If an investor holds out until the bitter end, the ETF holder will get the cash equivalent value of the fund's assets at the time of sale and not the value of final closing price since ETFs are the sum of their component holdings. It should be noted that an investor is running the risk that the underlying assets could fall in value over the grace period - ETFs track a basket of underlying securities, and if the underlying basket falls in value before the ETF closes, then the ETF will reflect that loss. Still, the underlying assets could also go up, of course. Moreover, individuals may have to wait six to ten days before getting their money back once the ETF does close. In rare cases, investors who opt to hold until the fund is liquidated may also be billed for the costs of closing, or "termination fee," which includes legal fees and administrative costs - ETFs may raise the expense ratio retroactively.
While the process may seem complicated, the delisting process is relatively smooth. If an investor watches his or funds closely, one should be able to adjust accordingly. Even if you manage to miss the selling period, you will still be able to receive a fair value based on the price of the component assets.