAS THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION PASSED UPON THE
ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THIS PROSPECTUS. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY IS A
CRIMINAL OFFENSE.

INVESTMENTS IN THE MONEY MARKET FUND ARE NEITHER INSURED NOR GUARANTEED BY THE
U.S. GOVERNMENT AND THERE CAN BE NO ASSURANCE THAT SUCH FUND WILL BE ABLE TO
MAINTAIN A STABLE NET ASSET VALUE OF $1.00 PER SHARE.

SHARES OF THE FUNDS ARE NOT BANK DEPOSITS OR OBLIGATIONS OF, OR GUARANTEED OR
ENDORSED BY, THE CHASE MANHATTAN BANK OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES AND ARE NOT
INSURED BY THE FDIC, THE FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD OR ANY OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCY.
INVESTMENTS IN MUTUAL FUNDS INVOLVE RISK, INCLUDING THE POSSIBLE LOSS OF THE
PRINCIPAL AMOUNT INVESTED.

<PAGE>

The Chase Funds are portfolios of Mutual Fund Investment Trust ('MFIT'), an
open-end investment company organized as a Massachusetts business trust in

September 1997. The Chase Funds are managed by The Chase Manhattan Bank
('Chase'), a subsidiary of The Chase Manhattan Corporation ('CMC'). As indicated
below, the Funds are successor investment portfolios to portfolios of the AVESTA
Trust, the predecessor entity of MFIT. The AVESTA Trust was a collective trust
established under the laws of the State of Texas by Texas Commerce Bank National
Association, which will change its name to Chase Bank of Texas, National
Association on January 20, 1998 (herein, 'Chase Texas'). The AVESTA Trust was
registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and was available solely for
certain individual retirement accounts and pension and profit-sharing plans. The
AVESTA Trust was converted and redomiciled into MFIT, effective as of January 1,
1998 (the 'Conversion'). Chase Texas acted as the trustee of the AVESTA Trust,
and as trustee was obligated to provide the investment portfolios of the AVESTA
Trust with the investment advisory, administrative, custodial and other services
necessary to manage the portfolios.

<PAGE>

TABLE OF CONTENTS

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
CHASE MONEY MARKET FUND.................................................... 4

CHASE SHORT-INTERMEDIATE TERM U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND.............. 8

CHASE U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND...................................... 11

CHASE INTERMEDIATE TERM BOND FUND.......................................... 14

CHASE INCOME FUND.......................................................... 17

CHASE BALANCED FUND........................................................ 21

CHASE EQUITY INCOME FUND................................................... 25

CHASE CORE EQUITY FUND..................................................... 29

CHASE EQUITY GROWTH FUND................................................... 32

CHASE SMALL CAPITALIZATION FUND............................................ 36

COMMON INVESTMENT POLICIES................................................. 39

MANAGEMENT................................................................. 49

HOW TO BUY, SELL AND EXCHANGE SHARES....................................... 50

HOW THE FUNDS VALUE THEIR SHARES........................................... 52

HOW DISTRIBUTIONS ARE MADE; TAX INFORMATION................................ 52

OTHER INFORMATION CONCERNING THE FUNDS..................................... 54

PERFORMANCE INFORMATION.................................................... 56
</TABLE>

<PAGE>

CHASE MONEY MARKET FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Money Market Fund's objective is to provide maximum current
income consistent with the preservation of capital and the maintenance of
liquidity.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund invests in high quality, short-term,
U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments. The Fund invests principally
in (i) high quality commercial paper and other short-term obligations, including
floating and variable rate master demand notes of U.S. and foreign issuers; (ii)
U.S. dollar-denominated obligations of foreign governments and supranational
agencies (e.g., the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development);
(iii) obligations issued or guaranteed by U.S. banks with total assets exceeding
$1 billion (including obligations of foreign branches of such banks) and by
foreign banks with total assets exceeding $10 billion (or the equivalent in
other currencies) which have branches or agencies in the U.S. (including U.S.
branches of such banks), or such other U.S. or foreign commercial banks which
are judged by the Fund's adviser to meet comparable credit standing criteria;
(iv) securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or
instrumentalities; and (v) repurchase agreements.

MATURITY. The dollar weighted average maturity of the Fund will be 90 days or
less. The Fund purchases only instruments which have or are deemed to have
remaining maturities of 397 days or less in accordance with federal regulations.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund invests only in U.S. dollar-denominated high quality
obligations which are determined to present minimal credit risks. This credit
determination must be made in accordance with procedures established by the
Board of Trustees. Each investment must be rated in the highest short-term
rating category by at least two nationally recognized statistical rating
organizations ('NRSROs') (or one NRSRO if the instrument was rated only by one
such organization) or, if unrated, must be determined to be of comparable
quality in accordance with the procedures of the Trust. If a security has an
unconditional guarantee or similar enhancement, the issuer of the guarantee or
enhancement may be relied upon in meeting these ratings requirements rather than
the issuer of the security.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund seeks to maintain a net asset value of $1.00 per share.
The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Money Market Fund based on
estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative
expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified

periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)
Management Fee........................................................ 0.30%
12b-1 Fee............................................................. None
Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements)*.......... 0.20%
Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements)*.................................................... 0.50%
</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $5 $16 $28 $ 63
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.29% and 0.59%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

The table is provided to help you understand the expenses of investing in the
Fund and your share of the operating expenses that the Fund incurs. THE EXAMPLE
SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED A REPRESENTATION OF PAST OR FUTURE EXPENSES OR RETURNS;
ACTUAL EXPENSES AND RETURNS MAY BE GREATER OR LESS THAN SHOWN.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Money Market Fund series (the 'Predecessor Fund')
of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Money Market Fund. The table set
forth below provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit of the
Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by financial statements and
accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for the period ended
June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the SAI. Shareholders
may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and the Semi-Annual Report by contacting
the Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended December 31, 1992
through December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP, whose
unqualified report is included in the Annual Report. Information for periods
prior to the fiscal year ended December 31, 1992 have been examined by other
accountants whose opinion was unqualified.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period
ended
June 30, For the years ended December 31,
1997 -----------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning
of
period.................. $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
Investment income....... 0.027 0.054 0.059 0.045 0.032
Expenses................ (0.002)(3) (0.006)(3) (0.006)(3) (0.007)(3) (0.008)
Expense reimbursement... 0.000 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.002
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment income... 0.025 0.049 0.054 0.039 0.026
Dividends to
unitholders........... (0.025) (0.049) (0.054) (0.039) (0.026)
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end of
period.................. $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
Total return.............. 2.51% 5.10% 5.57% 3.80% 2.60%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of
period (000).......... $ 125,607 $119,106 $71,310 $55,505 $28,024
Ratio of expenses to
average net assets.... 0.55%(4) 0.57% 0.57% 0.68% 0.82%
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net assets.... (0.05%)(4)(5) (0.07%)(5) (0.07%)(5) (0.18%)(5) (0.17%)(5)
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------

Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets.... 0.50%(2)(4) 0.50%(2) 0.50%(2) 0.50%(2) 0.65%
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
----------- -------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income to
average net assets.... 5.02%(4) 4.93% 5.43% 3.90% 2.57%
</TABLE>

<PAGE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the years ended December 31,
-----------------------------------------------------------
1992 1991 1990 1989 1988(1)
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning
of period............... $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Investment income....... 0.041 0.063 0.082 0.091 0.061

Expenses................ (0.008) (0.007) (0.009) (0.010) (0.016 )

Expense reimbursement... 0.002 0.001 0.002 0.003 0.011
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Net investment income... 0.035 0.057 0.075 0.084 0.056

Dividends to
unitholders........... (0.035) (0.057) (0.075) (0.084) (0.056 )
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Net asset value, end of
period.................. $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00
------- ------- ------- ------- -------
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Total return.............. 3.44% 6.01% 7.80% 8.91% 7.45 %

Ratios/supplemental data:

Net assets, end of
period (000).......... $32.961 $32,230 $25,832 $18,891 $5,079

Ratio of expenses to
average net assets.... 0.81% 0.80% 0.88% 0.96% 2.16 %(4)

Ratio of expense
reimbursement to

average net assets.... (0.16%)(5) (0.15%)(5) (0.23%)(5) (0.31%)(5) (1.51 )(4)(5)
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets.... 0.65% 0.65% 0.65% 0.65% 0.65 %(4)
------- ------- ------- ------- -------
------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Ratio of net income to
average net assets.... 3.37% 5.69% 7.53% 8.49% 6.11 %(4)
</TABLE>

(1) Commenced investment operations on March 29, 1988.

(2) Reflects management fee reduction of 0.15% or $87,988, $134,952, $100,525
and $27,802, for the six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years
ended December 31, 1996, 1995, and 1994, respectively. For the year ended
December 31, 1994 the actual net expense ratio for the year was 0.56% of
average net assets as the fee reduction went into effect on 5/2/94.

(3) Reflects management fee reduction of $87,988 or $0.001 per unit, $134,952
or $0.002 per unit, $100,525 or $0.002 per unit, and $27,802 or $0.001 per
unit for the six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years ended
December 31, 1996, 1995 and 1994, respectively. Without management fee
reduction, expense per unit is $0.003, $0.007, $0.007, and $0.008 for the
six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years ended December 31, 1996,
1995 and 1994, respectively.

(4) Annualized.

(5) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 0.65% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE SHORT-INTERMEDIATE TERM
U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Short-Intermediate Term Fund's objective is to provide as high a
level of current income as is consistent with the preservation of capital.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund invests primarily (under normal market
conditions, at least 70% of the value of the Fund's total assets) in securities
issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities,
and repurchase agreements with respect thereto. The Fund expects that
substantially all of its assets will be so invested. The Fund seeks to preserve
capital by investing in shorter-term securities; it expects the volatility in
the principal value of its shorter-term investments to be more limited than that
associated with investments in comparable securities having longer maturities.
The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities issued or guaranteed by
certain agencies of the U.S. Government as described below under 'Common
Investment Policies--Other Investment Practices--Mortgage-Related Securities.'

MATURITY. As a matter of operating policy, under normal market conditions the
dollar-weighted average maturity of the Fund's portfolio, measured at the time
an investment is made, will be between two and five years. There is no
restriction on the maturity of any individual asset which may be acquired by the
Fund. The average maturity of securities in the Fund will be based primarily
upon the adviser's expectations for the future course of interest rates and the
then prevailing price and yield levels in the U.S. Government securities market.

MISCELLANEOUS. Guarantees of principal and interest on obligations that may be
purchased by the Fund are not guarantees of the market value of such
obligations, nor do they extend to the value of the shares of the Fund. The Fund
is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Short-Intermediate Term Fund
based on estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the
cumulative expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over
specified periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)
Management Fee......................................................... 0.50%
12b-1 Fee.............................................................. None
Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements)*........... 0.25%

Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements)*...................................................... 0.75%
</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................... $8 $24 $42 $ 93
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.62% and 1.12%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Short-Intermediate Term U.S. Government
Securities Fund series (the 'Predecessor Fund') of the AVESTA Trust was
converted into the Short-Intermediate Term U.S. Government Securities Fund. The
table set forth below provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit
of the Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by financial
statements and accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual
Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for
the period ended June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the
SAI. Shareholders may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and the Semi-Annual
Report by contacting the Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended
December 31, 1993 through December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price
Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified report is included in the Annual Report.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period ended For the years ended December 31,
June 30, 1997 ----------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of period.... $ 11.66 $ 11.35 $ 10.14 $ 10.24 $ 10.00
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Investment income...... 0.36 0.69 0.66 0.52 0.33
Expenses............... (0.05) (0.10) (0.10) (0.09) (0.11)(3)
Expense
reimbursement ....... 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.07
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment
income .............. 0.32 0.60 0.58 0.45 0.29
Net gains or (losses)
on securities (both
realized and
unrealized).......... (0.05) (0.29) 0.63 (0.55) (0.05)
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total from investment
operations........... 0.27 0.31 1.21 (0.10) 0.24
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end of
period................. $ 11.93 $ 11.66 $ 11.35 $ 10.14 $ 10.24
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total return............ 2.35% 2.68% 12.01% (1.05%) 2.43%
Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)......... $24,703 $28,551 $28,783 $22,992 $17,391
Ratio of expenses to
average net assets... 0.93%(2) 0.88% 0.91% 0.96% 1.66%(2)

Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net assets... (0.18%)(2)(5) (0.13%)(5) (0.16%)(5) (0.21%)(5) (0.91 )(2)(5)
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net expenses
to average net
assets .............. 0.75%(2) 0.75% 0.75% 0.75% 0.75%(2)(4)
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income to
average net assets... 5.44%(2) 5.26% 5.38% 4.41% 3.76%(2)
Portfolio turnover
rate................. 46% 177% 187% 268% 247%
Number of units
outstanding at end of
period (000)......... 2,070 2,449 2,536 2,269 1,698
</TABLE>

(1) Commenced investment operations on April 1, 1993.
(2) Annualized.
(3) Reflects voluntary fee waiver of $9,789 or $0.02 per unit. Without
voluntary fee waiver, expense per unit is $0.13.
(4) Does not reflect voluntary waiver of management fees of $9,789. Net of the
voluntary management fee waiver, the net expense ratio is 0.60% of average
net assets. This figure is annualized.
(5) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 0.75% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The U.S. Government Securities Fund's objective is to provide current
income with emphasis on the preservation of capital.

MATURITY. As a matter of operating policy, under normal market conditions, the
dollar-weighted average maturity of the Fund's portfolio, measured at the time
an investment is made, will be between five and fifteen years. There is no
restriction on the maturity of any individual asset which may be acquired by the
Fund. The average maturity of securities in the Fund will be based primarily
upon the adviser's expectations for the future course of interest rates and the
then prevailing price and yield levels in the U.S. Government securities market.
Fixed income securities with longer maturities generally have less stable market
values.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the U.S. Government Securities
Fund based on estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows
the cumulative expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over
specified periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)
Management Fee........................................................ 0.50%
12b-1 Fee............................................................. None
Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements)*.......... 0.25%
Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements)*.................................................... 0.75%

</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier.................................... $8 $24 $42 $ 93
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
3.75% and 4.25%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the U.S. Government Securities Fund series (the
'Predecessor Fund') of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the U.S. Government
Securities Fund. The table set forth below provides selected per share data and
ratios for one Unit of the Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by
financial statements and accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's
Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report
for the period ended June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the
SAI. Shareholders may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and the Semi-Annual
Report by contacting the Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended
December 31, 1993 through December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price
Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified report is included in the Annual Report.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period ended For the years ended December 31,
June 30, 1997 -------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
------------- ------ ------ ------ -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning
of period ................ $ 12.76 $13.01 $10.00 $10.91 $10.00
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
Investment income......... 0.43 0.83 0.81 0.70 0.45
Expenses.................. (0.15)(3) (0.25)(3) (0.24)(3) (0.23)(3) (0.36 )(5)
Expense reimbursement..... 0.10 0.16 0.16 0.15 0.31
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
Net investment income..... 0.38 0.74 0.73 0.62 0.40
Net gains or (losses) on
securities (both
realized and
unrealized)............. (0.18) (0.99) 2.28 (1.53) 0.51
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
Total from investment
operations.............. 0.20 (0.25) 3.01 (0.91) 0.91
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
Net asset value, end of
period.................... $ 12.96 $12.76 $13.01 $10.00 $10.91
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
Total return................ 1.55% (1.89%) 30.11% (8.39%) 9.12 %
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period
(000)................... $ 2,669 $2,746 $2,877 $2,628 $2,916
Ratio of expenses to
average net assets...... 2.47%(2) 1.99% 2.12% 2.28% 4.69 %(2)
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to average
net assets.............. (1.72%)(2)(7) (1.24%)(7) (1.37%)(7) (1.53%)(7) (3.84 )(2)(7)
------ ------ ------ ------ -------

Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets...... 0.75%(2)(4) 0.75%(4) 0.75%(4) 0.75%(4) 0.85 %(6)
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
------ ------ ------ ------ -------
Ratio of net income to
average net assets...... 6.12%(2) 6.01% 6.38% 6.23% 4.91 %(2)
Portfolio turnover rate... 12% 48% 17% 174% 232 %
Number of units
outstanding at end of
period (000)............ 206 215 221 263 267
</TABLE>

(1) Commenced investment operations on April 1, 1993.

(2) Annualized.

(3) Reflects management fee reduction of $1,291 or $0.01 per unit, $2,757 or
$0.01 per unit, $2,527 or $0.01 per unit and $1,886 or $0.01 per unit for
the six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years ended December 31,
1996, 1995 and 1994. Without management fee reduction, expense per unit is
$0.16, $0.26, $0.25 and $0.24 for the six months ended June 30, 1997, and
for the years ended December 31, 1996, 1995 and 1994, respectively.

(4) Reflects management fee reduction of 0.10% or $1,291, $2,757, $2,527 and
$1,886 for the six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years ended
December 31, 1996, 1995 and 1994, respectively. For the year ended
December 31, 1994, the actual net expense ratio for the year was 0.80% of
average net assets as the fee reduction went into effect on May 2, 1994.

(5) Reflects voluntary fee waiver of $3,040 or $0.02 per unit. Without
voluntary fee waiver, expense per unit is $0.38.

(6) Does not reflect voluntary waiver of management fees of $3,040. Net of the
voluntary management fee waiver, the net expense ratio is 0.64% of average
net assets. This figure is annualized.

(7) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 0.85% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE INTERMEDIATE TERM BOND FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Intermediate Term Bond Fund's objective is to provide current
income, with consideration also given to stability of principal.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. Primary investment emphasis is on intermediate
term debt securities. Under normal market conditions, at least 70% of the Fund's
total assets will be invested in bonds, notes and debentures issued by domestic
or foreign issuers, U.S. Government securities, debt obligations collateralized
by U.S. Government securities or by private mortgages and preferred stock of
domestic issuers. The Fund may also invest in debt securities issued by foreign
issuers. The Fund will not typically invest in common stocks, although the Fund
may acquire common stocks as a result of purchases of unit offerings of fixed
income securities, which include such securities, or in connection with the
conversion or exchange of fixed income securities.

MATURITY. The Fund will maintain a dollar weighted average portfolio maturity
ranging from three to ten years. Fixed income securities purchased by the Fund
will normally have a maturity in excess of one year. The average maturity of
securities in the Fund will be based primarily upon the adviser's expectations
for the future course of interest rates and the then prevailing price and yield
levels in the fixed income market. Fixed income securities with longer
maturities generally have less stable market values.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Investment grade debt securities
are securities rated in the category Baa or higher by Moody's Investors Service,
Inc. ('Moody's') or BBB or higher by Standard & Poor's Corporation ('S&P') or
the equivalent by another NRSRO. Although the adviser is not required to dispose
of securities which are downgraded below investment grade subsequent to
acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities which are
downgraded below investment grade. The Fund's investments in securities other
than debt of domestic and foreign issuers and debt obligations issued or
guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities (e.g.,
preferred stock) will be based on the adviser's judgment of the quality of the
securities. The judgment may be based upon such considerations as the issuer's
financial strength, including its historic and current financial condition, and
its historic and projected earnings; the issuer's market position; and other
factors relevant to an analysis of a particular issuer, as determined by the
adviser.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Intermediate Term Bond Fund
based on estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the
cumulative expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over
specified periods.

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $8 $24 $42 $ 93
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.78% and 1.28%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Intermediate Term Bond Fund series (the
'Predecessor Fund') of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Intermediate Term
Bond Fund. The table set forth below provides selected per share data and ratios
for one Unit of the Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by
financial statements and accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's
Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report
for the period ended June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the
SAI. Shareholders may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report
by contacting the Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended December
31, 1994 through December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP,
whose unqualified report is included in the Annual Report.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period
ended
June 30, For the years ended December 31,
1997 ------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994
----------- ------ ------ ------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning
of period ................ $ 11.89 $11.67 $ 9.99 $10.00
----------- ------ ------ ------
Investment income......... 0.36 0.70 0.72 0.17
Expenses.................. (0.07) (0.16) (0.16) (0.08)
Expense reimbursement..... 0.03 0.07 0.08 0.06
----------- ------ ------ ------
Net investment income..... 0.32 0.61 0.64 0.15
Net gains or (losses) on
securities (both
realized and
unrealized) ............ (0.08) (0.39) 1.04 (0.16)
----------- ------ ------ ------
Total from investment
operations.............. 0.24 0.22 1.68 (0.01)
----------- ------ ------ ------
Net asset value, end of
period.................... $ 12.13 $11.89 $11.67 $ 9.99
----------- ------ ------ ------
----------- ------ ------ ------
Total return................ 2.04% 1.86% 16.79% (0.32%)
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period
(000)................... $17,155 $6,949 $5,031 $5,124
Ratio of expenses to
average net assets...... 1.19%(2) 1.42% 1.43% 1.38%(2)
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to average

net assets.............. (0.44%)(2)(3) (0.67%)(3) (0.68%)(3) (0.63%)(2)(3)
----------- ------ ------ ------
Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets...... 0.75%(2) 0.75% 0.75% 0.75%(2)
----------- ------ ------ ------
----------- ------ ------ ------
Ratio of net income to
average net assets...... 5.52%(2) 5.32% 5.89% 6.12%(2)
Portfolio turnover rate... 101% 134% 198% 7%
Number of units
outstanding at end of
period (000)............ 1,415 585 431 513
</TABLE>

(1) Commenced investment operations on October 3, 1994.

(2) Annualized.

(3) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 0.75% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE INCOME FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Income Fund's objective is to invest in securities that earn a
high level of current income with consideration also given to safety of
principal.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. Investment emphasis is on fixed income
securities, primarily domestic debt securities, such as bonds, notes and
debentures issued by domestic issuers, U.S. Government securities, debt
obligations collateralized by U.S. Government securities or by private mortgages
and preferred stock of domestic issuers. Under normal market conditions, at
least 70% of the Income Fund's total assets will be invested in such securities.
The Fund may also invest in debt securities issued by foreign issuers. The Fund
will not typically invest in common stock, although the Fund may acquire common
stock as a result of purchases of unit offerings of fixed income securities,
which include such securities, or in connection with the conversion or exchange
of fixed income securities.

MATURITY. Under normal market conditions it is expected that the dollar weighted
average maturity of the Fund will range between five to fifteen years. Fixed
income securities purchased by the Fund will normally have a maturity in excess
of one year. The average maturity of securities in the Fund will be based
primarily upon the adviser's expectations for the future course of interest
rates and the then prevailing price and yield levels in the fixed income market.
Fixed income securities with longer maturities generally have less stable market
values.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Although the adviser is not
required to dispose of securities which are downgraded below investment grade
subsequent to acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities
which are downgraded below investment grade. The Fund's investments in
securities other than debt of domestic and foreign issuers and debt obligations
issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities
(e.g., preferred stock) will be based on the adviser's judgment of the quality
of the securities. The judgment may be based upon such considerations as the
issuer's financial strength, including its historic and current financial
condition, and its historic and projected earnings; the issuer's market
position; and other factors relevant to an analysis of a particular issuer, as
determined by the adviser.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Income Fund based on estimated
expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative expenses
attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified periods.

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $8 $24 $42 $ 93
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.42% and 0.92%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Income Fund series (the 'Predecessor Fund') of
the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Income Fund. The table set forth below
provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit of the Predecessor
Fund. This information is supplemented by financial statements and accompanying
notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the fiscal year
ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for the period ended June 30,
1997, which are incorporated by reference into the SAI. Shareholders may obtain
a copy of the Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report by contacting the Fund. The
Financial Highlights for the periods ended December 31, 1992 through December
31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified report is
included in the Annual Report. Information for periods prior to the fiscal year
ended December 31, 1992 have been examined by other accountants whose opinion
was unqualified.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period
ended
June 30, For the years ended December 31,
1997 -----------------------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1) 1992(1)
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning
of period.......... $ 18.56 $ 18.21 $ 15.39 $ 16.11 $ 14.62 $ 13.90
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Investment
income........... .61 1.14 1.09 0.97 0.97 1.02
Expenses........... (.08)(3) (0.15)(3) (0.14)(3) (0.14)(3) (0.17) (0.16)
Expense
reimbursement.... .01 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.02 0.02
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment
income........... .54 1.00 0.97 0.84 0.82 0.88
Net gains or
(losses) on
securities (both
realized and
unrealized)...... (0.11) (0.65) 1.85 (1.56) 0.67 (0.16)
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total from
investment
operations....... 0.43 0.35 2.82 (0.72) 1.49 0.72
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end
of period.......... $ 18.99 $ 18.56 $ 18.21 $ 15.39 $ 16.11 $ 14.62
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------

Total return........ 2.31% 1.91% 18.38% (4.47%) 10.18% 5.13%
Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)..... $49,711 $53,614 $57,452 $52,235 $76,085 $64,509
Ratio of expenses
to average net
assets........... 0.84%(5) 0.82% 0.83% 0.82% 1.09% 1.17%
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net
assets........... (.09)%(5)(6) (0.07%)(6) (0.08%)(6) (0.07%)(6) (0.09%)(6) (0.17%)(6)
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net
expenses to
average net
assets........... .75%(4)(5) 0.75%(4) 0.75%(4) 0.75%(4) 1.00% 1.00%
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
----------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income
to average net
assets........... 5.82%(5) 5.58% 5.77% 5.43% 5.20% 6.21%
Portfolio turnover
rate............. 73% 72% 93% 239% 156% 285%
Number of units
outstanding at
end of period
(000)............ 2,617 2,889 3,154 3,395 4,724 4,413
</TABLE>

19
<PAGE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the years ended December 31,
-----------------------------------------------
1991(1) 1990(1) 1989(1) 1988(1)(2)
------- ------- ------- ----------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning of
period............................ $ 12.22 $ 11.47 $ 10.39 $10.00
------- ------- ------- ----------
Investment income................. 0.97 1.02 0.96 0.69
Expenses.......................... (0.15) (0.14) (0.15) (0.16)
Expense reimbursement............. 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.08
------- ------- ------- ----------
Net investment income............. 0.84 0.91 0.85 0.61
Net gains or (losses) on
securities (both realized and
unrealized)..................... 0.84 (0.16) 0.23 (0.22)
------- ------- ------- ----------
Total from investment
operations...................... 1.68 0.75 1.08 0.39

------- ------- ------- ----------
Net asset value, end of period...... $ 13.90 $ 12.22 $ 11.47 $10.39
------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ----------
Total return........................ 13.73% 6.60% 10.37% 5.23%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period (000)... $41,872 $19,353 $13,548 $6,095
Ratio of expenses to average net
assets.......................... 1.18% 1.24% 1.32% 2.15%(5)
Ratio of expense reimbursement to
average net assets.............. (0.18%)(6) (0.24%)(6) (0.32%)(6) (1.15%)(5)(6)
------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net expenses to average
net assets...................... 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00%(5)
------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net income to average
net assets...................... 6.57% 7.91% 7.65% 7.97%(5)
Portfolio turnover rate........... 304% 241% 361% 110%
Number of units outstanding at end
of period (000)................. 3.012 1,583 1,181 586
</TABLE>

(1) Amounts for the years 1988-1993 are adjusted to reflect 10:1 reverse split
of the Fund's units on May 7, 1993.

(2) Commenced investment operations on March 29, 1988.

(3) Reflects management fee reduction of $65,096 or $0.03 per unit, $135,137
or $0.05 per unit, $136,617 or $0.04 per unit, and $99,627 or $0.03 per
unit for the six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years ended
December 31, 1996, 1995, and 1994, respectively. Without management fee
reduction, expense per unit is $0.11, $0.18, $0.18 and $0.17 for the six
months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years ended December 31, 1996,
1995, and 1994, respectively.

(4) Reflects management fee reduction of 0.25% or $65,096, $135,137, $136,617,
and $99,627 for the six months ended June 30, 1997, and for the years
ended December 31, 1996, 1995, and 1994, respectively. For the year ended
December 31, 1994 the actual net expense ratio for the year was 0.80% of
average net assets as the fee reduction went into effect on 5/2/94.

(5) Annualized.

(6) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 1.00% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE BALANCED FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Balanced Fund's objective is to provide a balance of current
income and growth of capital.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund will employ a combination of (1) an
active equity management style focused primarily on strong earnings momentum
and profitability within a growth-oriented stock universe, and (2) an active
fixed income management style using primarily domestic debt securities. Under
normal market conditions, 30% to 70% of the Fund's total assets will be invested
in equity-based securities, which include common stocks and those debt
securities and preferred stock that are convertible into common stock. Under
normal market conditions, at least 25% of the value of the total assets of the
Fund will be invested in U.S. Government securities and fixed income senior
securities other than convertible securities. The Fund's adviser may alter the
relative portion of the Fund's assets invested in equity-based and fixed income
securities depending on its judgment as to general market and economic
conditions and trends, yields and interest rates and changes in monetary
policies.

EQUITY-BASED INVESTMENTS.
The Fund's equity investments are typically made in companies displaying one or
more of the following characteristics: projected earnings growth at a rate equal
to or greater than the equity markets in general, return on assets and equity
equal to or greater than the equity markets, above market average price/earnings
ratios, below average dividend yield, above average market volatility, and a
market capitalization in excess of $500 million. The Fund will focus on
companies with strong earnings growth and high levels of profitability as well
as positive industry and company specific characteristics, and attractive
valuations given growth potential.

MATURITY. The average maturity of fixed income securities in the Fund will be
based primarily upon the adviser's expectations for the future course of
interest rates and the then prevailing price and yield levels in the fixed
income market.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Although the adviser is not
required to dispose of securities which are downgraded below investment grade
subsequent to acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities
which are downgraded below investment grade.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Balanced Fund based on
estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative
expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified
periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)
Management Fee........................................................ 0.75%
12b-1 Fee............................................................. None
Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements)*.......... 0.25%
Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements)*.................................................... 1.00%
</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $ 10 $32 $55 $122
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.61% and 1.36%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Balanced Fund series (the 'Predecessor Fund') of
the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Balanced Fund. The table set forth below
provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit of the Predecessor
Fund. This information is supplemented by financial statements and accompanying
notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the fiscal year
ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for the period ended June 30,
1997, which are incorporated by reference into the SAI. Shareholders may obtain
a copy of the Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report by contacting the Fund. The
Financial Highlights for the periods ended December 31, 1992 through December
31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified report is
included in the Annual Report. Information for periods prior to the fiscal year
ended December 31, 1992 have been examined by other accountants whose opinion
was unqualified.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period
ended
June 30, For the years ended December 31,
1997 -------------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of
period.............. $ 23.66 $ 21.25 $ 17.16 $ 17.56 $ 16.57
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Investment income... 0.46 0.85 0.76 0.63 0.64
Expenses............ (0.15) (0.26) (0.23) (0.20) (0.19)
Expense
reimbursement..... 0.03 0.04 0.04 0.03 0.02
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment
income ........... 0.34 0.63 0.57 0.46 0.47
Net gains or
(losses) on
securities (both
realized and
unrealized)....... 2.93 1.78 3.52 (0.86) 0.52
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total from
investment
operations........ 3.27 2.41 4.09 (0.40) 0.99
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end
of period........... $ 26.93 $ 23.66 $ 21.25 $ 17.16 $ 17.56
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total return.......... 13.82% 11.31% 23.83% (2.27%) 6.01%

Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)...... $25,383 $22,631 $21,471 $22,802 $37,276
Ratio of expenses to
average net
assets............ 1.19%(3) 1.17% 1.17% 1.17% 1.10%
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net
assets............ (0.19%)(3)(4) (0.17%)(4) (0.17%)(4) (0.17%)(4) (0.10%)(4)
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net
expenses to
average net
assets............ 1.00%(3) 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00%
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income
to average net
assets............ 2.71%(3) 2.82% 2.94% 2.69% 2.78%
Portfolio turnover
rate ............. 35% 70% 98% 157% 148%
Number of units
outstanding at end
of period (000)... 943 957 1,011 1,328 2,123
</TABLE>

23
<PAGE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the years ended December 31,
----------------------------------------------------------------
1992(1) 1991(1) 1990(1) 1989(1) 1988(1)(2)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of
period.............. $ 15.73 $ 12.67 $ 12.50 $ 10.57 $10.00
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Investment income... 0.68 0.68 0.77 0.77 0.44
Expenses............ (0.18) (0.18) (0.16) (0.18) (0.28)
Expense
reimbursement..... 0.02 0.04 0.03 0.06 0.21
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Net investment
income............ 0.52 0.54 0.64 0.65 0.37
Net gains or
(losses) on
securities (both
realized and
unrealized)....... 0.32 2.52 (0.47) 1.28 0.20

------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Total from
investment
operations........ 0.84 3.06 0.17 1.93 0.57
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Net asset value, end
of
period.............. $ 16.57 $ 15.73 $ 12.67 $ 12.50 $10.57
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Total return.......... 5.32% 24.16% 1.34% 18.26% 7.68%
Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)...... $51,092 $30,542 $17,373 $10,965 $2,890
Ratio of expenses to
average net
assets............ 1.17% 1.20% 1.26% 1.49% 3.83%(3)
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net
assets............ (0.17%)(4) (0.20%)(4) (0.26%)(4) (0.49%)(4) (2.83%)(3)(4)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net
expenses to
average net
assets............ 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00%(3)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net income
to average net
assets............ 3.33% 3.77% 5.27% 5.35% 4.92%(3)
Portfolio turnover
rate (fixed
income)........... 187% 213% 141% 217% 90%
Portfolio turnover
rate (equity
based)............ 25% 39% 42% 124% 15%
Number of units
outstanding at end
of period (000)... 3,084 1,942 1,371 877 273
</TABLE>

(1) Amounts for the years 1988-1993 are adjusted to reflect 10:1 reverse split
of the Fund's units on May 7, 1993.

(2) Commenced investment operations on March 29, 1988.

(3) Annualized.

(4) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 1.00% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE EQUITY INCOME FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Equity Income Fund's objective is to invest in securities that
provide both capital appreciation as well as current income.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund will employ an active equity
management style focused primarily on both earnings momentum and value within an
income-oriented stock universe. Investment emphasis is on equity-based
securities, which include common stocks and those debt securities and preferred
stocks convertible into common stocks. Under normal market conditions, it is
expected that at least 70% of the value of the total assets of the Fund will be
invested in equity-based securities. The Fund may invest any portion of its
assets not invested as described above in other types of securities, including
fixed income securities, money market instruments and non-income producing
equity securities.

EQUITY-BASED INVESTMENTS. The Fund will emphasize companies displaying one or
more of the following characteristics: above average dividend yield, a
consistent dividend record, below average market volatility, attractive earnings
momentum, below market price/earnings ratios, and a market capitalization in
excess of $500 million.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Although the adviser is not
required to dispose of securities which are downgraded below investment grade
subsequent to acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities
which are downgraded below investment grade.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Equity Income Fund based on
estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative
expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified
periods.

Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements)*.......... 0.25%
Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements)*.................................................... 1.00%
</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $ 10 $32 $55 $122
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.37% and 1.12%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Equity Income Fund series (the 'Predecessor
Fund') of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Equity Income Fund. The table
set forth below provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit of the
Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by financial statements and
accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for the period ended
June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the SAI. Shareholders
may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report by contacting the
Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended December 31, 1992 through
December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified
report is included in the Annual Report. Information for periods prior to the
fiscal year ended December 31, 1992 have been examined by other accountants
whose opinion was unqualified.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period
ended
June 30, For the years ended December 31,
1997 -------------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning of
period........................... $ 28.21 $ 23.93 $ 17.90 $ 18.52 $ 16.49
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Investment income................ 0.33 0.69 0.65 0.57 0.52
Expenses......................... (0.16) (0.27) (0.23) (0.20) (0.20)(3)
Expense reimbursement............ 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.03
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment income............ 0.18 0.43 0.44 0.39 0.35
Net gains or (losses) on
securities (both realized and
unrealized).................... 5.53 3.85 5.59 (1.01) 1.68
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total from investment
operations .................... 5.71 4.28 6.03 (0.62) 2.03
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end of period..... $ 33.92 $ 28.21 $ 23.93 $ 17.90 $ 18.52
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total return....................... 20.24% 17.87% 33.72% (3.37%) 12.34%
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period
(000).......................... $69,799 $63,390 $54,985 $39,296 $41,605
Ratio of expenses to average net
assets......................... 1.07%(5) 1.07% 1.09% 1.12% 1.21%
Ratio of expense reimbursement to
average net assets............. (0.07%)(5)(6) (0.07%)(6) (0.09%)(6) (0.12%)(6) (0.21%)(6)

----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net expenses to average
net assets..................... 1.00%(5) 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00%(4)
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
----------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income to average
net assets..................... 1.17%(5) 1.67% 2.10% 2.13% 1.98%
Portfolio turnover rate.......... 2% 24% 11% 42% 40%
Number of units outstanding at
end of period (000)............ 2,058 2,247 2,297 2,195 2,246
</TABLE>

<PAGE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the years ended December 31,
---------------------------------------------------------------
1992(1) 1991(1) 1990(1) 1989(1) 1988(1)(2)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of
period........... $ 15.60 $ 12.79 $13.38 $10.93 $10.00
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Investment
income......... 0.55 0.61 0.66 0.59 0.42
Expenses......... (0.19) (0.20) (0.18 ) (0.20 ) (0.22)
Expense
reimbursement... 0.03 0.05 0.06 0.07 0.14
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Net investment
income......... 0.39 0.46 0.54 0.46 0.34
Net gains or
(losses) on
securities
(both realized
and
unrealized).... 0.50 2.35 (1.13 ) 1.99 0.59
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Total from
investment
operations..... 0.89 2.81 (0.59 ) 2.45 0.93
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Net asset value,
end of period.... $ 16.49 15.60 $12.79 $13.38 $10.93
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Total return....... 5.61% 22.10% (4.40 %) 22.50 % 12.44%
Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end

of period
(000).......... $22,908 14,092 $6,180 $4,948 $3,782
Ratio of expenses
to average net
assets......... 1.24% 1.34% 1.46 % 1.59 % 2.80%(5)
Ratio of expense
reimbursement
to average net
assets......... (0.24%)(6) (0.34%)(6) (0.46 %)(6) (0.59 %)(6) (1.80%)(5)(6)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net
expenses to
average net
assets 1.00% 1.00% 1.00 % 1.00 % 1.00%(5)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net
income to
average net
assets......... 2.52% 3.25% 4.26 % 3.73 % 4.37%(5)
Portfolio
turnover rate.. 25% 39% 42 % 124 % 15%
Number of units
outstanding at
end of period
(000).......... 1,389 903 483 370 346
</TABLE>

(1) Amounts for the years 1988-1993 are adjusted to reflect 10:1 reverse split
of the Fund's units on May 7, 1993.

(2) Commenced investment operations on March 29, 1988.

(3) Reflects voluntary fee waiver of $17,330 or $0.01 per unit. Without
voluntary fee waiver, expense per unit is $0.21.

(4) Does not reflect voluntary waiver of management fees of $17,330. Net of
the voluntary management fee waiver, the net expense ratio is 0.95% of
average net assets.

(5) Annualized.

(6) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 1.00% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE CORE EQUITY FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Core Equity Fund's objective is to maximize total investment
return through emphasis on long-term capital appreciation and current income
consistent with reasonable risk.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund will employ an active equity
management style focused primarily on strong earnings momentum and profitability
within the S&P 500 stock universe. Portfolio emphasis is on equity-based
securities, which include common stocks and those debt securities and preferred
stocks convertible into common stocks. Under normal conditions, it is expected
that at least 70% of the value of the total assets of the fund will be invested
in equity-based securities. The Fund may invest any portion of its assets not
invested as described above in other types of securities, including fixed income
securities and money market instruments.

EQUITY-BASED INVESTMENTS. The Fund will typically emphasize companies displaying
one or more of the following characteristics: superior and stable record of
earnings growth relative to the equity markets in general, return on assets and
equity equal to or greater than the equity markets averages, and projected
earnings growth at a rate equal to or greater than the equity markets, and a
market capitalization in excess of $500 million. The Fund's assets will be
allocated among both the growth and cyclical sectors of the economy.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Although the adviser is not
required to dispose of securities which are downgraded below investment grade
subsequent to acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities
which are downgraded below investment grade.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Core Equity Fund based on
estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative
expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified
periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)

Management Fee........................................................ 0.75%
12b-1 Fee............................................................. None
Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements)*.......... 0.25%
Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements)*.................................................... 1.00%
</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $ 10 $32 $55 $122
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.49% and 1.24%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Core Equity Fund series (the 'Predecessor Fund')
of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Core Equity Fund. The table set forth
below provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit of the
Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by financial statements and
accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for the period ended
June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the SAI. Shareholders
may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report by contacting the
Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended December 31, 1993 through
December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified
report is included in the Annual Report.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period ended For the years ended December 31,
June 30, 1997 ------------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of
period............... $ 15.94 $ 13.01 $ 10.36 $ 10.80 $ 10.00
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Investment income.... 0.16 0.30 0.29 0.28 0.21
Expenses............. (0.10) (0.16) (0.14) (0.13) (0.20)(3)
Expense
reimbursement...... 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.03 0.13
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment
income............. 0.07 0.16 0.17 0.18 0.14
Net gains or (losses)
on securities (both
realized and
unrealized)........ 3.12 2.77 2.48 (0.62) 0.66
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total from investment
operations......... 3.19 2.93 2.65 (0.44) 0.80
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end
of
period (000)......... $ 19.13 $ 15.94 $ 13.01 $ 10.36 $ 10.80
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Total return.......... 20.03% 22.54% 25.53% (4.03%) 7.95%
Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)....... $ 37,461 $28,584 $24,367 $21,035 $11,718
Ratio of expenses to

average net
assets............. 1.15%(2) 1.14% 1.17% 1.27% 2.74%(2)
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net
assets............. (0.15%)(2)(5) (0.14%)(5) (0.17%)(5) (0.27%)(5) (1.74 )(2)(5)
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net expenses
to average net
assets............. 1.00%(2) 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00%(4)
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
-------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income
to average net
assets............. 0.86%(2) 1.10% 1.44% 1.68% 1.84%(2)
Portfolio turnover
rate............... 14% 29% 133% 129% 83%
Number of units
outstanding at end
of period (000).... 1,958 1,793 1,874 2,030 1,086
</TABLE>

(1) Commenced investment operations on April 1, 1993.

(2) Annualized.

(3) Reflects voluntary fee waiver of $6,949 or $0.01 per unit. Without
voluntary fee waiver, expense per unit is $0.21.

(4) Does not reflect voluntary waiver of management fees of $6,949. Net of the
voluntary management fee waiver, the net expense ratio is 0.79% of average
net assets. This figure is annualized.

(5) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 1.00% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE EQUITY GROWTH FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Equity Growth Fund's objective is to provide capital
appreciation. Current income is a secondary objective.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund will employ an active equity
management style focused primarily on strong earnings momentum and profitability
within a growth-oriented stock universe. Portfolio emphasis is on equity-based
securities, which include common stocks and those debt securities and preferred
stocks that are convertible into common stocks. Under normal market conditions,
it is expected that at least 70% of the value of the total assets of the Fund
will be invested in equity-based securities. The Fund may invest any portion of
its assets not invested as described above in other types of securities,
including fixed income securities and money market instruments.

EQUITY-BASED INVESTMENTS. The Fund's investments are typically made in companies
displaying one or more of the following characteristics: projected earnings
growth at a rate equal to or greater than the equity markets in general, return
on assets and equity equal to or greater than the equity markets, above market
average price-earnings ratios, below average dividend yield, above average
market volatility, and a market capitalization in excess of $500 million. The
Fund will focus on companies with strong earnings and high levels of
profitability as well as positive industry and company specific characteristics,
and attractive valuation given growth potential.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Although the adviser is not
required to dispose of securities which are downgraded below investment grade
subsequent to acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities
which are downgraded below investment grade.

MISCELLANEOUS. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>
EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Equity Growth Fund based on
estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative
expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified
periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares............................. $ 10 $32 $55 $122
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.37% and 1.12%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Equity Growth Fund series (the 'Predecessor
Fund') of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Equity Growth Fund. The table
set forth below provides selected per share data and ratios for one Unit of the
Predecessor Fund. This information is supplemented by financial statements and
accompanying notes appearing in the Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and Semi-Annual Report for the period ended
June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by reference into the SAI. Shareholders
may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report by contacting the
Fund. The Financial Highlights for the periods ended December 31, 1992 through
December 31, 1996 have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified
report is included in the Annual Report. Information for periods prior to the
fiscal year ended December 31, 1992 have been examined by other accountants
whose opinion was unqualified.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period ended For the years ended December 31,
June 30, 1997 -------------------------------------------------
(Unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
------------- ------- ------- ------- -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning
of period.............. $ 27.95 $ 23.20 $ 18.44 $ 18.61 $ 18.16
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Investment income...... 0.19 0.35 0.38 0.38 0.38
Expenses............... (0.16) (0.27) (0.23) (0.21) (0.21)(3)
Expense
reimbursement ....... 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.03 0.03
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Net investment
income .............. 0.04 0.10 0.17 0.20 0.20
Net gains or (losses)
on securities (both
realized and
unrealized).......... 6.71 4.65 4.59 (0.37) 0.25
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Total from investment
operations........... 6.75 4.75 4.76 (0.17) 0.45
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Net asset value, end of
period................. $ 34.70 $ 27.95 $ 23.20 $ 18.44 $ 18.61
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Total return............ 24.11% 20.52% 25.78% (0.90%) 2.48%
Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)......... $70,467 $57,328 $45,578 $36,683 $30,648
Ratio of expenses to

average net assets... 1.08%(5) 1.08% 1.10% 1.17% 1.21%
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net assets... (0.08%)(5)(6) (0.08%)(6) (0.10%)(6) (0.17%)(6) (0.21%)(6)
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net expenses
to average net
assets............... 1.00%(5) 1.00% 1.00% 1.00% 1.00%(4)
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
------ ------- ------- ------- -------
Ratio of net income to
average net assets... 0.25%(5) 0.41% 0.78% 1.07% 1.12%
Portfolio turnover
rate................. 19% 62% 99% 116% 97%
Number of units
outstanding at end of
period (000)......... 2,031 2,051 1,965 1,989 1,646
</TABLE>

<PAGE>

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the years ended December 31,
------------------------------------------------------------
1992(1) 1991(1) 1990(1) 1989(1) 1988(1)(2)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of
period............... $ 17.06 $ 12.96 $13.15 $10.48 $10.00
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Investment income.... 0.36 0.42 0.39 0.49 0.21
Expenses............. (0.21) (0.21) (0.20 ) (0.24 ) (0.22)
Expense
reimbursement...... 0.04 0.05 0.07 0.11 0.15
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Net investment
income............. 0.19 0.26 0.26 0.36 0.14
Net gains or (losses)
on securities (both
realized and
unrealized)........ 0.91 3.84 (0.45 ) 2.31 0.34
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Total from investment
operations......... 1.10 4.10 (0.19 ) 2.67 0.48
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Net asset value, end of
period............... $ 18.16 $ 17.06 $12.96 $13.15 $10.48
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Total return........... 6.43% 31.69% (1.45 %) 25.73 % 6.15%

Ratios/supplemental
data:
Net assets, end of
period (000)....... $25,514 $16,716 $5,357 $2,839 $2,576
Ratio of expenses to
average net
assets............. 1.23% 1.32% 1.56 % 1.91 % 2.92%(5)
Ratio of expense
reimbursement to
average net
assets............. (0.23%)(6) (0.32%)(6) (0.56 %)(6) (0.91 %)(6) (1.92%)(5)(6)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net expenses
to average net
assets ............ 1.00% 1.00% 1.00 % 1.00 % 1.00%(5)
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
------- ------- ------- ------- ----------
Ratio of net income
to average net
assets ............ 1.16% 1.73% 2.03 % 2.95 % 1.84%(5)
Portfolio turnover
rate............... 99% 135% 156 % 235 % 80%
Number of units
outstanding at end
of period (000).... 1,405 980 413 216 246
</TABLE>

(1) Amounts for the years 1988-1993 are adjusted to reflect 10:1 reverse split
of the Fund's units on May 7, 1993.

(2) Commenced investment operations on March 29, 1988.

(3) Reflects voluntary fee waiver of $11,479 or $0.01 per unit. Without
voluntary fee waiver, expense per unit is $0.22.

(4) Does not reflect voluntary waiver of management fees of $11,479. Net of
the voluntary management fee waiver, the net expense ratio is 0.96% of
average net assets.

(5) Annualized.

(6) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 1.00% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

CHASE SMALL CAPITALIZATION FUND

FUND OBJECTIVE AND INVESTMENT APPROACH

OBJECTIVE. The Small Cap Fund's objective is to provide capital appreciation.
Although the Fund, in seeking its objective, may receive current income from
dividends and interest, income is only an incidental consideration of the Fund.

STYLE AND PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION. The Fund will employ an active equity
management style focused primarily on delivering risk and return characteristics
representative of a small capitalization asset class. Portfolio emphasis is on
equity-based securities, which include common stocks and those debt securities
and preferred stocks convertible into common stocks. Under normal conditions, it
is expected that at least 70% of the value of the total assets of the Fund will
be invested in equity-based securities of small cap issuers. The Fund may invest
any portion of its assets not invested as described above in other types of
securities, including equity securities of mid and large cap companies, fixed
income securities and money market instruments.

EQUITY-BASED INVESTMENTS. The Fund investments are typically made in companies
displaying one or more of the following characteristics: above market average
price/earnings ratios and price/book ratios, below average dividend yield and
above average market volatility. In addition, small capitalization companies
will be emphasized that possess one or more of the following: high quality
management, a leading or dominant position in a major product line, new or
innovative products, services or processes, a sound financial position and a
relatively high rate of return of invested capital so that future growth can be
financed from internal sources. The Fund primarily targets companies with market
capitalizations of $100 million to $1 billion at time of purchase. Purchases are
a direct result of a disciplined stock selection process focusing on identifying
attractively valued stock of companies with positive business fundamentals.

CREDIT QUALITY. The Fund will invest in debt securities of domestic and foreign
issuers only if they are rated investment grade or, if unrated, determined by
the Fund's adviser to be of comparable quality. Although the adviser is not
required to dispose of securities which are downgraded below investment grade
subsequent to acquisition, there is no present intention to retain securities
which are downgraded below investment grade.

MISCELLANEOUS. Investments in smaller companies may be more volatile than
investments in companies with greater capitalization, as described under 'Risk
Factors' below. The Fund is classified as a 'diversified' fund under federal
securities laws.

<PAGE>

EXPENSE SUMMARY

Expenses are one of several factors to consider when investing. The following
table summarizes your costs from investing in the Small Cap Fund based on

estimated expenses for the current fiscal year. The example shows the cumulative
expenses attributable to a hypothetical $1,000 investment over specified
periods.

<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(as a percentage of average net assets)
Management Fee........................................................ 0.75%
12b-1 Fee............................................................. None
Other Expenses (after estimated waivers and reimbursements*........... 0.25%
Total Fund Operating Expenses (after estimated waivers and
reimbursements*..................................................... 1.00%
</TABLE>

EXAMPLE
Your investment of $1,000 would incur the following expenses, assuming 5% annual
return:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Premier Shares........................... $ 10 $32 $55 $122
</TABLE>

* Reflects current waivers and reimbursements to maintain Total Fund Operating
Expenses at the level indicated in the table above. Absent such waivers and
reimbursements, Other Expenses and Total Fund Operating Expenses would be
0.54% and 1.29%, respectively. Chase has agreed voluntarily to waive fees
payable to it and/or reimburse expenses for a period of at least one year
commencing January 1, 1998 to the extent necessary to prevent Total Fund
Operating Expenses for such period from exceeding the amount in the table.

Charges or credits, not reflected in the expense table above, may be incurred
directly by customers of financial institutions in connection with an investment
in the Fund.

<PAGE>

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Effective January 1, 1998, the Small Capitalization Fund series (the
'Predecessor Fund') of the AVESTA Trust was converted into the Small
Capitalization Fund. The table set forth below provides selected per share data
and ratios for one Unit of the Predecessor Fund. This information is
supplemented by financial statements and accompanying notes appearing in the
Predecessor Fund's Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1996 and
Semi-Annual Report for the period ended June 30, 1997, which are incorporated by
reference into the SAI. Shareholders may obtain a copy of the Annual Report and
Semi-Annual Report by contacting the Fund. The Financial Highlights for the
periods ended December 31, 1993 through December 31, 1996 have been audited by
Price Waterhouse LLP, whose unqualified report is included in the Annual Report.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
For the
period
ended
June 30, For the years ended December 31,
1997 ------------------------------------------
(unaudited) 1996 1995 1994 1993(1)
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value, beginning
of
period................... $ 17.55 $ 13.41 $ 10.23 $10.89 $10.00
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Investment income........ 0.09 0.16 0.17 0.16 0.09
Expenses................. (0.10)(3) (0.18)(3) (0.16)(3) (0.15)(3) (0.17 )(5)
Expense reimbursement.... 0.01 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.10
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Net investment income.... 0.00 0.01 0.05 0.06 0.02
Net gains or (losses) on
securities (both
realized
and unrealized)........ 1.99 4.13 3.13 (0.72) 0.87
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Total from investment
operations............. 1.99 4.14 3.18 (0.66) 0.89
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Net asset value, end of
period................... $ 19.54 $ 17.55 $ 13.41 $10.23 $10.89
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Total return............... 11.32% 30.88% 31.14% (6.12%) 8.94 %
Ratios/supplemental data:
Net assets, end of period
(000) ................. $30,817 $20,750 $12,848 $9,267 $9,838
Ratio of expenses to
average net assets..... 1.22%(4) 1.22% 1.35% 1.45% 2.46 %(4)
Ratio of expense

reimbursement to
average net assets..... (0.22%)(4)(7) (0.22%)(7) (0.35%)(7) (0.45%)(7) (1.31 )(4)(7)
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets..... 1.00%(2)(4) 1.00%(2) 1.00%(2) 1.00%(2) 1.15 %(6)
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
----------- ------- ------- ------ -------
Ratio of net income to
average net assets..... 0.01%(4) 0.04% 0.46% 0.55% 0.28 %(4)
Portfolio turnover
rate................... 26% 68% 89% 120% 161 %
Number of units
outstanding at end of
period (000)........... 1,577 1,182 958 906 903
</TABLE>

(1) Commenced investment operations on April 1, 1993.
(2) Reflects management fee reduction of 0.15% or $17,690, $24,219, $15,584
and $9,153 for the six months ended June 30, 1997 and for the years ended
December 31, 1996, 1995 and 1994, respectively. For the year ended
December 31, 1994 the actual net expense ratio for the year was 1.06% of
average net assets as the fee reduction went into effect on 5/2/94.
(3) Reflects management fee reduction of $17,690 or $0.01 per unit, $24,219 or
$0.02 per unit, $15,584 or $0.02 per unit and $9,153 or $0.01 per unit for
the six months ended June 30, 1997 and for the years ended December 31,
1996, 1995 and 1994, respectively. Without management fee reduction,
expense per unit is $0.11, $0.19, $0.17 and $0.16 for the six months ended
June 30, 1997 and for the years ended December 31, 1996, 1995 and 1994,
respectively.
(4) Annualized.
(5) Reflects voluntary fee waiver of $14,349 or $0.02 per unit. Without
voluntary fee waiver, expense per unit is $0.19.
(6) Does not reflect voluntary waiver of management fees of $14,349. Net of
the voluntary management fee waiver, the net expense ratio is 0.82% of
average net assets. This figure is annualized.
(7) Reflects agreement in effect for periods prior to January 1, 1998 to
reimburse expenses in excess of 1.15% of average net assets.

<PAGE>

COMMON INVESTMENT
POLICIES

Although the Money Market Fund seeks to be fully invested, at times it may hold
uninvested cash reserves, which would adversely affect its yield.

Each Fund may invest any portion of its assets not invested as described above
in high quality money market instruments and repurchase agreements. For
temporary defensive purposes, a Fund may invest without limitation in these
instruments. At times when the advisers of the Balanced Fund, Equity Income
Fund, Core Equity Fund, Equity Growth Fund or Small Cap Fund (the 'Equity
Funds') deem it advisable to limit the Fund's exposure to the equity markets,
each Equity Fund may invest without limitation in investment grade fixed income
securities (exclusive of any investments in money market instruments). To the
extent a Fund departs from its investment policies during temporary defensive
periods, its investment objective may not be achieved.

Fixed income securities in each Fund's portfolio may include, to the extent
permitted by the Fund's investment policies, bonds, notes, mortgage-related
securities, asset-backed securities, government and government agency and
instrumentality obligations, zero coupon securities, convertible securities and
money market instruments, as discussed below.

In determining the credit quality of a fixed income security, each Fund's
adviser will consider the issuer's financial strength, including its historic
and current financial condition, its historic and projected earnings; the
issuer's market position; and other factors relevant to an analysis of a
particular issuer, as determined by the adviser.

In making investment decisions for the Short-Intermediate Term Fund, the U.S.
Government Securities Fund, the Intermediate Term Bond Fund and the Income Fund
(the 'Fixed Income Funds'), each such Fund's adviser considers many factors in
addition to current yield, including preservation of capital, maturity and yield
to maturity. Each Fixed Income Fund's adviser will adjust such Fund's
investments in particular securities or types of securities based upon its
appraisal of changing economic conditions and trends. Each Fixed Income Fund's
adviser may sell one security and purchase another security of comparable
quality and maturity in order to take advantage of what it believes to be
short-term differentials in market values or yield disparities.

The maturity of securities with put features will be measured based on the next
put date, and the maturity of mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities will
be based on their weighted average lives.

In lieu of investing directly, each Fund is authorized to seek to achieve its
objective by investing all of its investable assets in an investment company
having substantially the same investment objective and policies as the
applicable Fund. See 'Unique Characteristics of Master/Feeder Structure.'

<PAGE>

The Funds are classified as 'diversified' funds under federal securities laws.

No Fund is intended to be a complete investment program, and there is no
assurance that any Fund will achieve its investment objective.

OTHER INVESTMENT PRACTICES

The Funds may also engage in the following investment practices when consistent
with their overall objective and policies. These practices, and certain
associated risks, are more fully described in the SAI.

FOREIGN SECURITIES. The Money Market Fund may invest up to 30% of its total
assets in securities of foreign governments and supranational agencies. The
Money Market Fund will limit its investments in foreign government obligations
to commercial paper and other short-term notes issued or guaranteed by the
governments of Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Canada. Each
other Fund may invest up to 30% of its total assets in foreign securities,
including Depositary Receipts.

Since foreign securities are normally denominated and traded in foreign
currencies, the values of a Fund's foreign investments may be influenced by
currency exchange rates and exchange control regulations. There may be less
information publicly available about foreign issuers than U.S. issuers, and they
are not generally subject to accounting, auditing and financial reporting
standards and practices comparable to those in the U.S. Foreign securities may
be less liquid and more volatile than comparable U.S. securities. Foreign
settlement procedures and trade regulations may involve certain expenses and
risks. One risk would be the delay in payment or delivery of securities or in
the recovery of a Fund's assets held abroad. It is possible that nationalization
or expropriation of assets, imposition of currency exchange controls, taxation
by withholding Fund assets, political or financial instability and diplomatic
developments could affect the value of a Fund's investments in certain foreign
countries. Foreign laws may restrict the ability to invest in certain countries
or issuers and special tax considerations will apply to foreign securities. The
risks can increase if a Fund invests in emerging market securities.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS. Each of the Equity Funds, the Intermediate Term Bond Fund
and the Income Fund may invest its assets in securities of foreign issuers in
the form of American Depositary Receipts, European Depositary Receipts, Global
Depositary Receipts or other similar securities representing securities of
foreign issuers (collectively, 'Depositary Receipts'). Each Fund treats
Depositary Receipts as interests in the underlying securities for purposes of
its investment policies. Each Fund will limit its investment in Depositary
Receipts not sponsored by the issuer of the underlying securities to no more
than 5% of the value of its net assets (at the time of investment).

<PAGE>

SUPRANATIONAL AND ECU OBLIGATIONS. Each Fund may invest in debt securities
issued by supranational organizations, which include organizations such as The

World Bank, the European Community, the European Coal and Steel Community and
the Asian Development Bank. Obligations of supranational agencies are supported
by subscribed, but unpaid, commitments of member countries. There is no
assurance that these commitments will be undertaken or complied with in the
future, and foreign and supranational securities are subject to certain risks
associated with foreign investing. Each such Fund may also invest in securities
denominated in the ECU, which is a 'basket' consisting of specified amounts of
the currencies of certain member states of the European Community. These
securities are typically issued by European governments and supranational
organizations.

U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES. Each Fund may invest in U.S. Treasury obligations,
which are bills, notes and bonds backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S.
Government as to payment of principal and interest which generally differ only
in their interest rates and maturities. Each Fund also may invest in securities
issued or guaranteed by U.S. Government agencies and instrumentalities including
obligations that are supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S.
Treasury, the limited authority of the issuer or guarantor to borrow from the
U.S. Treasury, or only the credit of the issuer or guarantor. In the case of
obligations not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury, the
agency issuing or guaranteeing the obligation is principally responsible for
ultimate repayment.

MONEY MARKET INSTRUMENTS. Each Fund may invest in cash or high-quality,
short-term money market instruments. These may include U.S. Government
securities, commercial paper of domestic and foreign issuers and obligations of
domestic and foreign banks. Investments in foreign money market instruments may
involve certain risks associated with foreign investment.

REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS, SECURITIES LOANS AND FORWARD AND STAND-BY
COMMITMENTS. Each Fund may enter into agreements to purchase and resell
securities at an agreed-upon price and time. Each Fund also has the ability to
lend portfolio securities in an amount equal to not more than 30% of its total
assets to generate additional income. These transactions must be fully
collateralized at all times. Each Fund may purchase securities for delivery at a
future date, which may increase its overall investment exposure and involves a
risk of loss if the value of the securities declines prior to the settlement
date. Each Fund may enter into put transactions, including those sometimes
referred to as stand-by commitments, with respect to securities in its
portfolio. In these transactions, a Fund would acquire the right to sell a
security at an agreed upon price within a specified period prior to its maturity
date. A put transaction will increase the cost of the underlying security and

<PAGE>

consequently reduce the available yield. Each of these transactions involves
some risk to a Fund if the other party should default on its obligation and the
Fund is delayed or prevented from recovering the collateral or completing the
transaction.

BORROWINGS AND REVERSE REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS. Each Fund may borrow money from
banks for temporary or short-term purposes, but will not borrow money to buy

additional securities, known as 'leveraging.' Each Fund may also sell and
simultaneously commit to repurchase a portfolio security at an agreed-upon price
and time. Each Fund may use this practice to generate cash for shareholder
redemptions without selling securities during unfavorable market conditions.
Whenever a Fund enters into a reverse repurchase agreement, it will establish a
segregated account in which it will maintain liquid assets on a daily basis in
an amount at least equal to the repurchase price (including accrued interest).
The Funds would be required to pay interest on amounts obtained through reverse
repurchase agreements, which are considered borrowings under federal securities
laws.

CONVERTIBLE SECURITIES. Each Fund other than the Money Market Fund may invest in
convertible securities, which are securities generally offering fixed interest
or dividend yields which may be converted either at a stated price or stated
rate for common or preferred stock. Although to a lesser extent than with fixed
income securities generally, the market value of convertible securities tends to
decline as interest rates increase, and increase as interest rates decline.
Because of the conversion feature, the market value of convertible securities
also tends to vary with fluctuations in the market value of the underlying
common or preferred stock.

OTHER INVESTMENT COMPANIES. Apart from being able to invest all of its
investable assets in another investment company having substantially the same
investment objectives and policies, each Fund may invest up to 10% of its total
assets in shares of other registered investment companies when consistent with
its investment objective and policies, subject to applicable regulatory
limitations. Additional fees will be charged by such other investment companies.

ZERO COUPON SECURITIES, PAYMENT-IN-KIND OBLIGATIONS AND STRIPPED
OBLIGATIONS. The Short-Intermediate Term Fund and U.S. Government Securities
Fund may invest without limitation in zero coupon securities issued by
governmental issuers and each other Fund other than the Money Market Fund may
invest up to 25% of its total assets in zero coupon securities issued by
governmental and private issuers. Zero coupon securities are debt securities
that do not pay regular interest payments, and instead are sold at substantial
discounts from their value at maturity. Each Fund other than the Money Market
Fund may invest in payment-in-kind obligations. Payment-in-kind obligations are
obligations on which the interest is payable in additional securities rather
than cash. The Short-

<PAGE>

Intermediate Term Fund and the U.S. Government Securities Fund may invest
without limitation and each other Fund other than the Money Market Fund may
invest up to 25% of its total assets in stripped obligations (i.e., separately
traded principal and interest components of securities) where the underlying
obligations are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government,
including instruments known as 'STRIPS.' The value of these instruments tends to
fluctuate more in response to changes in interest rates than the value of
ordinary interest-paying debt securities with similar maturities. The risk is
greater when the period to maturity is longer.

FLOATING AND VARIABLE RATE SECURITIES; PARTICIPATION CERTIFICATES. Each Fund may
invest in floating rate securities, whose interest rates adjust automatically
whenever a specified interest rate changes, and variable rate securities, whose
interest rates are periodically adjusted. Certain of these instruments permit
the holder to demand payment of principal and accrued interest upon a specified
number of days' notice from either the issuer or a third party. The securities
in which a Fund may invest include participation certificates and certificates
of indebtedness or safekeeping. Participation certificates are pro rata
interests in securities held by others; certificates of indebtedness or
safekeeping are documentary receipts for such original securities held in
custody by others. As a result of the floating or variable rate nature of these
investments, a Fund's yield may decline and it may forego the opportunity for
capital appreciation during periods when interest rates decline; however, during
periods when interest rates increase, the Fund's yield may increase and it may
have reduced risk of capital depreciation. Demand features on certain floating
or variable rate securities may obligate the Fund to pay a 'tender fee' to a
third party. Demand features provided by foreign banks involve certain risks
associated with foreign investments.

REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS. Equity investments may include shares of real
estate investment trusts ('REITs'). REITs are pooled investment vehicles which
invest primarily in income-producing real estate ('equity trust') or real estate
related loans or interests ('mortgage trusts'). The value of equity trusts will
depend upon the value of the underlying properties, and the value of the
mortgage trusts will be sensitive to the value of the underlying loans or
interests. The value of REITs may decline when interest rates rise.

INVERSE FLOATERS AND INTEREST RATE CAPS. Each of the Fixed Income Funds may
invest in inverse floaters and in securities with interest rate caps. Inverse
floaters are instruments whose interest rates bear an inverse relationship to
the interest rate on another security or the value of an index. The market value
of an inverse floater will vary inversely with changes in market interest rates,
and will be more volatile in response to interest rates changes than that of a
fixed rate obligation. Interest rate caps are financial instruments under which
payments occur if an interest rate index exceeds a certain

<PAGE>

predetermined interest rate level, known as the cap rate, which is tied to a
specific index. These financial products will be more volatile in price than
securities which do not include such a structure. No Fund has any present
intention to invest in inverse floaters or securities with interest rate caps.

MORTGAGE-RELATED SECURITIES. Each Equity Fund may invest in investment grade
mortgage-related securities. The Intermediate Term Bond Fund and Income Fund
each may invest up to two-thirds of its total assets in investment grade
mortgage-related securities. The Short-Intermediate Term Fund and U.S.
Government Securities Fund may invest without limitation in mortgage-related
U.S. Government Securities. Mortgage pass-through securities are securities
representing interests in 'pools' of mortgages in which payments of both
interest and principal on the securities are made monthly, in effect 'passing
through' monthly payments made by the individual borrowers on the residential

mortgage loans which underlie the securities. Early repayment of principal on
mortgage pass-through securities held by a Fund (due to prepayments of principal
on the underlying mortgage loans) may result in a lower rate of return when the
Fund reinvests such principal. In addition, as with callable fixed income
securities generally, if a Fund purchased the securities at a premium, sustained
early repayment would limit the value of the premium. Like other fixed income
securities, when interest rates rise the value of a mortgage-related security
generally will decline; however, when interest rates decline, the value of
mortgage-related securities with prepayment features may not increase as much as
other fixed income, fixed maturity securities which have no prepayment or call
features.

Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage pass-through securities (but
not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed by the U.S.
Government, or by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. Government (which
guarantees are supported only by the discretionary authority of the U.S.
Government to purchase the agency's obligations). Certain mortgage pass-through
securities created by nongovernmental issuers may be supported by various forms
of insurance or guarantees, while other such securities may be backed only by
the underlying mortgage collateral.

Each Fund other than the Money Market Fund may also invest in investment grade
Collateralized Mortgage Obligations ('CMOs'), which are hybrid instruments with
characteristics of both mortgage-backed bonds and mortgage pass-through
securities. Similar to a bond, interest and prepaid principal on a CMO are paid,
in most cases, monthly. CMOs may be collateralized by whole residential or
commercial mortgage loans but are more typically collateralized by portfolios of
mortgage pass-through securities guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its
agencies or instrumentalities. CMOs are structured into multiple classes, with
each class having a different expected average life and/or stated

<PAGE>

maturity. Monthly payments of principal, including prepayments, are allocated to
different classes in accordance with the terms of the instruments, and changes
in prepayment rates or assumptions may significantly affect the expected average
life and value of a particular class.

Each Fund other than the Money Market Fund may invest in principal-only or
interest-only stripped mortgage-backed securities.

Stripped mortgage-backed securities have greater volatility than other types of
mortgage-related securities. Stripped mortgage-backed securities which are
purchased at a substantial premium or discount generally are extremely sensitive
not only to changes in prevailing interest rates but also to the rate of
principal payments (including prepayments) on the related underlying mortgage
assets, and a rapid rate of principal payments may have a material adverse
effect on such securities' yield to maturity. In addition, stripped mortgage
securities may be illiquid.

The Funds expect that governmental, government-related or private entities may
create other mortgage-related securities in addition to those described above.

As new types of mortgage-related securities are developed and offered to
investors, a Fund may consider making investments in such securities.

DOLLAR ROLLS. Each Fund other than the Money Market Fund may enter into mortgage
'dollar rolls' in which a Fund sells mortgage-backed securities for delivery in
the current month and simultaneously contracts to repurchase substantially
similar (same type, coupon and maturity) securities on a specified future date.
These transactions involve some risk to a Fund if the other party should default
on its obligation and the Fund is delayed or prevented from completing the
transaction.

ASSET-BACKED SECURITIES. Each Fund may invest in investment grade asset-backed
securities, which represent a participation in, or are secured by and payable
from, a stream of payments generated by particular assets, most often a pool of
assets similar to one another, such as motor vehicle receivables or credit card
receivables.

DERIVATIVES AND RELATED INSTRUMENTS. Each Fund other than the Money Market Fund
may invest its assets in derivative and related instruments to hedge various
market risks or to increase the Fund's income or gain. Some of these instruments
will be subject to asset segregation requirements to cover a Fund's obligations.
Each such Fund may (i) purchase, write and exercise call and put options on
securities and securities indexes (including using options in combination with
securities, other options or derivative instruments); (ii) enter into swaps,
futures contracts and options on futures contracts; (iii) employ forward
currency and interest rate contracts; and (iv) purchase and sell structured
products, which are instruments designed to restructure or reflect the
characteristics of certain other investments.

There are a number of risks associated with the use of derivatives and related
instruments

<PAGE>

and no assurance can be given that any strategy will succeed. The value of
certain derivatives or related instruments in which a Fund invests may be
particularly sensitive to changes in prevailing economic conditions and market
value. The ability of a Fund to successfully utilize these instruments may
depend in part upon the ability of its adviser to forecast these factors
correctly. Inaccurate forecasts could expose a Fund to a risk of loss. There can
be no guarantee that there will be a correlation between price movements in a
hedging instrument and in the portfolio assets being hedged. No Fund is required
to use any hedging strategies. Hedging strategies, while reducing risk of loss,
can also reduce the opportunity for gain. Derivatives transactions not involving
hedging may have speculative characteristics, involve leverage and result in
losses that may exceed the original investment of a Fund. There can be no
assurance that a liquid market will exist at a time when a Fund seeks to close
out a derivatives position. Activities of large traders in the futures and
securities markets involving arbitrage, 'program trading,' and other investment
strategies may cause price distortions in derivatives markets. In certain
instances, particularly those involving over-the-counter transactions or forward
contracts, there is a greater potential that a counterparty or broker may

default. In the event of a default, a Fund may experience a loss. For additional
information concerning derivatives, related instruments and the associated
risks, see the SAI.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER. It is intended that the Money Market Fund will be fully
managed by buying and selling securities, as well as holding securities to
maturity. The frequency of each Fund's buy and sell transactions will vary from
year to year. A Fund's investment policies may lead to frequent changes in
investments, particularly in periods of rapidly changing market conditions. High
portfolio turnover rates would generally result in higher transaction costs,
including brokerage commissions or dealer mark-ups.

ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT POLICIES OF THE MONEY MARKET FUND

BANK OBLIGATIONS. Bank obligations include certificates of deposit, time
deposits and bankers' acceptances issued or guaranteed by U.S. banks (including
their foreign branches) and foreign banks (including their U.S. branches). These
obligations may be general obligations of the parent bank or may be limited to
the issuing branch by the terms of the specific obligation or by government
regulation. Foreign bank obligations involve certain risks associated with
foreign investing.

MUNICIPAL OBLIGATIONS. The Fund may invest in high-quality, short-term municipal
obligations that carry yields that are competitive with those of other types of
money market instruments in which they may invest. Dividends paid by this Fund
that are derived from interest on municipal obligations will be taxable to
shareholders for federal income tax purposes.

<PAGE>

CUSTODIAL RECEIPTS. The Fund may acquire securities in the form of custodial
receipts that evidence ownership of future interest payments, principal payments
or both on certain U.S. Treasury notes or bonds in connection with programs
sponsored by banks and brokerage firms. These are not deemed U.S. Government
securities. These notes and bonds are held in custody by a bank on behalf of the
owners of the receipts.

LIMITING INVESTMENT RISKS

Specific investment restrictions help the Funds limit investment risks for their
shareholders. These restrictions prohibit each Fund from (a) investing more than
15% of its net assets (10% in the case of the Money Market Fund) in illiquid
securities (which include securities restricted as to resale unless they are
determined to be readily marketable in accordance with procedures established by
the Board of Trustees) or (b) investing more than 25% of its total assets in any
one industry (excluding (i) U.S. Government obligations and (ii) with respect to
the Money Market Fund, bank obligations. Each 'diversified' Fund may not, with
respect to 75% of its total assets, invest more than 5% of its total assets in
the securities of any one issuer (other than U.S. Government obligations) or
hold more than 10% of the voting securities of any issuer. In addition, in order
to comply with federal securities regulations relating to money market funds,
the Money Market Fund will not, with respect to 100% of its total assets, invest

more than 5% of its total assets in the securities of any one issuer (other than
U.S. Government obligations). A complete description of these and other
investment policies is included in the SAI. Except for restriction (b) above and
investment policies designated as fundamental in the SAI, the Funds' investment
policies (including their investment objectives) are not fundamental. The
Trustees may change any non-fundamental investment policy without shareholder
approval. However, in the event of a change in any such Fund's investment
objective, shareholders will be given at least 30 days' prior written notice.

RISK FACTORS

There can be no assurance that the Money Market Fund will be able to maintain a
stable net asset value. Changes in interest rates may affect the value of the
obligations held by such Funds. The value of fixed income securities varies
inversely with changes in prevailing interest rates, although money market
instruments are generally less sensitive to changes in interest rates than are
longer-term securities.

The Money Market Fund is permitted to invest any portion of its assets in
obligations of domestic banks (including their foreign branches), and in
obligations of foreign issuers. The ability to concentrate in the banking
industry may involve certain credit risks, such as defaults or downgrades, if at
some future date adverse economic conditions prevail in such industry. U.S.
banks are subject to extensive governmental regulations which may limit both the
amount and types of loans which may be

<PAGE>

made and interest rates which may be charged. In addition, the profitability of
the banking industry is largely dependent upon the availability and cost of
funds for the purpose of financing lending operations under prevailing money
market conditions. General economic conditions as well as exposure to credit
losses arising from possible financial difficulties of borrowers play an
important part in the operations of this industry.

Securities issued by foreign banks, foreign branches of U.S. banks and foreign
governmental and private issuers involve investment risks in addition to those
of obligations of domestic issuers, including risks relating to future political
and economic developments, more limited liquidity of foreign obligations than
comparable domestic obligations, the possible imposition of withholding taxes on
interest income, the possible seizure or nationalization of foreign assets, and
the possible establishment of exchange controls or other restrictions. There may
be less publicly available information concerning foreign issuers, there may be
difficulties in obtaining or enforcing a judgment against a foreign issuer
(including branches), and accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards
and practices may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers. In addition,
foreign banks are not subject to regulations comparable to U.S. banking
regulations.

The net asset value of the shares of each Fund (other than the Money Market
Fund) will fluctuate based on the value of the securities in the Fund's
portfolio. The Fixed Income Funds are subject to the general risks and

considerations associated with fixed income investing, as well as the risks
discussed herein. The Equity Funds are subject to the general risks and
considerations associated with equity and, to the extent they invest in fixed
income securities, fixed income investing, as well as the risks discussed
herein.

The performance of each Fixed Income Fund and, to the extent it invests in fixed
income securities, each Equity Fund depends in part on interest rate changes. As
interest rates increase, the value of the fixed income securities held by a Fund
tends to decrease. This effect will be more pronounced with respect to
investments by a Fund in mortgage-related securities, the value of which are
more sensitive to interest rate changes. Except as indicated in its investment
policies, there is no restriction on the maturity of a Fund's portfolio or any
individual portfolio security, and to the extent a Fund invests in securities
with longer maturities, the volatility of the Fund in response to changes in
interest rates can be expected to be greater than if the Fund had invested in
comparable securities with shorter maturities. The performance of a Fund will
also depend on the quality of its investments. While U.S. Government securities
generally are of high quality, government securities that are not backed by the
full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury may be affected by changes in the
creditworthiness of the agency that issued them. Guarantees of principal and
interest on obligations that may be purchased by a Fund are not guarantees of
the market

<PAGE>

value of such obligations, nor do they extend to the value of shares of the
Fund. Other fixed income securities in which a Fund may invest, while of
investment-grade quality, may be of lesser credit quality than U.S. Government
Securities. Securities rated in the category Baa by Moody's or BBB by S&P or the
equivalent by another NRSRO lack certain investment characteristics and may have
speculative characteristics.

To the extent permitted by its investment objective and policies, each Fund may
invest in the securities of small or mid cap companies. The securities of small
to mid cap companies often trade less frequently and in more limited volume, and
may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements, than securities of
larger, more established companies. Such companies may have limited product
lines, markets or financial resources, or may depend on a limited management
group.

For a discussion of certain other risks associated with each Fund's additional
investment activities, see 'Other Investment Practices' above.

MANAGEMENT

THE FUNDS' ADVISERS

Chase acts as investment adviser to the Funds pursuant to an Investment Advisory
Agreement and has overall responsibility for investment decisions of each of the
Funds, subject to the oversight of the Board of Trustees. Chase is a
wholly-owned subsidiary of The Chase Manhattan Corporation, a bank holding

company. Chase and its predecessors have over 100 years of money management
experience.

For its investment advisory services to the Funds, Chase is entitled to receive
an annual fee equal to the percentage of the average daily net assets of each
Fund set forth below:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Fee
Fund Rate
- ----------------------------- -----
<S> <C>
Money Market Fund............ 0.30%
Short-Intermediate Term U.S.
Government Securities
Fund .................... 0.50%
U.S. Government Securities
Fund........................ 0.50%
Intermediate Term Bond
Fund........................ 0.50%
Income Fund.................. 0.50%
Balanced Fund................ 0.75%
Equity Income Fund........... 0.75%
Core Equity Fund............. 0.75%
Equity Growth Fund........... 0.75%
Small Cap Fund............... 0.75%
</TABLE>

Chase Texas serves as sub-investment adviser to the Funds under a Sub-Investment
Advisory Agreement between Chase and Chase Texas. Chase Texas is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of The Chase Manhattan Corporation. Chase Texas makes investment
decisions for these Funds on a day-to-day basis. For these services, Chase Texas
is entitled to receive a fee, payable by Chase, at the percentage of the average
daily net assets of each Fund set forth below:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Fee
Fund Rate
- ----------------------------- ------
<S> <C>
Money Market Fund............ 0.15%
Short-Intermediate Term U.S.
Government Securities
Fund .................... 0.25%
U.S. Government Securities
Fund ....................... 0.25%
Intermediate Term Bond
Fund........................ 0.25%
Income Fund.................. 0.25%
Balanced Fund................ 0.375%
Equity Income Fund........... 0.375%
Core Equity Fund............. 0.375%

Equity Growth Fund........... 0.375%
Small Cap Fund............... 0.375%
</TABLE>

Chase Texas is located at 712 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77002. Prior to
January 1, 1998, Chase Texas acted as trustee of the AVESTA Trust and, as
trustee, was obligated

<PAGE>

to provide the investment portfolios of the AVESTA Trust with the investment
advisory, administrative, custodial and other services necessary to manage the
portfolios.

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS. Guy Barba, a Senior Investment Officer at Chase Texas, has
served as the portfolio manager of the Money Market Fund since April 1993 and
the Short-Intermediate Term Fund since its inception. Mr. Barba has been
employed by Chase Texas since 1988.

H. Mitchell Harper, a Senior Investment Officer at Chase Texas, has served as
the portfolio manager of the Intermediate Term Bond Fund since its inception.
Mr. Harper has been employed by Chase Texas since 1987.

John Miller, a Senior Investment Officer at Chase Texas, has served as the
portfolio manager for each of the Income Fund and the fixed income portion of
the Balanced Fund since July 1994 and for the U.S. Government Securities Fund
since June 1995. Mr. Miller has been employed with Chase Texas since 1986.

Henry Lartigue, the Chief Investment Officer at Chase Texas, has served as the
portfolio manager for the Equity Growth Fund since July 1994, the equity portion
of the Balanced Fund since July 1994 and the Core Equity Fund since January
1996. Between July 1992 and July 1994, Mr. Lartigue was self-employed as a
registered investment adviser.

Robert Heintz, a Senior Investment Officer at Chase Texas, has served as the
portfolio manager of the Equity Income Fund since its inception. Mr. Heintz has
been employed by Chase Texas since 1983.

Juliet Ellis, a Senior Investment Officer at Chase Texas, has served as the
portfolio manager of the Small Cap Fund since September 1993. Ms. Ellis has been
employed by Chase Texas since 1987. Prior to becoming portfolio manager for the
Small Cap Fund, Ms. Ellis was the director of research and an equity analyst at
Chase Texas.

HOW TO BUY, SELL AND
EXCHANGE SHARES

HOW TO BUY SHARES

Premier Shares may be purchased through selected financial service firms, such
as broker-dealer firms and banks ('Financial Intermediaries') who have entered
into an agreement with the Funds' distributor on each business day during which

the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the New York Stock Exchange are open
for business ('Fund Business Day'). The Funds reserve the right to reject any
purchase order or cease offering shares for purchase at any time.

Premier Shares are purchased at their public offering price, which is their next
determined net asset value. Orders received by Financial Intermediaries in
proper form prior to the New York Stock Exchange closing time are confirmed at
that day's net asset value, provided that the order is received by the Chase
Funds Service Center prior to its close of business. Orders are in proper form
only after funds are converted to federal funds.

<PAGE>

Financial Intermediaries are responsible for forwarding orders for the purchase
of shares on a timely basis. Premier Shares will be maintained in book entry
form and share certificates will not be issued.

Federal regulations require that each investor provide a certified Taxpayer
Identification Number upon opening an account.

Financial Intermediaries may offer additional services to their customers,
including customized procedures for the purchase and redemption of Premier
Shares, such as pre-authorized or systematic purchase and withdrawal programs,
'sweep' checking programs, cash advances, automated access and direct demand
deposit debit.

MINIMUM INVESTMENTS. Each Fund has established a minimum initial investment
amount of $100,000 for the purchase of Premier Shares. Financial Intermediaries
must maintain an average account balance of $100,000 in the Premier Shares of a
Fund at all times. There is no minimum for subsequent investments. Financial
Intermediaries may impose their own initial and subsequent investment minimums
on customers who purchase shares through them.

HOW TO SELL SHARES

Shares may be redeemed at any time at the net asset value next determined after
a redemption request in proper form is furnished to your Financial Intermediary
and transmitted to and received by the Chase Funds Service Center.

The price you receive is the next net asset value calculated after the Fund
receives your request in proper form. In order to receive that day's net asset
value, the Chase Funds Service Center must receive your request before the close
of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Your Financial Intermediary
will be responsible for furnishing all necessary documentation to the Chase
Funds Service Center, and may charge you for its services.

The Funds generally send your Financial Intermediary payment for your shares in
federal funds on the business day after your request is received in proper form.
Under unusual circumstances, the Funds may suspend redemptions, or postpone
payment for more than seven business days, as permitted by federal securities
laws.

If a Financial Intermediary is authorized to act upon redemption and transfer
instructions received by telephone from an investor and the Financial
Intermediary fails to employ reasonable procedures to confirm that instructions
communicated by telephone are genuine, it may be liable for any losses due to
unauthorized or fraudulent instructions. An investor agrees, however, that to
the extent permitted by applicable law, neither a Fund nor the investor's
Financial Intermediary nor any of their agents will be liable for any loss,
liability, cost or expense arising out of any redemption request, including any
fraudulent or unauthorized request. For information, consult the Chase Funds
Service Center.

<PAGE>

HOW TO EXCHANGE SHARES

You can exchange your shares for Premier Shares of other Chase Funds if
permitted by your Financial Intermediary. Any exchange requests should be made
through your Financial Intermediary. The description of the other Fund into
which shares are being exchanged, which appears in this Prospectus, should be
read carefully and this Prospectus should be retained for future reference.

For federal income tax purposes, an exchange between Funds is treated as a sale
of shares and generally results in capital gain or loss.

HOW THE FUNDS
VALUE THEIR SHARES

MONEY MARKET FUND. The net asset value of each class of shares of the Money
Market Fund is currently determined as of 4:00 p.m., Eastern time on each Fund
Business Day by dividing the net assets of the Fund attributable to such class
by the number of shares of such class outstanding at the time the determination
is made. The portfolio securities of the Money Market Fund are valued at their
amortized cost in accordance with federal securities laws, certain requirements
of which are summarized under 'Common Investment Policies.' This method
increases stability in valuation, but may result in periods during which the
stated value of a portfolio security is higher or lower than the price the Fund
would receive if the instrument were sold. It is anticipated that the net asset
value of each share of the Fund will remain constant at $1.00 and the Fund will
employ specific investment policies and procedures to accomplish this result,
although no assurance can be given that it will be able to do so on a continuing
basis. The Board of Trustees will review the holdings of the Fund at intervals
it deems appropriate to determine whether the Fund's net asset value calculated
by using available market quotations (or an appropriate substitute which
reflects current market conditions) deviates from $1.00 per share based upon
amortized costs. In the event the Trustees determine that a deviation exists
that may result in material dilution or other unfair results to investors or
existing shareholders, the Trustees will take such corrective action as they
regard as necessary and appropriate.

NON-MONEY MARKET FUNDS. The net asset value of each class of each other Fund's
shares is determined once daily based upon prices determined as of the close of
regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern

time, however, options are priced at 4:15 p.m., Eastern time), on each Fund
Business Day, by dividing the net assets of the Fund attributable to that class
by the total number of outstanding shares of that class. Values of assets held
by the Funds are determined on the basis of their market or other fair value, as
described in the SAI.

HOW DISTRIBUTIONS ARE
MADE; TAX INFORMATION

MONEY MARKET FUND. The net investment income (i.e., a Fund's investment company
taxable income

<PAGE>

as that term is defined in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the
'Code') without regard to the deduction for dividends paid) of each class of
shares of the Money Market Fund is declared as a dividend to the shareholders
each Fund Business Day. Dividends are declared as of the time of day which
corresponds to the latest time on that day that the Fund's net asset value is
determined. Shares begin accruing dividends on the day that the order is
received in proper form by the Fund. Dividends are distributed monthly. The
Money Market Fund does not expect to realize net capital gain (i.e., the excess
of the Fund's net long-term capital gains over short-term capital losses).

NON-MONEY MARKET FUNDS. Each Fixed Income Fund declares dividends daily and
distributes any net investment income at least monthly. Each Equity Fund
distributes any net investment income at least quarterly. Each Fund other than
the Money Market Fund (which does not expect to earn net capital gain)
distributes any net capital gain at least annually.

GENERAL. You can choose from three distribution options if made available by
your Financial Intermediary: (1) reinvest all distributions in additional Fund
shares; (2) receive distributions from net investment income in cash while
reinvesting net capital gain distributions in additional shares; or (3) receive
all distributions in cash. You can change your distribution option by notifying
your Financial Intermediary in writing. If you do not select an option when you
open your account, all distributions will be reinvested.

Each Fund intends to qualify as a 'regulated investment company' for federal
income tax purposes under Subchapter M of the Code and to meet all other
requirements that are necessary for it to be relieved of federal taxes on income
and gain it distributes to shareholders. If a Fund does not qualify as a
regulated investment company for any taxable year or does not meet certain other
requirements, such Fund will be subject to tax on all of its taxable income and
gains.

All Fund distributions of net investment income (which term shall include
short-term capital gains) will be taxable as ordinary income. Any distributions
of net capital gain which are designated as 'capital gain dividends' will be
taxable as long-term capital gain at the currently applicable 28% or 20% rate,
regardless of how long you have held the shares. To the extent distributions are
attributable to interest from obligations of the U.S. Government and certain of

its agencies and instrumentalities, such distributions may be exempt from
certain types of state and local taxes. Distributions will be taxable as
described above whether received in cash or in shares through the reinvestment
of distributions.

A portion of the ordinary income dividends paid by certain Funds may qualify for
the 70% dividends-received deduction for corporate shareholders.

Investors should be careful to consider the tax implications of purchasing
shares just prior to the

<PAGE>

next distribution date. Those investors purchasing shares just prior to a
distribution will be taxed on the entire amount of the distribution received,
even though the net asset value per share on the date of such purchase reflected
the amount of such distribution.

Early in each calendar year the Funds will notify your Financial Intermediary of
the amount and tax status of distributions paid for the preceding year.

The foregoing is a summary of certain federal income tax consequences of
investing in the Funds. You should consult your tax adviser to determine the
precise effect of an investment in the Funds on your particular tax situation
(including possible liability for state and local taxes and, for foreign
shareholders, U.S. withholding taxes).

OTHER INFORMATION
CONCERNING THE FUNDS

For shareholders that bank with Chase or Chase Texas, Chase or Chase Texas may
aggregate investments in the Chase Funds with balances held in Chase or Chase
Texas bank accounts for purposes of determining eligibility for certain bank
privileges that are based on specified minimum balance requirements, such as
reduced or no fees for certain banking services or preferred rates on loans and
deposits. Chase, Chase Texas and certain other financial institutions may, at
their own expense, provide gifts, such as computer software packages, guides and
books related to investment or additional Fund shares valued up to $250 to their
customers that invest in the Chase Funds.

ADMINISTRATOR

Chase acts as the Funds' administrator and is entitled to receive a fee computed
daily and paid monthly at an annual rate equal to 0.10% of each Fund's average
daily net assets.

SUB-ADMINISTRATOR AND DISTRIBUTOR

CFD Fund Distributors, Inc. ('CFD') acts as the Funds' sub-administrator and
distributor. CFD is a subsidiary of The BISYS Group, Inc. and is unaffiliated
with Chase. For the sub-administrative services it performs, CFD is entitled to
receive a fee from each Fund at an annual rate equal to 0.05% of the Fund's

average daily net assets. CFD has agreed to use a portion of this fee to pay for
certain expenses incurred in connection with organizing new series of the Trust
and certain other ongoing expenses of the Trust. CFD is located at One Chase
Manhattan Plaza, Third Floor, New York, New York 10081.

CUSTODIAN

Chase acts as custodian for the Funds and receives compensation under an
agreement with the Trust. Chase may sub-contract for the provision of certain
services to be provided under the custody agreement. Fund securities and cash
may be held by sub-custodian banks if such arrangements are reviewed and
approved by the Trustees.

<PAGE>

EXPENSES

Each Fund pays the expenses incurred in its operations, including its pro rata
share of expenses of the Trust. These expenses include investment advisory and
administrative fees; the compensation of the Trustees; registration fees;
interest charges; taxes; expenses connected with the execution, recording and
settlement of security transactions; fees and expenses of the Funds' custodian
for all services to the Funds, including safekeeping of funds and securities and
maintaining required books and accounts; expenses of preparing and mailing
reports to investors and to government offices and commissions; expenses of
meetings of investors; fees and expenses of independent accountants, of legal
counsel and of any transfer agent, registrar or dividend disbursing agent of the
Trust; insurance premiums; and expenses of calculating the net asset value of,
and the net income on, shares of the Funds. Shareholder servicing and
distribution fees are allocated to specific classes of a Fund. In addition, each
Fund may allocate transfer agency and certain other expenses by class. Service
providers to a Fund may, from time to time, voluntarily waive all or a portion
of any fees to which they are entitled.

ORGANIZATION AND DESCRIPTION OF SHARES

The Funds are portfolios of Mutual Fund Investment Trust, an open-end management
investment company organized as a Massachusetts business trust on September 23,
1997 (the 'Trust'). The Trust has reserved the right to create and issue
additional series and classes. Each share of a series or class represents an
equal proportionate interest in that series or class with each other share of
that series or class. The shares of each series or class participate equally in
the earnings, dividends and assets of the particular series or class. Shares
have no preemptive or conversion rights. Shares when issued are fully paid and
non-assessable, except as set forth below. Shareholders are entitled to one vote
for each whole share held, and each fractional share shall be entitled to a
proportionate fractional vote, except that Trust shares held in the treasury of
the Trust shall not be voted. Shares of each class of a Fund generally vote
together except when required under federal securities laws to vote separately
on matters that only affect a particular class, such as the approval of
distribution plans for a particular class.

Premier Shares may be purchased only by Financial Intermediaries who are able to
meet the minimum investment requirement. The categories of investors that are
eligible to purchase shares may differ for each class of Fund shares. In
addition, other classes of Fund shares may be subject to differences in sales
charge arrangements, ongoing distribution and service fee levels, and levels of
certain other expenses, which will affect the relative performance of the
different classes. Any person entitled to receive compensation for selling or
servicing shares of a Fund may receive different levels of compensation with
respect to one class of shares over another.

<PAGE>

The business and affairs of the Trust are managed under the general direction
and supervision of the Trust's Board of Trustees. The Trust is not required to
hold annual meetings of shareholders but will hold special meetings of
shareholders of all series or classes when in the judgment of the Trustees it is
necessary or desirable to submit matters for a shareholder vote. The Trustees
will promptly call a meeting of shareholders to remove a trustee(s) when
requested to do so in writing by record holders of not less than 10% of all
outstanding shares of the Trust.

Under Massachusetts law, shareholders of such a business trust may, under
certain circumstances be held personally liable as partners for its obligations.
However, the risk of a shareholder incurring financial loss on account of
shareholder liability is limited to circumstances in which both inadequate
insurance existed and the Trust itself was unable to meet its obligations.

The Trust was formed to receive the assets of the AVESTA Trust, a Texas trust
('AVESTA'). Pursuant to a reorganization which took place on December 31, 1997,
the Money Market Fund, Short-Term Intermediate Term Fund, U.S. Government
Securities Fund, Intermediate Term Bond Fund, Income Fund, Balanced Fund, Equity
Income Fund, Core Equity Fund, Equity Growth Fund and Small Cap Fund each
acquired the assets of a corresponding series of AVESTA in exchange for Premier
Shares of such Fund.

UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS OF MASTER/FEEDER FUND STRUCTURE

Unlike other mutual funds which directly acquire and manage their own portfolio
securities, each Fund is permitted to invest all of its investable assets in a
separate registered investment company (a 'Portfolio'). In that event, a
shareholder's interest in a Fund's underlying investment securities would be
indirect. In addition to selling a beneficial interest to a Fund, a Portfolio
could also sell beneficial interests to other mutual funds or institutional
investors. In the event that a Fund adopts a master/feeder structure and invests
all its investable assets in a Portfolio, shareholders of the Fund will be given
at least 30 days' prior written notice. For additional information regarding the
master/feeder structure, see the SAI.

PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

MONEY MARKET FUND. The Money Market Fund may advertise its annualized 'yield'
and its 'effective yield.' Annualized 'yield' is determined by assuming that

income generated by an investment in a Fund over a stated seven-day period (the
'yield') will continue to be generated each week over a 52-week period. It is
shown as a percentage of such investment. 'Effective yield' is the annualized
'yield' calculated assuming the reinvestment of the income earned during each
week of the 52-week period. The 'effective yield' will be slightly higher than
the 'yield' due to the compounding effect of this assumed reinvestment.

<PAGE>

NON-MONEY MARKET FUNDS. The investment performance of each Fund other than the
Money Market Fund may from to time be included in advertisements about the Fund.
'Yield' is calculated by dividing the annualized net investment income per share
during a recent 30-day period by the maximum public offering price per share on
the last day of that period.

'Total return' for the one-, five-and ten-year periods (or for the life of a
class, if shorter) through the most recent calendar quarter represents the
average annual compounded rate of return on an investment of $1,000 in a Fund
invested at the public offering price. Total return may also be presented for
other periods.

GENERAL. All performance data is based on each Fund's past investment results
and does not predict future performance. Investment performance, which will
vary, is based on many factors, including market conditions, the composition of
a Fund's portfolio and a Fund's operating expenses. Investment performance also
often reflects the risks associated with a Fund's investment objectives and
policies. These factors should be considered when comparing a Fund's investment
results to those of other mutual funds and other investment vehicles. Quotation
of investment performance for any period when a fee waiver or expense limitation
was in effect will be greater than if the waiver or limitation had not been in
effect. Each Fund's performance may be compared to other mutual funds, relevant
indices and rankings prepared by independent services. See the SAI.

<PAGE>

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<PAGE>

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<PAGE>

TRANSFER AGENT AND DIVIDEND PAYING AGENT
DST Systems, Inc.
210 West 10th Street
Kansas City, MO 64105

LEGAL COUNSEL
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
425 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10017

INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS
Price Waterhouse LLP
1177 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10036