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EX-5.1 - EX-5.1 - WEBSTER FINANCIAL CORPd443963dex51.htm
EX-4.1 - EX-4.1 - WEBSTER FINANCIAL CORPd443963dex41.htm
8-K - FORM 8-K - WEBSTER FINANCIAL CORPd443963d8k.htm

Exhibit 1.1

WEBSTER FINANCIAL CORPORATION

6,000,000 Depositary Shares, each representing a 1/1,000th interest

in a share of 5.250% Series F Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

December 5, 2017

MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH

                               INCORPORATED

WELLS FARGO SECURITIES, LLC

J.P. MORGAN SECURITIES LLC

CITIGROUP GLOBAL MARKETS INC.

As Representatives of the several

Underwriters named in Schedule 1 attached hereto,

c/o Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith

Incorporated

One Bryant Park

New York, New York 10036

c/o Wells Fargo Securities, LLC

550 South Tryon Street

Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

c/o J.P. Morgan Securities LLC

383 Madison Avenue

New York, New York 10179

c/o Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

388 Greenwich Street

New York, New York 10013

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Webster Financial Corporation, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to sell 6,000,000 Depositary Shares (“Depositary Shares”), each representing 1/1,000th of a share of its 5.250% Series F Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share and a liquidation preference of $25,000 per share (each, an “Underlying Preferred Share”) (the “Stock”) to the underwriters listed on Schedule 1 hereto (the “Underwriters”). This Agreement is to confirm the agreement concerning the purchase of the Stock from the Company by the Underwriters.

The Depositary Shares will be issued by Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (the “Depositary”) pursuant to the terms of a Deposit Agreement (the “Deposit Agreement”) to be entered into among the Company, the Depositary, and the holders from time to time of Depositary Receipts issued thereunder. The Depositary Shares shall be evidenced by Depositary Receipts issued pursuant to the Deposit Agreement (the “Depositary Receipts”).


1. Representations, Warranties and Agreements of the Company. The Company represents, warrants and agrees that:

(a) A registration statement on Form S-3 relating to the Stock (i) has been prepared by the Company in conformity with the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the rules and regulations (the “Rules and Regulations”) of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) thereunder; (ii) has been filed with the Commission under the Securities Act; and (iii) is effective under the Securities Act. Copies of such registration statement and any amendment thereto have been delivered by the Company to you as the Representatives (the “Representatives”) of the Underwriters. As used in this Agreement:

(i) “Applicable Time” means 2:40 p.m. (New York City time) on December 5, 2017;

(ii) “Effective Date” means any date as of which any part of such registration statement relating to the Stock became, or is deemed to have become, effective under the Securities Act in accordance with the Rules and Regulations;

(iii) “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus” means each “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations) prepared by or on behalf of the Company or used or referred to by the Company in connection with the offering of the Stock;

(iv) “Preliminary Prospectus” means any preliminary prospectus relating to the Stock and the Underlying Preferred Shares included in such registration statement or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations, including any preliminary prospectus supplement thereto relating to the Stock;

(v) “Pricing Disclosure Package” means, as of the Applicable Time, the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, together with the information included in Schedule 2 hereto and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus filed or used by the Company on or before the Applicable Time, other than a road show that is an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus under Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations;

(vi) “Prospectus” means the final prospectus relating to the Stock, including any prospectus supplement thereto relating to the Stock, as filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations; and

(vii) “Registration Statement” means, collectively, the various parts of such registration statement, each as amended as of the Effective Date for such part, including any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus and all exhibits to such registration statement.

 

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Any reference to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Form S-3 under the Securities Act as of the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be. Any reference to the “most recent Preliminary Prospectus” shall be deemed to refer to the latest Preliminary Prospectus included in the Registration Statement or filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) prior to or on the date hereof (including, for purposes hereof, any documents incorporated by reference therein prior to or on the date hereof). Any reference to any amendment or supplement to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any document filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), after the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be, and incorporated by reference in such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be; and any reference to any amendment to the Registration Statement shall be deemed to include any annual report of the Company on Form 10-K filed with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the Effective Date that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement. The Commission has not issued any order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus or suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, and no proceeding or examination for such purpose has been instituted, or to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission. The Commission has not notified the Company of any objection to the use of the form of the Registration Statement.

(b) The Company has been since the time of initial filing of the Registration Statement and continues to be a “well-known seasoned issuer” (as defined in Rule 405) eligible to use Form S-3 for the offering of the Stock, including not having been an “ineligible issuer” (as defined in Rule 405) at any such time or date. The Registration Statement is an “automatic shelf registration statement” (as defined in Rule 405) and was filed not earlier than the date that is three years prior to the Delivery Date (as defined in Section 4).

(c) The Registration Statement conformed and will conform in all material respects on the Effective Date and on the Delivery Date, and any amendment to the Registration Statement filed after the date hereof will conform in all material respects when filed, to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations. The most recent Preliminary Prospectus conformed, and the Prospectus will conform, in all material respects when filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) and on the Delivery Date to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations. The documents incorporated by reference in any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus conformed, and any further documents so incorporated will conform, when filed with the Commission, in all material respects to the requirements of the Exchange Act or the Securities Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

(d) The Registration Statement did not, as of the Effective Date, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided that no representation or warranty is made as to information contained in or omitted from the Registration Statement in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company through the Representatives by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is specified in Section 8(e).

 

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(e) The Prospectus will not, as of its date and on the Delivery Date, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that no representation or warranty is made as to information contained in or omitted from the Prospectus in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company through the Representatives by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is specified in Section 8(e).

(f) The documents incorporated by reference in any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus did not, and any further documents filed and incorporated by reference therein will not, when filed with the Commission, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

(g) The Pricing Disclosure Package did not, as of the Applicable Time, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that no representation or warranty is made as to information contained in or omitted from the Pricing Disclosure Package in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company through the Representatives by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is specified in Section 8(e).

(h) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (including, without limitation, any road show that is a free writing prospectus under Rule 433), when considered together with the Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time, did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

(i) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conformed or will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations on the date of first use, and the Company has complied with any filing requirements applicable to such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus pursuant to the Rules and Regulations. The Company has not made any offer relating to the Stock that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus without the prior written consent of the Representatives. The Company has retained in accordance with the Rules and Regulations all Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses that were not required to be filed pursuant to the Rules and Regulations.

 

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(j) Each of the Company and its subsidiaries (as defined in Section 17) has been duly organized, is validly existing and in good standing as a corporation or other business entity under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization and is duly qualified to do business and in good standing as a foreign corporation or other business entity in each jurisdiction in which its ownership or lease of property or the conduct of its businesses requires such qualification, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing would not, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders’ equity, properties, business or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole (a “Material Adverse Effect”); each of the Company and its subsidiaries has all power and authority necessary to own or hold its properties and to conduct the businesses in which it is engaged. The Company is duly registered as a financial holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHCA”) and meets the applicable requirements for qualification as such. Webster Bank, National Association (the “Bank”) is a national bank chartered under the laws of the United States. The Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than the subsidiaries listed in Exhibit 21 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recent fiscal year. None of the subsidiaries of the Company (other than the Bank and Webster Mortgage Investment Corporation (collectively, the “Significant Subsidiaries”)) is a “significant subsidiary” (as defined in Rule 405).

(k) The authorized capital stock of the Company consists of 200,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Common Stock”), and 3,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Preferred Stock”). As of November 27, 2017, there are (i) 99,099,664 shares of Common Stock and 5,060 shares of the Company’s 6.50% Series E Non-Cumulative Perpetual Convertible Preferred Stock issued and outstanding, (ii) 1,579,935 shares of Common Stock held in the Company’s treasury, (iii) 9,777 warrants issued and outstanding to purchase 9,777 shares of Common Stock and (iv) 646,240 shares of Common Stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding stock options or otherwise. All of the issued shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly authorized and validly issued, are fully paid and non-assessable, conform in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and were issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws and not in violation of any preemptive right, resale right, right of first refusal or similar right. All of the Company’s options, warrants and other rights to purchase or exchange any securities for shares of the Company’s capital stock have been duly authorized and validly issued, conform to any description thereof contained in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and were issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws. All of the issued shares of capital stock of each subsidiary of the Company have been duly authorized and validly issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned directly or indirectly by the Company, free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, equities or claims, except for such liens, encumbrances, equities or claims as could not, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(l) The shares of the Stock to be issued and sold by the Company to the Underwriters hereunder have been duly authorized and, upon payment and delivery in accordance with this Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, will conform to the description thereof contained in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, will be issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws and will be free of statutory and contractual preemptive rights, rights of first refusal and similar rights.

 

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(m) The execution and filing of the certificate of designation relating to the Underlying Preferred Shares (the “Certificate of Designation”) has been duly authorized by the Company and, as of the Closing Date, the Certificate of Designation will have been duly executed and filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware. The Underlying Preferred Shares in respect of the Stock have been duly authorized by the Company and, when such shares are issued and delivered against payment therefore as contemplated by the terms of this Agreement, such shares will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, and the issuance of such shares is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights. The Underlying Preferred Shares conform in all material respects to the description of the Underlying Preferred Shares contained in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus.

(n) The deposit of the Underlying Preferred Shares in respect of the Stock by the Company in accordance with the Deposit Agreement has been duly authorized and, when the Stock (evidenced by the related Depositary Receipts) are issued and delivered in accordance with the terms of this Agreement and the Deposit Agreement, the Stock will represent legal and valid interests in such Underlying Preferred Shares, and the Stock (evidenced by the related Depositary Receipts) will entitled holders thereof to the benefits provided therein and in the Deposit Agreement.

(o) The Company has all requisite corporate power and authority to execute, deliver and perform its obligations under this Agreement. This Agreement has been duly and validly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.

(p) The Deposit Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and is a valid and binding agreement of the Company, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency and similar laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and equitable principles of general applicability. The Deposit Agreement conforms in all material respect to the description of the Deposit Agreement contained in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus.

(q) The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the Deposit Agreement by the Company, the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby and the application of the proceeds from the sale of the Stock as described under “Use of Proceeds” in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus will not (i) conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, impose any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company and its subsidiaries, or constitute a default under, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, license or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject; (ii) result in any violation of the provisions of the charter or by-laws (or similar organizational

 

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documents) of the Company or any of its subsidiaries; or (iii) result in any violation of any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties or assets except, in the cases of clauses (i) and (iii), for those conflicts, breaches, violations, impositions or defaults that would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(r) Except as described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, no consent, approval, authorization, or license or order of, or filing or registration with, any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties or assets is required for the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the Deposit Agreement by the Company, the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, the application of the proceeds from the sale of the Stock as described under “Use of Proceeds” in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, except for the registration of the Stock under the Securities Act and such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required under the Exchange Act and applicable state or foreign securities laws in connection with the purchase and sale of the Stock by the Underwriters.

(s) There are no contracts, agreements or understandings between the Company and any person granting such person the right to require the Company to file a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to any securities of the Company owned or to be owned by such person or to require the Company to include such securities in the securities registered pursuant to the Registration Statement or in any securities being registered pursuant to any other registration statement filed by the Company under the Securities Act.

(t) The Company has not sold or issued any securities that would be integrated with the offering of the Stock contemplated by this Agreement pursuant to the Securities Act, the Rules and Regulations or the interpretations thereof by the Commission.

(u) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has sustained, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, and since such date, there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any adverse change, or any development involving a prospective adverse change, in or affecting the condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders’ equity, properties, management, business or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, in each case except as could not, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(v) Since the date as of which information is given in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, the Company has not (i) incurred any material liability or obligation, direct or contingent, other than liabilities and obligations that were incurred in the ordinary course of business, (ii) entered into any material transaction not in the ordinary course of business or (iii) declared or paid any dividend on its capital stock.

 

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(w) The historical financial statements (including the related notes and supporting schedules) included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus comply as to form in all material respects with the requirements of Regulation S-X under the Securities Act and present fairly the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the entities purported to be shown thereby at the dates and for the periods indicated and have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved.

(x) KPMG LLP, which has certified certain financial statements of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries, whose reports appear in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus or are incorporated by reference therein and which has delivered the initial letter referred to in Section 7(f) hereof, are independent public accountants as required by the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations during the periods covered by the financial statements on which it reported contained or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus.

(y) The statistical and market-related data, if any, included under the caption “Prospectus Supplement Summary” in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, included under the captions “Item 1. Business” and “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the consolidated financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus are based on or derived from sources that the Company believes to be reliable and accurate in all material respects.

(z) Neither the Company nor any subsidiary is, and as of the Delivery Date and, after giving effect to the offer and sale of the Stock and the application of the proceeds therefrom as described under “Use of Proceeds” in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, none of them will be, (i) an “investment company” within the meaning of such term under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder or (ii) a “business development company” (as defined in Section 2(a)(48) of the Investment Company Act).

(aa) Except as disclosed in the Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, there are no legal or governmental proceedings pending to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or of which any property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is the subject that could, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect or could, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the performance of this Agreement or the Deposit Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby; and to the Company’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or others.

 

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(bb) No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company, on the one hand, and the directors, officers, stockholders, customers or suppliers of the Company, on the other hand, that is required to be described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus which is not so described.

(cc) No labor disturbance by the employees of the Company or its subsidiaries exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent that could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(dd) (i) Each “employee benefit plan” (within the meaning of Section 3(3) of the Employee Retirement Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”)) for which the Company or any member of its “Controlled Group” (defined as any organization which is a member of a controlled group of corporations within the meaning of Section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”)) would have any liability (each a “Plan”) has been maintained in material compliance with its terms and with the requirements of all applicable statutes, rules and regulations including ERISA and the Code; (ii) with respect to each Plan subject to Title IV of ERISA (a) no “reportable event” (within the meaning of Section 4043(c) of ERISA) has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur, (b) no “accumulated funding deficiency” (within the meaning of Section 302 of ERISA or Section 412 of the Code), whether or not waived, has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur, (c) the fair market value of the assets under each Plan exceeds the present value of all benefits accrued under such Plan (determined based on those assumptions used to fund such Plan) and (d) neither the Company or any member of its Controlled Group has incurred, or reasonably expects to incur, any liability under Title IV of ERISA (other than contributions to the Plan or premiums to the PBGC in the ordinary course and without default) in respect of a Plan (including a “multiemployer plan”, within the meaning of Section 4001(c)(3) of ERISA); and (iii) each Plan that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code is so qualified and nothing has occurred, whether by action or by failure to act, which would reasonably be expected to cause the loss of such qualification.

(ee) The Company and each of its subsidiaries have filed all federal, state, local and foreign income and franchise tax returns required to be filed through the date hereof, subject to permitted extensions, and have paid all taxes due thereon, and no tax deficiency has been determined adversely to the Company or any of its subsidiaries, nor does the Company have any knowledge of any tax deficiencies that could, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(ff) There are no transfer taxes or other similar fees or charges under Federal law or the laws of any state, or any political subdivision thereof, required to be paid in connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the issuance by the Company or sale by the Company of the Stock.

(gg) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries (i) is in violation of its charter or by-laws (or similar organizational documents), (ii) is in default, and no event has occurred that, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default, in the due performance or observance of any term, covenant or condition contained in any

 

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indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, license or other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it is bound or to which any of its properties or assets is subject or (iii) is in violation of any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over it or its property or assets or has failed to obtain any license, permit, certificate, franchise or other governmental authorization or permit necessary to the ownership of its property or to the conduct of its business, except in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii), to the extent any such conflict, breach, violation or default could not, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(hh) There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company and any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply in all material respects with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith.

(ii) The Company maintains a system of “internal control over financial reporting” (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) of the Exchange Act) that complies with the requirements of the Exchange Act and have been designed by, or under the supervision of, the Company’s principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, to provide reasonable assurances regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP.

(jj) The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language incorporated by reference in the Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and is prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.

(kk) There are no affiliations or associations between any member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (the “FINRA”) and any of the Company’s officers, directors or 5% or greater securityholders.

(ll) The Company and each of its subsidiaries have such permits, licenses, patents, franchises, certificates of need and other approvals or authorizations of governmental or regulatory authorities (“Permits”) as are necessary under applicable law to own their properties and conduct their businesses in the manner described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, except for any of the foregoing that could not, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; each of the Company and its subsidiaries has fulfilled and performed all of its obligations with respect to the Permits, and no event has occurred that allows, or after notice or lapse of time would allow, revocation or termination thereof or results in any other impairment of the rights of the holder or any such Permits, except for any of the foregoing that could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(mm) Each of the Company and the Bank are in compliance in all respects with all applicable laws administered by, and all rules and regulations of, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve Board”), the Federal

 

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Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”) and any other federal or state bank regulatory authorities with jurisdiction over the Company or the Bank (collectively, the “Bank Regulatory Authorities”), except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus or where such noncompliance would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. The deposit accounts of the Bank are insured up to applicable limits by the FDIC and no proceedings for the termination or revocation of such insurance are pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened. Except as summarized in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, neither the Company nor the Bank is a party to any written agreement or memorandum of understanding with, or a party to any commitment letter or similar agreement or undertaking to, or is subject to any order or directive by, or is a recipient of any extraordinary supervisory letter from, or has adopted any board of director resolutions at the request of, any Bank Regulatory Authority, nor have any of them been advised by any Bank Regulatory Authority that it is contemplating issuing or requesting (or is considering the appropriateness of issuing or requesting) any such order, decree, agreement, memorandum of understanding, extraordinary supervisory letter, commitment letter or similar submission, or any such board of directors resolutions, in each case that are applicable to the Company or the Bank specifically, rather than to banks and bank holding companies generally.

(nn) The Company and each of its subsidiaries own or possess adequate rights to use all material patents, patent applications, trademarks, service marks, trade names, trademark registrations, service mark registrations, copyrights, licenses, know-how, software, systems and technology (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or confidential information, systems or procedures) necessary for the conduct of their respective businesses and have no reason to believe that the conduct of their respective businesses will conflict with, and have not received any notice of any claim of conflict with, any such rights of others.

(oo) The Company and its subsidiaries are (i) in compliance with any and all applicable foreign, federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of human health and safety, the environment or-hazardous or toxic substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants (“Environmental Laws”), (ii) have received and are in compliance with all permits, licenses or other approvals required of them under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct their respective businesses and (iii) have not received notice of any actual or potential liability for the investigation or remediation of any disposal or release of hazardous or toxic substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants, except where such non-compliance with Environmental Laws, failure to receive required permits, licenses or other approvals, or liability would not have a Material Adverse Effect.

(pp) No subsidiary of the Company is currently prohibited, directly or indirectly, from paying any dividends to the Company except for such limitations and prohibitions generally applicable to the Bank as described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, from making any other distribution on such subsidiary’s capital stock, from repaying to the Company any loans or advances to such subsidiary from the Company or from transferring any of such subsidiary’s property or assets to the Company or any other subsidiary of the Company, except as described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus.

 

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(qq) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries, nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee, affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is aware of or has taken any action, directly or indirectly, that could result in a violation or a sanction for violation by such persons of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 or the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, each as may be amended, or similar law of any other relevant jurisdiction, or the rules or regulations thereunder; and the Company and its subsidiaries have instituted and maintain policies and procedures to ensure compliance therewith. No part of the proceeds of the offering will be used, directly or indirectly, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 or the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, each as may be amended, or similar law of any other relevant jurisdiction, or the rules or regulations thereunder.

(rr) The operations of the Company and its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements and the money laundering statutes and the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.

(ss) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any of its subsidiaries (i) is, or is controlled or 50% or more owned in the aggregate by or is acting on behalf of one or more individuals or entities that are currently the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States (including any administered or enforced by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of State or the Bureau of Industry and Security of the U.S. Department of Commerce), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, a member state of the European Union (including sanctions administered or enforced by Her Majesty’s Treasury of the United Kingdom) or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions” and such persons, “Sanctioned Persons” and each such person, a “Sanctioned Person”), (ii) is located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is, or whose government is, the subject of Sanctions that broadly prohibit dealings with that country or territory (collectively, “Sanctioned Countries” and each, a “Sanctioned Country”) or (iii) will, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of this offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other individual or entity in any manner that would result in a violation of any Sanctions by, or could result in the imposition of Sanctions against, any individual or entity (including any individual or entity participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise). For the past three years, the Company and its subsidiaries have not knowingly engaged in and are not now knowingly engaged in, nor does the Company and its subsidiaries have any plans to engage in, any dealings or transactions with or for the benefit of any person that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was a Sanctioned Person or with any Sanctioned Country.

 

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(tt) The Company has not distributed and, prior to the later to occur of any Delivery Date and completion of the distribution of the Stock, will not distribute any offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Stock other than any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to which the Representatives have consented in accordance with Section (i) above or 5(viii).

(uu) The Company has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that has constituted or that could reasonably be expected to cause or result in the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the shares of the Stock.

(vv) The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to effect, subject to notice of issuance, the listing of the Stock on the New York Stock Exchange.

Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company and delivered to the Representatives or counsel for the Underwriters in connection with the offering of the Stock shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company, as to matters covered thereby, to each Underwriter.

2. Purchase of the Stock by the Underwriters. On the basis of the representations and warranties contained in, and subject to the terms and conditions of, this Agreement, the Company agrees to sell 6,000,000 shares of the Stock to the several Underwriters, and each of the Underwriters, severally and not jointly, agrees to purchase the number of shares of the Stock set forth opposite the Underwriter’s name in Schedule 1 hereto. Each Underwriter shall be obligated to purchase from the Company that number of shares of the Stock that represents the same proportion of the number of shares of the Stock to be sold by the Company as the number of shares of the Stock set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule 1 represents of the total number of shares of the Stock to be purchased by all of the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement. The respective purchase obligations of the Underwriters with respect to the Stock shall be rounded among the Underwriters to avoid fractional shares, as the Representatives may determine.

The price of the Stock purchased by the Underwriters shall be $24.2125 per share sold to retail investors and $24.6250 per share sold to institutional investors.

The Company shall not be obligated to deliver any of the Stock to be delivered on the Delivery Date, except upon payment for all such Stock to be purchased on such Delivery Date as provided herein.

3. Offering of Stock by the Underwriters. Upon authorization by the Representatives of the release of the Stock, the several Underwriters propose to offer the Stock for sale upon the terms and conditions to be set forth in the Prospectus.

 

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4. Delivery of and Payment for the Stock. Delivery of and payment for the Stock shall be made at 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on the fifth full business day following the date of this Agreement or at such other date or place as shall be determined by agreement between the Representatives and the Company. This date and time are sometimes referred to as the “Delivery Date.” Delivery of the Stock shall be made to Representatives for the account of each Underwriter against payment by the several Underwriters through the Representatives and of the respective aggregate purchase price of the Stock being sold by the Company to or upon the order of the Company of the purchase price by wire transfer in immediately available funds to the accounts specified by the Company. Time shall be of the essence, and delivery at the time and place specified pursuant to this Agreement is a further condition of the obligation of each Underwriter hereunder. The Company shall deliver the Stock through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) unless the Representatives shall otherwise instruct.

5. Further Agreements of the Company and the Underwriters. (a) The Company agrees:

(i) To prepare the Prospectus in a form approved by the Representatives and to file such Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act not later than the Commission’s close of business on the second business day following the execution and delivery of this Agreement; to make no further amendment or any supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus prior to the last Delivery Date except as provided herein; to advise the Representatives, promptly after it receives notice thereof, of the time when any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus has been filed and to furnish the Representatives with copies thereof; to file promptly all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act subsequent to the date of the Prospectus and for so long as the delivery of a prospectus is required in connection with the offering or sale of the Stock; to advise the Representatives, promptly after it receives notice thereof, of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order or of any order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, of the suspension of the qualification of the Stock for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, of the initiation or threatening of any proceeding or examination for any such purpose, of any notice from the Commission objecting to the use of the form of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto or of any request by the Commission for the amending or supplementing of the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or for additional information; and, in the event of the issuance of any stop order or of any order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or suspending any such qualification, to use promptly its best efforts to obtain its withdrawal;

(ii) To pay the applicable Commission filing fees relating to the Stock within the time required by Rule 456(b)(1) without regard to the proviso therein;

(iii) To furnish promptly to the Representatives and to counsel for the Underwriters a signed copy of the Registration Statement as originally filed with the Commission, and each amendment thereto filed with the Commission, including all consents and exhibits filed therewith;

 

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(iv) To deliver promptly to the Representatives such number of the following documents as the Representatives shall reasonably request: (A) conformed copies of the Registration Statement as originally filed with the Commission and each amendment thereto (in each case excluding exhibits other than this Agreement and the computation of per share earnings), (B) each Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus and any amended or supplemented Prospectus, (C) each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and (D) any document incorporated by reference in any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus; and, if the delivery of a prospectus is required at any time after the date hereof in connection with the offering or sale of the Stock or any other securities relating thereto and if at such time any events shall have occurred as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made when such Prospectus is delivered, not misleading, or, if for any other reason it shall be necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus or to file under the Exchange Act any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus in order to comply with the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, to notify the Representatives and, upon its request, to file such document and to prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter and to any dealer in securities as many copies as the Representatives may from time to time reasonably request of an amended or supplemented Prospectus that will correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance;

(v) To file promptly with the Commission any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus that may, in the judgment of the Company or the Representatives, be required by the Securities Act or requested by the Commission;

(vi) To file promptly with the New York Stock Exchange a supplemental listing application for the Stock and to use its reasonable best efforts to effect the listing of the Stock on the New York Stock Exchange;

(vii) Prior to filing with the Commission any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus or any amendment to any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, to furnish a copy thereof to the Representatives and counsel for the Underwriters and obtain the consent of the Representatives to the filing;

(viii) Not to make any offer relating to the Stock that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus without the prior written consent of the Representatives.

(ix) To comply with all applicable requirements of Rule 433 with respect to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus; and if at any time after the date hereof any events shall have occurred as a result of which any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, as then amended or supplemented, would conflict with the information in the Registration Statement, the most recent Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus or would include an

 

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untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, or, if for any other reason it shall be necessary to amend or supplement any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, to notify the Representatives and, upon their request, to file such document and to prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter as many copies as the Representatives may from time to time reasonably request of an amended or supplemented Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that will correct such conflict, statement or omission or effect such compliance;

(x) As soon as practicable after the Effective Date and in any event not later than 16 months after the date hereof, to make generally available to the Company’s security holders and to deliver to the Representatives an earnings statement of the Company and its subsidiaries (which need not be audited) complying with Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations;

(xi) Promptly from time to time to take such action as the Representatives may reasonably request to qualify the Stock for offering and sale under the securities laws of Canada and such other jurisdictions as the Representatives may request and to comply with such laws so as to permit the continuance of sales and dealings therein in such jurisdictions for as long as may be necessary to complete the distribution of the Stock; provided that in connection therewith the Company shall not be required to (i) qualify as a foreign corporation in any jurisdiction in which it would not otherwise be required to so qualify, (ii) file a general consent to service of process in any such jurisdiction or (iii) subject itself to taxation in any jurisdiction in which it would not otherwise be subject;

(xii) During the period commencing on the date hereof and ending on the 60th day after the date hereof, the Company will not, without the consent of the Representatives, offer for sale, sell, contract to sell, announce the offering or otherwise dispose of any shares of the Underlying Preferred Stock or equity securities similar to or ranking on par with or senior to the Underlying Preferred Stock, including any guarantee of such securities, or any securities convertible into or exchangeable or representing the right to receive any such securities; and

(xiii) To apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Stock being sold by the Company as set forth in the Prospectus.

(b) Each Underwriter severally agrees that such Underwriter shall not include any “issuer information” (as defined in Rule 433) in any “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405) used or referred to by such Underwriter without the prior consent of the Company (any such issuer information with respect to whose use the Company has given its consent, “Permitted Issuer Information”); provided that (i) no such consent shall be required with respect to any such issuer information contained in any document filed by the Company with the Commission prior to the use of such free writing prospectus and (ii) “issuer information,” as used in this Section 5(b), shall not be deemed to include information prepared by or on behalf of such Underwriter on the basis of or derived from issuer information.

 

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6. Expenses. The Company agrees, whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, to pay all costs, expenses, fees and taxes incident to and in connection with (a) the authorization, issuance, sale and delivery of the Stock and any stamp duties or other taxes payable in that connection, and the preparation and printing of certificates for the Stock; (b) the preparation, printing and filing under the Securities Act of the Registration Statement (including any exhibits thereto), any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto; (c) the distribution of the Registration Statement (including any exhibits thereto), any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, or any document incorporated by reference therein, all as provided in this Agreement; (d) the production and distribution of this Agreement and any other related documents in connection with the offering, purchase, sale and delivery of the Stock; (e) any required review by FINRA of the terms of sale of the Stock (including related fees and expenses of counsel to the Underwriters in an amount that is not greater than $5,000); (f) the listing of the Stock on the New York Stock Exchange; (g) the qualification of the Stock under the securities laws of the several jurisdictions as provided in Section 5(a)(x) and the preparation, printing and distribution of a Blue Sky Memorandum (including related reasonable fees and expenses of counsel to the Underwriters); (h) if applicable in the context of the offering, the preparation, printing and distribution of one or more versions of the Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus for distribution in Canada, often in the form of a Canadian “wrapper” (including related fees and expenses of Canadian counsel to the Underwriters); (i) the investor presentations on any “electronic road show” undertaken in connection with the marketing of the Stock; and (j) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of the obligations of the Company under this Agreement; provided that, except as provided in this Section 6 and in Section 11, the Underwriters shall pay their own costs and expenses, including the costs and expenses of their counsel, any transfer taxes on the Stock which they may sell and the expenses of advertising any offering of the Stock made by the Underwriters, and reimburse the Company for their pro rata share of the fees and expenses paid by the Company in connection with the advertising of any offering of the Stock.

7. Conditions of Underwriters Obligations. The respective obligations of the Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy, when made and on each Delivery Date, of the representations and warranties of the Company contained herein, to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, and to each of the following additional terms and conditions:

(a) The Prospectus shall have been timely filed with the Commission in accordance with Section 5(a)(i); the Company shall have complied with all filing requirements applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus used or referred to after the date hereof; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been issued and no proceeding or examination for such purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission; any request of the Commission for inclusion of additional information in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or otherwise shall have been complied with; and the Commission shall not have notified the Company of any objection to the use of the form of the Registration Statement.

 

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(b) No Underwriter shall have discovered and disclosed to the Company on or prior to such Delivery Date that the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or the Pricing Disclosure Package, or any amendment or supplement thereto, contains an untrue statement of a fact which, in the opinion of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, is material or omits to state a fact which, in the opinion of such counsel, is material and is required to be stated therein or is necessary to make the statements therein not misleading.

(c) All corporate proceedings and other legal matters incident to the authorization, form and validity of this Agreement, the Stock, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and all other legal matters relating to this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby shall be reasonably satisfactory in all material respects to counsel for the Underwriters, and the Company shall have furnished to such counsel all documents and information that they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.

(d) Hogan Lovells US LLP shall have furnished to the Representatives its written opinion, as counsel to the Company, addressed to the Underwriters and dated such Delivery Date, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A.

(e) The Representatives shall have received from Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, such opinion or opinions, dated such Delivery Date, with respect to the issuance and sale of the Stock, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Pricing Disclosure Package and other related matters as the Representatives may reasonably require, and the Company shall have furnished to such counsel such documents as they reasonably request for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon such matters.

(f) At the time of execution of this Agreement, the Representatives shall have received from KPMG LLP a letter, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives, addressed to the Underwriters and dated the date hereof (i) confirming that they are independent public accountants within the meaning of the Securities Act and are in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualification of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X of the Commission, and (ii) stating, as of the date hereof (or, with respect to matters involving changes or developments since the respective dates as of which specified financial information is given in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, as of a date not more than three business days prior to the date hereof), the conclusions and findings of such firm with respect to the financial information and other matters ordinarily covered by accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters in connection with registered public offerings.

 

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(g) With respect to the letter of KPMG LLP referred to in the preceding paragraph and delivered to the Representatives concurrently with the execution of this Agreement (the “initial letter”), the Company shall have furnished to the Representatives a letter (the “bring-down letter”) of such accountants, addressed to the Underwriters and dated such Delivery Date (i) confirming that they are independent public accountants within the meaning of the Securities Act and are in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualification of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X of the Commission, (ii) stating, as of the date of the bring-down letter (or, with respect to matters involving changes or developments since the respective dates as of which specified financial information is given in the Prospectus, as of a date not more than three business days prior to the date of the bring-down letter), the conclusions and findings of such firm with respect to the financial information and other matters covered by the initial letter and (iii) confirming in all material respects the conclusions and findings set forth in the initial letter.

(h) The Company shall have furnished to the Representatives a certificate, dated such Delivery Date, of its Chief Executive Officer or its Chief Financial Officer stating that:

(i) The representations, warranties and agreements of the Company in Section 1 are true and correct on and as of such Delivery Date, and the Company has complied with all its agreements contained herein and satisfied all the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder at or prior to such Delivery Date;

(ii) No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued; no proceedings or examination for that purpose have been instituted or, to the knowledge of such officers, threatened; and the Commission has not notified the Company of any objection to the use of the form of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto; and

(iii) They have carefully examined the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Pricing Disclosure Package, and, in their opinion, (A) (1) the Registration Statement, as of the Effective Date, (2) the Prospectus, as of its date and on the Delivery Date, or (3) the Pricing Disclosure Package, as of the Applicable Time, did not and do not contain any untrue statement of a material fact and did not and do not omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein (except in the case of the Registration Statement, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made) not misleading, and (B) since the Effective Date, no event has occurred that should have been set forth in a supplement or amendment to the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that has not been so set forth;

(i) (i) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries shall have sustained, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree or

 

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(ii) since such date there shall not have been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any change, or any development involving a prospective change, in or affecting the condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, stockholders’ equity, properties, management, business or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, the effect of which, in any such case described in clause (i) or (ii), is, in the judgment of the Representatives, so material and adverse as to make it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or the delivery of the Stock being delivered on such Delivery Date on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus.

(j) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating accorded the Company’s debt securities or preferred stock by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization” (as that term is defined by the Commission for purposes of Section 3(a)(62) of the Exchange Act), and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, with possible negative implications, its rating of any of the Company’s debt securities or preferred stock.

(k) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement there shall not have occurred any of the following: (i) trading in securities generally on the New York Stock Exchange or the NYSE American LLC or in the over-the-counter market, or trading in any securities of the Company on any exchange or in the over-the-counter market, shall have been suspended or materially limited or the settlement of such trading generally shall have been materially disrupted or minimum prices shall have been established on any such exchange or such market by the Commission, by such exchange or by any other regulatory body or governmental authority having jurisdiction, (ii) a banking moratorium shall have been declared by federal or state authorities, (iii) the United States shall have become engaged in hostilities, there shall have been an escalation in hostilities involving the United States or there shall have been a declaration of a national emergency or war by the United States or (iv) there shall have occurred such a material adverse change in general economic, political or financial conditions, including, without limitation, as a result of terrorist activities after the date hereof (or the effect of international conditions on the financial markets in the United States shall be such), as to make it, in the judgment of the Representatives, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or delivery of the Stock being delivered on such Delivery Date on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus.

(l) The New York Stock Exchange shall have approved the Stock for listing, subject only to official notice of issuance.

All opinions, letters, evidence and certificates mentioned above or elsewhere in this Agreement shall be deemed to be in compliance with the provisions hereof only if they are in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.

 

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8. Indemnification and Contribution.

(a) The Company shall indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its directors, officers and employees and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act, from and against any loss, claim, damage or liability, joint or several, or any action in respect thereof (including, but not limited to, any loss, claim, damage, liability or action relating to purchases and sales of Stock), to which that Underwriter, director, officer, employee or controlling person may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of, or is based upon, (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in (A) any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto, (B) any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or (C) any Permitted Issuer Information used or referred to in any “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405) used or referred to by any Underwriter, (D) any “road show” (as defined in Rule 433) not constituting an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (a “Non-Prospectus Road Show”) or (E) any Blue Sky application or other document prepared or executed by the Company (or based upon any written information furnished by the Company for use therein) specifically for the purpose of qualifying any or all of the Stock under the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction (any such application, document or information being hereinafter called a “Blue Sky Application”) or (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Permitted Issuer Information, any Non-Prospectus Road Show or any Blue Sky Application, any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and shall reimburse each Underwriter and each such director, officer, employee or controlling person promptly upon demand for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by that Underwriter, director, officer, employee or controlling person in connection with investigating or defending or preparing to defend against any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action as such expenses are incurred; provided, however, that the Company shall not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of, or is based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any such amendment or supplement thereto or in any Permitted Issuer Information, any Non-Prospectus Road Show or any Blue Sky Application, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information concerning such Underwriter furnished to the Company through the Representatives by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information consists solely of the information specified in Section 8(e). The foregoing indemnity agreement is in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have to any Underwriter or to any director, officer, employee or controlling person of that Underwriter.

 

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(b) Each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, shall indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its respective directors, officers and employees, and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act, from and against any loss, claim, damage or liability, joint or several, or any action in respect thereof, to which the Company or any such director, officer, employee or controlling person may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of, or is based upon, (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Non-Prospectus Road Show or Blue Sky Application, or (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Non-Prospectus Road Show or Blue Sky Application, any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, but in each case only to the extent that the untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information concerning such Underwriter furnished to the Company through the Representatives by or on behalf of that Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is limited to the information set forth in Section 8(e). The foregoing indemnity agreement is in addition to any liability that any Underwriter may otherwise have to the Company or any such director, officer, employee or controlling person.

(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under this Section 8 of notice of any claim or the commencement of any action, the indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under this Section 8, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the claim or the commencement of that action; provided, however, that the failure to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have under this Section 8 except to the extent it has been materially prejudiced by such failure and, provided, further, that the failure to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have to an indemnified party otherwise than under this Section 8. If any such claim or action shall be brought against an indemnified party, and it shall notify the indemnifying party thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate therein and, to the extent that it wishes, jointly with any other similarly notified indemnifying party, to assume the defense thereof with counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party. After notice from the indemnifying party to the indemnified party of its election to assume the defense of such claim or action, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to the indemnified party under this Section 8 for any legal or other expenses subsequently incurred by the indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation; provided, however, that the indemnified party shall have the right to employ counsel to represent jointly the indemnified party and those other indemnified parties and their respective directors, officers, employees and controlling persons who may be subject to liability arising out of any claim in respect of which indemnity may be sought under this Section 8 if (i) the indemnified party and the indemnifying party shall have so mutually agreed; (ii) the indemnifying party has failed within a reasonable time to retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party; (iii) the indemnified party and its directors, officers, employees and controlling

 

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persons shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to them that are different from or in addition to those available to the indemnifying party; or (iv) the named parties in any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the indemnified parties or their respective directors, officers, employees or controlling persons, on the one hand, and the indemnifying party, on the other hand, and representation of both sets of parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them, and in any such event the fees and expenses of such separate counsel shall be paid by the indemnifying party. No indemnifying party shall (i) without the prior written consent of the indemnified parties (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld), settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to any pending or threatened claim, action, suit or proceeding in respect of which indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified parties are actual or potential parties to such claim or action) unless such settlement, compromise or consent includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all liability arising out of such claim, action, suit or proceeding and does not include any findings of fact or admissions of fault or culpability as to the indemnified party, or (ii) be liable for any settlement of any such action effected without its written consent (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld), but if settled with the consent of the indemnifying party or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff in any such action, the indemnifying party agrees to indemnify and hold harmless any indemnified party from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment.

(d) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 8 shall for any reason be unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under Section 8(a), Section 8(b) or Section 8(c) in respect of any loss, claim, damage or liability, or any action in respect thereof, referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall, in lieu of indemnifying such indemnified party, contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such loss, claim, damage or liability, or action in respect thereof, (i) in such proportion as shall be appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, from the offering of the Stock or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) above but also the relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, with respect to the statements or omissions that resulted in such loss, claim, damage or liability, or action in respect thereof, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, with respect to such offering shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering of the Stock purchased under this Agreement (before deducting expenses) received by the Company, as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus, on the one hand, and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters with respect to the shares of the Stock purchased under this Agreement, as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus, on the other hand. The relative fault shall be determined by reference to whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to

 

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information supplied by the Company or the Underwriters, the intent of the parties and their relative knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this Section 8(d) were to be determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation that does not take into account the equitable considerations referred to herein. The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the loss, claim, damage or liability, or action in respect thereof, referred to above in this Section 8(d) shall be deemed to include, for purposes of this Section 8(d) any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 8(d), no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the net proceeds from the sale of the Stock underwritten by it exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise paid or become liable to pay by reason of any untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations to contribute as provided in this Section 8(e) are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations and not joint.

(e) The Underwriters severally confirm and the Company acknowledges and agrees that the statements regarding delivery of shares by the Underwriters set forth on the cover page of, and the concession and reallowance figures and the paragraph relating to stabilization by the Underwriters appearing under the caption “Underwriting” in, the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus are correct and constitute the only information concerning such Underwriters furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of the Underwriters specifically for inclusion in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Non-Prospectus Road Show.

9. Defaulting Underwriters. If, on any Delivery Date, any Underwriter defaults in the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters shall be obligated to purchase the Stock that the defaulting Underwriter agreed but failed to purchase on such Delivery Date in the respective proportions which the number of shares of the Stock set forth opposite the name of each remaining non-defaulting Underwriter in Schedule 1 hereto bears to the total number of shares of the Stock set forth opposite the names of all the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters in Schedule 1 hereto; provided, however, that the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters shall not be obligated to purchase any of the Stock on such Delivery Date if the total number of shares of the Stock that the defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase on such date exceeds 9.09% of the total number of shares of the Stock to be purchased on such Delivery Date, and any remaining non-defaulting Underwriter shall not be obligated to purchase more than 110% of the number of shares of the Stock that it agreed to purchase on such Delivery Date pursuant to the terms of Section 3. If the foregoing maximums are exceeded, the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters, or those other underwriters satisfactory to the Representatives who so agree, shall have the right, but shall not

 

24


be obligated, to purchase, in such proportion as may be agreed upon among them, all the Stock to be purchased on such Delivery Date. If the remaining Underwriters or other underwriters satisfactory to the Representatives do not elect to purchase the shares that the defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase on such Delivery Date, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company, except that the Company will continue to be liable for the payment of expenses to the extent set forth in Sections 6 and 11. As used in this Agreement, the term “Underwriter” includes, for all purposes of this Agreement unless the context requires otherwise, any party not listed in Schedule 1 hereto that, pursuant to this Section 9, purchases Stock that a defaulting Underwriter agreed but failed to purchase.

Nothing contained herein shall relieve a defaulting Underwriter of any liability it may have to the Company for damages caused by its default. If other Underwriters are obligated or agree to purchase the Stock of a defaulting or withdrawing Underwriter, either the Representatives or the Company may postpone the Delivery Date for up to seven full business days in order to effect any changes that in the opinion of counsel for the Company or counsel for the Underwriters may be necessary in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or in any other document or arrangement.

10. Termination. The obligations of the Underwriters hereunder may be terminated by the Representatives by notice given to and received by the Company prior to delivery of and payment for the Stock if, prior to that time, any of the events described in Sections 7(i), 7(j) and 7(k) shall have occurred or if the Underwriters shall decline to purchase the Stock for any reason permitted under this Agreement.

11. Reimbursement of Underwriters Expenses. If (a) the Company shall fail to tender the Stock for delivery to the Underwriters for any reason other than by reason of a default by the Underwriters or (b) the Underwriters shall decline to purchase the Stock for any reason permitted under this Agreement, the Company will reimburse the Underwriters for all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses (including fees and disbursements of counsel) incurred by the Underwriters in connection with this Agreement and the proposed purchase of the Stock, and upon demand the Company shall pay the full amount thereof to the Representatives.

12. Research Analyst Independence. The Company acknowledges that the Underwriters’ research analysts and research departments are required to be independent from its respective investment banking divisions and are subject to certain regulations and internal policies, and that such Underwriters’ research analysts may hold views and make statements or investment recommendations and/or publish research reports with respect to the Company and/or the offering that differ from the views of their respective investment banking divisions. The Company hereby waives and releases, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claims that the Company may have against the Underwriters with respect to any conflict of interest that may arise from the fact that the views expressed by its independent research analysts and research departments may be different from or inconsistent with the views or advice communicated to the Company by such Underwriters’ investment banking divisions. The Company acknowledges that each of the Underwriters is a full service securities firm and as such from time to time, subject to applicable securities laws, may effect transactions for its own account or the account of its customers and hold long or short positions in debt or equity securities of the companies that may be the subject of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

 

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13. No Fiduciary Duty. The Company acknowledges and agrees that in connection with this offering, sale of the Stock or any other services the Underwriters may be deemed to be providing hereunder, notwithstanding any preexisting relationship, advisory or otherwise, between the parties or any oral representations or assurances previously or subsequently made by the Underwriters: (i) no fiduciary or agency relationship between the Company and any other person, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, exists; (ii) the Underwriters are not acting as advisors, expert or otherwise, to the Company, including, without limitation, with respect to the determination of the public offering price of the Stock, and such relationship between the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, is entirely and solely commercial, based on arms-length negotiations; (iii) any duties and obligations that the Underwriters may have to the Company shall be limited to those duties and obligations specifically stated herein; and (iv) the Underwriters and their respective affiliates may have interests that differ from those of the Company. The Company hereby waives any claims that the Company may have against the Underwriters with respect to any breach of fiduciary duty in connection with this offering.

14. Notices, Etc. All statements, requests, notices and agreements hereunder shall be in writing, and:

(a) if to the Underwriters, shall be delivered or sent by mail or facsimile transmission to Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, NY1-050-12-01, New York, New York 10020, Attention: High Grade Transaction Management/Legal (Fax: (646) 855-5958), Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, 550 Tryon Street, 5th Floor, Charlotte, North Carolina 28202, Attention: Transaction Management (Fax: (704) 410-0326), J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, 383 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10179, Attention: Equity Syndicate Desk (Fax: (212) 622-8358) and Citigroup Global Markets Inc., 388 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10013, Attention: General Counsel (Fax: (646) 291-1469).

(b) if to the Company, shall be delivered or sent by mail or facsimile transmission to the address of the Company set forth in the Registration Statement, Attention: General Counsel (Fax: 203-755-5539), with a copy to Daniel Keating and Gregory F. Parisi, Hogan Lovells US LLP, 555 13th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20004 (Fax: 202-637-5910).

Any such statements, requests, notices or agreements shall take effect at the time of receipt thereof. The Company shall be entitled to act and rely upon any request, consent, notice or agreement given or made on behalf of the Underwriters by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC or Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

 

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15. Persons Entitled to Benefit of Agreement. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Underwriters, the Company, and their respective successors. This Agreement and the terms and provisions hereof are for the sole benefit of only those persons, except that (A) the representations, warranties, indemnities and agreements of the Company contained in this Agreement shall also be deemed to be for the benefit of the directors, officers and employees of the Underwriters and each person or persons, if any, who control any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act and (B) the indemnity agreement of the Underwriters contained in Section 8(b) of this Agreement shall be deemed to be for the benefit of the directors of the Company, the officers of the Company who have signed the Registration Statement and any person controlling the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act. Nothing in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any person, other than the persons referred to in this Section 15, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision contained herein.

16. Survival. The respective indemnities, representations, warranties and agreements of the Company and the Underwriters contained in this Agreement or made by or on behalf of them, respectively, pursuant to this Agreement, shall survive the delivery of and payment for the Stock and shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of any of them or any person controlling any of them.

17. Definition of the Terms Business Day and Subsidiary. For purposes of this Agreement, (a) “business day” means each Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday that is not a day on which banking institutions in New York are generally authorized or obligated by law or executive order to close and (b) “subsidiary” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405.

18. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

19. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts and, if executed in more than one counterpart, the executed counterparts shall each be deemed to be an original but all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument.

20. Headings. The headings herein are inserted for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to affect the meaning or interpretation of, this Agreement.

 

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If the foregoing correctly sets forth the agreement between the Company and the Underwriters, please indicate your acceptance in the space provided for that purpose below.

 

Very truly yours,
WEBSTER FINANCIAL CORPORATION
By:   /s/ Glenn I. MacInnes
  Name: Glenn I. MacInnes
  Title: EVP, Chief Financial Officer


Accepted: December 5, 2017

For itself and as Representative

of the Several Underwriters named

in Schedule 1 hereto

 

By: MERRILL LYNCH, PIERCE, FENNER & SMITH
INCORPORATED
By:   /s/ Jacqueline Cleary
Name:   Jacqueline Cleary
Title:   Managing Director


Accepted: December 5, 2017

For itself and as Representative

of the Several Underwriters named

in Schedule 1 hereto

 

By: WELLS FARGO SECURITIES, LLC

By:

 

/s/ Carolyn Hurley

Name:

 

Carolyn Hurley

Title:

  Director


Accepted: December 5, 2017

For itself and as Representative

of the Several Underwriters named

in Schedule 1 hereto

 

By: J.P. MORGAN SECURITIES LLC

By:

 

Stephen L. Sheiner

Name:

 

Stephen L. Sheiner

Title:   Executive Director


Accepted: December 5, 2017

For itself and as Representative

of the Several Underwriters named

in Schedule 1 hereto

 

By: CITIGROUP GLOBAL MARKETS INC.

By:   /s/ Jack D. McSpadden, Jr.
Name:   Jack D. McSpadden, Jr.
Title:   Managing Director


SCHEDULE 1

 


Underwriters

   Number of Shares of
Stock
 

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith
Incorporated

     1,500,000  

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC

     1,500,000  

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC

     1,200,000  

Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

     900,000  

Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.

     300,000  

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

     300,000  

Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.

     300,000  
  

 

 

 

Total

     6,000,000  
  

 

 

 


SCHEDULE 2

1. Public offering price: $25 per depositary share

2. Number of firm shares offered: 6,000,000 depositary shares


EXHIBIT A

FORM OF OPINION OF HOGAN LOVELLS US LLP

 

(a) The Company is validly existing as a corporation and in good standing as of the date of the Good Standing Bringdown under the laws of the State of Delaware. The Company has the corporate power to own, lease and operate its current properties and to conduct its business as described in the Prospectus. The Company is registered as a financial holding company under the BHCA as of the date of the FRB Certificate.

 

(b) Webster Bank, National Association (the “Bank”) is validly existing as a national association [as of the date of the OCC Certificate]. The Bank has the national association power to own, lease and operate its current properties and to conduct its business as described in the Prospectus. To our knowledge, all of the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Bank are owned directly or indirectly of record by the Company.

 

(c) The Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.

 

(d) The Depositary Shares have been duly authorized and, when issued in accordance with the provisions of the Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable. The form of certificate evidencing the Depositary Shares complies with the applicable requirements of the Bylaws and Section 158 of the DGCL.

 

(e) The shares of Underlying Preferred Stock have been duly authorized and, when issued in accordance with the provisions of the Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.

 

(f) The Certificate of Designation has been duly authorized and executed by the Company and filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware.

 

(g) The execution, delivery and performance by the Company of the Deposit Agreement have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action of the Company. The Deposit Agreement (i) has been duly executed and delivered by the Company and (ii) constitutes a valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms.

 

(h) Based solely upon our review of the information regarding the Company provided through the EDGAR System on the Commission’s website, the Registration Statement became effective under the Securities Act. To our knowledge, based upon a review of the Stop Orders page of the Commission’s website (http://www.sec.gov/litigation/stoporders.shtml), no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or suspending or preventing the use of the Prospectus, including the Preliminary Prospectus, has been issued and no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or are threatened by the Commission. The required filings of the Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) promulgated pursuant to the Securities Act have been made in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 424(b).

 

(i)

The Registration Statement and the Prospectus (except for the financial statements and supporting schedules included therein, as to which we express no opinion) comply as to form in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations

 

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  thereunder. The documents incorporated by reference in the Prospectus pursuant to Item 12 of Form S-3 under the Securities Act (other than the financial statements and schedules and financial information and data included therein or omitted therefrom, as to which we express no opinion), at the time they were filed with the Commission, complied as to form in all material respects with the requirements of the Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations thereunder.

 

(j) The information in the Prospectus under the captions “Description of Series F Preferred Stock” and “Description of Depositary Shares” to the extent that such information constitutes matters of law or legal conclusions, has been reviewed by us and is accurate in all material respects. The Depositary Shares, the shares of Underlying Preferred Stock and the Deposit Agreement conform as to legal matters in all material respects to the description of each set forth in the Prospectus.

 

(k) The execution, delivery and performance on the date hereof by the Company of the Agreement and the Deposit Agreement do not (i) violate the DGCL or the Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws of the Company, (ii) violate any provision of Applicable Federal Law or any provision of Applicable State Law, (iii) violate any of the Company Orders or (iv) breach or constitute a default under any of the Contracts (except that we express no opinion with respect any matters that would require a mathematical calculation or a financial or accounting determination).

 

(l) No approval or consent of, or registration or filing with, the FRB, the OCC, or the office of the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware is required to be obtained or made by the Company under Applicable Federal Law or the DGCL in connection with the execution, delivery and performance on the date hereof by the Company of the Agreement or the Deposit Agreement.

 

(m) The Company is not an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act.

 

(n) The information in the Annual Report under the caption “Part I. Item 1. Business – Supervision and Regulation,” to the extent that such information constitutes matters of law or legal conclusions, has been reviewed by us and is accurate in all material respects.

 

(o) The information in the Prospectus under the caption “Certain United States Federal Income Tax Consequences,” to the extent that such information constitutes matters of law or legal conclusions, has been reviewed by us and is accurate in all material respects.

 

(p) To our knowledge, there are no holders of any securities of the Company who, by reason of the execution, delivery or performance of the Agreement on the date hereof by the Company, have the right to require the Company to register securities held by them under the Securities Act pursuant to the Registration Statement.

 

(q) To our knowledge, no holder of outstanding shares of common stock of the Company has any statutory preemptive right under the DGCL or, to our knowledge, any contractual right to subscribe for any shares of the Underlying Preferred Stock.

 

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