UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): February 11, 2020 (February 6, 2020)
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)
Delaware | 814-00998 | 46-2176593 | ||
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
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200 West Street, New York, New York | 10282 | |||
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) |
Registrants telephone number, including area code: (212) 902-0300
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
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Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
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Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
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Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
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Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class |
Trading Symbol(s) |
Name of each exchange on which registered |
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Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share | GSBD | The New York Stock Exchange |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 or Rule 12b2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Item 1.01 Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.
Underwriting Agreement
On February 6, 2020, Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. (the Company) entered into an underwriting agreement (the Underwriting Agreement) by and among the Company, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. and BofA Securities, Inc., as representative of the several underwriters named in Schedule A thereto, in connection with the issuance and sale of $360,000,000 aggregate principal amount of the Companys 3.750% notes due 2025 (the Offering).
The Offering was made pursuant to the Companys effective registration statement on Form N-2 (Registration No. 333-230801) previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The foregoing description of the Underwriting Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Underwriting Agreement filed with this report as Exhibit 1.1 and which is incorporated herein by reference.
Indenture and First Supplemental Indenture
On February 10, 2020, the Company and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association (the Trustee), entered into an Indenture, dated February 10, 2020, between the Company and the Trustee (the Base Indenture) and the First Supplemental Indenture to the Base Indenture, dated February 10, 2020, between the Company and the Trustee (the First Supplemental Indenture and, together with the Base Indenture, the Indenture). The First Supplemental Indenture relates to the Companys issuance of $360,000,000 aggregate principal amount of its 3.750% notes due 2025 (the Notes).
The Notes will mature on February 10, 2025 and may be redeemed in whole or in part at the Companys option at any time or from time to time at the redemption prices set forth in the Indenture. The Notes bear interest at a rate of 3.750% per year payable semi-annually on February 10th and August 10th of each year, commencing on August 10, 2020. The Notes are general unsecured obligations of the Company that rank senior in right of payment to all of the Companys future indebtedness or other obligations that are expressly subordinated, or junior, in right of payment to the Notes, rank pari passu, or equal, in right of payment with all of the Companys existing and future indebtedness or other obligations that are not so subordinated, or junior, rank effectively subordinated, or junior, to any of the Companys secured indebtedness or other obligations (including unsecured indebtedness that the Company later secures) to the extent of the value of the assets securing such indebtedness, and rank structurally subordinated, or junior, to all future indebtedness and other obligations (including trade payables) incurred by the Companys subsidiaries.
The Indenture contains certain covenants, including covenants requiring the Company to comply with the asset coverage requirements of Section 18(a)(1)(A) as modified by Section 61(a)(1) and (2) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, whether or not it is subject to those requirements, and to provide financial information to the holders of the Notes and the Trustee if the Company is no longer subject to the reporting requirements under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These covenants are subject to important limitations and exceptions that are described in the Indenture.
In addition, on the occurrence of a change of control repurchase event, as defined in the Indenture, the Company will generally be required to make an offer to purchase the outstanding Notes at a price equal to 100% of the principal amount of such Notes plus accrued and unpaid interest to the repurchase date.
The Notes were offered and sold in an offering registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, pursuant to the Registration Statement on Form N-2 (File No. 333-230801). The Offering closed on February 10, 2020. The net proceeds to the Company were approximately $353.6 million, after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions of approximately $4.5 million payable by the Company and estimated offering expenses of approximately $1.6 million payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering to pay down a portion of the Companys senior secured revolving credit agreement with SunTrust Bank, as administrative agent, and Bank of America, N.A., as syndication agent, following the closing of the Offering.
The foregoing descriptions of the Indenture and the Notes do not purport to be complete and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the full text of the Indenture and the Notes, respectively, each filed as exhibits hereto and incorporated by reference herein.
Item 2.03. | Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an Off-Balance Sheet Arrangement of a Registrant. |
The information required by Item 2.03 contained in Item 1.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K is incorporated herein by reference.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits:
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC. (Registrant) |
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Date: February 11, 2020 | By: |
/s/ Jonathan Lamm |
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Name: Jonathan Lamm | ||||||
Title: Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer |
Exhibit 1.1
Execution Version
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC.
(a Delaware corporation)
$360,000,000 3.750% Notes due 2025
UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
Dated: February 6, 2020
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC.
(a Delaware corporation)
$360,000,000 3.750% Notes due 2025
UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
BofA Securities, Inc.
as Representative of the several Underwriters
c/o BofA Securities, Inc.
One Bryant Park
New York, New York 10036
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the Company), confirms its agreement with BofA Securities, Inc. (BofA) and each of the other underwriters named in Schedule A hereto (collectively, the Underwriters, which term shall also include any underwriter substituted as hereinafter provided in Section 10 hereof), for whom BofA is acting as representative (in such capacity, the Representative), with respect to the sale by the Company and the purchase by the Underwriters, acting severally and not jointly, of $360,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 3.750% Notes due 2025 (the Securities).
The Securities will be issued under an indenture, to be dated as of the Closing Time (as defined below) (the Base Indenture), as supplemented by the First Supplemental Indenture, to be dated as of the Closing Time (the First Supplemental Indenture and, together with the Base Indenture, the Indenture) between the Company and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as trustee (the Trustee). The Securities will be issued to Cede & Co. as nominee of the Depository Trust Company (DTC) pursuant to a blanket letter of representations, dated March 19, 2015 (the DTC Agreement), between the Company and DTC. The Indenture has been qualified under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the Trust Indenture Act).
The Company understands that the Underwriters propose to make a public offering of the Securities as soon as the Representative deems advisable after this Underwriting Agreement (this Agreement) has been executed and delivered.
The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) a registration statement on Form N-2 (No. 333-230801), including the related preliminary prospectus dated February 6, 2020 (the preliminary prospectus), covering the registration of the sale of the Securities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the 1933 Act), which registration statement has been declared effective by the Commission. Promptly after execution and delivery of this Agreement, the Company will prepare and file a prospectus in accordance with the provisions of Rule 430A (Rule 430A) of the rules and regulations of the Commission under the 1933 Act (the 1933 Act Regulations) and Rule 497 (Rule 497) of the 1933 Act Regulations. The information included in such prospectus that was omitted from such registration statement at the time it became effective but that is deemed to be part of such registration statement at the time
it became effective pursuant to Rule 430A is herein called the Rule 430A Information. Such registration statement, including the amendments thereto, the exhibits thereto and any schedules thereto, at the time it became effective, and including the Rule 430A Information, is herein called the Registration Statement. Any registration statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) of the 1933 Act Regulations is herein called the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and, after such filing, the term Registration Statement shall include the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement. The final prospectus in the form filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Rule 497 on or before the second business day after the date hereof (or such earlier time as may be required under the 1933 Act) is herein called the Prospectus. For purposes of this Agreement, all references to the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement to any of the foregoing shall be deemed to include the copy filed with the Commission pursuant to its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system or any successor system (EDGAR).
A Form N-54A Notification of Election to be Subject to Sections 55 through 65 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 Filed Pursuant to Section 54(a) of the Investment Company Act (File No. 814-00998) was filed with the Commission on March 29, 2013 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act), and the rules and regulations and any applicable guidance and/or interpretation of the Commission or its staff thereunder (the 1940 Act Regulations).
The Company has entered into a Second Amended and Restated Investment Management Agreement, effective as of June 15, 2018 (the Investment Management Agreement), with Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (the Adviser), a Delaware limited partnership registered as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the Advisers Act).
As used in this Agreement:
Applicable Time means 3:40 P.M., New York City time, on February 6, 2020 or such other time as agreed by the Company and the Representative.
General Disclosure Package means the preliminary prospectus as of the Applicable Time and the information included on Schedule B hereto, all considered together.
SECTION 1. Representations and Warranties.
(a) Representations and Warranties by the Company. The Company represents and warrants to each Underwriter as of the date hereof, the Applicable Time and the Closing Time (as defined below) and agrees with each Underwriter (it being understood that all representations and warranties of the Company with respect to Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp. (MMLC) are made to the knowledge of the Company), as follows:
(i) Registration Statement and Prospectuses. The Company is eligible to use Form N-2. Each of the Registration Statement and any amendment thereto has become effective under the 1933 Act. No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto has been issued under the 1933 Act, no order preventing or suspending the use
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of any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for any of those purposes have been instituted or are pending or, to the Companys knowledge, contemplated. The Company has complied with each request (if any) from the Commission for additional information in connection with the Registration Statement.
Each of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, at the time it became effective, complied in all material respects with the requirements of the 1933 Act, the 1933 Act Regulations, the 1940 Act and the 1940 Act Regulations. Each preliminary prospectus, the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, at the time each was filed with the Commission, complied in all material respects with the requirements of the 1933 Act, the 1933 Act Regulations, the 1940 Act and the 1940 Act Regulations. Each preliminary prospectus delivered to the Underwriters for use in connection with this offering and the Prospectus was or will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(ii) Issuer Free Writing Prospectus. The Company (including its agents and representatives, other than the Underwriters in their capacity as such) has not made, used, prepared, authorized, approved or referred to and will not prepare, make, use, authorize, approve or refer to any written communication (as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act) that constitutes an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy the Securities (each such communication by the Company or its agents and representatives (other than a communication referred to in clauses (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) below) an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus) other than (i) any document not constituting a prospectus pursuant to Section 2(a)(10)(a) of the 1933 Act or Rule 134 under the 1933 Act, (ii) the Registration Statement, (iii) any preliminary prospectus, (iv) the Prospectus, (v) the documents listed on Schedule B hereto, including a Term Sheet substantially in the form of Annex A hereto and (vi) any electronic road show or other written communications, in each case approved in writing in advance by the Representative, such approval not to be unreasonably withheld. Each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, if any, complies in all material respects with the 1933 Act, has been or will be (within the time period specified in Rule 433) filed in accordance with the 1933 Act (to the extent required thereby). No Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conflicts or will conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, and any preliminary or other prospectus deemed to be a part thereof that has not been superseded or modified.
(iii) Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company (i) has not alone engaged in any Testing-the-Waters Communication other than Testing-the-Waters Communications with the consent of the Representative with entities that are qualified institutional buyers within the meaning of Rule 144A under the 1933 Act or institutions that are accredited investors within the meaning of Rule 501 under the 1933 Act and (ii) has not authorized anyone other than the Representative to engage in Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company reconfirms that the Representative has been authorized to act on its behalf in undertaking Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company has not distributed any Written Testing-the-Waters Communications. Testing-the-Waters Communication means any oral or written communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Rule 163B under the Act. Written Testing-the-Waters Communication means any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405.
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(iv) Accurate Disclosure. Neither the Registration Statement nor any amendment thereto, at its effective time or at the Closing Time, contained, contains or will contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, not misleading. As of the Applicable Time, none of the General Disclosure Package, nor any individual preliminary prospectus, when considered together with the General Disclosure Package, included, includes or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. Neither the Prospectus nor any amendment or supplement thereto, as of their respective date(s), at the time of any filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 497 or at the Closing Time, included, includes or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.
The representations and warranties in this subsection shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto) made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by any Underwriter through the Representative expressly for use therein (collectively, the Underwriter Information). For purposes of this Agreement, the only Underwriter Information shall be (i) the concession amounts appearing in the second paragraph under the heading UnderwritingCommissions and Discounts, (ii) the information in UnderwritingPrice Stabilization, Short Positions and (iii) the information in UnderwritingPrincipal Business Address, in each case, in the Prospectus.
(v) Company Not Ineligible Issuer. At the time of filing the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, at the earliest time thereafter that the Company or another offering participant made a bona fide offer (within the meaning of Rule 164(h)(2) of the 1933 Act Regulations) of the Securities and at the date hereof, the Company was not and is not an ineligible issuer, as defined in Rule 405, without taking account of any determination by the Commission pursuant to Rule 405 that it is not necessary that the Company be considered an ineligible issuer.
(vi) Independent Accountants of the Company. The accountants who audited or reviewed the financial statements and supporting schedules of the Company included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus are independent registered public accountants with respect to the Company within the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) and as required by the 1933 Act.
(vii) Independent Accountants of MMLC. The accountants who audited or reviewed the financial statements and supporting schedules of MMLC included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus are independent registered public accountants with respect to the Company within the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) and as required by the 1933 Act.
(viii) Financial Statements. The financial statements included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, together with the related schedules and notes, present fairly in all material respects the financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries
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(as defined below) at the dates indicated and of MMLC at the dates indicated and the results of their operations and the changes in the cash flows of the Company and the Subsidiaries for the periods specified and of MMLC for the periods specified; said financial statements have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved. The supporting schedules, if any, included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus present fairly in all material respects in accordance with GAAP the information required to be stated therein. The selected financial data and the summary financial information of the Company and the Subsidiaries included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus have been derived from the accounting records and other books and records of the Company and the Subsidiaries and present fairly in all material respects the information shown therein. The selected financial data and the summary financial information of MMLC included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus have been derived from the accounting records and other books and records of MMLC and present fairly in all material respects the information shown therein. The unaudited pro forma financial information and related notes and supporting schedules of the Company and the Subsidiaries and MMLC contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Regulation S-X and have been properly presented on the bases described therein, and give effect to assumptions used in the preparation thereof are reasonable basis and in good faith and the adjustments used therein are appropriate to give effect to the transactions and circumstances referred to therein. Except as included therein, no historical or pro forma financial statements or supporting schedules are required to be included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus under the 1933 Act or the 1933 Act Regulations.
(ix) No Material Adverse Change in Business. Except as otherwise stated therein, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, (A) there has been no material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of the Company and the Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business (a Material Adverse Effect), (B) there have been no transactions entered into by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, other than those in the ordinary course of business, which are material with respect to the Company and the Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise and (C) there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company on any class of its capital stock.
(x) Good Standing of the Company. The Company has been duly organized and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware and has corporate power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties and to conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and to enter into this Agreement and perform its obligations under this Agreement, the Investment Management Agreement, the Indenture, the Securities and the DTC Agreement; and the Company is duly qualified as a foreign corporation to transact business and is in good standing in each other jurisdiction in which such qualification is required, whether by reason of the ownership or leasing of property or the conduct of business, except where the failure so to qualify or to be in good standing would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
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(xi) Subsidiaries of the Company; Portfolio Companies. The Companys only subsidiaries that are consolidated with the Company for financial reporting purposes under GAAP are those listed on Schedule C hereto (each a Subsidiary and, collectively, the Subsidiaries). Each of the Subsidiaries has been duly organized and is validly existing as a corporation, limited liability company or limited partnership in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, has power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties and to conduct its business as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and is duly qualified as a foreign corporation, limited liability company or limited partnership to transact business and is in good standing in each jurisdiction in which such qualification is required, whether by reason of the ownership or leasing of property or the conduct of business, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect; except as disclosed in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, all of the issued and outstanding capital stock of each such Subsidiary has been duly authorized and validly issued and is fully paid and non-assessable; none of the outstanding shares of capital stock of any of the Subsidiaries was issued in violation of the preemptive or other similar rights of any securityholder of such Subsidiary. Except for any investments made in the ordinary course of business since the most recent quarter end, the Company does not own, directly or indirectly, any investments or shares of stock or any other equity or long-term debt securities of any corporation or other entity other than (A) the Subsidiaries and (B) those corporations or other entities described in the Registration Statement, General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the caption Portfolio Companies of Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. (each a Portfolio Company and collectively the Portfolio Companies). Except as otherwise disclosed in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company does not control (as such term is defined in Section 2(a)(9) of the 1940 Act), any of the Portfolio Companies or any corporation or other entity in which it invested since the most recent quarter end.
(xii) Capitalization. The authorized, issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are as set forth in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus in the column entitled Actual under the caption Capitalization. The outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly authorized and validly issued and are fully paid and non-assessable. None of the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company were issued in violation of the preemptive or other similar rights of any securityholder of the Company. Except as set forth in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, no options, warrants or other rights to purchase, agreements or other obligations to issue, or rights to convert any obligations into or exchange any securities for, shares of capital stock of or ownership interests in the Company are outstanding.
(xiii) Authorization of Agreements.
(a) |
This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company. |
(b) |
The Base Indenture and the First Supplemental Indenture have each been duly authorized, and, at the Closing Time, will be duly executed and delivered by the Company and, when duly executed and delivered by the Trustee, will constitute the valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or thereafter in effect relating to creditors rights generally or (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought. |
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(c) |
The DTC Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and is a valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or thereafter in effect relating to creditors rights generally or (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought. |
(xiv) Authorization and Description of Securities. The Securities to be purchased by the Underwriters from the Company have been duly authorized and, when issued and delivered by the Company and authenticated by the Trustee pursuant to this Agreement and the Indenture relating thereto, against payment of the purchase price set forth herein, will be valid and legally binding obligations of the Company enforceable in accordance with their terms, except as the enforcement thereof may be subject to the effect of (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or thereafter in effect relating to creditors rights generally and (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought, and will be entitled to the benefits of the Indenture relating thereto; and the Securities and the Indenture conform to all statements relating thereto contained in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and such description conforms to the rights set forth in the instruments defining the same.
(xv) Registration Rights. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there are no persons with registration rights or other similar rights to have any securities of the Company registered for sale pursuant to the Registration Statement or otherwise registered for sale or sold by the Company under the 1933 Act pursuant to this Agreement.
(xvi) Absence of Violations and Defaults. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is (A) in violation of its charter, bylaws or similar organizational document, each as amended or supplemented as of the date of this Agreement and the Closing Time, (B) in default under any contract, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan or credit agreement, note, lease or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which it or any of them may be bound or to which any of the properties or assets of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is subject (collectively, Agreements and Instruments), except for such defaults that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect, or (C) in violation of any law, statute, rule, regulation, judgment, order, writ or decree of any arbitrator, court, governmental body, regulatory body, administrative agency or other authority, body or agency having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any of their respective properties, assets or operations (each, a Governmental Entity), except for such violations that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xvii) Absence of Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement, the performance of the Investment Management Agreement, the Indenture, the Securities and the DTC Agreement and the consummation of the transactions contemplated herein and therein and in the
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Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (including the issuance and sale of the Securities and the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities as described therein under the caption Use of Proceeds) and compliance by the Company with its obligations hereunder and thereunder have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action and do not and will not, whether with or without the giving of notice or passage of time or both, conflict with or constitute a breach of, or default or Repayment Event (as defined below) under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any properties or assets of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries pursuant to, the Agreements and Instruments (except for such conflicts, breaches, defaults or Repayment Events or liens, charges or encumbrances that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect), nor will such action result in any violation of the provisions of (a) the charter, bylaws or similar organizational document of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or (b) any law, statute, rule, regulation, judgment, order, writ or decree of any Governmental Entity, except, in the case of (b) above, for any violation that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect. As used herein, a Repayment Event means any event or condition which gives the holder of any note, debenture or other evidence of indebtedness (or any person acting on such holders behalf) the right to require the repurchase, redemption or repayment of all or a portion of such indebtedness by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries.
(xviii) Employees. As of the date hereof, neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has, and as of the Closing Time neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries will have, any employees.
(xix) Absence of Proceedings. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there is no action, suit, proceeding or, to the knowledge of the Company, inquiry or investigation before or brought by any Governmental Entity now pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened, against or affecting the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, which would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, or which would reasonably be expected to materially and adversely affect the consummation of the transactions contemplated in this Agreement, the Investment Management Agreement, the Indenture, the Securities or the DTC Agreement or the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder or thereunder.
(xx) Accuracy of Exhibits. There are no contracts or documents which are required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement which have not been so described and filed as required.
(xxi) Absence of Further Requirements. No filing with, or authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree of, any Governmental Entity is necessary or required for the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, in connection with the offering, issuance or sale of the Securities hereunder or the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or the Investment Management Agreement, the Indenture, the Securities, the DTC Agreement or the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (including the issuance and sale of the Securities and the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the caption Use of Proceeds), except (A) such as have been already made or obtained, including under the 1933 Act,
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the 1933 Act Regulations, the 1940 Act, the 1940 Act Regulations, the Trust Indenture Act, state securities laws or the rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA), (B) the filing of the Notifications of Election under the 1940 Act, which has been effected and (C) where the failure to obtain any such filing, authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxii) Possession of Licenses and Permits. The Company and the Subsidiaries possess such permits, licenses, approvals, consents and other authorizations (collectively, Governmental Licenses) issued by the appropriate Governmental Entities necessary to conduct the business now operated by them, except where the failure so to possess would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms and conditions of all Governmental Licenses, except where the failure so to comply would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect. All of the Governmental Licenses are valid and in full force and effect, except when the invalidity of such Governmental Licenses or the failure of such Governmental Licenses to be in full force and effect would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any Governmental Licenses which, singly or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxiii) Title to Property. The Company and the Subsidiaries do not own any real property; and all of the leases and subleases material to the business of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise, and under which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries holds properties, are in full force and effect, and neither the Company nor any such Subsidiary has received any notice of any material claim of any sort that has been asserted by anyone adverse to the rights of the Company or any Subsidiary under any of the leases or subleases mentioned above, or affecting or questioning the rights of the Company or such Subsidiary to the continued possession of the leased or subleased premises under any such lease or sublease.
(xxiv) Possession of Intellectual Property. Except as would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect, the Company and the Subsidiaries own or possess, or can acquire on reasonable terms, adequate patents, patent rights, licenses, inventions, copyrights, know-how (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or confidential information, systems or procedures), trademarks, service marks, trade names or other intellectual property (collectively, Intellectual Property) necessary to carry on the business now operated by them, and neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has received any notice or is otherwise aware of any infringement of or conflict with asserted rights of others with respect to any Intellectual Property or of any facts or circumstances which would render any Intellectual Property invalid or inadequate to protect the interest of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries therein, and which infringement or conflict (if the subject of any unfavorable decision, ruling or finding) or invalidity or inadequacy, singly or in the aggregate, would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
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(xxv) Accounting Controls. The Company, on a consolidated basis, maintains a system of internal control over financial reporting (as defined under Rule 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the rules and regulations of the Commission under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the 1934 Act) (such rules and regulations, the 1934 Act Regulations)) and a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that (A) transactions are executed in accordance with managements general or specific authorization; (B) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain accountability for assets; (C) access to the Companys consolidated assets is permitted only in accordance with managements general or specific authorization; and (D) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, since the end of the Companys most recent audited fiscal year, there has been (1) no material weakness in the Companys internal control over financial reporting (whether or not remediated) and (2) no change in the Companys internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Companys internal control over financial reporting (it being understood that the Company is not as of the date hereof required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements under Section 404 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002).
(xxvi) Payment of Taxes. All United States federal income tax returns of the Company and the Subsidiaries required by law to have been filed by them (taking into account any applicable extensions) have been filed and all taxes shown by such returns or otherwise assessed, which are due and payable, have been paid, in each case, except assessments against which appeals have been or will be promptly taken and as to which adequate reserves have been provided or insofar as the failure to do so would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The United States federal income tax returns of the Company through the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018 have been filed, and no assessment in connection therewith has been made against the Company. The Company and the Subsidiaries have filed all other tax returns that are required to have been filed by them (taking into account any applicable extensions) pursuant to applicable foreign, state, local or other law and have paid all taxes due pursuant to such returns or pursuant to any assessment received by the Company and the Subsidiaries, except for such taxes, if any, as are being contested in good faith and as to which adequate reserves have been established by the Company or, in each case, insofar as the failure to pay such taxes or file such returns would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The charges, accruals and reserves on the books of the Company in respect of any income and corporation tax liability for any years not finally determined are adequate to meet any current assessments or re-assessments for additional income tax for any years not finally determined, except to the extent of any inadequacy that would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(xxvii) Insurance. The Company and the Subsidiaries carry or are entitled to the benefits of insurance, with financially sound and reputable insurers, in such amounts and covering such risks as the Company reasonably believes is prudent, and all such insurance is in full force and effect. The Company has no reason to believe that it or any of the Subsidiaries will not be able (A) to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such policies expire or (B) to obtain comparable coverage from similar institutions as may be necessary or appropriate to conduct its business as now conducted and at a cost that would not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
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(xxviii) Investment Company Act. The Company is not required and, upon the issuance and sale of the Securities as herein contemplated and the application of the net proceeds therefrom as described in the Prospectus, will not be required to register as a management investment company under the 1940 Act.
(xxix) Stabilization and Manipulation. The Company has not taken, nor will it take, directly or indirectly, without giving effect to any activities by the Underwriters, any action designed, or that would reasonably be expected, to cause or result in, or that constitutes, any stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Securities, other than activity permitted pursuant to Rule 10b-18 under the 1934 Act.
(xxx) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. None of the Company, any of the Subsidiaries, or, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer or employee of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any agent, controlled affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is aware of, has taken or will take any action, directly or indirectly, that would result in a violation by such persons of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder (the FCPA), including making use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay or authorization of the payment of any money, or other property, gift, promise to give, or authorization of the giving of anything of value to any foreign official (as such term is defined in the FCPA) or any foreign political party or official thereof or any candidate for foreign political office, in contravention of the FCPA and to the knowledge of the Company, the Company and its Subsidiaries have conducted their businesses in compliance with the FCPA and have instituted and maintain policies and procedures designed to ensure, and which are reasonably expected to continue to ensure, continued compliance therewith.
(xxxi) Money Laundering Laws. The operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, the applicable money laundering statutes of the jurisdictions in which the Company and the Subsidiaries conduct business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any other relevant laws, rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any Governmental Entity (collectively, the Money Laundering Laws); and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any Governmental Entity involving the Company or any of the Subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened.
(xxxii) OFAC. None of the Company, any of the Subsidiaries, or, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer or employee of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any agent, controlled affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is an individual or entity (Person), or is controlled by a Person that is, (i) currently the subject or target of any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States Government, including the U.S. Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the European Union, Her Majestys Treasury (HMT), or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, Sanctions), or (ii) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is itself the subject of Sanctions. In the past five (5) years, the Company and the Subsidiaries have not knowingly engaged in, and are not now knowingly engaged in, any unauthorized dealings or transactions with any Person that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject or target of Sanctions.
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(xxxiii) Lending Relationship. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company (i) does not have any material lending or other relationship with any bank or lending affiliate of any Underwriter and (ii) does not intend to use any of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities to repay any outstanding debt owed to any affiliate of any Underwriter.
(xxxiv) Statistical and Market-Related Data. Any statistical and market-related data included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources that the Company believes to be reliable and accurate and, to the extent required, the Company has obtained the written consent to the use of such data from such sources.
(xxxv) Ratings. Other than the Companys 4.50% Convertible Notes due 2022, the Company does not have any debt securities or preferred stock that are rated by any nationally recognized statistical rating agency (as that term is defined by the Commission for purposes of Section 3(a)(62) under the 1934 Act).
(xxxvi) Related Party Transactions. There are no business relationships or related party transactions involving the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or any other person required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus which have not been described as required.
(xxxvii) Notification of Election. When the Notification of Election was filed with the Commission, it (A) contained all statements required to be stated therein in accordance with, and complied in all material respects with the requirements of, the 1940 Act and (B) did not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.
(xxxviii) Investment Management Agreement. (A) The terms of the Investment Management Agreement, including compensation terms, comply in all material respects with all applicable provisions of the 1940 Act, the 1940 Act Regulations and the Advisers Act and (B) the approvals by the board of directors and the stockholders of the Company of the Investment Management Agreement have been made in accordance with the requirements of Section 15(a) and (c) of the 1940 Act and the 1940 Act Regulations applicable to companies that have elected to be regulated as business development companies under the 1940 Act. The Investment Management Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and is a valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or thereafter in effect relating to creditors rights generally and (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought.
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(xxxix) Interested Persons. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (A) no person is serving or acting as an officer, director or investment adviser of the Company, except in accordance with the provisions of the 1940 Act and the Advisers Act, and (B) to the knowledge of the Company, no director of the Company is an interested person (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Company or an affiliated person (as defined in the 1940 Act) of any of the Underwriters.
(xl) Business Development Company. (A) The Company has duly elected to be treated by the Commission under the 1940 Act as a business development company, such election is effective and all required action has been taken by the Company under the 1933 Act and the 1940 Act to make the public offering and consummate the sale of the Securities as provided in this Agreement; (B) the provisions of the charter and bylaws of the Company, and the investment objectives, policies and restrictions described in the Prospectus, assuming they are implemented as described, will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the 1940 Act; and (C) the operations of the Company are in compliance in all material respects with the provisions of the 1940 Act and the 1940 Act Regulations applicable to business development companies.
(xli) No Extension of Credit. The Company has not, directly or indirectly, extended credit, agreed to extend credit, arranged to extend credit or renewed any extension of credit, in the form of a personal loan, to or for any director or executive officer of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, or to or for any family member or affiliate of any director or executive officer of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries.
(xlii) Regulated Investment Company. The Company has elected to be treated, and has operated, and intends to continue to operate, its business in such a manner as to enable the Company to continue to qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code). The Company intends to direct the investment of the proceeds of the offering of the Securities in a manner as to comply with the requirements of Subchapter M of the Code.
(xliii) Sarbanes-Oxley Act. To the extent applicable to the Company on the date hereof, there is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or, to the knowledge of the Company, any of the Companys directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply in all material respects with any provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith, including Section 402 related to loans and Sections 302 and 906 related to certifications.
(xliv) Forward-Looking Statements. No forward-looking statement (within the meaning of Section 27A of the 1933 Act and Section 21E of the 1934 Act) contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus has been made or reaffirmed without a reasonable basis or has been disclosed other than in good faith.
(xlv) Merger with MMLC. The Company has entered into the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated December 9, 2019, by and among the Company, the MMLC, Evergreen Merger Sub, Inc. and the Adviser (the Merger Agreement). In connection with the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, the Company conducted a due diligence review of the business, financial condition, results of operations and business prospects of MMLC. Based upon the Companys review, with respect to MMLC or the merger, nothing has come to the Companys attention that caused it to believe that the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the
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Prospectus contains an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading. Subject to the approval of the Merger Agreement by the shareholders of the Company, the Merger Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and, assuming the Merger Agreement is the valid and binding obligation of MMLC, constitutes a valid and binding agreement of the Company and is enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or thereafter in effect relating to creditors rights generally or (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought. The representations and warranties of MMLC and its subsidiaries contained in the Merger Agreement are true and correct in all material respects, MMLC and its subsidiaries have complied with the covenants contained in the Merger Agreement, and the Company is not aware of any breach or development in connection with the Merger Agreement reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement.
(b) Representations and Warranties by the Adviser. The Adviser represents to each Underwriter as of the date hereof, the Applicable Time and the Closing Time (as defined below), and agrees with each Underwriter, as follows:
(i) No Material Adverse Change in Business. Except as otherwise stated therein, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, there has been no material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs, business prospects or regulatory status of the Adviser, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, or on the ability of the Adviser to carry out its obligations under this Agreement or the Investment Management Agreement (collectively, an Adviser Material Adverse Effect).
(ii) Good Standing. The Adviser has been duly organized and is validly existing as a limited partnership, in good standing under the laws of its state of organization and has limited partnership power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties and to conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and to enter into this Agreement and perform its obligations under this Agreement and the Investment Management Agreement; and the Adviser is duly qualified as a foreign entity to transact business and is in good standing in each other jurisdiction in which such qualification is required, whether by reason of the ownership or leasing of property or the conduct of business, except where the failure so to qualify or to be in good standing would not otherwise reasonably be expected to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect.
(iii) Registration Under Advisers Act. The Adviser is duly registered with the Commission as an investment adviser under the Advisers Act and is not prohibited by the Advisers Act or the 1940 Act from acting under the Investment Management Agreement for the Company as contemplated by the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. There does not exist any proceeding or, to the Advisers knowledge, any facts or circumstances the existence of which could lead to any proceeding which might adversely affect the registration of the Adviser with the Commission.
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(iv) Absence of Proceedings. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there is no action, suit, proceeding or, to the knowledge of the Adviser, inquiry or investigation before or brought by any arbitrator, court, governmental body, regulatory body, administrative agency or other authority, body or agency having jurisdiction over the Adviser or any of its properties, assets or operations now pending or, to the knowledge of the Adviser, threatened, against or affecting the Adviser, which is required to be disclosed in the Registration Statement (other than as disclosed therein) or which would reasonably be expected to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect, or which would reasonably be expected to materially and adversely affect the consummation of the transactions contemplated in this Agreement, the Indenture, the Securities or the Investment Management Agreement or the performance by the Adviser of its obligations hereunder or thereunder.
(v) Absence of Violations and Defaults. The Adviser is not (A) in violation of its limited partnership agreement, (B) in default under any contract, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan or credit agreement, note, lease or other agreement or instrument to which the Adviser is a party or by which it may be bound or to which any of its properties or assets is subject (collectively, the Adviser Agreements and Instruments), except for such defaults that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect, or (C) in violation of any applicable law, statute, rule, regulation, judgment, order, writ or decree of any arbitrator, court, governmental body, regulatory body, administrative agency or other authority, body or agency having jurisdiction over the Adviser or any of its properties, assets or operations, except for such violations that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect.
(vi) Absence of Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement, the performance of the Investment Management Agreement and the consummation of the transactions contemplated herein and therein and in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (including the issuance and sale of the Securities and the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities as described therein under the caption Use of Proceeds) and compliance by the Adviser with its obligations hereunder and thereunder do not and will not, whether with or without the giving of notice of passage of time or both, conflict with or constitute a breach of, or default under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any properties or assets of the Adviser or pursuant to, the Adviser Agreements and Instruments (except for such conflicts, breaches, defaults, events or conditions giving the holder of any note, debenture or other evidence of indebtedness (or any person acting on such holders behalf) the right to require the repurchase, redemption or repayment of all or a portion of such indebtedness by the Adviser, or liens, charges or encumbrances that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect), nor will such action result in any violation of the provisions of (a) the limited partnership agreement of the Adviser, or (b) any applicable law, statute, rule, regulation, judgment, order, writ or decree of any arbitrator, court, governmental body, regulatory body, administrative agency or other authority, body or agency having jurisdiction over the Adviser or any of its properties, assets or operations except, in the case of (b) above, for any violation that would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect.
(vii) Authorization of this Agreement. This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Adviser.
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(viii) Investment Management Agreement. The Investment Management Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Adviser and is a valid and binding obligation of the Adviser, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms, except as the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or thereafter in effect relating to creditors rights generally and (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought.
(ix) Absence of Further Requirements. No filing with, or authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree of, any court or governmental authority or agency is necessary or required for the performance by the Adviser of its obligations hereunder or, in connection with the offering, the issuance or sale of the Securities hereunder or the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, the Indenture, the DTC Agreement, the General Disclosure Package, the Investment Management Agreement or the Prospectus (including the issuance and sale of the Securities and the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the caption Use of Proceeds), except (A) such as have been already made or obtained, including under the 1933 Act, the 1933 Act Regulations, the Trust Indenture Act, state securities laws or the rules of FINRA and (B) where the failure to obtain any such filing, authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect.
(x) Description of Adviser. The description of the Adviser contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus does not contain any 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.
(xi) Possession of Licenses and Permits. The Adviser possesses such Governmental Licenses issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory agencies or bodies necessary to conduct the business now operated by it, except where the failure so to possess would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect. The Adviser is in compliance with the terms and conditions of all such Governmental Licenses, except where the failure so to comply would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect. All of the Governmental Licenses are valid and in full force and effect, except when the invalidity of such Governmental Licenses or the failure of such Governmental Licenses to be in full force and effect would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect. The Adviser has not received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any such Governmental Licenses which, singly or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would reasonably be expected to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect.
(xii) Stabilization and Manipulation. The Adviser has not taken, nor will take, directly or indirectly, without giving effect to any activities by the Underwriters, any action designed, or that would reasonably be expected, to cause or result in, or which constitutes, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Securities, other than activity permitted pursuant to Rule 10b-18 under the 1934 Act.
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(xiii) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. None of the Adviser or, to the knowledge of the Adviser, any director, officer or employee of the Adviser or any agent, controlled affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Adviser is aware of, has taken or will take any action, directly or indirectly, that would result in a violation by such persons of the FCPA, in connection with the business of the Company, including making use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay or authorization of the payment of any money, or other property, gift, promise to give, or authorization of the giving of anything of value to any foreign official (as such term is defined in the FCPA) or any foreign political party or official thereof or any candidate for foreign political office, in contravention of the FCPA and to the knowledge of the Adviser, the Adviser has conducted its business, in relation to the Company, in compliance with the FCPA and has instituted and maintain policies and procedures designed to ensure, and which are reasonably expected to continue to ensure, continued compliance therewith.
(xiv) Money Laundering Laws. The operations of the Adviser are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Money Laundering Laws; and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any arbitrator, court, governmental body, regulatory body, administrative agency or other authority, body or agency having jurisdiction over the Adviser or any of its properties, assets or operations involving the Adviser with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Adviser, threatened.
(xv) OFAC. None of the Adviser or, to the knowledge of the Adviser, any director, officer or employee of the Adviser or any agent, controlled affiliate or other person acting on behalf of the Adviser is a Person, or is controlled by a Person that is, (i) currently the subject or target of Sanctions, or (ii) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is itself the subject of Sanctions. During the last five years, the Adviser has not knowingly engaged in, and is not now knowingly engaged in, any unauthorized dealings or transactions with any Person that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject or target of Sanctions.
(xvi) Key Employees. The Adviser is not aware that (i) any of its executives, key employees or significant group of employees plans to terminate employment with the Adviser or (ii) any such executive or key employee is subject to any noncompete, nondisclosure, confidentiality, employment, consulting or similar agreement that would be violated by either the Advisers present or proposed business activities, except, in each case, as would not reasonably be expected, singly or in the aggregate, to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect. For purposes of this paragraph (xvi), the Adviser shall mean the Private Credit Group of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P.
(xvii) No Labor Disputes. No labor disturbance by or dispute with employees of the Adviser or any of its subsidiaries exists or, to the knowledge of the Adviser, is contemplated or threatened, and the Adviser is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbance by, or dispute with, the employees or any of its or its subsidiaries principal suppliers, contractors or customers, except in each case as would not reasonably be expected to result in an Adviser Material Adverse Effect. For purposes of this paragraph (xvii), the Adviser shall mean the Private Credit Group of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P.
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(xviii) Accounting Controls. The Adviser maintains a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (A) transactions effectuated by it under the Investment Management Agreement are executed in accordance with its managements general or specific authorization; (B) access to the Companys consolidated assets that are in its possession or control is permitted only in accordance with its managements general or specific authorization; (C) transactions for which it has bookkeeping and record-keeping responsibility under the Investment Management Agreement are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of the Companys financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain accountability for the Companys assets and (D) the recorded accountability for such assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences.
(xix) Financial Resources. The Adviser has the financial resources available to it necessary for the performance of its services and obligations as contemplated by the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and the Investment Management Agreement.
(c) Officers Certificates. Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or the Adviser delivered to the Representative or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company or the Adviser, as applicable, to each Underwriter as to the matters covered thereby.
SECTION 2. Sale and Delivery to Underwriters; Closing.
(a) Securities. On the basis of the representations and warranties herein contained and subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to sell to each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, and each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, agrees to purchase from the Company, at the price (the Purchase Price) set forth in Schedule A, the aggregate principal amount of Securities set forth in Schedule A opposite the name of such Underwriter, plus any additional aggregate principal amount of Securities which such Underwriter may become obligated to purchase pursuant to the provisions of Section 10 hereof.
(b) Payment. Payment of the price for the Securities and delivery of the Securities, shall be made at the offices of Ropes & Gray LLP, 1211 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10036, or at such other place as shall be agreed upon by the Representative and the Company, at 10:00 A.M. (New York City time) on the second (third, if the pricing occurs after 4:30 P.M. (New York City time) on any given day) business day after the date hereof (unless postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10), or such other time not later than ten business days after such date as shall be agreed upon by the Representative and the Company (such time and date of payment and delivery being herein called Closing Time).
Payment of the price of the Securities shall be made to the Company by wire transfer of immediately available funds to a bank account designated by the Company against delivery to the Representative through the facilities of the Depositary Trust Company for the respective accounts of the Underwriters of the Securities to be purchased by them. It is understood that each Underwriter has authorized the Representative, for its account, to accept delivery of, receipt for, and make payment of the purchase price for, the Securities that it has agreed to purchase. The Representative may (but shall not be obligated to) make payment of the purchase price for the Securities to be purchased by any Underwriter whose funds have not been received by the Closing Time, but such payment shall not relieve such Underwriter from its obligations hereunder.
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(c) Denominations; Registration. The Securities shall be transferred electronically at the Closing Time in such denominations and registered in such names as the Representative may request in writing at least one full business day before the Closing Time. The Securities will be made available for examining and packaging by the Representative in the City of New York not later than 10:00 A.M. (New York City time) on the business day prior to the Closing Time.
SECTION 3. Covenants of the Company. The Company covenants with each Underwriter as follows:
(a) Compliance with Securities Regulations and Commission Requests. The Company, subject to Section 3(b), will comply with the requirements of Rule 430A and Rule 497, and will notify the Representative immediately, and confirm the notice in writing, (i) when any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement shall become effective or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus shall have been filed, (ii) of the receipt of any comments from the Commission, (iii) of any request by the Commission for any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus, or for additional information, (iv) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment or of any order preventing or suspending the use of any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus, or of the suspension of the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, or of the initiation or threatening of any proceedings for any of such purposes or of any examination pursuant to Section 8(d) or 8(e) of the 1933 Act concerning the Registration Statement and (v) if the Company becomes the subject of a proceeding under Section 8A of the 1933 Act in connection with the offering of the Securities. The Company will effect all filings required under Rule 497 within the time period required by Rule 497, and will take such steps as it deems necessary to ascertain promptly whether the form of prospectus transmitted for filing under Rule 497 was received for filing by the Commission and, in the event that it was not, it will promptly file such prospectus. The Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to prevent the issuance of any stop order, prevention or suspension and, if any such order is issued, to obtain the lifting thereof at the earliest possible moment.
(b) Continued Compliance with Securities Laws. The Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to comply with the 1933 Act and the 1933 Act Regulations so as to permit the completion of the distribution of the Securities as contemplated in this Agreement and in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. If at any time when a prospectus relating to the Securities is required by the 1933 Act to be delivered in connection with sales of the Securities, any event shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which it is necessary, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters or for the Company, to (i) amend the Registration Statement in order that the Registration Statement will not include 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, (ii) amend or supplement the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus in order that the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, as the case may be, will not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading in the light of the circumstances existing at
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the time it is delivered to a purchaser or (iii) amend the Registration Statement or amend or supplement the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, as the case may be, in order to comply with the requirements of the 1933 Act or the 1933 Act Regulations, the Company will promptly (A) give the Representative notice of such event, (B) prepare any amendment or supplement as may be necessary to correct such statement or omission or to make the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus comply with such requirements and, a reasonable amount of time prior to any proposed filing or use, furnish the Representative with copies of any such amendment or supplement and (C) file with the Commission any such amendment or supplement. The Company will furnish to the Underwriters such number of copies of such amendment or supplement as the Underwriters may reasonably request. The Company has given the Representative notice of any filings made pursuant to the 1934 Act or 1934 Act Regulations within 48 hours prior to the Applicable Time; the Company shall give the Representative notice of its intention to make any such filing from the Applicable Time to the Closing Time and shall furnish the Representative with copies of any such documents a reasonable amount of time prior to such proposed filing or use, as the case may be.
(c) Delivery of Commission Filings. The Company has furnished or, upon written request of the Representative, shall deliver to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters, without charge, conformed copies of the Registration Statement, as originally filed, and of each amendment thereto (including exhibits filed therewith) and conformed copies of all consents and certificates of experts, and will also deliver to the Representative, without charge, a conformed copy of the Registration Statement as originally filed and of each amendment thereto (without exhibits) for each of the Underwriters. The copies of the Registration Statement and each amendment thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(d) Delivery of Prospectuses. The Company has delivered to each Underwriter, without charge, as many copies of each preliminary prospectus as such Underwriter reasonably requested, and the Company hereby consents to the use of such copies for purposes permitted by the 1933 Act. The Company will furnish to each Underwriter, without charge, during the period when a prospectus relating to the Securities is required to be delivered under the 1933 Act, such number of copies of the Prospectus (as amended or supplemented) as such Underwriter may reasonably request. The Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(e) Blue Sky Qualifications. The Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts, in cooperation with the Underwriters, to qualify the Securities for offering and sale under the applicable securities laws of such states and other jurisdictions (domestic or foreign) as the Representative may designate and to maintain such qualifications in effect so long as reasonably required to complete the distribution of the Securities; provided, however, that the Company shall not be obligated to file any general consent to service of process or to qualify as a foreign corporation or as a dealer in securities in any jurisdiction in which it is not so qualified or to subject itself to taxation in respect of doing business in any jurisdiction in which it is not otherwise so subject.
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(f) Rule 158. The Company will make generally available to its securityholders as soon as practicable an earnings statement that satisfies the provisions of Section 11(a) of the 1933 Act and Rule 158 of the Commission promulgated thereunder covering a period of at least twelve months beginning with the first fiscal quarter of the Company occurring after the effective date (as defined in Rule 158) of the Registration Statement; provided that the Company will be deemed to have complied with such request by filing such an earnings statement on EDGAR.
(g) DTC. The Company will cooperate with the Representative and use its commercially reasonable efforts to permit the offered Securities to be eligible for clearance and settlement through the facilities of DTC.
(h) Use of Proceeds; OFAC. The Company will use the net proceeds received by it from the sale of the Securities in the manner specified in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under Use of Proceeds. The Company will not directly or, to its knowledge, indirectly, use the proceeds of the sale of the Securities, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiaries, joint venture partners or other Person, to fund any activities of or business with any Person, or in any country or territory, that, at the time of such funding, is the subject of Sanctions (to the extent that such action would result in the violation by any person (including any person participating in the transaction, whether as underwriter, adviser, investor or otherwise) of Sanctions) or in any other manner that will result in a violation by any Person (including any Person participating in the transaction, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise) of Sanctions.
(i) Clear Market. Through the Closing Time, the Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representative, (i) directly or indirectly, offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase or otherwise transfer or dispose of any debt securities issued or guaranteed by the Company or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for debt securities issued or guaranteed by the Company or file any registration statement under the 1933 Act with respect to any of the foregoing or (ii) enter into any swap or any other agreement or any transaction that transfers, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, the economic consequence of ownership of debt securities issued or guaranteed by the Company or any such other securities, without the prior written consent of the Representative on behalf of the Underwriters, other than the Securities to be sold hereunder.
(j) Reporting Requirements. The Company, during the period when a Prospectus relating to the Securities is required to be delivered under the 1933 Act, will file all documents required to be filed with the Commission pursuant to the 1934 Act within the time periods required by the 1934 Act and 1934 Act Regulations.
(k) Business Development Company Status. The Company, during the period of at least two years from the Closing Time, will use its commercially reasonable efforts to maintain its status as a business development company; provided, however, the Company may cease to be, or withdraw its election as, a business development company, with the approval of the board of directors and a vote of stockholders as required by Section 58 of the 1940 Act or any successor provision.
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(l) Regulated Investment Company Status. The Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to maintain its qualification as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code for each full fiscal year during which it is a business development company under the 1940 Act.
(m) Annual Compliance Reviews. The Company will retain qualified accountants and qualified tax experts to (i) test procedures and conduct annual compliance reviews designed to determine compliance with the regulated investment company provisions of the Code and (ii) otherwise assist the Company in monitoring appropriate accounting systems and procedures designed to determine compliance with the regulated investment company provisions of the Code.
(n) Accounting Controls. The Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to establish and maintain a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that (A) transactions are executed in accordance with managements authorization; (B) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain accountability for assets; (C) access to the Companys consolidated assets is permitted only in accordance with managements authorization; (D) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences; (E) material information relating to the Company and the assets managed by the Adviser is promptly made known to the officers responsible for establishing and maintaining the system of internal accounting controls; and (F) any significant deficiencies or weaknesses in the design or operation of internal accounting controls that could adversely affect the Companys ability to record, process, summarize and report financial data, and any fraud whether or not material that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in internal controls, are adequately and promptly disclosed to the Companys independent auditors and the audit committee of the Companys board of directors.
(o) Disclosure Controls. The Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to establish and employ disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the 1934 Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Commissions rules and forms, and is accumulated and communicated to the Companys management, including its principal executive officer or officers and principal financial officer or officers, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding disclosure.
(p) Testing-the-Waters Materials. If at any time following the distribution of any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication there has occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly notify the Representative and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication to eliminate or correct such untrue statement or omission.
(q) Issuer Free Writing Prospectus. The Company represents and agrees that, without the prior consent of the Representative (i) it will not distribute any offering material other than the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or the information set
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forth on Schedule B hereto, and (ii) it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute a free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act (other than for the information set forth on Schedule B hereto), and which the parties agree, for the purposes of this Agreement, includes (x) any advertisement as defined in Rule 482 under the 1933 Act; and (y) any sales literature, materials or information provided to investors by, or with the approval of, the Company in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Securities, including any in-person roadshow or investor presentations (including slides and scripts relating thereto) made to investors by or on behalf of the Company.
SECTION 4. Payment of Expenses.
(a) Expenses. The Company will pay or cause to be paid all expenses incident to the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, including (i) the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement (including financial statements and exhibits) as originally filed and each amendment thereto, (ii) the preparation, printing and delivery to the Underwriters of copies of each preliminary prospectus and the Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto, this Agreement, the Indenture, the DTC Agreement and such other documents as may be required in connection with the offering, purchase, sale, issuance or delivery of the Securities, and any costs associated with electronic delivery of any of the foregoing by the Underwriters to investors, (iii) the preparation, issuance and delivery of the certificates for the Securities to the Underwriters, including any stock or other transfer taxes and any stamp or other duties payable upon the sale, issuance or delivery of the Securities to the Underwriters, (iv) the fees and disbursements of the Companys and the Advisers counsel, accountants and other advisors, (v) the qualification of the Securities under securities laws in accordance with the provisions of Section 3(e) hereof, (vi) the fees and expenses of the Trustee for the Securities, (vii) the costs and expenses of the Company relating to investor presentations on any road show undertaken in connection with the marketing of the Securities, including without limitation, reasonable and documented expenses associated with the production of road show slides and graphics, fees and expenses of any consultants engaged in connection with the road show presentations, documented travel and lodging expenses of officers of the Company and any such consultants, (viii) the filing fees incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters in connection with, the review by FINRA of the terms of the sale of the Securities in an amount up to $15,000 and (ix) the costs and expenses (including, without limitation, any damages or other amounts payable in connection with legal or contractual liability) associated with the reforming of any contracts for sale of the Securities made by the Underwriters caused by a breach of the representation contained in the third sentence of Section 1(a)(iv).
(b) Termination of Agreement. If this Agreement is terminated by the Representative in accordance with the provisions of Section 5 or Section 9(a)(i) or (iii) hereof, the Company shall reimburse the Underwriters for all of their reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses, including the reasonable and documented fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters.
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SECTION 5. Conditions of Underwriters Obligations. The obligations of the several Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Company and the Adviser contained herein or in certificates of any officer of the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or the Adviser delivered pursuant to the provisions hereof, to the performance by the Company and the Adviser of their respective covenants and other obligations hereunder, and to the following further conditions:
(a) Effectiveness of Registration Statement; Rule 430A Information. The Registration Statement, including any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, has become effective and, at the Closing Time, no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto has been issued under the 1933 Act, no order preventing or suspending the use of any preliminary prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for any of those purposes have been instituted or are pending or, to the Companys knowledge, contemplated; and the Company has complied with each request (if any) from the Commission for additional information in connection with the Registration Statement. A prospectus containing the Rule 430A Information shall have been filed with the Commission in accordance with Rule 497 or a post-effective amendment providing such information shall have been filed with, and declared effective by, the Commission in accordance with the requirements of Rule 430A. Any required filing of each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus pursuant to Rule 433 has been made in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 433(d).
(b) Opinions of Counsel for Company. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received the favorable opinions, dated the Closing Time, of Fried Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, counsel for the Company, and of Dechert LLP, counsel for the Company and the Companys independent directors, in each case, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters, together with signed or reproduced copies of such letters for each of the other Underwriters to the effect set forth in Exhibit A-1 and Exhibit A-2 hereto and to such further effect as counsel to the Underwriters may reasonably request. Such counsels may state that insofar as such opinions involve factual matters, they have relied upon certificates of officers of the Company and certificates of public officials.
(c) Opinion of Counsel for Underwriters. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received the favorable opinion, dated the Closing Time, of Ropes & Gray LLP, counsel for the Underwriters. Such counsel may also state that, insofar as such opinion involves factual matters, they have relied, to the extent they deem proper, upon certificates of officers and other Representative of the Company and the Subsidiaries and certificates of public officials.
(d) Officers Certificates.
(i) At the Closing Time, there shall not have been, since the date hereof or since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, any material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of the Company and the Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, and the Representative shall have received a certificate of the chief executive officer or the president of the Company and of the chief financial or chief accounting officer of the Company, dated the Closing Time, to the effect that (A) there has been no such material adverse change, (B) the representations and warranties of the Company in Section 1(a) of this Agreement are true and correct with the same force and effect as though expressly made at and as of the Closing Time, (C) the Company has complied with all agreements and satisfied all conditions on its part to be
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performed or satisfied at or prior to the Closing Time, and (D) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement under the 1933 Act has been issued, no order preventing or suspending the use of any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus has been issued and no proceedings for any of those purposes have been instituted or are pending or, to their knowledge, contemplated by the Commission.
(ii) At the Closing Time, there shall not have been, since the date hereof or since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Prospectus, an Adviser Material Adverse Effect, and the Representative shall have received a certificate of two authorized signatories of the Adviser, dated the Closing Time, to the effect that (A) there has been no such Adviser Material Adverse Effect, (B) the representations and warranties of the Adviser in Section 1(b) of this Agreement are true and correct with the same force and effect as though expressly made at and as of the Closing Time and (C) the Adviser has complied with all agreements and satisfied all conditions on their part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to the Closing Time.
(e) Accountants Comfort Letters and CFO Certificate. At the time of the execution of this Agreement, the Representative shall have received (i) from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (x) a letter, dated such date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative, together with signed or reproduced copies of such letter for each of the other Underwriters containing statements and information of the type ordinarily included in accountants comfort letters to underwriters with respect to the Companys financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and (y) a letter, dated such date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative, together with signed or reproduced copies of such letter for each of the other Underwriters containing statements and information of the type ordinarily included in accountants comfort letters to underwriters with respect to MMLCs financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and (ii) a certificate of the chief financial officer of the Company, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representative and as agreed upon prior to the date hereof, covering certain financial matters of the Company, together with signed or reproduced copies of such certificate for each of the other Underwriters.
(f) Bring-down Comfort Letters and CFO Certificate. At the Closing Time, the Representative shall have received (i) from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (x) a letter, dated as of the Closing Time, to the effect that they reaffirm the statements made in the letter furnished pursuant to subsection (e)(i)(x) of this Section, except that the specified date referred to shall be a date not more than three business days prior to the Closing Time and (y) a letter, dated as of the Closing Time, to the effect that they reaffirm the statements made in the letter furnished pursuant to subsection (e)(i)(y) of this Section, except that the specified date referred to shall be a date not more than three business days prior to the Closing Time and (ii) from the Company a certificate of the chief financial officer of the Company, dated as of the Closing Time, to the effect that the chief financial officer of the Company reaffirms the statements made in the certificate furnished pursuant to subsection (e)(ii) of this Section.
(g) Indenture and Securities. At or prior to the Closing Time, the Company and the Trustee shall have executed and delivered the Indenture and the Securities.
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(h) Maintenance of Rating. Since the execution of this Agreement, there shall not have been any decrease in or withdrawal of the rating of any securities of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries by any nationally recognized statistical rating organization (as defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the 1934 Act) or any notice given of any intended or potential decrease in or withdrawal of any such rating or of a possible change in any such rating that does not indicate the direction of the possible change.
(i) Additional Documents. At the Closing Time, counsel for the Underwriters shall have been furnished with such documents and opinions as they may reasonably require for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon the issuance and sale of the Securities as herein contemplated, or in order to evidence the accuracy of any of the representations or warranties, or the fulfillment of any of the conditions, herein contained; and all proceedings taken by the Company and the Adviser in connection with the issuance and sale of the Securities as herein contemplated shall be satisfactory in form and substance to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters.
(j) Termination of Agreement. If any condition specified in this Section shall not have been fulfilled when and as required to be fulfilled, this Agreement may be terminated by the Representative by notice to the Company at any time at or prior to Closing Time, and such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except as provided in Section 4 and except that Sections 1, 6, 7, 8, 14, 15 and 16 survive any such termination and remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 6. Indemnification.
(a) Indemnification of Underwriters by the Company and the Adviser. The Company and the Adviser, severally and not jointly, agree to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its affiliates (as such term is defined in Rule 501(b) under the 1933 Act (each, an Affiliate)), its selling agents and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act as follows:
(i) against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense whatsoever, as incurred, arising out of any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), including any Rule 430A Information, or the omission or alleged omission therefrom of a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading or arising out of any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact included (A) in any preliminary prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto), or (B) in any materials or information provided to investors by, or with the approval of, the Company in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Securities (Marketing Materials), including any road show as defined in Rule 433(h) under the 1933 Act (a road show) or investor presentations made to investors by the Company (whether in person or electronically), or the omission or alleged omission in any preliminary prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Marketing Materials, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication or the General Disclosure Package of a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading;
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(ii) against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense whatsoever, as incurred, to the extent of the aggregate amount paid in settlement of any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or of any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue statement or omission, or any such alleged untrue statement or omission; provided that (subject to Section 6(d) below) any such settlement is effected with the written consent of the Company;
(iii) against any and all expense whatsoever, as incurred (including the reasonably incurred and documented fees and disbursements of counsel chosen by the Representative), reasonably incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue statement or omission, or any such alleged untrue statement or omission, to the extent that any such expense is not paid under (i) or (ii) above; provided, however, that this indemnity agreement shall not apply to any loss, liability, claim, damage or expense to the extent arising out of any untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), including any Rule 430A Information, any preliminary prospectus, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto) in reliance upon and in conformity with the Underwriter Information, and provided, further, that the Advisers indemnity agreement shall only apply to statements described in (i) above regarding the Adviser.
(b) Indemnification of Company, Directors, Officers and Adviser. Each Underwriter severally agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, the Adviser, their directors, each of the Companys officers who signed the Registration Statement and each person, if any, who controls the Company or the Adviser within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense described in the indemnity contained in subsection (a) of this Section, as incurred, but only with respect to untrue statements or omissions, or alleged untrue statements or omissions, made in the Registration Statement (or any amendment thereto), including any Rule 430A Information, the General Disclosure Package, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto) in reliance upon and in conformity with the Underwriter Information.
(c) Actions against Parties; Notification. Each indemnified party shall give notice as promptly as reasonably practicable to each indemnifying party of any action commenced against it in respect of which indemnity may be sought hereunder, but failure to so notify an indemnifying party shall not relieve such indemnifying party from any liability hereunder to the extent it is not materially prejudiced (through the forfeiture of substantive rights and defenses) as a result thereof and in any event shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have otherwise than on account of this indemnity agreement. In the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 6(a) above, counsel to the indemnified parties shall be selected by the Representative, and, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 6(b) above, counsel to the indemnified parties shall be selected by the Company. An indemnifying party may participate at its own expense in the defense of any such action; provided, however, that counsel to the indemnifying party shall not (except with the consent of the indemnified party) also be counsel to the indemnified party. In no event shall the indemnifying parties be liable for fees and expenses of more than one counsel (in addition to any local counsel) separate from their own counsel for all indemnified parties in connection with any one action or separate but similar or related actions in the same jurisdiction arising out of the same
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general allegations or circumstances. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified parties, settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever in respect of which indemnification or contribution could be sought under this Section 6 or Section 7 hereof (whether or not the indemnified parties are actual or potential parties thereto), unless such settlement, compromise or consent (i) includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all liability arising out of such litigation, investigation, proceeding or claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of any indemnified party.
(d) Settlement without Consent if Failure to Reimburse. If at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel, such indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of the nature contemplated by Section 6(a)(ii) effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 45 days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request, (ii) such indemnifying party shall have received notice of the terms of such settlement at least 30 days prior to such settlement being entered into and (iii) such indemnifying party shall not have reimbursed such indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement.
SECTION 7. Contribution. If the indemnification provided for in Section 6 hereof is for any reason unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party in respect of any losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the aggregate amount of such losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by such indemnified party, as incurred, (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company and the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other hand, from the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) 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 and the Adviser, on the one hand, and of the Underwriters, on the other hand, in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. For the avoidance of doubt, the Advisers contribution agreement shall only apply to instances in which the Adviser has an indemnity obligation as described above in Section 6(a).
The relative benefits received by the Company and the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other hand, in connection with the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the total net proceeds from the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement (before deducting expenses) received by the Company, on the one hand, and the total underwriting discount received by the Underwriters, on the other hand, in each case as set forth on the cover of the Prospectus, bear to the aggregate public offering price of the Securities as set forth on the cover of the Prospectus.
The relative fault of the Company and the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other hand, shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether any such untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company and the Adviser or by the Underwriters and the parties relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.
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The Company, the Adviser and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 7 were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this Section 7. The aggregate amount of losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses incurred by an indemnified party and referred to above in this Section 7 shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever based upon any such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 7, no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the underwriting commissions received by such Underwriter in connection with the Securities underwritten by it and distributed to the public.
No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the 1933 Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.
Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, any indemnification and contribution by the Company shall be subject to the requirements and limitations of Section 17(i) of the 1940 Act and any applicable guidance from the Commission or its staff thereunder.
For purposes of this Section 7, each person, if any, who controls an Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act and each Underwriters Affiliates and selling agents shall have the same rights to contribution as such Underwriter, and each director of the Company, each officer of the Company who signed the Registration Statement, and each person, if any, who controls the Company or the Adviser within the meaning of Section 15 of the 1933 Act or Section 20 of the 1934 Act shall have the same rights to contribution as the Company or the Adviser, as the case may be. The Underwriters respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 7 are several in proportion to the aggregate principal amount of Securities set forth opposite their respective names in Schedule A hereto and not joint.
SECTION 8. Representations, Warranties and Agreements to Survive. All representations, warranties and agreements contained in this Agreement or in certificates of officers of the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or the Adviser submitted pursuant hereto, shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of (i) any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or its Affiliates or selling agents, any person controlling any Underwriter, its officers or directors or any person controlling the Company and (ii) delivery of and payment for the Securities.
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SECTION 9. Termination of Agreement.
(a) Termination. The Representative may terminate this Agreement, by notice to the Company, at any time at or prior to the Closing Time (i) if there has been, in the judgment of the Representative, since the time of execution of this Agreement or since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, any material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as one enterprise or the Adviser, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, or (ii) if there has occurred any material adverse change in the financial markets in the United States or the international financial markets, any outbreak of hostilities or escalation thereof or other calamity or crisis or any change or development involving a prospective change in national or international political, financial or economic conditions, in each case the effect of which is such as to make it, in the judgment of the Representative, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the completion of the offering or to enforce contracts for the sale of the Securities, or (iii) if trading in any securities of the Company has been suspended or materially limited by the Commission or The New York Stock Exchange, or (iv) if trading generally on the NYSE Amex or The New York Stock Exchange or in the Nasdaq Global Market has been suspended or materially limited, or minimum or maximum prices for trading have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices have been required, by any of said exchanges or by order of the Commission, FINRA or any other governmental authority, or (v) a material disruption has occurred in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services in the United States or with respect to Clearstream or Euroclear systems in Europe, or (vi) if a banking moratorium has been declared by either Federal or New York authorities.
(b) Liabilities. If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to this Section, such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except as provided in Section 4 hereof, provided that Sections 1, 6, 7, 8, 14, 15 and 16 shall survive such termination and remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 10. Default by One or More of the Underwriters. If one or more of the Underwriters shall fail at the Closing Time to purchase the Securities which it or they are obligated to purchase under this Agreement (the Defaulted Securities), the Representative shall have the right, within 24 hours thereafter, to make arrangements for one or more of the non-defaulting Underwriters, or any other underwriters, to purchase all, but not less than all, of the Defaulted Securities in such amounts as may be agreed upon and upon the terms herein set forth; if, however, the Representative shall not have completed such arrangements within such 24-hour period, then if the aggregate principal amount of Defaulted Securities does not exceed 10% of the aggregate principal amount of Securities to be purchased, each of the non-defaulting Underwriters shall be obligated, severally and not jointly, to purchase the full amount thereof in the proportions that their respective underwriting obligations hereunder bear to the underwriting obligations of all non-defaulting Underwriters, or if the aggregate principal amount of Defaulted Securities exceeds 10% of the aggregate principal amount of Securities to be purchased, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter.
No action taken pursuant to this Section shall relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability in respect of its default.
30
In the event of any such default which does not result in a termination of this Agreement, either the (i) Representative or (ii) the Company shall have the right to postpone Closing Time for a period not exceeding seven days in order to effect any required changes in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements. As used herein, the term Underwriter includes any person substituted for an Underwriter under this Section 10.
SECTION 11. Notices. All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given if mailed or transmitted by any standard form of telecommunication. Notices to the Underwriters shall be directed to (i) BofA Securities, Inc. 50 Rockefeller Plaza, NY1-050-12-02, New York, New York 10020 Facsimile: (646) 855-5958 Attention: High Grade Transaction Management/Legal; and (ii) Ropes & Gray LLP at 1211 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10036, Attention: Paul Tropp and Christopher Capuzzi. Notices to the Company and the Adviser shall be directed to them at 200 West Street, New York, New York 10282, Attention: Caroline Kraus.
SECTION 12. No Advisory or Fiduciary Relationship. The Company acknowledges and agrees that (a) the purchase and sale of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement, including the determination of the public offering price of the Securities and any related discounts and commissions, is an arms-length commercial transaction between the Company, on the one hand, and the several Underwriters, on the other hand, (b) in connection with the offering of the Securities and the process leading thereto, each Underwriter is and has been acting solely as a principal and is not the agent or fiduciary of the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or their respective stockholders, creditors, employees or any other party, (c) no Underwriter has assumed or will assume an advisory or fiduciary responsibility in favor of the Company with respect to the offering of the Securities or the process leading thereto (irrespective of whether such Underwriter has advised or is currently advising the Company or any of its subsidiaries on other matters) and no Underwriter has any obligation to the Company with respect to the offering of the Securities except the obligations expressly set forth in this Agreement, (d) the Underwriters and their respective affiliates may be engaged in a broad range of transactions that involve interests that differ from those of the Company and (e) the Underwriters have not provided any legal, accounting, regulatory or tax advice with respect to the offering of the Securities and the Company has consulted its own respective legal, accounting, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent it deemed appropriate.
SECTION 13. Parties. This Agreement shall each inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Underwriters and the Company and their respective successors. Nothing expressed or mentioned in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any person, firm or corporation, other than the Underwriters, the Company and the Adviser and their respective successors and the controlling persons and officers and directors referred to in Sections 6 and 7 and their heirs and legal representatives, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision herein contained. This Agreement and all conditions and provisions hereof are intended to be for the sole and exclusive benefit of the Underwriters, the Company and the Adviser and their respective successors, and said controlling persons and officers and directors and their heirs and legal representatives, and for the benefit of no other person, firm or corporation. No purchaser of Securities from any Underwriter shall be deemed to be a successor by reason merely of such purchase.
31
SECTION 14. Trial by Jury. The Company (on its behalf and, to the extent permitted by applicable law, on behalf of its stockholders and affiliates) and each of the Underwriters hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.
SECTION 15. GOVERNING LAW. THIS AGREEMENT AND ANY CLAIM, CONTROVERSY OR DISPUTE ARISING UNDER OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF, THE STATE OF NEW YORK.
SECTION 16. Consent to Jurisdiction; Waiver of Immunity. Any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby shall be instituted in (i) the federal courts of the United States of America located in the City and County of New York, Borough of Manhattan or (ii) the courts of the State of New York located in the City and County of New York, Borough of Manhattan (collectively, the Specified Courts), and each party irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction (except for proceedings instituted in regard to the enforcement of a judgment of any such court, as to which such jurisdiction is non-exclusive) of such courts in any such suit, action or proceeding. Service of any process, summons, notice or document by mail to such partys address set forth above shall be effective service of process for any suit, action or other proceeding brought in any such court. The parties irrevocably and unconditionally waive any objection to the laying of venue of any suit, action or other proceeding in the Specified Courts and irrevocably and unconditionally waive and agree not to plead or claim in any such court that any such suit, action or other proceeding brought in any such court has been brought in an inconvenient forum.
SECTION 17. TIME. TIME SHALL BE OF THE ESSENCE OF THIS AGREEMENT. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE SET FORTH HEREIN, SPECIFIED TIMES OF DAY REFER TO NEW YORK CITY TIME.
SECTION 18. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same Agreement.
SECTION 19. Effect of Headings. The Section headings herein are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction hereof.
SECTION 20. Recognition of the U.S. Special Resolution Regimes.
(a) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
32
(b) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.
(c) For purposes of this Section 20, a BHC Act Affiliate has the meaning assigned to the term affiliate in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. § 1841(k). Covered Entity means any of the following: (i) a covered entity as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b); (ii) a covered bank as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b); or (iii) a covered FSI as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b). Default Right has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable. U.S. Special Resolution Regime means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.
33
If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to the Company a counterpart hereof, whereupon this instrument, along with all counterparts, will become a binding agreement among the Underwriters, the Company and the Adviser in accordance with its terms.
Very truly yours, | ||
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC. |
By: |
/s/ Brendan McGovern |
|
Name: Brendan McGovern | ||
Title: Chief Executive Officer |
GOLDMAN SACHS ASSET MANAGEMENT, L.P. |
By: |
/s/ Jonathan Lamm |
|
Name: Jonathan Lamm | ||
Title: Managing Director |
34
CONFIRMED AND ACCEPTED, | ||
as of the date first above written: |
||
BOFA SECURITIES, INC. | ||
By: |
/s/ Matt Basler |
|
Name: Matt Basler | ||
Title: Managing Director |
For itself and as Representative of the other Underwriters named in Schedule A hereto.
35
SCHEDULE A
1. The initial offering price for the Securities shall be 99.910% of the aggregate principal amount thereof.
2. The Purchase Price for the Securities to be paid by the several Underwriters shall be 98.660% of the aggregate principal amount thereof.
Underwriters |
Aggregate
Principal Amount of Securities to be Purchased |
|||
BofA Securities, Inc. |
$ | 138,420,000 | ||
HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. |
38,880,000 | |||
MUFG Securities Americas Inc. |
38,880,000 | |||
SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc. |
38,880,000 | |||
SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. |
38,880,000 | |||
Citigroup Global Markets Inc. |
10,260,000 | |||
ICBC Standard Bank Plc |
10,260,000 | |||
R. Seelaus & Co., LLC |
10,260,000 | |||
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC |
| |||
BMO Capital Markets Corp. |
5,040,000 | |||
BNP Paribas Securities Corp. |
5,040,000 | |||
CIBC World Markets Corp. |
5,040,000 | |||
Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC |
5,040,000 | |||
ING Financial Markets LLC |
5,040,000 | |||
Raymond James & Associates, Inc. |
5,040,000 | |||
Wells Fargo Securities, LLC |
5,040,000 | |||
|
|
|||
Total |
$ | 360,000,000 |
SCHEDULE B
Term sheet containing the terms of the Securities, substantially in the form of Annex A hereto.
SCHEDULE C
Consolidated subsidiaries of the Company:
BDC Blocker I, LLC
GSBD Blocker II, LLC
GSBD Wine I, LLC
ANNEX A
Filed Pursuant to Rule 433
Issuer Free Writing Prospectus dated February 6, 2020
Relating to Preliminary Prospectus dated February 6, 2020
Registration No. 333-230801
Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.
$360,000,000
3.750% Notes due 2025
PRICING TERM SHEET
February 6, 2020
The following sets forth the final terms of the 3.750% Notes due 2025 and should only be read together with the preliminary prospectus dated February 6, 2020, relating to these securities (the Preliminary Prospectus), and supersedes the information in the Preliminary Prospectus to the extent inconsistent with the information in the Preliminary Prospectus. In all other respects, this pricing term sheet is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Preliminary Prospectus. Terms used herein but not defined herein shall have the respective meanings as set forth in the Preliminary Prospectus. All references to dollar amounts are references to U.S. dollars.
Issuer: | Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. | |
Security: | 3.750% Notes due 2025 | |
Ratings (Moodys/Fitch)*: | [Reserved] | |
Trade Date: | February 6, 2020 | |
Settlement Date: | February 10, 2020 (T+2) | |
Aggregate Principal Amount Offered: | $360,000,000 | |
Maturity Date: | February 10, 2025, unless earlier repurchased or redeemed | |
Benchmark Treasury: | 1.375% due January 31, 2025 | |
Benchmark Treasury Price and Yield: | 99-17+ / 1.470% | |
Spread to Benchmark Treasury: | +230 basis points | |
Yield to Maturity: | 3.770% | |
Price to Public (Issue Price): | The Notes will be issued at a price of 99.910% of their principal amount, plus accrued interest, if any, from February 10, 2020 | |
Coupon (Interest Rate): | 3.750% | |
Interest Payment Dates: | February 10 and August 10, commencing August 10, 2020 | |
Make-Whole Redemption: |
Equal to the greater of the following amounts:
100% of the principal amount of the Notes to be redeemed, or
the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest (exclusive of accrued and unpaid interest to the date of redemption) on the Notes to be redeemed, discounted to the redemption date on a semi-annual |
basis (assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months) using the applicable Treasury Rate plus 35 basis points; provided, however, that if Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. redeems any Notes on or after January 10, 2025 (the date falling one month prior to the maturity date of the Notes), the redemption price for the Notes will be equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Notes to be redeemed, plus, in each case, accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the date of redemption. |
||
Denomination: | $2,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof | |
CUSIP: | 38147U AC1 | |
ISIN: | US38147UAC18 | |
Joint Book-Running Managers: |
BofA Securities, Inc. Citigroup Global Markets Inc. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. ICBC Standard Bank Plc MUFG Securities Americas Inc. R. Seelaus & Co., LLC SMBC Nikko Securities America, Inc. SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. |
|
Co-Managers: |
BMO Capital Markets Corp. BNP Paribas Securities Corp. CIBC World Markets Corp. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC ING Financial Markets LLC Raymond James & Associates, Inc. Wells Fargo Securities, LLC |
* |
Note: A securities rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities and may be subject to revision or withdrawal at any time. |
Investors are advised to carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. before investing. The Preliminary Prospectus, which has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC), contains this and other information about Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. and should be read carefully before investing.
The information in the Preliminary Prospectus and in this pricing term sheet is not complete and may be changed. The Preliminary Prospectus and this pricing term sheet are not offers to sell any securities of Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc. and are not soliciting an offer to buy such securities in any state or jurisdiction where such offer and sale is not permitted.
The issuer has filed a registration statement including a preliminary prospectus with the SEC for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you invest, you should read the preliminary prospectus in that registration statement and other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the issuer and this offering. You may obtain these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, the issuer, any underwriter or any dealer participating in the offering will arrange to send you the preliminary prospectus if you request it from BofA Securities, Inc., NC1-004-03-43, 200 North College Street, 3rd floor, Charlotte NC 28255-0001, Attn: Prospectus Department, or by calling 1-800-294-1322, or email dg.prospectus_requests@bofa.com.
2
[Remainder of Page Intentionally Blank]
3
EXHIBIT A-1
Form of Opinion of Fried Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP
[Attached Separately]
4
EXHIBIT A-2
Form of Opinion of Dechert LLP
[Attached Separately]
5
Exhibit 4.1
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC.
(Company)
and
WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
(Trustee)
Indenture
Dated as of February 10, 2020
Providing for the Issuance
of
Debt Securities
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page | ||||||
ARTICLE ONE DEFINITIONS AND OTHER PROVISIONS OF GENERAL APPLICATION |
1 | |||||
Section 1.01. |
Definitions | 1 | ||||
Section 1.02. |
Compliance Certificates and Opinions | 12 | ||||
Section 1.03. |
Form of Documents Delivered to Trustee | 12 | ||||
Section 1.04. |
Acts of Holders | 13 | ||||
Section 1.05. |
Notices, Etc., to Trustee and Company | 14 | ||||
Section 1.06. |
Notice to Holders; Waiver | 15 | ||||
Section 1.07. |
Conflict with Trust Indenture Act | 16 | ||||
Section 1.08. |
Effect of Headings and Table of Contents | 16 | ||||
Section 1.09. |
Successors and Assigns | 16 | ||||
Section 1.10. |
Separability Clause | 16 | ||||
Section 1.11. |
Benefits of Indenture | 16 | ||||
Section 1.12. |
Governing Law | 16 | ||||
Section 1.13. |
Legal Holidays | 16 | ||||
Section 1.14. |
Submission to Jurisdiction | 17 | ||||
Section 1.15. |
Waiver of Jury Trial | 17 | ||||
Section 1.16. |
U.S.A. Patriot Act | 17 | ||||
ARTICLE TWO SECURITIES FORMS |
17 | |||||
Section 2.01. |
Forms of Securities | 17 | ||||
Section 2.02. |
Form of Trustees Certificate of Authentication | 18 | ||||
Section 2.03. |
Securities Issuable in Global Form | 18 | ||||
Section 2.04. |
Certificated Securities | 19 | ||||
ARTICLE THREE THE SECURITIES |
20 | |||||
Section 3.01. |
Amount Unlimited; Issuable in Series | 20 | ||||
Section 3.02. |
Denominations | 24 | ||||
Section 3.03. |
Execution, Authentication, Delivery and Dating | 24 | ||||
Section 3.04. |
Temporary Securities | 26 | ||||
Section 3.05. |
Registration, Registration of Transfer and Exchange | 26 | ||||
Section 3.06. |
Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost and Stolen Securities | 29 |
-i-
Section 3.07. |
Payment of Interest; Interest Rights Preserved; Optional Interest Reset | 29 | ||||
Section 3.08. |
Optional Extension of Maturity | 32 | ||||
Section 3.09. |
Persons Deemed Owners | 33 | ||||
Section 3.10. |
Cancellation | 33 | ||||
Section 3.11. |
Computation of Interest | 33 | ||||
Section 3.12. |
Currency and Manner of Payments in Respect of Securities | 34 | ||||
Section 3.13. |
Appointment and Resignation of Successor Exchange Rate Agent | 37 | ||||
Section 3.14. |
CUSIP Numbers | 38 | ||||
ARTICLE FOUR SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE |
38 | |||||
Section 4.01. |
Satisfaction and Discharge of Indenture | 38 | ||||
Section 4.02. |
Application of Trust Funds | 39 | ||||
ARTICLE FIVE REMEDIES |
39 | |||||
Section 5.01. |
Events of Default | 39 | ||||
Section 5.02. |
Acceleration of Maturity; Rescission and Annulment | 41 | ||||
Section 5.03. |
Collection of Indebtedness and Suits for Enforcement by Trustee | 42 | ||||
Section 5.04. |
Trustee May File Proofs of Claim | 43 | ||||
Section 5.05. |
Trustee May Enforce Claims Without Possession of Securities | 44 | ||||
Section 5.06. |
Application of Money Collected | 44 | ||||
Section 5.07. |
Limitation on Suits | 45 | ||||
Section 5.08. |
Unconditional Right of Holders to Receive Principal, Premium and Interest | 45 | ||||
Section 5.09. |
Restoration of Rights and Remedies | 46 | ||||
Section 5.10. |
Rights and Remedies Cumulative | 46 | ||||
Section 5.11. |
Delay or Omission Not Waiver | 46 | ||||
Section 5.12. |
Control by Holders of Securities | 46 | ||||
Section 5.13. |
Waiver of Past Defaults | 47 | ||||
Section 5.14. |
Waiver of Stay or Extension Laws | 47 | ||||
Section 5.15. |
Undertaking for Costs | 47 | ||||
ARTICLE SIX THE TRUSTEE |
48 | |||||
Section 6.01. |
Notice of Defaults | 48 | ||||
Section 6.02. |
Certain Rights of Trustee | 49 | ||||
Section 6.03. |
Not Responsible for Recitals or Issuance of Securities | 51 | ||||
Section 6.04. |
May Hold Securities | 52 |
-ii-
Section 6.05. |
Money Held in Trust | 52 | ||||
Section 6.06. |
Compensation and Reimbursement and Indemnification of Trustee | 52 | ||||
Section 6.07. |
Corporate Trustee Required; Eligibility | 53 | ||||
Section 6.08. |
Disqualification; Conflicting Interests | 53 | ||||
Section 6.09. |
Resignation and Removal; Appointment of Successor | 53 | ||||
Section 6.10. |
Acceptance of Appointment by Successor | 55 | ||||
Section 6.11. |
Merger, Conversion, Consolidation or Succession to Business | 56 | ||||
Section 6.12. |
Appointment of Authenticating Agent | 57 | ||||
Section 6.13. |
Preferential Collection of Claims Against Company | 58 | ||||
ARTICLE SEVEN HOLDERS LISTS AND REPORTS BY TRUSTEE AND COMPANY |
58 | |||||
Section 7.01. |
Disclosure of Names and Addresses of Holders | 58 | ||||
Section 7.02. |
Preservation of Information; Communications to Holders | 59 | ||||
Section 7.03. |
Reports by Trustee | 59 | ||||
Section 7.04. |
Reports by Company | 59 | ||||
Section 7.05. |
Calculation of Original Issue Discount | 60 | ||||
ARTICLE EIGHT CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, CONVEYANCE OR TRANSFER |
60 | |||||
Section 8.01. |
Merger, Consolidation or Sale of Assets | 60 | ||||
Section 8.02. |
Successor Person Substituted | 61 | ||||
ARTICLE NINE SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES |
61 | |||||
Section 9.01. |
Supplemental Indentures Without Consent of Holders | 61 | ||||
Section 9.02. |
Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Holders | 62 | ||||
Section 9.03. |
Execution of Supplemental Indentures | 64 | ||||
Section 9.04. |
Effect of Supplemental Indentures | 64 | ||||
Section 9.05. |
Conformity with Trust Indenture Act | 64 | ||||
Section 9.06. |
Reference in Securities to Supplemental Indentures | 64 | ||||
ARTICLE TEN COVENANTS |
65 | |||||
Section 10.01. |
Payment of Principal, Premium, if any, and Interest | 65 | ||||
Section 10.02. |
Maintenance of Office or Agency | 65 | ||||
Section 10.03. |
Money for Securities Payments to Be Held in Trust | 66 | ||||
Section 10.04. |
Additional Amounts | 66 | ||||
Section 10.05. |
Statement as to Compliance | 67 | ||||
Section 10.06. |
Waiver of Certain Covenants | 68 |
-iii-
ARTICLE ELEVEN REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES |
68 | |||||
Section 11.01. |
Applicability of Article | 68 | ||||
Section 11.02. |
Election to Redeem; Notice to Trustee | 68 | ||||
Section 11.03. |
Selection by Trustee of Securities to Be Redeemed | 68 | ||||
Section 11.04. |
Notice of Redemption | 69 | ||||
Section 11.05. |
Deposit of Redemption Price | 70 | ||||
Section 11.06. |
Securities Payable on Redemption Date | 70 | ||||
Section 11.07. |
Securities Redeemed in Part | 71 | ||||
ARTICLE TWELVE SINKING FUNDS |
71 | |||||
Section 12.01. |
Applicability of Article | 71 | ||||
Section 12.02. |
Satisfaction of Sinking Fund Payments with Securities | 72 | ||||
Section 12.03. |
Redemption of Securities for Sinking Fund | 72 | ||||
ARTICLE THIRTEEN REPAYMENT AT THE OPTION OF HOLDERS |
72 | |||||
Section 13.01. |
Applicability of Article | 72 | ||||
Section 13.02. |
Repayment of Securities | 73 | ||||
Section 13.03. |
Exercise of Option | 73 | ||||
Section 13.04. |
When Securities Presented for Repayment Become Due and Payable | 73 | ||||
Section 13.05. |
Securities Repaid in Part | 74 | ||||
ARTICLE FOURTEEN DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE |
74 | |||||
Section 14.01. |
Applicability of Article; Companys Option to Effect Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance | 74 | ||||
Section 14.02. |
Defeasance and Discharge | 74 | ||||
Section 14.03. |
Covenant Defeasance | 75 | ||||
Section 14.04. |
Conditions to Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance | 75 | ||||
Section 14.05. |
Deposited Money and Government Obligations to Be Held in Trust; Other Miscellaneous Provisions | 77 | ||||
ARTICLE FIFTEEN MEETINGS OF HOLDERS OF SECURITIES |
78 | |||||
Section 15.01. |
Purposes for Which Meetings may be Called | 78 | ||||
Section 15.02. |
Call, Notice and Place of Meetings | 78 | ||||
Section 15.03. |
Persons Entitled to Vote at Meetings | 79 | ||||
Section 15.04. |
Quorum; Action | 79 | ||||
Section 15.05. |
Determination of Voting Rights; Conduct and Adjournment of Meetings | 80 | ||||
Section 15.06. |
Counting Votes and Recording Action of Meetings | 81 |
-iv-
ARTICLE SIXTEEN SUBORDINATION OF SECURITIES |
81 | |||||
Section 16.01. |
Agreement to Subordinate | 81 | ||||
Section 16.02. |
Distribution on Dissolution, Liquidation and Reorganization; Subrogation of Subordinated Securities | 81 | ||||
Section 16.03. |
No Payment on Subordinated Securities in Event of Default on Senior Indebtedness | 84 | ||||
Section 16.04. |
Payments on Subordinated Securities Permitted | 84 | ||||
Section 16.05. |
Authorization of Holders to Trustee to Effect Subordination | 84 | ||||
Section 16.06. |
Notices to Trustee | 84 | ||||
Section 16.07. |
Trustee as Holder of Senior Indebtedness | 85 | ||||
Section 16.08. |
Modifications of Terms of Senior Indebtedness | 85 | ||||
Section 16.09. |
Reliance on Judicial Order or Certificate of Liquidating Agent | 85 |
-v-
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC.
Reconciliation and tie between Trust Indenture Act of 1939
and Indenture, dated as of February 10, 2020
Trust
Act Section |
Indenture
Section |
|||
§ 310 | (a)(1) | 6.07 | ||
(a)(2) | 6.07 | |||
(a)(5) | 6.07 | |||
(b) | 6.08 | |||
§ 311 | 6.13 | |||
§ 312 | (c) | 7.01 | ||
§ 313 | 7.03 | |||
§ 314 | (a) | 7.04 | ||
(a)(4) | 10.05 | |||
(c)(1) | 1.02 | |||
(c)(2) | 1.02 | |||
(e) | 1.02 | |||
§ 315 | (a) | 6.01 | ||
(b) | 6.01 | |||
(c) | 6.01 | |||
(d) | 6.01 | |||
(e) | 5.15 | |||
§ 316 | (a) (last sentence) | 1.01 | ||
(Outstanding) | ||||
(a)(1)(A) | 5.02, 5.12 | |||
(a)(1)(B) | 5.13 | |||
(b) | 5.08 | |||
§ 317 | (a)(1) | 5.03 | ||
(a)(2) | 5.04 | |||
(b) | 10.03 | |||
§ 318 | (a) | 1.12 | ||
(c) | 1.12 |
NOTE: This reconciliation and tie shall not, for any purpose, be deemed to be a part of the Indenture.
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This INDENTURE, dated as of February 10, 2020, is between GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC., a Delaware corporation (the Company, as more fully set forth in Section 1.01), and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, a national banking association, as Trustee (as trustee in such capacity and not in its individual capacity, the Trustee, as more fully set forth in Section 1.01).
RECITALS OF THE COMPANY
WHEREAS, the Company deems it necessary to issue from time to time for its lawful purposes debt securities (hereinafter called the Securities) evidencing its secured or unsecured indebtedness, which may or may not be convertible into or exchangeable for any securities of any Person (including the Company), and has duly authorized the execution and delivery of this Indenture to provide for the issuance from time to time of the Securities, to be issued in one or more series, unlimited as to principal amount, to bear such rates of interest, to mature at such times and to have such other provisions as shall be fixed as hereinafter provided;
WHEREAS, this Indenture (as defined herein) is subject to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act (as defined herein) that are required to be part of this Indenture and shall, to the extent applicable, be governed by such provisions; and
WHEREAS, all things necessary to make this Indenture a valid and legally binding agreement of, and enforceable against, the Company, in accordance with its terms, have been done.
NOW, THEREFORE, for and in consideration of the premises and the purchase of the Securities by the Holders (as defined herein) thereof, it is mutually covenanted and agreed, for the benefit of each other and for the equal and proportionate benefit of all Holders of the Securities, or of a series thereof, as follows:
ARTICLE ONE
DEFINITIONS AND OTHER PROVISIONS OF GENERAL APPLICATION
Section 1.01. Definitions.
For all purposes of this Indenture, except as otherwise expressly provided or unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) the terms defined in this Article have the meanings assigned to them in this Article, and include the plural as well as the singular and, pursuant to Section 3.01, any such item may, with respect to any particular series of Securities, be amended or modified or specified as being inapplicable;
(b) all other terms used herein which are defined in the Trust Indenture Act, either directly or by reference therein, have the meanings assigned to them therein, and the terms cash transaction and self-liquidating paper, as used in Section 311 of the Trust Indenture Act, shall have the meanings assigned to them in the rules of the Commission (as defined herein) adopted under the Trust Indenture Act;
(c) all accounting terms not otherwise defined herein have the meanings assigned to them in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America;
(d) the words herein, hereof and hereunder and other words of similar import refer to this Indenture as a whole and not to any particular Article, Section or other subdivision;
(e) or is not exclusive;
(f) provisions apply to successive events and transactions; and
(g) references to sections of or rules under the Exchange Act shall be deemed to include substitute, replacement or successor sections or rules adopted by the Commission from time to time.
Certain terms, used in other Articles herein are defined in those Articles.
Act, when used with respect to any Holder of a Security, has the meaning specified in Section 1.04.
Additional Amounts means any additional amounts that are required by a Security or by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, under circumstances specified therein, to be paid by the Company in respect of certain taxes imposed on certain Holders and that are owing to such Holders.
Affiliate of any specified Person means any other Person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with such specified Person. For the purposes of this definition, control when used with respect to any specified Person means the power to direct the management and policies of such Person, directly or indirectly, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise; and the terms controlling and controlled have meanings correlative to the foregoing.
Agent means any Registrar, Paying Agent, Authenticating Agent, or Depositary Custodian.
Applicable Procedures means, with respect to any matter at any time relating to a Global Note, the rules, policies and procedures of the Depositary applicable to such matter
Authenticating Agent means the Trustee or any authenticating agent appointed by the Trustee pursuant to Section 6.12 to act on behalf of the Trustee to authenticate Securities of one or more series.
Authorized Newspaper means a newspaper, in the English language or in an official language of the country of publication, customarily published on each Business Day, whether or not published on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays, and of general circulation in each place in connection with which the term is used or in the financial community of each such place. Where successive publications are required to be made in Authorized Newspapers, the successive publications may be made in the same or in different newspapers in the same city meeting the foregoing requirements and in each case on any Business Day.
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Bankruptcy Law has the meaning specified in Section 5.01.
Board of Directors means the board of directors of the Company or any committee of that board duly authorized to act hereunder.
Board Resolution means a copy of a resolution certified by the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company to have been duly adopted by the Board of Directors and to be in full force and effect on the date of such certification, and delivered to the Trustee.
Business Day, when used with respect to any Place of Payment or any other particular location referred to in this Indenture or in the Securities, means, unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, each Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday that is not a day on which the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee or banking institutions in that Place of Payment or particular location are authorized or obligated by law or executive order to close.
Code means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
Commission means the Securities and Exchange Commission, as from time to time constituted, created under the Exchange Act, or, if at any time after execution of this instrument such Commission is not existing and performing the duties now assigned to it under the Trust Indenture Act, then the body performing such duties on such date.
Company means the Person named as the Company in the first paragraph of this Indenture until a successor Person shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter Company shall mean such successor corporation.
Company Request and Company Order mean, respectively, a written request or order signed in the name of the Company by (a) the Chief Executive Officer, the President, the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Operating Officer, the Chief Compliance Officer, or any Vice President, and (b) any such other officer designated in clause (a) of this definition or the Companys Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer or the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company, and delivered to the Trustee.
Component Currency has the meaning specified in Section 3.12(h).
Conversion Date has the meaning specified in Section 3.12(d).
Conversion Event means the cessation of use of (i) a Foreign Currency both by the government of the country which issued such currency and for the settlement of transactions by a central bank or other public institutions of or within the international banking community, (ii) the ECU both within the European Monetary System and for the settlement of transactions by public institutions of or within the European Communities or (iii) any currency unit (or composite currency) other than the ECU for the purposes for which it was established.
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Corporate Trust Office means the office of the Trustee at which, at any particular time, its corporate trust business in respect of this Indenture shall be administered, which office at the date hereof is located at 333 S. Grand Avenue, 5th Floor, Los Angeles, California 90071, Attention: Corporate Trust Services, and for Agent services such office shall also mean the office or agency of the Trustee located at Corporate Trust Operations, MAC N9300-070, 600 South Fourth Street, Seventh Floor, Minneapolis, MN 55415, or the principal corporate trust office of any successor Trustee (or such other address as such successor Trustee may designate from time to time by notice to the Holders and the Company) or if at any time there is more than one Trustee, means the Corporate Trust Office of any such other Trustee with respect to the Securities of the applicable series.
corporation includes corporations, associations, companies and business trusts.
Currency means any currency or currencies, composite currency or currency unit or currency units, including, without limitation, the ECU, issued by the government of one or more countries or by any reorganized confederation or association of such governments.
Default means any event that is, or after notice or passage of time or both would be, an Event of Default.
Defaulted Interest has the meaning specified in Section 3.07(a).
Depositary means, with respect to each global Security, the Person specified in Section 3.03 as the Depositary with respect to such Securities, until a successor shall have been appointed and become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter, Depositary shall mean or include such successor.
Depositary Custodian means the Trustee as custodian with respect to the Global Notes or any successor entity thereto.
Dollar or $ means a dollar or other equivalent unit in such coin or currency of the United States of America as at the time shall be legal tender for the payment of public and private debts.
ECU means the European Currency Unit as defined and revised from time to time by the Council of the European Communities.
Election Date has the meaning specified in Section 3.12(h).
European Communities means the European Union, the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Atomic Energy Community.
European Monetary System means the European Monetary System established by the Resolution of December 5, 1978 of the Council of the European Communities.
Event of Default has the meaning specified in Section 5.01.
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Exchange Act means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated by the Commission thereunder and any statute successor thereto, in each case as amended from time to time.
Exchange Rate Agent, with respect to Securities of or within any series, means, unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, a New York Clearing House bank designated pursuant to Section 3.01 or Section 3.13.
Exchange Rate Officers Certificate means a certificate setting forth (i) the applicable Market Exchange Rate or the applicable bid quotation and (ii) the Dollar or Foreign Currency amounts of principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any (on an aggregate basis and on the basis of a Security having the lowest denomination principal amount determined in accordance with Section 3.02 in the relevant Currency), payable with respect to a Security of any series on the basis of such Market Exchange Rate or the applicable bid quotation signed by the Chief Financial Officer or any President or Vice President of the Company.
Extension Notice has the meaning specified in Section 3.08.
Extension Period has the meaning specified in Section 3.08.
Final Maturity has the meaning specified in Section 3.08.
Foreign Currency means any Currency, including, without limitation, the ECU issued by the government of one or more countries other than the United States of America or by any recognized confederation or association of such governments.
GAAP means generally accepted accounting principles in the United States set forth in the opinions and pronouncements of the Accounting Principles Board of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the opinions and pronouncements of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and the statements and pronouncements of the Financial Accounting Standards Board or in such other statements by such other entity as have been approved by a significant segment of the accounting profession in the United States, which are in effect from time to time.
Government Obligations means securities that are (i) direct obligations of the United States of America or the government which issued the Foreign Currency in which the Securities of a particular series are payable, for the payment of which its full faith and credit is pledged or (ii) obligations of a Person controlled or supervised by and acting as an agency or instrumentality of the United States of America or such government that issued the Foreign Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable, the timely payment of which is unconditionally guaranteed as a full faith and credit obligation by the United States of America or such other government, which, in either case, are not callable or redeemable at the option of the issuer thereof, and shall also include a depository receipt issued by a bank or trust company as custodian with respect to any such Government Obligation or a specific payment of interest on or principal of any such Government Obligation held by such custodian for the account of the holder of a depository receipt; provided that (except as required by law) such custodian is not authorized to make any deduction from the amount payable to the holder of such depository receipt from any amount received by the custodian in respect of the Government Obligation or the specific payment of interest on or principal of the Government Obligation evidenced by such depository receipt.
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Holder means, in the case of a Registered Security, the Person in whose name a Security is registered in the Security Register.
Indenture means this instrument as originally executed or as it may from time to time be supplemented or amended by one or more indentures supplemental hereto entered into pursuant to the applicable provisions hereof, and shall include the terms of particular series of Securities established as contemplated by Section 3.01; provided, however, that, if at any time more than one Person is acting as Trustee under this instrument, Indenture shall mean, with respect to any one or more series of Securities for which such Person is Trustee, this instrument as originally executed or as it may from time to time be supplemented or amended by one or more indentures supplemental hereto entered into pursuant to the applicable provisions hereof and shall include the terms of the or those particular series of Securities for which such Person is Trustee established as contemplated by Section 3.01, exclusive, however, of any provisions or terms that relate solely to other series of Securities for which such Person is not Trustee, regardless of when such terms or provisions were adopted, and exclusive of any provisions or terms adopted by means of one or more indentures supplemental hereto executed and delivered after such Person had become such Trustee but to which such Person, as such Trustee, was not a party.
Indexed Security means a Security as to which all or certain interest payments and/or the principal amount payable at Maturity are determined by reference to prices, changes in prices, or differences between prices, of securities, Currencies, intangibles, goods, articles or commodities or by such other objective price, economic or other measures as are specified in Section 3.01 hereof.
Interest, when used with respect to an Original Issue Discount Security which by its terms bears interest only after Maturity, means interest payable after Maturity, and, when used with respect to a Security which provides for the payment of Additional Amounts pursuant to Section 10.04, includes such Additional Amounts.
Interest Payment Date, when used with respect to any Security, means the Stated Maturity of an installment of interest on such Security.
Investment Company Act means the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules, regulations and interpretations promulgated thereunder, to the extent applicable, and any statute successor thereto.
Junior Subordinated Security or Junior Subordinated Securities means any Security or Securities designated pursuant to Section 3.01 as a Junior Subordinated Security.
Junior Subordinated Indebtedness means the principal of (and premium, if any) and unpaid interest on (a) indebtedness of the Company (including indebtedness of others guaranteed by the Company), whether outstanding on the date hereof or thereafter created, incurred, assumed or guaranteed, for money borrowed, which in the instrument creating or evidencing the same or pursuant to which the same is outstanding it is provided that such indebtedness ranks
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junior in right of payment to the Companys Senior Indebtedness and Senior Subordinated Indebtedness and equally and pari passu in right of payment to any other Junior Subordinated Indebtedness, (b) Junior Subordinated Securities, and (c) renewals, extensions, modifications and refinancings of any such indebtedness.
Market Exchange Rate means, unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, (i) for any conversion involving a currency unit on the one hand and Dollars or any Foreign Currency on the other, the exchange rate between the relevant currency unit and Dollars or such Foreign Currency calculated by the method specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of the relevant series, (ii) for any conversion of Dollars into any Foreign Currency, the noon buying rate for such Foreign Currency for cable transfers quoted in New York City as certified for customs purposes by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and (iii) for any conversion of one Foreign Currency into Dollars or another Foreign Currency, the spot rate at noon local time in the relevant market at which, in accordance with normal banking procedures, the Dollars or Foreign Currency into which conversion is being made could be purchased with the Foreign Currency from which conversion is being made from major banks located in either New York City, London or any other principal market for Dollars or such purchased Foreign Currency, in each case determined by the Exchange Rate Agent. Unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, in the event of the unavailability of any of the exchange rates provided for in the foregoing clauses (i), (ii) and (iii), the Exchange Rate Agent shall use, in its sole discretion and without liability on its part, such quotation of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as of the most recent available date, or quotations from one or more major banks in New York City, London or other principal market for such currency or currency unit in question, or such other quotations as the Exchange Rate Agent shall deem appropriate. Unless otherwise specified by the Exchange Rate Agent, if there is more than one market for dealing in any currency or currency unit by reason of foreign exchange regulations or otherwise, the market to be used in respect of such currency or currency unit shall be that upon which a nonresident issuer of securities designated in such currency or currency unit would purchase such currency or currency unit in order to make payments in respect of such securities as determined by the Exchange Rate Agent, in its sole discretion.
Maturity, when used with respect to any Security, means the date on which the principal of such Security or an installment of principal becomes due and payable as therein or herein provided, whether at the Stated Maturity or by declaration of acceleration, notice of redemption, notice of option to elect repayment, notice of exchange or conversion or otherwise.
Notice of Default has the meaning provided in Section 5.01.
Officers Certificate means a certificate signed by (a) the Chief Executive Officer, the President, the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Operating Officer, the Chief Compliance Officer, or any Vice President, and (b) any such officer designated in clause (a) of this definition or the Companys Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer or the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company, and delivered to the Trustee.
Opinion of Counsel means a written opinion of counsel, who may be counsel for the Company or who may be an employee of the Company or other counsel acceptable to the Trustee.
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Optional Reset Date has the meaning specified in Section 3.07(b).
Original Issue Discount Security means any Security that provides for an amount less than the principal amount thereof to be due and payable upon a declaration of acceleration of the Maturity thereof pursuant to Section 5.02.
Original Stated Maturity has the meaning specified in Section 3.08.
Outstanding, when used with respect to Securities or any series of Securities, means, as of the date of determination, all Securities or all Securities of such series, as the case may be, theretofore authenticated and delivered under this Indenture, except:
(i) Securities theretofore cancelled by the Trustee or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation;
(ii) Securities, or portions thereof, for whose payment or redemption or repayment at the option of the Holder money in the necessary amount has been theretofore deposited with the Trustee or any Paying Agent (other than the Company) in trust or set aside and segregated in trust by the Company (if the Company shall act as its own Paying Agent) for the Holders of such Securities, provided that, if such Securities are to be redeemed, notice of such redemption has been duly given pursuant to this Indenture or provision therefor satisfactory to the Trustee has been made;
(iii) Securities, except to the extent provided in Sections 14.02 and 14.03, with respect to which the Company has effected defeasance and/or covenant defeasance as provided in Article Fourteen; and
(iv) Securities that have been paid pursuant to Section 3.06 or in exchange for or in lieu of which other Securities have been authenticated and delivered pursuant to this Indenture, other than any such Securities in respect of which there shall have been presented to the Trustee proof satisfactory to it that such Securities are held by a protected purchaser in whose hands such Securities are valid obligations of the Company;
provided, however, that in determining whether the Holders of the requisite principal amount of the Outstanding Securities have given any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver hereunder or are present at a meeting of Holders for quorum purposes, and for the purpose of making the calculations required by TIA Section 313, (i) the principal amount of an Original Issue Discount Security that may be counted in making such determination or calculation and that shall be deemed to be Outstanding for such purpose shall be equal to the amount of principal thereof that would be (or shall have been declared to be) due and payable, at the time of such determination, upon a declaration of acceleration of the Maturity thereof pursuant to Section 5.02, (ii) the principal amount of any Security denominated in a Foreign Currency that may be counted in making such determination or calculation and that shall be deemed Outstanding for such purpose shall be equal to the Dollar equivalent, determined as of the date such Security is originally issued by the Company as set forth in an Exchange Rate Officers Certificate delivered to the Trustee, of the principal amount (or, in the case of an Original Issue Discount Security or Indexed Security, the Dollar equivalent as of such date of original issuance of the amount determined as provided in clause (i) above or (iii) below,
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respectively) of such Security, (iii) the principal amount of any Indexed Security that may be counted in making such determination or calculation and that shall be deemed outstanding for such purpose shall be equal to the principal face amount of such Indexed Security at original issuance, unless otherwise provided with respect to such Security pursuant to Section 3.01, and (iv) Securities owned by the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities or any Affiliate of the Company or of such other obligor shall be disregarded and deemed not to be Outstanding, except that, in determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in making such calculation or in relying upon any such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver or upon any such determination as to the presence of a quorum, only Securities which a Responsible Officer of the Trustee actually knows to be so owned shall be so disregarded. Securities so owned which have been pledged in good faith may be regarded as Outstanding if the pledgee establishes to the satisfaction of the Trustee the pledgees right so to act with respect to such Securities and that the pledgee is not the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities or any Affiliate of the Company or of such other obligor.
Paying Agent means any Person authorized by the Company to pay the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Securities on behalf of the Company.
Permitted Junior Securities, has the meaning specified in Section 16.02.
Person means any individual, corporation, partnership, joint venture, association, joint-stock company, limited liability company, trust, unincorporated organization or government or any agency or political subdivision thereof, or any other entity.
Place of Payment, when used with respect to the Securities of or within any series, means the place or places where the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on such Securities are payable as specified and as contemplated by Sections 3.01 and 10.02.
Predecessor Security of any particular Security means every previous Security evidencing all or a portion of the same debt as that evidenced by such particular Security; and, for the purposes of this definition, any Security authenticated and delivered under Section 3.06 in exchange for or in lieu of a mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Security shall be deemed to evidence the same debt as the mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Security.
Redemption Date, when used with respect to any Security to be redeemed, in whole or in part, means the date fixed for such redemption by or pursuant to this Indenture.
Redemption Price, when used with respect to any Security to be redeemed, means the price at which it is to be redeemed pursuant to this Indenture.
Registered Security means any Security that is registered in the Security Register.
Regular Record Date for the interest payable on any Interest Payment Date on the Registered Securities of or within any series means the date specified for that purpose as contemplated by Section 3.01, whether or not a Business Day.
Repayment Date means, when used with respect to any Security to be repaid at the option of the Holder, means the date fixed for such repayment by or pursuant to this Indenture.
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Repayment Price means, when used with respect to any Security to be repaid at the option of the Holder, means the price at which it is to be repaid by or pursuant to this Indenture.
Reset Notice has the meaning specified in Section 3.07(b).
Responsible Officer shall mean, when used with respect to the Trustee, any officer within the corporate trust department of the Trustee, including any vice president, assistant vice president, assistant secretary, assistant treasurer, trust officer or any other officer of the Trustee who customarily performs functions similar to those performed by the persons who at the time shall be such officers, respectively, or to whom any corporate trust matter is referred because of such persons knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject and who shall have direct responsibility for the administration of this Indenture.
Security or Securities has the meaning stated in the first recital of this Indenture and, more particularly, means any Security or Securities authenticated and delivered under this Indenture; provided, however, that, if at any time there is more than one Person acting as Trustee under this Indenture, Securities with respect to the Indenture as to which such Person is Trustee shall have the meaning stated in the first recital of this Indenture and shall more particularly mean Securities authenticated and delivered under this Indenture, exclusive, however, of Securities of any series as to which such Person is not Trustee.
Security Register and Security Registrar have the respective meanings specified in Section 3.05.
Senior Indebtedness means the principal of (and premium, if any) and unpaid interest on (a) indebtedness of the Company (including indebtedness of others guaranteed by the Company), whether outstanding on the date hereof or thereafter created, incurred, assumed or guaranteed, for money borrowed, unless in the instrument creating or evidencing the same or under which the same is outstanding it is provided that such indebtedness is not senior or prior in right of payment to Subordinated Indebtedness, (b) Senior Securities, and (c) renewals, extensions, modifications and refinancings of any such indebtedness.
Senior Security or Senior Securities means any Security or Securities designated pursuant to Section 3.01 as a Senior Security.
Senior Subordinated Indebtedness means the principal of (and premium, if any) and unpaid interest on (a) indebtedness of the Company (including indebtedness of others guaranteed by the Company), whether outstanding on the date hereof or thereafter created, incurred, assumed or guaranteed, for money borrowed, that in the instrument creating or evidencing the same or pursuant to which the same is outstanding it is provided that such indebtedness ranks junior in right of payment to the Companys Senior Indebtedness, equally and pari passu in right of payment with all other Senior Subordinated Indebtedness and senior in right of payment to any Junior Subordinated Indebtedness, (b) Senior Subordinated Securities, and (c) renewals, extensions, modifications and refinancings of any such indebtedness.
Senior Subordinated Security or Senior Subordinated Securities means any Security or Securities designated pursuant to Section 3.01 as a Senior Subordinated Security.
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Special Record Date for the payment of any Defaulted Interest on the Registered Securities of or within any series means a date fixed by the Trustee pursuant to Section 3.07.
Specified Amount has the meaning specified in Section 3.12(h).
Stated Maturity, when used with respect to any Security or any installment of principal thereof or interest thereon, means the date specified in such Security as the fixed date on which the principal of such Security or such installment of principal or interest is due and payable, as such date may be extended pursuant to the provisions of Section 3.08.
Subordinated Indebtedness means any Senior Subordinated Indebtedness or Junior Subordinated Indebtedness.
Subordinated Security or Subordinated Securities means any Senior Subordinated Security or Junior Subordinated Security.
Subsequent Interest Period has the meaning specified in Section 3.07(b).
Subsidiary means, with respect to any Person, any corporation, partnership, joint venture, limited liability company or other business entity of which a majority of the outstanding shares or other interests having voting power is at the time directly or indirectly owned or controlled by such Person or one or more of the Subsidiaries of such Person. Unless the context otherwise requires, all references to Subsidiary or Subsidiaries under this Indenture shall refer to Subsidiaries of the Company. In addition, for purposes of this definition, Subsidiary shall exclude any investments held by the Company in the ordinary course of business which are not, under GAAP, consolidated on the financial statements of the Company and its Subsidiaries.
Trust Indenture Act or TIA means the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, as in force at the date as of which this Indenture was executed, except as provided in Section 9.05.
Trustee means the Person named as the Trustee in the first paragraph of this Indenture until a successor Trustee shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter Trustee shall mean or include each Person who is then a Trustee hereunder; provided, however, that if at any time there is more than one such Person, Trustee as used with respect to the Securities of any series shall mean only the Trustee with respect to Securities of that series.
United States means, unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, the United States of America (including the states and the District of Columbia), its territories, its possessions and other areas subject to its jurisdiction.
United States person means, unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, any individual who is a citizen or resident of the United States, a corporation, partnership or other entity created or organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia (other than a partnership that is not treated as a United States Person under any applicable Treasury regulations), any estate the income of which is subject to United States federal income taxation regardless of its source, or any trust if a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of
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the trust and one or more United States persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, to the extent provided in the Treasury regulations, certain trusts in existence on August 20, 1996, and treated as United States persons prior to such date that elect to continue to be treated as United States Persons, will also be United States persons.
Valuation Date has the meaning specified in Section 3.12(c).
Yield to Maturity means the yield to maturity, computed at the time of issuance of a Security (or, if applicable, at the most recent redetermination of interest on such Security) and as set forth in such Security in accordance with generally accepted United States bond yield computation principles.
Section 1.02. Compliance Certificates and Opinions.
Upon any application or request by the Company to the Trustee to take any action under any provision of this Indenture, the Company shall furnish to the Trustee an Officers Certificate stating that all conditions precedent, if any, provided for in this Indenture relating to the proposed action have been complied with and an Opinion of Counsel stating that in the opinion of such counsel all such conditions precedent, if any, have been complied with, except that in the case of any such application or request as to which the furnishing of such documents is specifically required by any provision of this Indenture relating to such particular application or request, no additional certificate or opinion need be furnished.
Every certificate or opinion with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Indenture (other than pursuant to Section 10.05) shall include:
(a) a statement that each individual signing such certificate or opinion has read such condition or covenant and the definitions herein relating thereto;
(b) a brief statement as to the nature and scope of the examination or investigation upon which the statements or opinions contained in such certificate or opinion are based;
(c) a statement that such individual signing the certificate or opinion has made such examination or investigation as is necessary to enable such individual to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such condition or covenant has been complied with; and
(d) a statement as to whether, in the opinion of such individual, such condition or covenant has been complied with.
Section 1.03. Form of Documents Delivered to Trustee.
In any case where several matters are required to be certified by, or covered by an opinion of, any specified Person, it is not necessary that all such matters be certified by, or covered by the opinion of, only one such Person, or that they be so certified or covered by only one document, but one such Person may certify or give an opinion as to some matters and one or more other such Persons as to other matters, and any such Person may certify or give an opinion as to such matters in one or several documents.
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Any certificate or opinion of an officer of the Company may be based, insofar as it relates to legal matters, upon an Opinion of Counsel, or a certificate or representations by counsel, unless such officer knows, or in the exercise of reasonable care should know, that the opinion, certificate or representations with respect to the matters upon which his certificate or opinion is based are erroneous. Any such Opinion of Counsel or certificate or representations may be based, insofar as it relates to factual matters, upon a certificate or opinion of, or representations by, an officer or officers of the Company stating that the information as to such factual matters is in the possession of the Company, unless such counsel knows, or in the exercise of reasonable care should know, that the certificate or opinion or representations as to such matters are erroneous.
Where any Person is required to make, give or execute two or more applications, requests, consents, certificates, statements, opinions or other instruments under this Indenture, they may, but need not, be consolidated and form one instrument.
Section 1.04. Acts of Holders.
(a) Any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action provided by this Indenture to be given or taken by Holders of the Outstanding Securities of all series or one or more series, as the case may be, may be embodied in and evidenced by one or more instruments of substantially similar tenor signed by such Holders in person or by agents duly appointed in writing. Except as herein otherwise expressly provided, such action shall become effective when such instrument or instruments or record or both are delivered to the Trustee and, where it is hereby expressly required, to the Company. Such instrument or instruments and any such record (and the action embodied therein and evidenced thereby) are herein sometimes referred to as the Act of the Holders signing such instrument or instruments or so voting at any such meeting. Proof of execution of any such instrument or of a writing appointing any such agent, or of the holding by any Person of a Security, shall be sufficient for any purpose of this Indenture and conclusive in favor of the Trustee and the Company and any agent of the Trustee or the Company, if made in the manner provided in this Section. The record of any meeting of Holders of Securities shall be proved in the manner provided in Section 15.06.
(b) The fact and date of the execution by any Person of any such instrument or writing may be proved by the affidavit of a witness of such execution or by a certificate of a notary public or other officer authorized by law to take acknowledgments of deeds, certifying that the individual signing such instrument or writing acknowledged to him or her the execution thereof. Where such execution is by a signer acting in a capacity other than his individual capacity, such certificate or affidavit shall also constitute sufficient proof of his authority. The fact and date of the execution of any such instrument or writing, or the authority of the Person executing the same, may also be proved in any other manner that the Trustee deems reasonably sufficient.
(c) The ownership of Registered Securities shall be proved by the Security Register.
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(d) If the Company shall solicit from the Holders of Registered Securities any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other Act, the Company may, at its option, in or pursuant to a Board Resolution, fix in advance a record date for the determination of Holders entitled to give such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other Act, but the Company shall have no obligation to do so. Notwithstanding TIA Section 316(c), such record date shall be the record date specified in or pursuant to such Board Resolution, which shall be a date not earlier than the date 30 days prior to the first solicitation of Holders generally in connection therewith and not later than the date such solicitation is completed. If such a record date is fixed, such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other Act may be given before or after such record date, but only the Holders of record at the close of business on such record date shall be deemed to be Holders for the purposes of determining whether Holders of the requisite proportion of Outstanding Securities have authorized or agreed or consented to such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other Act, and for that purpose the Outstanding Securities shall be computed as of such record date; provided that no such authorization, agreement or consent by the Holders on such record date shall be deemed effective unless it shall become effective pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture not later than eleven months after the record date.
(e) Any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other Act of the Holder of any Security shall bind every future Holder of the same Security and the Holder of every Security issued upon the registration of transfer thereof or in exchange therefor or in lieu thereof in respect of anything done, omitted or suffered to be done by the Trustee, any Security Registrar, any Paying Agent, any Authenticating Agent or the Company in reliance thereon, whether or not notation of such action is made upon such Security.
Section 1.05. Notices, Etc., to Trustee and Company.
Any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or Act of Holders or other document provided or permitted by this Indenture to be made upon, given or furnished to, or filed with,
(i) the Trustee by any Holder or by the Company shall be sufficient for every purpose hereunder if in writing and sent, first-class postage prepaid, or sent via overnight courier guaranteeing next day delivery, or same day messenger service or by electronic mail (in PDF) to the Trustee at its Corporate Trust Office, Attention: Administrator for Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., or
(ii) the Company by the Trustee or by any Holder shall be sufficient for every purpose hereunder (unless otherwise herein expressly provided) if in writing and sent, first-class postage prepaid, or sent via overnight courier guaranteeing next day delivery, or same day messenger service or by electronic mail (in PDF) to the Company, to Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., 200 West Street, New York, New York 10282, Attention: Chief Financial Officer, with a copy to Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., 200 West Street, New York, New York 10282, Attention: Legal Department.
The Company or the Trustee, by notice to the other, may designate additional or different addresses for subsequent notices or communications.
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All notices and communications (other than those sent to Holders) shall be deemed to have been duly given: (i) at the time delivered by hand, if personally delivered; (ii) when return receipt is delivered, if delivered by electronic mail; (iii) five Business Days after being deposited in the mail, postage prepaid; and (iv) the next Business Day after timely delivery to the courier, if sent by overnight air courier guaranteeing next day delivery. Notice to the Trustee shall be effective only if such receipt is acknowledged.
Whenever under this Indenture the Trustee or the Company is required to provide any notice by mail, in all cases each of the Trustee and the Company may alternatively provide notice by overnight courier, by facsimile, with confirmation of transmission, or by electronic mail, with return receipt requested.
Section 1.06. Notice to Holders; Waiver.
Where this Indenture provides for notice of any event to Holders of Registered Securities by the Company or the Trustee, such notice shall be sufficiently given (unless otherwise herein expressly provided) if in writing and mailed, first-class postage prepaid, by overnight courier guaranteeing next day delivery, by facsimile or by electronic mail to each such Holder affected by such event, at his address, facsimile number or email address as it appears in the Security Register, not later than the latest date, and not earlier than the earliest date, prescribed for the giving of such notice. Any notice or communication shall also be so delivered to any Person described in TIA Section 313(c), to the extent required by the TIA. In any case where notice to Holders of Registered Securities is given as provided herein, neither the failure to send such notice, nor any defect in any notice so sent, to any particular Holder shall affect the sufficiency of such notice with respect to other Holders of Registered Securities. Any notice mailed or sent to a Holder in the manner herein prescribed shall be conclusively deemed to have been received by such Holder, whether or not such Holder actually receives such notice. In the case of a global Security, notices shall be given in accordance with the applicable procedures of the Depositary. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Indenture or any Note, where this Indenture or any Note provides for notice of any event (including any notice of redemption or repurchase) to a Holder of a global Security (whether by mail or otherwise), such notice shall be sufficiently given if given to the Depositary (or its designee) pursuant to the standing instructions from the Depositary or its designee, including by electronic mail in accordance with Applicable Procedures.
If by reason of the suspension of or irregularities in regular mail service or by reason of any other cause it shall be impracticable to give such notice by mail, then such notification to Holders of Registered Securities as shall be made with the approval of the Trustee shall constitute a sufficient notification to such Holders for every purpose hereunder.
Any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver required or permitted under this Indenture shall be in the English language, except that any published notice may be in an official language of the country of publication.
Where this Indenture provides for notice in any manner, such notice may be waived in writing by the Person entitled to receive such notice, either before or after the event, and such waiver shall be the equivalent of such notice. Waivers of notice by Holders shall be filed with the Trustee, but such filing shall not be a condition precedent to the validity of any action taken in reliance upon such waiver.
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Section 1.07. Conflict with Trust Indenture Act.
If any provision of this Indenture limits, qualifies or conflicts with a provision of the Trust Indenture Act that is required under the Trust Indenture Act to be a part of and govern this Indenture, the provision of the Trust Indenture Act shall control. If any provision of this Indenture modifies or excludes any provision of the Trust Indenture Act that may be so modified or excluded, the provision of the Trust Indenture Act shall be deemed to apply to this Indenture as so modified or only to the extent not so excluded, as the case may be.
Section 1.08. Effect of Headings and Table of Contents.
The Article and Section headings herein, the TIA cross-reference table, and the Table of Contents are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction hereof.
Section 1.09. Successors and Assigns.
All covenants and agreements in this Indenture by the Company shall bind its successors and assigns, whether so expressed or not.
Section 1.10. Separability Clause.
In case any provision in this Indenture or in any Security shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.
Section 1.11. Benefits of Indenture.
Nothing in this Indenture or in the Securities, express or implied, shall give to any Person, other than the parties hereto, any Security Registrar, any Depositary Custodian, any Paying Agent, any Authenticating Agent and their successors hereunder and the Holders any benefit or any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under this Indenture.
Section 1.12. Governing Law.
This Indenture and the Securities shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of the State of New York without regard to principles of conflicts of laws that would cause the application of laws of another jurisdiction. This Indenture is subject to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act that are required to be part of this Indenture and shall, to the extent applicable, be governed by such provisions.
Section 1.13. Legal Holidays.
In any case where any Interest Payment Date, Redemption Date, Repayment Date, sinking fund payment date, Stated Maturity or Maturity of any Security shall not be a Business Day at any Place of Payment, then (notwithstanding any other provision of this Indenture or any
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Security other than a provision in the Securities of any series which specifically states that such provision shall apply in lieu of this Section), payment of principal (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, need not be made at such Place of Payment on such date, but may be made on the next succeeding Business Day at such Place of Payment with the same force and effect as if made on the Interest Payment Date, Redemption Date, Repayment Date or sinking fund payment date, or at the Stated Maturity or Maturity; provided that no interest shall accrue on the amount so payable for the period from and after such Interest Payment Date, Redemption Date, Repayment Date, sinking fund payment date, Stated Maturity or Maturity, as the case may be.
Section 1.14. Submission to Jurisdiction.
The Company hereby irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of any New York state or federal court sitting in The City of New York, New York County in any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to the Indenture and the Securities of any series, and the Company hereby irrevocably agrees that all claims in respect of such action or proceeding may be heard and determined in such New York state or federal court. The Company hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent it may effectively do so, the defense of an inconvenient forum to the maintenance of such action or proceeding.
Section 1.15. Waiver of Jury Trial.
EACH OF THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ANY AND ALL RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS INDENTURE, THE SECURITIES OR THE TRANSACTION CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.
Section 1.16. U.S.A. Patriot Act.
The parties hereto acknowledge that in accordance with Section 326 of the U.S.A. Patriot Act, the Trustee, like all financial institutions and in order to help fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering, is required to obtain, verify, and record information that identifies each person or legal entity that establishes a relationship or opens an account with the Trustee. The parties to this Indenture agree that they will provide the Trustee with such information as it may request in order for the Trustee to satisfy the requirements of the U.S.A. Patriot Act.
ARTICLE TWO
SECURITIES FORMS
Section 2.01. Forms of Securities.
The Registered Securities of each series, the temporary global Securities of each series, if any, and the permanent global Securities of each series, if any, to be endorsed thereon shall be in substantially the forms as shall be established in one or more indentures supplemental hereto or approved from time to time by or pursuant to a Board Resolution in accordance with Section 3.01, shall have such appropriate insertions, omissions, substitutions and other variations as are required or permitted by this Indenture or any indenture supplemental hereto, and may have such letters, numbers or other marks of identification or designation and such legends or endorsements
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placed thereon as the Company may deem appropriate and as are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Indenture, or as may be required to comply with any law or with any rule or regulation made pursuant thereto or with any rule or regulation of any stock exchange on which the Securities may be listed, or to conform to usage.
The definitive Securities shall be printed, lithographed or engraved or produced by any combination of these methods on a steel engraved border or steel engraved borders or may be produced in any other manner, all as determined by the officers executing such Securities, as evidenced by their execution of such Securities.
Section 2.02. Form of Trustees Certificate of Authentication.
Subject to Section 6.12, the Trustees certificate of authentication shall be in substantially the following form:
This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Trustee | ||
By: |
|
|
Authorized Signatory |
Section 2.03. Securities Issuable in Global Form.
If Securities of or within a series are issuable in global form, as specified as contemplated by Section 3.01, then, notwithstanding clause (viii) of Section 3.01 and the provisions of Section 3.02, any such Security shall represent such of the Outstanding Securities of such series as shall be specified therein and may provide that it shall represent the aggregate amount of Outstanding Securities of such series from time to time endorsed thereon and that the aggregate amount of Outstanding Securities of such series represented thereby may from time to time be increased or decreased to reflect exchanges. Any endorsement of a Security in global form to reflect the amount, or any increase or decrease in the amount, of Outstanding Securities represented thereby shall be made by the Trustee or the Security Registrar in such manner and upon instructions given by such Person or Persons as shall be specified therein or in the Company Order to be delivered to the Trustee pursuant to Section 3.03 or 3.04. Subject to the provisions of Section 3.03 and, if applicable, Section 3.04, the Trustee or the Security Registrar shall deliver and redeliver any Security in permanent global form in the manner and upon instructions given by the Person or Persons specified therein or in the applicable Company Order.
The provisions of the second to last sentence of Section 3.03 shall apply to any Security represented by a Security in global form if such Security was never issued and sold by the Company and the Company delivers to the Trustee or the Security Registrar the Security in global form together with written instructions with regard to the reduction in the principal amount of Securities represented thereby, together with the written statement contemplated by the second to last sentence of Section 3.03.
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Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 3.07, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01, payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on any Security in permanent global form shall be made to the Person or Persons specified therein. Neither the Trustee nor any Agent shall have responsibility for any actions taken or not taken by the Depositary.
The Company, the Trustee, any authenticating agent, any Paying Agent, and any Securities Registrar may deem the Person in whose name a Security shall be registered upon the Security Register to be, and may treat it as, the absolute owner of such Security (whether or not such Security shall be overdue and notwithstanding any notation of ownership or other writing thereon made by any Person other than the Company or any Security Registrar) for the purpose of receiving payment of or on account of the principal of and (subject to Section 3.07) accrued and unpaid interest on such Security, for conversion of such Security and for all other purposes; and neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any Paying Agent nor any Conversion Agent nor any Security Registrar shall be affected by any notice to the contrary. All such payments so made to any Holder for the time being, or upon its order, shall be valid, and, to the extent of the sum or sums so paid, effectual to satisfy and discharge the liability for monies payable upon any such Security.
Unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01 for the Securities evidenced thereby, every global Security authenticated and delivered hereunder shall bear a legend in substantially the following form:
THIS SECURITY IS A GLOBAL SECURITY WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE INDENTURE HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AND IS REGISTERED IN THE NAME OF A DEPOSITARY OR A NOMINEE THEREOF. THIS SECURITY MAY NOT BE EXCHANGED IN WHOLE OR IN PART FOR A SECURITY REGISTERED, AND NO TRANSFER OF THIS SECURITY IN WHOLE OR IN PART MAY BE REGISTERED, IN THE NAME OF ANY PERSON OTHER THAN SUCH DEPOSITARY OR A NOMINEE THEREOF, EXCEPT IN THE LIMITED CIRCUMSTANCES DESCRIBED IN THE INDENTURE.
Section 2.04. Certificated Securities.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, Securities in physical, certificated form will be issued and delivered to each person that the Depositary identifies as a beneficial owner of the related Securities only if:
(a) the Depositary notifies the Company at any time that it is unwilling or unable to continue as depositary for the Securities in global form and a successor depositary is not appointed within 90 days;
(b) the Depositary ceases to be registered as a clearing agency under the Exchange Act and a successor depositary is not appointed within 90 days; or
(c) an Event of Default with respect to the Securities has occurred and is continuing and such beneficial owner requests that its Securities be issued in physical, certificated form.
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ARTICLE THREE
THE SECURITIES
Section 3.01. Amount Unlimited; Issuable in Series.
The aggregate principal amount of Securities which may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture is unlimited.
The Securities may be issued in one or more series, each of which may consist of one or more tranches, and shall be designated as Senior Securities, Senior Subordinated Securities or Junior Subordinated Securities. Senior Securities are unsubordinated, shall rank equally and pari passu with all of the Companys Senior Indebtedness and senior to all Subordinated Securities. Senior Subordinated Securities shall rank junior to the Companys Senior Indebtedness, equally and pari passu with all other Senior Subordinated Indebtedness and senior to any Junior Subordinated Indebtedness. Junior Subordinated Securities shall rank junior to the Companys Senior Indebtedness and any Senior Subordinated Indebtedness and equally and pari passu with all other Junior Subordinated Indebtedness. There shall be (i) established in one or more Board Resolutions or pursuant to authority granted by one or more Board Resolutions and, subject to Section 3.03, set forth, or determined in the manner provided, in an Officers Certificate, or (ii) established in one or more indentures supplemental hereto, prior to the issuance of Securities of any series, any or all of the following, as applicable (each of which (except for the matters set forth in clauses (i), (ii) and (xv) below), if so provided, may be determined from time to time by the Company with respect to unissued Securities of the series when issued from time to time, as provided in Section 3.03):
(i) the title of the Securities of the series including CUSIP numbers (which shall distinguish the Securities of such series from all other series of Securities);
(ii) any limit upon the aggregate principal amount of the Securities of the series that may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture (except for Securities authenticated and delivered upon registration of transfer of, or in exchange for, or in lieu of, other Securities of the series pursuant to Section 3.04, 3.05, 3.06, 9.06, 11.07 or 13.05, and except for any Securities which, pursuant to Section 3.03, are deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered hereunder);
(iii) the date or dates, or the method by which such date or dates will be determined or extended, on which the principal of the Securities of the series shall be payable;
(iv) the rate or rates at which the Securities of the series shall bear interest, if any, or the method by which such rate or rates shall be determined, the date or dates from which such interest shall accrue or the method by which such date or dates shall be determined, the Interest Payment Dates on which such interest will be payable and the Regular Record Date, if any, for the interest payable on any Registered Security on any Interest Payment Date, or the method by which such date shall be determined, and the basis upon which such interest shall be calculated if other than that of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months;
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(v) the place or places, if any, other than or in addition to the Corporate Trust Office, where the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on Securities of the series shall be payable, any Registered Securities of the series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, Securities of the series may be surrendered for exchange, where Securities of that series that are convertible or exchangeable may be surrendered for conversion or exchange, as applicable, and where notices or demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of the series and this Indenture may be served;
(vi) the period or periods within which, or the date or dates on which, the price or prices at which, the Currency or Currencies in which, and other terms and conditions upon which Securities of the series may be redeemed, in whole or in part, at the option of the Company, if the Company is to have the option;
(vii) the obligation, if any, of the Company to redeem, repay or purchase Securities of the series pursuant to any sinking fund or analogous provision or at the option of a Holder thereof, and the period or periods within which or the date or dates on which, the price or prices at which, the Currency or Currencies in which, and other terms and conditions upon which Securities of the series shall be redeemed, repaid or purchased, in whole or in part, pursuant to such obligation;
(viii) if other than denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof, the denomination or denominations in which any Registered Securities of the series shall be issuable;
(ix) if other than the Trustee, the identity of each Security Registrar, Depositary Custodian and/or Paying Agent;
(x) if other than the principal amount thereof, the portion of the principal amount of Securities of the series that shall be payable upon declaration of acceleration of the Maturity thereof pursuant to Section 5.02, upon redemption of the Securities of the series which are redeemable before their Stated Maturity, upon surrender for repayment at the option of the Holder, or which the Trustee shall be entitled to claim pursuant to Section 5.04 or the method by which such portion shall be determined;
(xi) if other than Dollars, the Currency or Currencies in which payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on the Securities of the series shall be made or in which the Securities of the series shall be denominated and the particular provisions applicable thereto in accordance with, in addition to or in lieu of any of the provisions of Section 3.12;
(xii) whether the amount of payments of principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on the Securities of the series may be determined with reference to an index, formula or other method (which index, formula or method may be based, without limitation, on one or more Currencies, commodities, equity indices or other indices), and the manner in which such amounts shall be determined;
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(xiii) whether the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on the Securities of the series are to be payable, at the election of the Company or a Holder thereof, in one or more Currencies other than that in which such Securities are denominated or stated to be payable, the period or periods within which (including the Election Date), and the terms and conditions upon which, such election may be made, and the time and manner of determining the exchange rate between the Currency or Currencies in which such Securities are denominated or stated to be payable and the Currency or Currencies in which such Securities are to be paid, in each case in accordance with, in addition to or in lieu of any of the provisions of Section 3.12;
(xiv) provisions, if any, granting special rights to the Holders of Securities of the series, including, without limitation, with respect to any collateral securing such Securities;
(xv) any deletions from, modifications of or additions to the Events of Default or covenants (including any deletions from, modifications of or additions to any of the provisions of Section 10.06) of the Company with respect to Securities of the series, whether or not such Events of Default or covenants are consistent with the Events of Default or covenants set forth herein;
(xvi) whether any Securities of the series are to be issuable initially in temporary global form and whether any Securities of the series are to be issuable in permanent global form and, if so, whether beneficial owners of interests in any such permanent global Security may exchange such interests for Securities of such series in certificated form and of like tenor of any authorized form and denomination and the circumstances under which any such exchanges may occur, if other than in the manner provided in Section 3.05, and the circumstances under which and the place or places where such exchanges may be made and if Securities of the series are to be issuable as a global Security, the identity of the depositary for such series;
(xvii) the date as of which any temporary global Security representing Outstanding Securities of the series shall be dated if other than the date of original issuance of the first Security of the series to be issued;
(xviii) the Person to whom any interest on any Registered Security of the series shall be payable, if other than the Person in whose name such Security (or one or more Predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the Regular Record Date for such interest, and the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a temporary global Security on an Interest Payment Date will be paid if other than in the manner provided in Section 3.04; and the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a permanent global Security on an Interest Payment Date will be paid if other than in the manner provided in Section 3.07;
(xix) the applicability, if any, of Sections 14.02 and/or 14.03 to the Securities of the series and any provisions in modification of, in addition to or in lieu of any of the provisions of Article Fourteen;
(xx) if the Securities of such series are to be issuable in definitive form (whether upon original issue or upon exchange of a temporary Security of such series) only upon receipt of certain certificates or other documents or satisfaction of other conditions, then the form and/or terms of such certificates, documents or conditions;
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(xxi) whether, under what circumstances and the Currency in which, the Company will pay Additional Amounts as contemplated by Section 10.04 on the Securities of the series to any Holder who is not a United States Person (including any modification to the definition of such term) in respect of any tax, assessment or governmental charge and, if so, whether the Company will have the option to redeem such Securities rather than pay such Additional Amounts (and the terms of any such option);
(xxii) the designation of the initial Exchange Rate Agent, if any;
(xxiii) if the Securities of the series are to be issued upon the exercise of warrants, the time, manner and place for such Securities to be authenticated and delivered;
(xxiv) if the Securities of the series are to be convertible into or exchangeable for any securities of any Person (including the Company), the terms and conditions upon which such Securities will be so convertible or exchangeable;
(xxv) if the Securities of the series are to be listed on a securities exchange, the name of such exchange may be indicated; and
(xxvi) any other terms of the series (which terms shall not be inconsistent with the provisions of this Indenture, except as permitted by Section 9.01(iv), or the requirements of the Trust Indenture Act), including, but not limited to, secured Securities and guarantees of Securities.
All Securities of any one series shall be substantially identical except as to denomination and except as may otherwise be provided in or pursuant to the Board Resolution referred to above (subject to Section 3.03) and set forth in the Officers Certificate referred to above or in any such indenture supplemental hereto. No Board Resolution or Officers Certificate may affect the Trustees own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise with respect to any series of Securities except as it may agree in writing in its sole discretion.
All Securities of any one series need not be issued at the same time and, unless otherwise provided, a series may be reopened, without the consent of the Holders, for issuances of additional Securities of such series.
If any of the terms of the Securities of any series are established by action taken pursuant to one or more Board Resolutions, a copy of an appropriate record of such action(s) shall be certified by the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company and delivered to the Trustee at or prior to the delivery of the Officers Certificate setting forth the terms of the Securities of such series.
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The Company shall be responsible for making calculations called for under the Securities and this Indenture, including but not limited to determination of interest, additional interest, Additional Amounts, Redemption Price, Repayment Price, applicable premium, make whole Amount, premium, if any, and any other amounts payable on the Securities. The Company will make the calculations in good faith and, absent manifest error, its calculations will be final and binding on the Holders. The Company will provide a schedule of its calculations to the Trustee when requested by the Trustee, and the Trustee is entitled to rely conclusively on the accuracy of the Companys calculations without independent verification. The Trustee shall forward the Companys calculations to any Holder of the Securities upon the written request of such Holder.
Section 3.02. Denominations.
The Securities of each series shall be issuable in such denominations as shall be specified as contemplated by Section 3.01. With respect to Securities of any series denominated in Dollars, in the absence of any such provisions with respect to the Securities of any series, the Registered Securities of such series, other than Registered Securities issued in global form (which may be of any denomination), shall be issuable in denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof.
Section 3.03. Execution, Authentication, Delivery and Dating.
The Securities shall be executed on behalf of the Company by its Chief Executive Officer, its President, its Chief Operating Officer, its Chief Financial Officer or any of its Vice Presidents. The signature of any of these officers on the Securities may be manual or by facsimile, .pdf attachment or other electronically transmitted signature (with an original manual signature to be sent to the Trustee via overnight mail immediately thereafter) of the present or any future such authorized officer and may be imprinted or otherwise reproduced on the Securities.
Securities bearing the signatures of individuals who were at any time the proper officers of the Company shall bind the Company, notwithstanding that such individuals or any of them have ceased to hold such offices prior to the authentication and delivery of such Securities or did not hold such offices at the date of such Securities.
At any time and from time to time after the execution and delivery of this Indenture, the Company may deliver Securities of any series, executed by the Company, to the Trustee for authentication, together with a Company Order for the authentication and delivery of such Securities, and the Trustee in accordance with the Company Order shall authenticate and deliver such Securities. If all the Securities of any series are not to be issued at one time and if the Board Resolution or supplemental indenture establishing such series shall so permit, such Company Order may set forth procedures acceptable to the Trustee for the issuance of such Securities and determining the terms of particular Securities of such series, such as interest rate, maturity date, date of issuance and date from which interest shall accrue. In authenticating such Securities, and accepting the additional responsibilities under this Indenture in relation to such Securities, the Trustee shall be entitled to receive, and (subject to TIA Section 315(a) through 315(d)) shall be fully protected in relying upon,
(a) an Opinion of Counsel stating,
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(i) that the form or forms of such Securities have been established in conformity with the provisions of this Indenture;
(ii) that the terms of such Securities have been established in conformity with the provisions of this Indenture; and
(iii) that such Securities, when completed by appropriate insertions and executed and delivered by the Company to the Trustee for authentication in accordance with this Indenture, authenticated and delivered by the Trustee in accordance with this Indenture and issued by the Company in the manner and subject to any conditions specified in such Opinion of Counsel, will constitute legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable in accordance with their terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization and other similar laws of general applicability relating to or affecting the enforcement of creditors rights, to general equitable principles and to such other qualifications as such counsel shall conclude do not materially affect the rights of Holders of such Securities; and
(b) an Officers Certificate stating, to the best of the knowledge of the signers of such certificate, that no Event of Default with respect to any of the Securities shall have occurred and be continuing.
If such form or terms have been so established, the Trustee shall not be required to authenticate such Securities if the issue of such Securities pursuant to this Indenture will affect the Trustees own rights, duties, obligations or immunities under the Securities and this Indenture or otherwise in a manner that is not reasonably acceptable to the Trustee. Notwithstanding the generality of the foregoing, the Trustee will not be required to authenticate Securities denominated in a Foreign Currency if the Trustee reasonably believes that it would be unable to perform its duties with respect to such Securities.
Each Registered Security shall be dated the date of its authentication.
No Security shall be entitled to any benefit under this Indenture or be valid or obligatory for any purpose until authenticated substantially in the form set out in Section 2.02 by the Trustee or an Authenticating Agent by manual signature of an authorized signatory, and such certificate upon any Security shall be conclusive evidence, and the only evidence, that such Security has been duly authenticated and delivered hereunder and is entitled to the benefits of this Indenture. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any Security shall have been authenticated and delivered hereunder but never issued and sold by the Company, and the Company shall deliver such Security to the Trustee for cancellation as provided in Section 3.10 together with a written statement (which need not comply with Section 1.02 and need not be accompanied by an Opinion of Counsel) stating that such Security has never been issued and sold by the Company, for all purposes of this Indenture such Security shall be deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered hereunder and shall never be entitled to the benefits of this Indenture.
The Company initially appoints The Depository Trust Company (DTC) to act as Depositary with respect to the global Securities and the Trustee as Depositary Custodian. The Company has entered or will enter into a letter of representations with the Depositary in the form provided by the Depositary and the Trustee and each Agent are hereby authorized to act in accordance with such letter and Applicable Procedures.
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Section 3.04. Temporary Securities.
Pending the preparation of definitive Securities of any series, the Company may execute, and upon Company Order the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver, temporary Securities that are printed, lithographed, typewritten, mimeographed or otherwise produced, in any authorized denomination, substantially of the tenor of the definitive Securities in lieu of which they are issued, in registered form, and with such appropriate insertions, omissions, substitutions and other variations as the officers executing such Securities may determine, as conclusively evidenced by their execution of such Securities. In the case of Securities of any series, such temporary Securities may be in global form.
Except in the case of temporary Securities in global form (which shall be exchanged as provided in or pursuant to a Board Resolution), if temporary Securities of any series are issued, the Company will cause definitive Securities of that series to be prepared without unreasonable delay. After the preparation of definitive Securities of such series, the temporary Securities of such series shall be exchangeable for definitive Securities of such series upon surrender of the temporary Securities of such series at the office or agency of the Company in a Place of Payment for that series, without charge to the Holder. Upon surrender for cancellation of any one or more temporary Securities of any series, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver in exchange therefor a like principal amount and like tenor of definitive Securities of the same series of authorized denominations. Until so exchanged, the temporary Securities of any series shall in all respects be entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture as definitive Securities of such series.
Section 3.05. Registration, Registration of Transfer and Exchange.
The Company shall cause to be kept at the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee or in any office or agency of the Company in a Place of Payment a register for each series of Securities (the registers maintained in such office or in any such office or agency of the Company in a Place of Payment being herein sometimes referred to collectively as the Security Register) in which, subject to such reasonable regulations as it may prescribe, the Company shall provide for the registration of Registered Securities and of transfers of Registered Securities. The Security Register shall be in written form or any other form capable of being converted into written form within a reasonable time. The Trustee, at its Corporate Trust Office, is hereby initially appointed Security Registrar for the purpose of registering Registered Securities and transfers of Registered Securities on such Security Register as herein provided, and for facilitating exchanges of temporary global Securities for permanent global Securities or definitive Securities, or both, or of permanent global Securities for definitive Securities, or both, as herein provided. In the event that the Trustee shall cease to be Security Registrar, it shall have the right to examine the Security Register at all reasonable times.
Upon surrender for registration of transfer of any Registered Security of any series to the Security Registrar or any co-Security Registrar, and satisfaction of the requirements for such transfer set forth in this Section 3.05, the Company shall execute, and the Trustee shall, upon
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receipt of a Company Order, authenticate and deliver, in the name of the designated transferee or transferees, one or more new Registered Securities of the same series, of any authorized denominations and of a like aggregate principal amount, bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding and containing identical terms and provisions. Neither the Trustee nor any Agent shall have any responsibility or liability for any actions taken or not taken by the Depositary.
At the option of the Holder, Registered Securities of any series may be exchanged for other Registered Securities of the same series, of any authorized denomination or denominations and of a like aggregate principal amount, containing identical terms and provisions, upon surrender of the Registered Securities to be exchanged at any such office or agency. Whenever any Registered Securities are so surrendered for exchange, the Company shall execute, and the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver, the Registered Securities that the Holder making the exchange is entitled to receive.
Whenever any Securities are so surrendered for exchange, the Company shall execute, and the Trustee, upon receipt of a Company Order, shall authenticate and deliver, the Securities that the Holder making the exchange is entitled to receive.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01 and 2.04, any permanent global Security shall be exchangeable only as provided in this paragraph. If any beneficial owner of an interest in a permanent global Security is entitled to exchange such interest for Securities of such series and of like tenor and principal amount of another authorized form and denomination, as specified as contemplated by Section 3.01 and provided that any applicable notice provided in the permanent global Security shall have been given, then without unnecessary delay but in any event not later than the earliest date on which such interest may be so exchanged, the Company shall deliver to the Trustee definitive Securities in aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of such beneficial owners interest in such permanent global Security, executed by the Company. On or after the earliest date on which such interests may be so exchanged, such permanent global Security shall be surrendered by the Depositary or such other depositary as shall be specified in the Company Order with respect thereto to the Trustee, as the Companys agent for such purpose, or to the Security Registrar, to be exchanged, in whole or from time to time in part, for definitive Securities of the same series without charge and the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver, in exchange for each portion of such permanent global Security, an equal aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series of authorized denominations and of like tenor as the portion of such permanent global Security to be exchanged; provided, however, that no such exchanges may occur during a period beginning at the opening of business 15 days before the mailing of a notice of redemption of Securities to be redeemed and ending on the relevant Redemption Date if the Security for which exchange is requested may be among those selected for redemption. The transferring beneficial owner shall use commercially reasonable efforts to provide or cause to be provided to the Trustee any information reasonably available to the transferring beneficial owner and necessary to allow the Trustee to comply with any applicable tax reporting obligations, including without limitation, any cost basis reporting obligations under Section 6045 of the Code. The Trustee may rely on any such information provided to it and shall have no responsibility to verify or ensure the accuracy of such information. If a Registered Security is issued in exchange for any portion of a permanent global Security after the close of business at
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the office or agency where such exchange occurs on (i) any Regular Record Date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the relevant Interest Payment Date, or (ii) any Special Record Date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the related proposed date for payment of Defaulted Interest or interest, as the case may be, will not be payable on such Interest Payment Date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, in respect of such Registered Security, but will be payable on such Interest Payment Date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, only to the Person to whom interest in respect of such portion of such permanent global Security is payable in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture.
All Securities issued upon any registration of transfer or exchange of Securities shall be valid obligations of the Company, evidencing the same debt and entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture, as the Securities surrendered upon such registration of transfer or exchange.
Every Registered Security presented or surrendered for registration of transfer or for exchange shall (if so required by the Company or the Security Registrar or any transfer agent) be duly endorsed, or be accompanied by a written instrument of transfer in the form attached to such Registered Security, duly executed by the Holder thereof or his attorney or any transfer agent duly authorized in writing.
No service charge shall be made for any registration of transfer or exchange of Securities, but the Company or the Trustee may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in connection with any registration of transfer or exchange of Securities, other than exchanges pursuant to Section 3.04, 9.06, 11.07 or 13.05 not involving any transfer.
In connection with any proposed exchange of any global Securities for definitive Securities, the Company or Depositary shall be required to provide or cause to be provided to the Trustee all information reasonably requested by the Trustee and reasonably available to the Company or Depository, as applicable, as necessary to allow the Trustee to comply with any applicable tax reporting obligations, including without limitation any cost basis reporting obligations under Section 6045 of the Code. The Trustee may rely on any such information provided to it and shall have no responsibility to verify or ensure the accuracy of such information.
The Company shall not be required (i) to issue, register the transfer of or exchange any Security if such Security may be among those selected for redemption during a period beginning at the opening of business 15 days before the mailing of a notice of redemption of the Securities to be redeemed under Section 11.03 and ending at the close of business on the day the relevant notice of redemption is sent, or (ii) to register the transfer of or exchange any Registered Security so selected for redemption in whole or in part, except, in the case of any Registered Security to be redeemed in part, the portion thereof not to be redeemed, or (iii) to issue, register the transfer of or exchange any Security that has been surrendered for repayment at the option of the Holder, except the portion, if any, of such Security not to be so repaid.
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Section 3.06. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost and Stolen Securities.
If any mutilated Security is surrendered to the Trustee or the Company, together with, in proper cases, such security or indemnity as may be required by the Company or the Trustee to save each of them or any agent of either of them harmless, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver in exchange therefor a new Security of the same series and principal amount, containing identical terms and provisions and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding.
If there shall be delivered to the Company and to the Trustee (i) evidence to their satisfaction of the destruction, loss or theft of any Security, and (ii) such security or indemnity as may be required by them to save each of them and any agent of either of them harmless, then, in the absence of notice to the Company or the Trustee that such Security has been acquired by a protected purchaser, the Company shall, subject to the following paragraph, execute and upon its request the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver, in lieu of any such destroyed, lost or stolen Security, a new Security of the same series and principal amount, containing identical terms and provisions and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding.
Notwithstanding the provisions of the previous two paragraphs, in case any such mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Security has become or is about to become due and payable, the Company in its discretion may, instead of issuing a new Security, pay such Security.
Upon the issuance of any new Security under this Section, the Company may require the payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation thereto and any other expenses (including the fees and expenses of the Trustee) connected therewith.
Every new Security of any series issued pursuant to this Section in lieu of any destroyed, lost or stolen Security shall constitute an original additional contractual obligation of the Company, whether or not the destroyed, lost or stolen Security shall be at any time enforceable by anyone, and shall be entitled to all the benefits of this Indenture equally and proportionately with any and all other Securities of that series duly issued hereunder.
The provisions of this Section are exclusive and shall preclude (to the extent lawful) all other rights and remedies with respect to the replacement or payment of mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Securities.
Section 3.07. Payment of Interest; Interest Rights Preserved; Optional Interest Reset.
(a) Except as otherwise specified with respect to a series of Securities in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.01, interest, if any, on any Registered Security that is payable, and is punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date shall be paid to the Person in whose name that Security (or one or more Predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the Regular Record Date for such interest at the office or agency of the Company maintained for such purpose pursuant to Section 10.02; provided, however, that each installment of interest, if any, on any Registered Security may at the Companys option be paid by (i) mailing a check for such interest, payable to or upon the written order of the Person entitled thereto pursuant to Section 3.09, to the address of such Person as it appears on the Security Register or (ii) transfer to an account maintained by the payee located in the United States.
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Except as otherwise specified with respect to a series of Securities in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.01, any interest on any Registered Security of any series that is payable, but is not punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date (herein called Defaulted Interest) shall forthwith cease to be payable to the registered Holder thereof on the relevant Regular Record Date by virtue of having been such Holder, and such Defaulted Interest may be paid by the Company, at its election in each case, as provided in clause (i) or (ii) below:
(i) The Company may elect to make payment of any Defaulted Interest to the Persons in whose names the Registered Securities of such series (or their respective Predecessor Securities) are registered at the close of business on a Special Record Date for the payment of such Defaulted Interest, which shall be fixed in the following manner. The Company shall notify the Trustee in writing of the amount of Defaulted Interest proposed to be paid on each Registered Security of such series and the date of the proposed payment (which shall not be less than 20 days after such notice is received by the Trustee), and at the same time the Company shall deposit with the Trustee an amount of money in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)) equal to the aggregate amount proposed to be paid in respect of such Defaulted Interest or shall make arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for such deposit on or prior to the date of the proposed payment, such money when deposited to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled to such Defaulted Interest as in this clause provided. Thereupon the Company shall fix a Special Record Date for the payment of such Defaulted Interest which shall be not more than 15 days and not less than 10 days prior to the date of the proposed payment and not less than 10 days after the receipt by the Trustee of the notice of the proposed payment. The Company shall promptly notify the Trustee of such Special Record Date and, in the name and at the expense of the Company, the Trustee shall cause notice of the proposed payment of such Defaulted Interest and the Special Record Date therefor to be sent pursuant to Applicable Procedures or mailed, first-class postage prepaid, to each Holder of Registered Securities of such series at his address as it appears in the Security Register not less than 10 days prior to such Special Record Date. Notice of the proposed payment of such Defaulted Interest and the Special Record Date therefor having been mailed or sent as aforesaid, such Defaulted Interest shall be paid to the Persons in whose names the Registered Securities of such series (or their respective Predecessor Securities) are registered at the close of business on such Special Record Date and shall no longer be payable pursuant to the following clause (ii).
(ii) The Company may make payment of any Defaulted Interest on the Registered Securities of any series in any other lawful manner not inconsistent with the requirements of any securities exchange on which such Securities may be listed, and upon such notice as may be required by such exchange, if, after notice given by the Company to the Trustee of the proposed payment pursuant to this clause (and certification by the Company that the proposed manner of payment complies with the requirements of this clause (ii)), such manner of payment shall be deemed practicable by the Trustee.
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(b) The provisions of this Section 3.07(b) may be made applicable to any series of Securities pursuant to Section 3.01 (with such modifications, additions or substitutions as may be specified pursuant to such Section 3.01). The interest rate (or the spread or spread multiplier used to calculate such interest rate, if applicable) on any Security of such series may be reset by the Company on the date or dates specified on the face of such Security (each an Optional Reset Date). The Company may exercise such option with respect to such Security by notifying the Trustee of such exercise at least 30 but not more than 60 days prior to an Optional Reset Date for such Security. Not later than 25 days prior to each Optional Reset Date, the Trustee shall transmit, in the manner provided for in Section 1.06, to the Holder of any such Security a notice (the Reset Notice) indicating whether the Company has elected to reset the interest rate (or the spread or spread multiplier used to calculate such interest rate, if applicable), and if so (i) such new interest rate (or such new spread or spread multiplier, if applicable) and (ii) the provisions, if any, for redemption during the period from such Optional Reset Date to the next Optional Reset Date or if there is no such next Optional Reset Date, to the Stated Maturity of such Security (each such period a Subsequent Interest Period), including the date or dates on which or the period or periods during which and the price or prices at which such redemption may occur during the Subsequent Interest Period.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, not later than 10 days prior to the Optional Reset Date (or, if 10 days does not fall on a Business Day, the next succeeding Business Day), the Company may, at its option, revoke the interest rate (or the spread or spread multiplier used to calculate such interest rate, if applicable) provided for in the Reset Notice and establish a higher interest rate (or a spread or spread multiplier providing for a higher interest rate, if applicable) for the Subsequent Interest Period by causing the Trustee to transmit, in the manner provided for in Section 1.06, notice, prepared by the Company, of such higher interest rate (or such higher spread or spread multiplier providing for a higher interest rate, if applicable) to the Holder of such Security. Such notice shall be irrevocable. All Securities with respect to which the interest rate (or the spread or spread multiplier used to calculate such interest rate, if applicable) is reset on an Optional Reset Date, and with respect to which the Holders of such Securities have not tendered such Securities for repayment (or have validly revoked any such tender) pursuant to the next succeeding paragraph, will bear such higher interest rate (or such higher spread or spread multiplier providing for a higher interest rate, if applicable).
The Holder of any such Security will have the option to elect repayment by the Company of the principal of such Security on each Optional Reset Date at a price equal to the principal amount thereof plus interest accrued to such Optional Reset Date. In order to obtain repayment on an Optional Reset Date, the Holder must follow the procedures set forth in Article Thirteen for repayment at the option of Holders except that the period for delivery or notification to the Trustee shall be at least 10 but not more than 20 days prior to such Optional Reset Date and except that, if the Holder has tendered any Security for repayment pursuant to the Reset Notice, the Holder may, by written notice to the Trustee, revoke such tender or repayment until the close of business on the tenth day before such Optional Reset Date.
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Subject to the foregoing provisions of this Section and Section 3.05, each Security delivered under this Indenture upon registration of transfer of or in exchange for or in lieu of any other Security shall carry the rights to interest accrued and unpaid, and to accrue, that were carried by such other Security.
Section 3.08. Optional Extension of Maturity.
The provisions of this Section 3.08 may be made applicable to any series of Securities pursuant to Section 3.01 (with such modifications, additions or substitutions as may be specified pursuant to such Section 3.01). The Stated Maturity of any Security of such series may be extended at the option of the Company for the period or periods specified on the face of such Security (each an Extension Period) up to but not beyond the date (the Final Maturity) set forth on the face of such Security. The Company may exercise such option with respect to any Security by notifying the Trustee of such exercise at least 30 but not more than 60 days prior to the Stated Maturity of such Security in effect prior to the exercise of such option (the Original Stated Maturity). If the Company exercises such option, the Trustee shall transmit, in the manner provided for in Section 1.06, to the Holder of such Security not later than 25 days prior to the Original Stated Maturity a notice (the Extension Notice), prepared by the Company, indicating (i) the election of the Company to extend the Stated Maturity, (ii) the new Stated Maturity, (iii) the interest rate (or spread, spread multiplier or other formula to calculate such interest rate, if applicable), if any, applicable to the Extension Period and (iv) the provisions, if any, for redemption during such Extension Period. Upon the Trustees transmittal of the Extension Notice, the Stated Maturity of such Security shall be extended automatically and, except as modified by the Extension Notice and as described in the next paragraph, such Security will have the same terms as prior to the transmittal of such Extension Notice.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, not later than 10 days before the Original Stated Maturity (or, if 10 days does not fall on a Business Day, the next succeeding Business Day) of such Security, the Company may, at its option, revoke the interest rate (or spread, spread multiplier or other formula to calculate such interest rate, if applicable) provided for in the Extension Notice and establish a higher interest rate (or spread, spread multiplier or other formula to calculate such higher interest rate, if applicable) for the Extension Period by causing the Trustee to transmit, in the manner provided for in Section 1.06, notice of such higher interest rate (or spread, spread multiplier or other formula to calculate such interest rate, if applicable) to the Holder of such Security. Such notice shall be irrevocable. All Securities with respect to which the Stated Maturity is extended will bear such higher interest rate.
If the Company extends the Stated Maturity of any Security, the Holder will have the option to elect repayment of such Security by the Company on the Original Stated Maturity at a price equal to the principal amount thereof, plus interest accrued to such date. In order to obtain repayment on the Original Stated Maturity once the Company has extended the Stated Maturity thereof, the Holder must follow the procedures set forth in Article Thirteen for repayment at the option of Holders, except that the period for delivery or notification to the Trustee shall be at least 10 but not more than 20 days prior to the Original Stated Maturity and except that, if the Holder has tendered any Security for repayment pursuant to an Extension Notice, the Holder may by written notice to the Trustee revoke such tender for repayment until the close of business on the tenth day before the Original Stated Maturity.
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Section 3.09. Persons Deemed Owners.
Prior to due presentment of a Registered Security for registration of transfer, the Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or the Trustee may treat the Person in whose name such Registered Security is registered as the owner of such Registered Security for the purpose of receiving payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and (subject to Sections 3.05 and 3.07) interest, if any, on such Registered Security and for all other purposes whatsoever, whether or not such Registered Security be overdue, and neither the Company, the Trustee nor any agent of the Company or the Trustee shall be affected by notice to the contrary.
None of the Company, the Trustee, any Paying Agent or the Security Registrar will have any responsibility or liability for any aspect of the records relating to or payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests of a Security in global form or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial ownership interests.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to any global temporary or permanent Security, nothing herein shall prevent the Company, the Trustee, or any agent of the Company or the Trustee, from giving effect to any written certification, proxy or other authorization furnished by any depositary, as a Holder, with respect to such global Security or impair, as between such depositary and owners of beneficial interests in such global Security, the operation of customary practices governing the exercise of the rights of such depositary (or its nominee) as Holder of such global Security.
Section 3.10. Cancellation.
All Securities surrendered for payment, redemption, repayment at the option of the Holder, registration of transfer or exchange or for credit against any sinking fund payment shall, if surrendered to any Person other than the Trustee, be delivered to the Trustee, and any such Securities surrendered directly to the Trustee for any such purpose shall be promptly cancelled by the Trustee. The Company may at any time deliver to the Trustee for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated and delivered hereunder which the Company may have acquired in any manner whatsoever, and may deliver to the Trustee (or to any other Person for delivery to the Trustee) for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated hereunder which the Company has not issued and sold, and all Securities so delivered shall be promptly cancelled by the Trustee. If the Company shall so acquire any of the Securities, however, such acquisition shall not operate as a redemption or satisfaction of the indebtedness represented by such Securities unless and until the same are surrendered to the Trustee for cancellation. No Securities shall be authenticated in lieu of or in exchange for any Securities cancelled as provided in this Section, except as expressly permitted by this Indenture. Cancelled Securities held by the Trustee shall be cancelled or destroyed by the Trustee in accordance with its customary procedures.
Section 3.11. Computation of Interest.
Except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01 with respect to Securities of any series, interest, if any, on the Securities of each series shall be computed on the basis of a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months.
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Section 3.12. Currency and Manner of Payments in Respect of Securities.
(a) Unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, with respect to Registered Securities of any series not permitting the election provided for in paragraph (b) below or the Holders of which have not made the election provided for in paragraph (b) below, payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on any Registered Security of such series will be made in the Currency in which such Registered Security is payable. The provisions of this Section 3.12 may be modified or superseded with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01.
(b) It may be provided pursuant to Section 3.01 with respect to Registered Securities of any series that Holders shall have the option, subject to paragraphs (d) and (e) below, to receive payments of principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on such Registered Securities in any of the Currencies which may be designated for such election by delivering to the Trustee for such series of Registered Securities a written election with signature guarantees and in the applicable form established pursuant to Section 3.01, not later than the close of business on the Election Date immediately preceding the applicable payment date. If a Holder so elects to receive such payments in any such Currency, such election will remain in effect for such Holder or any transferee of such Holder until changed by such Holder or such transferee by written notice to the Trustee for such series of Registered Securities (but any such change must be made not later than the close of business on the Election Date immediately preceding the next payment date to be effective for the payment to be made on such payment date and no such change of election may be made with respect to payments to be made on any Registered Security of such series with respect to which an Event of Default has occurred or with respect to which the Company has deposited funds pursuant to Article Four or Fourteen or with respect to which a notice of redemption has been given by the Company or a notice of option to elect repayment has been sent by such Holder or such transferee). Any Holder of any such Registered Security who shall not have delivered any such election to the Trustee of such series of Registered Securities not later than the close of business on the applicable Election Date will be paid the amount due on the applicable payment date in the relevant Currency as provided in Section 3.12(a). The Trustee for each such series of Registered Securities shall notify the Exchange Rate Agent as soon as practicable after the Election Date of the aggregate principal amount of Registered Securities for which Holders have made such written election.
(c) Unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, if the election referred to in paragraph (b) above has been provided for pursuant to Section 3.01, then, unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, not later than the fourth Business Day after the Election Date for each payment date for Registered Securities of any series, the Exchange Rate Agent will deliver to the Company a written notice specifying the Currency in which Registered Securities of such series are payable, the respective aggregate amounts of principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on the Registered Securities to be paid on such payment date, specifying the amounts in such Currency so payable in respect of the Registered Securities as to which the Holders of Registered Securities denominated in any Currency shall have elected to be paid in another Currency as provided in paragraph (b) above. If the election referred to in paragraph (b) above has been provided for pursuant to Section 3.01 and if at least one Holder has made such election, then, unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, on the second Business Day preceding such payment date the Company will deliver to the Trustee for such series of
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Registered Securities an Exchange Rate Officers Certificate in respect of the Dollar or Foreign Currency or Currencies payments to be made on such payment date. Unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, the Dollar or Foreign Currency or Currencies amount receivable by Holders of Registered Securities who have elected payment in a Currency as provided in paragraph (b) above shall be determined by the Company on the basis of the applicable Market Exchange Rate in effect on the second Business Day (the Valuation Date) immediately preceding each payment date, and such determination shall be conclusive and binding for all purposes, absent manifest error.
(d) If a Conversion Event occurs with respect to a Foreign Currency in which any of the Securities are denominated or payable other than pursuant to an election provided for pursuant to paragraph (b) above, then with respect to each date for the payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on the applicable Securities denominated or payable in such Foreign Currency occurring after the last date on which such Foreign Currency was used (the Conversion Date), the Dollar shall be the currency of payment for use on each such payment date. Unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, the Dollar amount to be paid by the Company to the Trustee of each such series of Securities and by such Trustee or any Paying Agent to the Holders of such Securities with respect to such payment date shall be, in the case of a Foreign Currency other than a currency unit, the Dollar Equivalent of the Foreign Currency or, in the case of a currency unit, the Dollar Equivalent of the Currency Unit, in each case as determined by the Exchange Rate Agent in the manner provided in paragraph (f) or (g) below.
(e) Unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, if the Holder of a Registered Security denominated in any Currency shall have elected to be paid in another Currency as provided in paragraph (b) above, and a Conversion Event occurs with respect to such elected Currency, such Holder shall receive payment in the Currency in which payment would have been made in the absence of such election; and if a Conversion Event occurs with respect to the Currency in which payment would have been made in the absence of such election, such Holder shall receive payment in Dollars as provided in paragraph (d) of this Section 3.12.
(f) The Dollar Equivalent of the Foreign Currency shall be determined by the Exchange Rate Agent and shall be obtained for each subsequent payment date by converting the specified Foreign Currency into Dollars at the Market Exchange Rate on the Conversion Date.
(g) The Dollar Equivalent of the Currency Unit shall be determined by the Exchange Rate Agent and subject to the provisions of paragraph (h) below shall be the sum of each amount obtained by converting the Specified Amount of each Component Currency into Dollars at the Market Exchange Rate for such Component Currency on the Valuation Date with respect to each payment.
(h) For purposes of this Section 3.12, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
A Component Currency shall mean any currency which, on the Conversion Date, was a component currency of the relevant currency unit, including, but not limited to, the ECU.
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A Specified Amount of a Component Currency shall mean the number of units of such Component Currency or fractions thereof which were represented in the relevant currency unit, including, but not limited to, the ECU, on the Conversion Date. If after the Conversion Date the official unit of any Component Currency is altered by way of combination or subdivision, the Specified Amount of such Component Currency shall be divided or multiplied in the same proportion. If after the Conversion Date two or more Component Currencies are consolidated into a single currency, the respective Specified Amounts of such Component Currencies shall be replaced by an amount in such single currency equal to the sum of the respective Specified Amounts of such consolidated Component Currencies expressed in such single currency, and such amount shall thereafter be a Specified Amount and such single currency shall thereafter be a Component Currency. If after the Conversion Date any Component Currency shall be divided into two or more currencies, the Specified Amount of such Component Currency shall be replaced by amounts of such two or more currencies, having an aggregate Dollar Equivalent value at the Market Exchange Rate on the date of such replacement equal to the Dollar Equivalent of the Specified Amount of such former Component Currency at the Market Exchange Rate immediately before such division, and such amounts shall thereafter be Specified Amounts and such currencies shall thereafter be Component Currencies. If, after the Conversion Date of the relevant currency unit, including, but not limited to, the ECU, a Conversion Event (other than any event referred to above in this definition of Specified Amount) occurs with respect to any Component Currency of such currency unit and is continuing on the applicable Valuation Date, the Specified Amount of such Component Currency shall, for purposes of calculating the Dollar Equivalent of the Currency Unit, be converted into Dollars at the Market Exchange Rate in effect on the Conversion Date of such Component Currency.
An Election Date shall mean the Regular Record Date for the applicable series of Registered Securities or at least 16 days prior to Maturity, as the case may be, or such other prior date for any series of Registered Securities as specified pursuant to clause (xiii) of Section 3.01 by which the written election referred to in Section 3.12(b) may be made.
All decisions and determinations of the Exchange Rate Agent regarding the Dollar Equivalent of the Foreign Currency, the Dollar Equivalent of the Currency Unit, the Market Exchange Rate and changes in the Specified Amounts as specified above shall be in its sole discretion and shall, in the absence of manifest error, be conclusive for all purposes and irrevocably binding upon the Company, the Trustee for the appropriate series of Securities and all Holders of such Securities denominated or payable in the relevant Currency. The Exchange Rate Agent shall promptly give written notice to the Company and the Trustee for the appropriate series of Securities of any such decision or determination.
In the event that the Company determines in good faith that a Conversion Event has occurred with respect to a Foreign Currency, the Company will immediately give written notice thereof and of the applicable Conversion Date to the Trustee of the appropriate series of Securities and to the Exchange Rate Agent (and such Trustee will promptly thereafter give notice in the manner provided in Section 1.06 to the affected Holders) specifying the Conversion Date. In the event the Company so determines that a Conversion Event has occurred with respect to the
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ECU or any other currency unit in which Securities are denominated or payable, the Company will immediately give written notice thereof to the Trustee of the appropriate series of Securities and to the Exchange Rate Agent (and such Trustee will promptly thereafter give notice in the manner provided in Section 1.06 to the affected Holders) specifying the Conversion Date and the Specified Amount of each Component Currency on the Conversion Date. In the event the Company determines in good faith that any subsequent change in any Component Currency as set forth in the definition of Specified Amount above has occurred, the Company will similarly give written notice to the Trustee of the appropriate series of Securities and to the Exchange Rate Agent.
The Trustee of the appropriate series of Securities shall be fully justified and protected in relying and acting upon information received by it from the Company and the Exchange Rate Agent and shall not otherwise have any duty or obligation to determine the accuracy or validity of such information independent of the Company or the Exchange Rate Agent.
Section 3.13. Appointment and Resignation of Successor Exchange Rate Agent.
(a) Unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, if and so long as the Securities of any series (i) are denominated in a Foreign Currency or (ii) may be payable in a Foreign Currency, or so long as it is required under any other provision of this Indenture, then the Company will maintain with respect to each such series of Securities, or as so required, at least one Exchange Rate Agent. The Company will cause the Exchange Rate Agent to make the necessary foreign exchange determinations at the time and in the manner specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the purpose of determining the applicable rate of exchange and, if applicable, for the purpose of converting the issued Foreign Currency into the applicable payment Currency for the payment of principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, pursuant to Section 3.12.
(b) No resignation of the Exchange Rate Agent and no appointment of a successor Exchange Rate Agent pursuant to this Section shall become effective until the acceptance of appointment by the successor Exchange Rate Agent as evidenced by a written instrument delivered to the Company and the Trustee of the appropriate series of Securities accepting such appointment executed by the successor Exchange Rate Agent.
(c) If the Exchange Rate Agent shall resign, be removed or become incapable of acting, or if a vacancy shall occur in the office of the Exchange Rate Agent for any cause, with respect to the Securities of one or more series, the Company, by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, shall promptly appoint a successor Exchange Rate Agent or Exchange Rate Agents with respect to the Securities of that or those series (it being understood that any such successor Exchange Rate Agent may be appointed with respect to the Securities of one or more or all of such series and that, unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01, at any time there shall only be one Exchange Rate Agent with respect to the Securities of any particular series that are originally issued by the Company on the same date and that are initially denominated and/or payable in the same Currency).
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Section 3.14. CUSIP Numbers.
The Company in issuing the Securities may use CUSIP numbers (if then generally in use), and, if so, the Company shall indicate the respective CUSIP numbers of the Securities in notices of redemption as a convenience to Holders; provided that any such notice may state that no representation is made as to the correctness of such numbers either as printed on the Securities or as contained in any notice of redemption and that reliance may be placed only on the other identification numbers printed on the Securities, and any such redemption shall not be affected by any defect in or omission of such numbers. The Company shall advise the Trustee as promptly as practicable in writing of any change in the CUSIP numbers.
ARTICLE FOUR
SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE
Section 4.01. Satisfaction and Discharge of Indenture.
Except as set forth below, this Indenture shall upon Company Request cease to be of further effect with respect to any series of Securities specified in such Company Request (except as to any surviving rights of registration of transfer or exchange of Securities of such series expressly provided for herein or pursuant hereto, any surviving rights of tender for repayment at the option of the Holders and any right to receive Additional Amounts, as provided in Section 10.04), and the Trustee, upon receipt of a Company Order, and at the expense of the Company, shall execute proper instruments acknowledging satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture as to such series when
(a) either
(i) all Securities of such series theretofore authenticated and delivered (other than (i) Securities that have been destroyed, lost or stolen and which have been replaced or paid as provided in Section 3.06 and (ii) Securities of such series for whose payment money has theretofore been deposited in trust with the Trustee or any Paying Agent or segregated and held in trust by the Company and thereafter repaid to the Company or discharged from such trust, as provided in Section 10.03) have been delivered to the Trustee for cancellation; or
(ii) all Securities of such series:
(1) have become due and payable, or
(2) will become due and payable at their Stated Maturity within one year, or
(3) if redeemable at the option of the Company, are to be called for redemption within one year under arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the giving of notice of redemption by the Trustee in the name, and at the expense, of the Company,
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and the Company, in the case of (1), (2) or (3) above, has irrevocably deposited or caused to be deposited with the Trustee as trust funds in trust for such purpose, solely for the benefit of the Holders, an amount in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable, sufficient to pay and discharge the entire indebtedness on such Securities not theretofore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation, for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, to the date of such deposit (in the case of Securities which have become due and payable) or to the Stated Maturity or Redemption Date, as the case may be;
(b) the Company has irrevocably paid or caused to be irrevocably paid all other sums payable hereunder by the Company; and
(c) the Company has delivered to the Trustee an Officers Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture as to such series have been complied with.
Notwithstanding the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture, the obligations of the Company to the Trustee and any predecessor Trustee under Section 6.06, the obligations of the Company to any Authenticating Agent under Section 6.12 and, if money shall have been deposited with the Trustee pursuant to subclause (ii) of clause (a) of this Section, the obligations of the Trustee under Section 4.02 and the last paragraph of Section 10.03 shall survive any termination of this Indenture.
Section 4.02. Application of Trust Funds.
Subject to the provisions of the last paragraph of Section 10.03, all money deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 4.01 shall be held in trust and applied by it, in accordance with the provisions of the Securities and this Indenture, to the payment, either directly or through any Paying Agent (including the Company acting as its own Paying Agent) as the Trustee may determine, to the Persons entitled thereto, of the principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, for whose payment such money has been deposited with or received by the Trustee, but such money need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law.
ARTICLE FIVE
REMEDIES
Section 5.01. Events of Default.
Event of Default, wherever used herein with respect to any particular series of Securities, means any one of the following events (whatever the reason for such Event of Default and whether or not it shall be voluntary or involuntary or be effected by operation of law or pursuant to any judgment, decree or order of any court or any order, rule or regulation of any administrative or governmental body), unless it is either inapplicable to a particular series or is specifically deleted or modified in or pursuant to the supplemental indenture or a Board Resolution establishing such series of Securities or is in the form of Security for such series:
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(i) default in the payment of any interest upon any Security of that series, when such interest becomes due and payable, and continuance of such default for a period of 30 days; or
(ii) default in the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) any Security of that series when it becomes due and payable at its Maturity, and continuance of such default for a period of 5 days; or
(iii) default in the deposit of any sinking fund payment, when and as due by the terms of any Security of that series, and continuance of such default for a period of 5 days; or
(iv) default in the performance, or breach, of any covenant or agreement of the Company in this Indenture with respect to any Security of that series (other than a covenant or agreement a default in whose performance or whose breach is elsewhere in this Section specifically dealt with or that has expressly been included in this Indenture solely for the benefit of a series of Securities other than that series), and continuance of such default or breach for a period of 60 consecutive days after there has been given to the Company by the Trustee or to the Company and the Trustee by the Holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series a written notice specifying such default or breach and requiring it to be remedied;
(v) the Company, pursuant to or within the meaning of any Bankruptcy Law:
(1) commences a voluntary case or proceeding under any Bankruptcy Law,
(2) consents to the commencement of any bankruptcy or insolvency case or proceeding against it, or files a petition or answer or consent seeking reorganization or relief against it,
(3) consents to the entry of a decree or order for relief against it in an involuntary case or proceeding,
(4) consents to the filing of such petition or to the appointment of or taking possession by a Custodian of the Company or for all or substantially all of its property, or
(5) makes an assignment for the benefit of creditors, or admits in writing of its inability to pay its debts generally as they become due or takes any corporate action in furtherance of any such action; or
The term Bankruptcy Law means title 11, U.S. Code or any applicable federal or state bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or other similar law. The term Custodian means any custodian, receiver, trustee, assignee, liquidator, sequestrator or other similar official under any Bankruptcy Law.
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(vi) a court of competent jurisdiction enters an order or decree under any Bankruptcy Law that:
(1) is for relief against the Company in an involuntary case or proceeding, or
(2) adjudges the Company bankrupt or insolvent, or approves as properly filed a petition seeking reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition of or in respect of the Company, or
(3) appoints a Custodian of the Company or for all or substantially all of its property, or
(4) orders the winding up or liquidation of the Company,
and the continuance of any such decree or order for relief or any such other decree or order remains unstayed and in effect for a period of 90 consecutive days; or
(vii) if, pursuant to Sections 18(a)(1)(C)(ii) and 61 of the Investment Company Act, or any successor provisions, on the last business day of each of twenty-four consecutive calendar months any class of Securities shall have an asset coverage (as such term is used in the Investment Company Act) of less than 100%, giving effect to any amendments to such provisions of the Investment Company Act or to any exemptive relief granted to the Company by the Commission; or
(viii) any other Event of Default provided with respect to Securities of that series.
Section 5.02. Acceleration of Maturity; Rescission and Annulment.
If an Event of Default with respect to Securities of any series at the time Outstanding occurs and is continuing, then and in every such case the Trustee or the Holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series may declare the principal (or, if any Securities are Original Issue Discount Securities or Indexed Securities, such portion of the principal as may be specified in the terms thereof) of all the Securities of that series to be due and payable immediately, by a notice in writing to the Company (and to the Trustee if given by the Holders), and upon any such declaration such principal or specified portion thereof shall become immediately due and payable.
At any time after such a declaration of acceleration with respect to Securities of any series has been made and before a judgment or decree for payment of the money due has been obtained by the Trustee as hereinafter provided in this Article, the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series, by written notice to the Company and the Trustee, may rescind and annul such declaration and its consequences if:
(i) the Company has paid or deposited with the Trustee a sum sufficient to pay in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)):
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(1) all overdue installments of interest, if any, on all Outstanding Securities of that series,
(2) the principal of (and premium, if any) all Outstanding Securities of that series that have become due otherwise than by such declaration of acceleration and interest thereon at the rate or rates borne by or provided for in such Securities,
(3) to the extent that payment of such interest is lawful, interest upon overdue installments of interest at the rate or rates borne by or provided for in such Securities, and
(4) all sums paid or advanced by the Trustee hereunder and the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel; and
(ii) all Events of Default with respect to Securities of that series, other than the nonpayment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest on Securities of that series that have become due solely by such declaration of acceleration, have been cured or waived as provided in Section 5.13.
No such rescission shall affect any subsequent default or impair any right consequent thereon.
Section 5.03. Collection of Indebtedness and Suits for Enforcement by Trustee.
The Company covenants that if:
(i) default is made in the payment of any installment of interest on any Security of any series when such interest becomes due and payable and such default continues for a period of 30 days, or
(ii) default is made in the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) any Security of any series at its Maturity, then the Company will, upon demand of the Trustee, pay to the Trustee, for the benefit of the Holders of Securities of such series, the whole amount then due and payable on such Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, with interest upon any overdue principal (and premium, if any) and, to the extent that payment of such interest shall be legally enforceable, upon any overdue installments of interest, if any, at the rate or rates borne by or provided for in such Securities, and, in addition thereto, such further amount as shall be sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of collection, including the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel.
If the Company fails to pay such amounts forthwith upon such demand, the Trustee, in its own name and as trustee of an express trust, may institute a judicial proceeding for the collection of the sums so due and unpaid, and may prosecute such proceeding to judgment or final decree, and may enforce the same against the Company or any other obligor upon Securities of such series and collect the moneys adjudged or decreed to be payable in the manner provided by law out of the property of the Company or any other obligor upon such Securities of such series, wherever situated.
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If an Event of Default with respect to Securities of any series occurs and is continuing, the Trustee may in its discretion proceed to protect and enforce its rights and the rights of the Holders of Securities of such series by such appropriate judicial proceedings as the Trustee shall deem most effectual to protect and enforce any such rights, whether for the specific enforcement of any covenant or agreement in this Indenture or in aid of the exercise of any power granted herein, or to enforce any other proper remedy.
Section 5.04. Trustee May File Proofs of Claim.
In case of the pendency of any receivership, insolvency, liquidation, bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, adjustment, composition or other judicial proceeding relative to the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities or the property of the Company or of such other obligor or their creditors, the Trustee (irrespective of whether the principal of the Securities of any series shall then be due and payable as therein expressed or by declaration or otherwise and irrespective of whether the Trustee shall have made any demand on the Company for the payment of any overdue principal, premium or interest) shall be entitled and empowered, by intervention in such proceeding or otherwise:
(i) to file and prove a claim for the whole amount of principal (or in the case of Original Issue Discount Securities or Indexed Securities, such portion of the principal as may be provided for in the terms thereof) (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, owing and unpaid in respect of the Securities and to file such other papers or documents (and take such other actions, including voting for the election of a trustee in bankruptcy or similar official and serving on a committee of creditors) as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Trustee (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel) and of the Holders allowed in such judicial proceeding, and
(ii) to collect and receive any moneys or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims and to distribute the same; and any custodian, receiver, assignee, trustee, liquidator, sequestrator (or other similar official) in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each Holder of Securities of such series to make such payments to the Trustee, and in the event that the Trustee shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the Holders, to pay to the Trustee any amount due to it for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee and any predecessor Trustee, their agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Trustee or any predecessor Trustee under Section 6.06. To the extent that the payment of any such compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Trustee under Section 6.06 hereof out of the estate in any such proceeding, shall be unpaid for any reason, payment of the same shall be secured by a lien on, and shall be paid out of, any and all distributions, dividends, money, securities and other properties that the Holders may be entitled to receive in such proceeding whether in liquidation or under any plan of reorganization or arrangement or otherwise.
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Subject to Article Eight and Section 9.02 and unless otherwise provided as contemplated by Section 3.01, nothing herein contained shall be deemed to authorize the Trustee to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of any Holder of a Security any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Securities or the rights of any Holder thereof, or to authorize the Trustee to vote in respect of the claim of any Holder of a Security in any such proceeding.
Section 5.05. Trustee May Enforce Claims Without Possession of Securities.
All rights of action and claims under this Indenture or any of the Securities may be prosecuted and enforced by the Trustee without the possession of any of the Securities or the production thereof in any proceeding relating thereto, and any such proceeding instituted by the Trustee shall be brought in its own name and as trustee of an express trust, and any recovery of judgment shall, after provision for the payment of the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, be for the ratable benefit of the Holders of the Securities in respect of which such judgment has been recovered.
Section 5.06. Application of Money Collected.
Any money or property collected by the Trustee pursuant to this Article and after an Event of Default any money or other property distributable in respect of the Companys obligations under this Indenture shall be applied in the following order, at the date or dates fixed by the Trustee and, in case of the distribution of such money or property on account of principal (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, upon presentation of the Securities and the notation thereon of the payment if only partially paid and upon surrender thereof if fully paid:
FIRST: To the payment of all amounts due the Trustee and any predecessor Trustee under Section 6.06;
SECOND: To the payment of the amounts then due and unpaid upon any Senior Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, in respect of which or for the benefit of which such money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the aggregate amounts due and payable on such Senior Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, respectively; and
THIRD: To the payment of the amounts then due and unpaid upon any Senior Subordinated Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, in respect of which or for the benefit of which such money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the aggregate amounts due and payable on such Senior Subordinated Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, respectively; and
FOURTH: To the payment of the amounts then due and unpaid upon any other Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, in respect of which or for the benefit of which such money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the aggregate amounts due and payable on such Securities for principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, respectively; and
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FIFTH: To the payment of the remainder, if any, to the Company or any other Person or Persons entitled thereto.
Section 5.07. Limitation on Suits.
No Holder of any Security of any series shall have any right to institute any proceeding, judicial or otherwise, with respect to this Indenture, or for the appointment of a receiver or trustee, or for any other remedy hereunder, unless:
(i) such Holder has previously given written notice to the Trustee of a continuing Event of Default with respect to the Securities of that series;
(ii) the Holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series shall have made written request to the Trustee to institute proceedings in respect of such Event of Default in its own name as Trustee hereunder;
(iii) such Holder or Holders have offered to the Trustee security or indemnity satisfactory to the Trustee against the costs, expenses and liabilities to be incurred in compliance with such request;
(iv) the Trustee for 60 days after its receipt of such notice, request and offer of security or indemnity has failed to institute any such proceeding; and
(v) no direction inconsistent with such written request has been given to the Trustee during such 60-day period by the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series;
it being understood and intended that no one or more of such Holders shall have any right in any manner whatever by virtue of, or by availing of, any provision of this Indenture to affect, disturb or prejudice the rights of any other of such Holders, or to obtain or to seek to obtain priority or preference over any other of such Holders or to enforce any right under this Indenture, except in the manner herein provided and for the equal and ratable benefit of all such Holders (it being understood that the Trustee does not have an affirmative duty to ascertain whether or not such actions or forbearances are unduly prejudicial to such Holders).
Section 5.08. Unconditional Right of Holders to Receive Principal, Premium and Interest.
Notwithstanding any other provision in this Indenture, the Holder of any Security shall have the right, which is absolute and unconditional, to receive payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) and (subject to Sections 3.05 and 3.07) interest, if any, on such Security on the Stated Maturity or Maturities expressed in such Security (or, in the case of redemption, on the Redemption Date or, in the case of repayment at the option of the Holders on the Repayment Date) and to institute suit for the enforcement of any such payment, and such rights shall not be impaired without the consent of such Holder.
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Section 5.09. Restoration of Rights and Remedies.
If the Trustee or any Holder of a Security has instituted any proceeding to enforce any right or remedy under this Indenture and such proceeding has been discontinued or abandoned for any reason, or has been determined adversely to the Trustee or to such Holder, then and in every such case the Company, the Trustee and the Holders of Securities shall, subject to any determination in such proceeding, be restored severally and respectively to their former positions hereunder and thereafter all rights and remedies of the Trustee and the Holders shall continue as though no such proceeding had been instituted.
Section 5.10. Rights and Remedies Cumulative.
Except as otherwise provided with respect to the replacement or payment of mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Securities in the last paragraph of Section 3.06, no right or remedy herein conferred upon or reserved to the Trustee or to the Holders of Securities is intended to be exclusive of any other right or remedy, and every right and remedy shall, to the extent permitted by law, be cumulative and in addition to every other right and remedy given hereunder or now or hereafter existing at law or in equity or otherwise. The assertion or employment of any right or remedy hereunder, or otherwise, shall not prevent the concurrent assertion or employment of any other appropriate right or remedy.
Section 5.11. Delay or Omission Not Waiver.
No delay or omission of the Trustee or of any Holder of any Security to exercise any right or remedy accruing upon any Event of Default shall impair any such right or remedy or constitute a waiver of any such Event of Default or an acquiescence therein. Every right and remedy given by this Article or by law to the Trustee or to the Holders may be exercised from time to time, and as often as may be deemed expedient, by the Trustee or by the Holders of Securities, as the case may be.
Section 5.12. Control by Holders of Securities.
Subject to Section 6.02(v), the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of any series shall have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee or exercising any trust or power conferred on the Trustee with respect to the Securities of such series, provided that
(i) such direction shall not be in conflict with any rule of law or with this Indenture,
(ii) the Trustee may take any other action deemed proper by the Trustee that is not inconsistent with such direction, and
(iii) the Trustee need not take any action that might involve it in personal liability or be unjustly prejudicial to the Holders of Securities of such series not consenting (it being understood that the Trustee does not have an affirmative duty to ascertain whether or not any such directions are unduly prejudicial to such Holders).
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Section 5.13. Waiver of Past Defaults.
Subject to Section 5.02, the Holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of any series may on behalf of the Holders of all the Securities of such series waive any past default hereunder with respect to Securities of such series and its consequences, except a default
(i) in the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Security of such series, or
(ii) in respect of a covenant or provision hereof which under Article Nine cannot be modified or amended without the consent of the Holder of each Outstanding Security of such series affected.
Upon any such waiver, such default shall cease to exist, and any Event of Default arising therefrom shall be deemed to have been cured, for every purpose of this Indenture; but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other default or Event of Default or impair any right consequent thereon.
Section 5.14. Waiver of Stay or Extension Laws.
The Company covenants (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) that it will not at any time insist upon, or plead, or in any manner whatsoever claim or take the benefit or advantage of, any stay or extension law wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, that may affect the covenants or the performance of this Indenture; and the Company (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) hereby expressly waives all benefit or advantage of any such law, and covenants that it will not hinder, delay or impede the execution of any power herein granted to the Trustee, but will suffer and permit the execution of every such power as though no such law had been enacted.
Section 5.15. Undertaking for Costs.
In any suit for the enforcement of any right or remedy under this Indenture or in any suit against the Trustee for any action taken or omitted by it as a Trustee, a court in its discretion may require the filing by any party litigant in the suit of an undertaking to pay the costs of the suit, and the court in its discretion may assess reasonable costs, including reasonable attorneys fees, against any party litigant in the suit, having due regard to the merits and good faith of the claims or defenses made by the party litigant. This Section 5.15 does not apply to a suit by the Trustee, a suit by a Holder pursuant to Section 5.08 hereof, or a suit by Holders of more than 10% in principal amount of the then Outstanding Securities.
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ARTICLE SIX
THE TRUSTEE
Section 6.01. Notice of Defaults.
(a) Within 90 days after the occurrence of any Default hereunder with respect to the Securities of any series, the Trustee shall transmit in the manner and to the extent provided in TIA Section 313(c), notice of such Default hereunder actually known to a Responsible Officer of the Trustee, unless such Default shall have been cured or waived; provided, however, that, except in the case of a Default in the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Security of such series, or in the payment of any sinking or purchase fund installment with respect to the Securities of such series, the Trustee shall be protected in withholding such notice if and so long as the Trustee in good faith determines that the withholding of such notice is in the interest of the Holders of the Securities of such series; and provided further that in the case of any Default or breach of the character specified in Section 5.01(iv) with respect to the Securities of such series, no such notice to Holders shall be given until at least 60 days after the occurrence thereof.
(b) Prior to the time when the occurrence of an Event of Default becomes known to a Responsible Officer of the Trustee and after the curing or waiving of all such Events of Default with respect to a series of Securities that may have occurred:
(i) the duties and obligations of the Trustee shall with respect to the Securities of any series be determined solely by the express provisions of this Indenture, and the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to the Securities except for the performance of such duties and obligations as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee; and
(ii) in the absence of bad faith on the part of the Trustee, the Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon any certificates or opinions furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture; but in the case of any such certificates or opinions that by any provision hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not they conform on their face to the requirements of this Indenture (but need not confirm or investigate the accuracy of any mathematical calculations or other facts stated therein).
(c) If an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing with respect to the Securities of any series of which a Responsible Officer of the Trustee has actual notice, the Trustee shall exercise such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture with respect to the Securities of such series, and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent person would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of such persons own affairs.
(d) The Trustee may not be relieved from liabilities for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct, except that: (i) this paragraph does not limit the effect of paragraph (b) of this Section 6.01; (ii) the Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer or Responsible Officers, unless it shall be proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts; and (iii) the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action it takes or omits to take in accordance with the direction of the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the Securities Outstanding relating to the time, method, and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Trustee, with respect to the Securities of any series under this Indenture.
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(e) Whether or not therein expressly so provided, every provision of this Indenture that in any way relates to the Trustee is subject to paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of this Section 6.01.
Section 6.02. Certain Rights of Trustee.
Subject to the provisions of TIA Section 315(a) through 315(d):
(i) The Trustee may rely and shall be protected in acting or refraining from acting upon any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, coupon or other paper or document (whether in its original or facsimile form) believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper party or parties.
(ii) Any request or direction of the Company mentioned herein shall be sufficiently evidenced by a Company Request or Company Order (other than delivery of any Security to the Trustee for authentication and delivery pursuant to Section 3.03 which shall be sufficiently evidenced as provided therein) and any resolution of the Board of Directors may be sufficiently evidenced by a Board Resolution.
(iii) Whenever in the administration of this Indenture the Trustee shall deem it desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking, suffering or omitting any action hereunder, the Trustee (unless other evidence be herein specifically prescribed) may require and rely upon a Board Resolution, an Opinion of Counsel and/or an Officers Certificate and the Trustee shall not be liable for any action it takes or omits to take in good faith in reliance thereon.
(iv) The Trustee may consult with counsel of its selection concerning all matters hereunder, and the Company in all cases shall pay such reasonable compensation to any attorney, agent, receiver or employee retained or employed by it in connection herewith and the advice of such counsel or any Opinion of Counsel shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by it hereunder in good faith and in reliance thereon.
(v) The Trustee shall be under no obligation to take any action or exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Indenture at the request or direction of any of the Holders of Securities of any series pursuant to this Indenture, unless such Holders shall have offered to the Trustee security or indemnity satisfactory to the Trustee against the costs, expenses and liabilities (including the reasonable fees and expenses of its agents and counsel) which might be incurred by it in compliance with such request or direction.
(vi) The Trustee shall not be bound to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, coupon or other paper or document, but the Trustee, in its discretion, may make such further inquiry or investigation into such facts or matters as it may see fit, and, if the Trustee shall determine to make such further inquiry or investigation, it shall be entitled upon
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reasonable notice and at reasonable times during normal business hours to examine the books, records and premises of the Company, personally or by agent or attorney and shall incur no liability or additional liability of any kind by reason of such inquiry or investigation.
(vii) The Trustee may execute any of the trusts or powers hereunder or perform any duties hereunder either directly or by or through agents or attorneys and the Trustee shall not be responsible for any misconduct or negligence on the part of any agent or attorney appointed with due care by it hereunder.
(viii) The Trustee shall not be deemed to have notice of any Default or Event of Default unless a Responsible Officer of the Trustee has actual knowledge thereof or unless written notice of any event which is in fact such a Default by the Company or by the Holders of at least 25% of the aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any series then outstanding is received by the Trustee at the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee, and such notice references the Securities and this Indenture.
(ix) The rights, privileges, protections, immunities and benefits given to the Trustee, including, without limitation, its right to be compensated, reimbursed and indemnified, are extended to, and shall be enforceable by, the Trustee in each of its capacities hereunder and each Agent.
(x) The permissive rights of the Trustee enumerated herein shall not be construed as duties.
(xi) The Trustee shall not be liable for any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith and believed by it to be authorized or within the discretion or rights or powers conferred upon it by this Indenture.
(xii) The Trustee may request that the Company deliver an Officers Certificate setting forth the names of individuals and/or titles of officers authorized at such time to take specified actions pursuant to this Indenture, which Officers Certificate may be signed by any person authorized to sign an Officers Certificate, including any person specified as so authorized in any such certificate previously delivered and not superseded.
(xiii) Anything in this Indenture notwithstanding, in no event shall the Trustee be liable for special, indirect, punitive or consequential loss or damage of any kind whatsoever (including but not limited to loss of profit), even if the Trustee has been advised as to the likelihood of such loss or damage and regardless of the form of action.
(xiv) The Trustee shall not be responsible or liable for any failure or delay in the performance of its obligations under this Indenture arising out of or caused, directly or indirectly, by circumstances beyond its control, including acts of God; earthquakes; fire; flood; terrorism; wars and other military disturbances; sabotage; epidemics; riots; interruptions; loss or malfunctions of utilities, computer (hardware or software) or communication services; accidents; labor disputes; acts of civil or military authority and governmental action or other unavailability of the Federal Reserve Bank wire or facsimile or other wire or communication facility.
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(xv) The Trustee shall not be required to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise incur any financial liability in the performance of any of its duties hereunder, or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers, if it shall have reasonable grounds for believing that repayment of such funds or adequate indemnity against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it.
(xvi) The Trustee shall not be required to give any bond or surety in respect of the performance of its powers or duties hereunder.
(xvii) For certain payments made pursuant to this Indenture, the Trustee may be required to make a reportable payment or withholdable payment and in such cases the Trustee shall have the duty to act as a payor or withholding agent, respectively, that is responsible for any tax withholding and reporting required under Chapters 3, 4, and 61 of the Code. The Trustee shall have the sole right to make the determination as to which payments are reportable payments or withholdable payments. All parties to this Indenture shall provide an executed IRS Form W-9 or appropriate IRS Form W-8 (or, in each case, any successor form) to the Trustee prior to closing, and shall promptly update any such form to the extent such form becomes obsolete or inaccurate in any respect. The Trustee shall have the right to request from any party to this Indenture, or any other Person entitled to payment hereunder, any additional forms, documentation or other information as may be reasonably necessary for the Trustee to satisfy its reporting and withholding obligations under the Code. To the extent any such forms to be delivered under this Section 6.02 are not provided prior to or by the time the related payment is required to be made or are determined by the Trustee to be incomplete and/or inaccurate in any respect, the Trustee shall be entitled to withhold on any such payments hereunder to the extent withholding is required under Chapters 3, 4, or 61 of the Code, and shall have no obligation to gross up any such payment.
Section 6.03. Not Responsible for Recitals or Issuance of Securities.
The recitals contained herein and in the Securities, except the Trustees certificate of authentication, shall be taken as the statements of the Company, and neither the Trustee nor any Authenticating Agent assumes any responsibility for their correctness. The Trustee makes no representations as to and shall not be responsible for the validity or sufficiency of this Indenture or of the Securities, except that the Trustee represents that it is duly authorized to execute and deliver this Indenture, authenticate the Securities and perform its obligations hereunder and that the statements made by it in a Statement of Eligibility on Form T-1 supplied to the Company are true and accurate, subject to the qualifications set forth therein. Neither the Trustee nor any Authenticating Agent shall be accountable for the use or application by the Company of Securities or the proceeds thereof or for funds received and disbursed in accordance with Indenture. The Trustee shall not be bound to ascertain or inquire as to the performance, observance, or breach of any covenants, conditions, representations, warranties or agreements on the part of the Company but the Trustee may require full information and advice as to the performance of the aforementioned covenants. Under no circumstances shall the Trustee be liable in its individual capacity for the obligations evidenced by the Securities. The Trustee shall have no obligation to pursue any action that is not in accordance with applicable law. The Trustee makes no representation as to and shall not be responsible for any statement or recital
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herein or any statement in any document in connection with the sale of any of the Securities. The Trustee shall not be responsible for and makes no representation as to any act or omission of any rating agency or any rating with respect to the Securities. The Trustee shall have no obligation to independently determine or verify if any event has occurred or notify the Holders of any event dependent upon the rating of the Securities, or if the rating on the Securities has been changed, suspended or withdrawn by any rating agency.
Section 6.04. May Hold Securities.
The Trustee, any Paying Agent, Security Registrar, Authenticating Agent or any other agent of the Company, in its individual or any other capacity, may become the owner or pledgee of Securities and, subject to TIA Sections 310(b) and 311, may otherwise deal with the Company with the same rights it would have if it were not Trustee, Paying Agent, Security Registrar, Authenticating Agent or such other agent.
Section 6.05. Money Held in Trust.
Money held by the Trustee in trust hereunder need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law. The Trustee shall be under no liability for interest on any money received by it hereunder except as otherwise agreed in writing with the Company.
Section 6.06. Compensation and Reimbursement and Indemnification of Trustee.
The Company agrees:
(i) To pay to the Trustee and any predecessor Trustee from time to time such compensation for all services rendered by it hereunder as has been agreed upon from time to time in writing (which compensation shall not be limited by any provision of law in regard to the compensation of a trustee of an express trust).
(ii) To reimburse each of the Trustee and any predecessor Trustee upon its request for all reasonable expenses, disbursements and advances incurred or made by the Trustee or any predecessor Trustee in accordance with any provision of this Indenture (including the reasonable compensation and the expenses and disbursements of its agents and counsel), except any such expense, disbursement or advance as may be attributable to its negligence or willful misconduct as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction in a final and non-appealable decision.
(iii) To indemnify each of the Trustee and any predecessor Trustee for, and to hold it harmless against, any loss, liability, claim, damage, fee, cost or expense incurred without negligence or willful misconduct on its own part as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction in a final and non-appealable decision, arising out of or in connection with the acceptance or administration of the trust or trusts hereunder, including the costs and expenses (including the reasonable fees and expenses of its agents and counsel) of defending itself against any claim or liability in connection with the exercise or performance of any of its powers or duties hereunder (whether asserted by the Company, any Holder, or any other Person) and the enforcement of this Indenture (including this Section), and including reasonable attorneys fees and expenses and court costs incurred in connection with any action, claim or suit brought to enforce the Trustees right to compensation, reimbursement or indemnification.
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All indemnifications and releases from liability granted hereunder to the Trustee shall extend to its officers, directors, employees, agents, successors and assigns. As security for the performance of the obligations of the Company under this Section, the Trustee shall have a claim prior to the Securities upon all property and funds held or collected by the Trustee as such, except funds held in trust for the payment of principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on particular Securities.
When the Trustee incurs expenses or renders services after an Event of Default specified in Section 5.01 occurs, the expenses and compensation for such services are intended to constitute expenses of administration under Title 11, U.S. Code, or any similar Federal, State or analogous foreign law for the relief of debtors.
The provisions of this Section 6.06 shall survive the resignation or removal of the Trustee and the satisfaction, termination or discharge of this Indenture. Trustee for the purposes of this Section 6.06 shall include any predecessor Trustee and the Trustee in each of its capacities hereunder and each agent, custodian and other person employed to act hereunder; provided, however, that the negligence or willful misconduct of any Trustee hereunder (as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction in a final and non-appealable decision) shall not affect the rights of any other Trustee hereunder.
Section 6.07. Corporate Trustee Required; Eligibility.
There shall at all times be a Trustee hereunder that shall be eligible to act as Trustee under TIA Section 310(a)(1) and shall have a combined capital and surplus of at least $50,000,000. If such corporation publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or to the requirements of Federal, State, Territorial or District of Columbia supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section, the combined capital and surplus of such corporation shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. If at any time the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, it shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect hereinafter specified in this Article.
Section 6.08. Disqualification; Conflicting Interests.
If the Trustee has or shall acquire a conflicting interest within the meaning of the Trust Indenture Act, the Trustee shall either eliminate such interest, apply to the Commission for permission to continue as trustee or resign, to the extent and in the manner provided by, and subject to the provisions of, the Trust Indenture Act and this Indenture. To the extent permitted by such Act, the Trustee shall not be deemed to have a conflicting interest with respect to Securities of any series under this Indenture or any other indenture of the Company by virtue of being a trustee under this Indenture with respect to any particular series of Securities.
Section 6.09. Resignation and Removal; Appointment of Successor.
(a) No resignation or removal of the Trustee and no appointment of a successor Trustee pursuant to this Article shall become effective until the acceptance of appointment by the successor Trustee in accordance with the applicable requirements of Section 6.10.
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(b) The Trustee may resign at any time with respect to the Securities of one or more series by giving written notice thereof to the Company.
(c) The Trustee may be removed at any time with respect to the Securities of any series upon 30 days prior written notice by (i) the Company, by an Officers Certificate delivered to the Trustee, provided that contemporaneously therewith (x) the Company immediately appoints a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of such series meeting the requirements of Section 6.07 hereof and (y) the terms of Section 6.10 hereof are complied with in respect of such appointment (the Trustee being removed hereby agreeing to execute the instrument contemplated by Section 6.10(b) hereof, if applicable, under such circumstances) and provided, further that no Default with respect to such Securities shall have occurred and then be continuing at such time, or (ii) Act of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series delivered to the Trustee and to the Company.
(d) If at any time:
(i) the Trustee shall fail to comply with the provisions of TIA Section 310(b) after written request therefor by the Company or by any Holder of a Security who has been a bona fide Holder of a Security for at least six months (or, if it is a shorter period, the period since the issuance of the Securities of such series), or
(ii) the Trustee shall cease to be eligible under Section 6.07 and shall fail to resign after written request therefor by the Company or by any Holder of a Security who has been a bona fide Holder of a Security for at least six months (or, if it is a shorter period, the period since the initial issuance of the Securities of such series), or
(iii) the Trustee shall become incapable of acting or shall be adjudged a bankrupt or insolvent or a receiver of the Trustee or of its property shall be appointed or any public officer shall take charge or control of the Trustee or of its property or affairs for the purpose of rehabilitation, conservation or liquidation, then, in any such case, (i) the Company by or pursuant to a Board Resolution may remove the Trustee and appoint a successor Trustee with respect to all Securities, or (ii) subject to TIA Section 315(e), any Holder of a Security who has been a bona fide Holder of a Security for at least six months (or, if it is a shorter period, the period since the initial issuance of the Securities of such series) may, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, at the expense of the Company, petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the removal of the Trustee with respect to all Securities and the appointment of a successor Trustee or Trustees.
(e) If an instrument of acceptance by a successor Trustee shall not have been delivered to the Trustee within 30 days after the giving of a notice of resignation or the delivery of an Act of removal, the Trustee resigning or being removed may (at the expense of the Company) petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Trustee.
(f) If the Trustee shall resign, be removed or become incapable of acting, or if a vacancy shall occur in the office of Trustee for any cause with respect to the Securities of one or more series, the Company, by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, shall promptly appoint a
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successor Trustee or Trustees with respect to the Securities of that or those series (it being understood that any such successor Trustee may be appointed with respect to the Securities of one or more or all of such series and that at any time there shall be only one Trustee with respect to the Securities of any particular series). If, within one year after such resignation, removal or incapability, or the occurrence of such vacancy, a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series shall be appointed by Act of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series delivered to the Company and the retiring Trustee, the successor Trustee so appointed shall, forthwith upon its acceptance of such appointment, become the successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of such series and to that extent supersede the successor Trustee appointed by the Company. If no successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series shall have been so appointed by the Company or the Holders of Securities and accepted appointment in the manner hereinafter provided, any Holder of a Security who has been a bona fide Holder of a Security of such series for at least six months may, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, petition any court of competent jurisdiction (at the expense of the Company) for the appointment of a successor Trustee with respect to Securities of such series.
(g) The Company shall give notice of each resignation and each removal of the Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series and each appointment of a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series in the manner provided for notices to the Holders of Securities in Section 1.06. Each notice shall include the name of the successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of such series and the address of its Corporate Trust Office.
Section 6.10. Acceptance of Appointment by Successor.
(a) In case of the appointment hereunder of a successor Trustee with respect to all Securities, every such successor Trustee shall execute, acknowledge and deliver to the Company and to the retiring Trustee an instrument accepting such appointment, and thereupon the resignation or removal of the retiring Trustee shall become effective and such successor Trustee, without any further act, deed or conveyance, shall become vested with all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Trustee; but, on request of the Company or the successor Trustee, such retiring Trustee shall, upon payment of its charges, execute and deliver an instrument transferring to such successor Trustee all the rights, powers and trusts of the retiring Trustee, and shall duly assign, transfer and deliver to such successor Trustee all property and money held by such retiring Trustee hereunder, subject nevertheless to its claim, if any, provided for in Section 6.06.
(b) In case of the appointment hereunder of a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more (but not all) series, the Company, the retiring Trustee and each successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more series shall execute and deliver an indenture supplemental hereto wherein each successor Trustee shall accept such appointment and that (i) shall contain such provisions as shall be necessary or desirable to transfer and confirm to, and to vest in, each successor Trustee all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Trustee with respect to the Securities of that or those series to which the appointment of such successor Trustee relates, (ii) shall contain such provisions as shall be deemed necessary or desirable to confirm that all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Trustee with respect to the Securities of that or those series as to which the retiring Trustee is not retiring shall
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continue to be vested in the retiring Trustee, and (iii) shall add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one Trustee, it being understood that nothing herein or in such supplemental indenture shall constitute such Trustees co-trustees of the same trust and that each such Trustee shall be trustee of a trust or trusts hereunder separate and apart from any trust or trusts hereunder administered by any other such Trustee; and upon the execution and delivery of such supplemental indenture the resignation or removal of the retiring Trustee shall become effective to the extent provided therein and each such successor Trustee, without any further act, deed or conveyance, shall become vested with all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the retiring Trustee with respect to the Securities of that or those series to which the appointment of such successor Trustee relates; but, on request of the Company or any successor Trustee, such retiring Trustee shall duly assign, transfer and deliver to such successor Trustee all property and money held by such retiring Trustee hereunder with respect to the Securities of that or those series to which the appointment of such successor Trustee relates. Whenever there is a successor Trustee with respect to one or more (but less than all) series of securities issued pursuant to this Indenture, the terms Indenture and Securities shall have the meanings specified in the provisos to the respective definition of those terms in Section 1.01 which contemplate such situation.
(c) Upon request of any such successor Trustee, the Company shall execute any and all instruments reasonably necessary to more fully and certainly vesting in and confirming to such successor Trustee all such rights, powers and trusts referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) of this Section, as the case may be.
(d) No successor Trustee shall accept its appointment unless at the time of such acceptance such successor Trustee shall be qualified and eligible under this Article.
Section 6.11. Merger, Conversion, Consolidation or Succession to Business.
Any corporation into which the Trustee may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which the Trustee shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to all or substantially all of the corporate trust business of the Trustee, shall be the successor of the Trustee hereunder, provided such corporation shall be otherwise qualified and eligible under this Article, without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of any of the parties hereto. In case any Securities shall have been authenticated, but not delivered, by the Trustee then in office, any successor by merger, conversion or consolidation to such authenticating Trustee may adopt such authentication and deliver the Securities so authenticated with the same effect as if such successor Trustee had itself authenticated such Securities. In case any Securities shall not have been authenticated by such predecessor Trustee, any such successor Trustee may authenticate and deliver such Securities, in either its own name or that of its predecessor Trustee, with the full force and effect which this Indenture provides for the certificate of authentication of the Trustee; provided, however, that the right to adopt the certificate of authentication of any predecessor Trustee or to authenticate Securities in the name of any predecessor Trustee shall apply only to its successor or successors by merger, conversion or consolidation.
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Section 6.12. Appointment of Authenticating Agent.
At any time when any of the Securities remain Outstanding, the Trustee may appoint an Authenticating Agent or Agents (which may be an Affiliate or Affiliates of the Company) with respect to one or more series of Securities that shall be authorized to act on behalf of the Trustee to authenticate Securities of such series issued upon original issue or upon exchange, registration of transfer or partial redemption thereof, and Securities so authenticated shall be entitled to the benefits of this Indenture and shall be valid and obligatory for all purposes as if authenticated by the Trustee hereunder. Any such appointment shall be evidenced by an instrument in writing signed by a Responsible Officer of the Trustee, a copy of which instrument shall be promptly furnished to the Company. Wherever reference is made in this Indenture to the authentication and delivery of Securities by the Trustee or the Trustees certificate of authentication, such reference shall be deemed to include authentication and delivery on behalf of the Trustee by an Authenticating Agent and a certificate of authentication executed on behalf of the Trustee by an Authenticating Agent. Each Authenticating Agent shall be acceptable to the Company and, except as may otherwise be provided pursuant to Section 3.01, shall at all times be a bank or trust company or corporation organized and doing business and in good standing under the laws of the United States of America or of any State or the District of Columbia, authorized under such laws to act as Authenticating Agent, having a combined capital and surplus of not less than $1,500,000 and subject to supervision or examination by Federal or State authorities.
If such Authenticating Agent publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or the requirements of the aforesaid supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section, the combined capital and surplus of such Authenticating Agent shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. In case at any time an Authenticating Agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, such Authenticating Agent shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in this Section.
Any corporation into which an Authenticating Agent may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which such Authenticating Agent shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to the corporate agency or corporate trust business of an Authenticating Agent, shall continue to be an Authenticating Agent, provided such corporation shall be otherwise eligible under this Section, without the execution or filing of any paper or further act on the part of the Trustee or the Authenticating Agent.
An Authenticating Agent for any series of Securities may at any time resign by giving written notice of resignation to the Trustee for such series and to the Company. The Trustee for any series of Securities may at any time terminate the agency of an Authenticating Agent by giving written notice of termination to such Authenticating Agent and to the Company. Upon receiving such a notice of resignation or upon such a termination, or in case at any time such Authenticating Agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the Trustee for such series may appoint a successor Authenticating Agent which shall be acceptable to the Company and shall promptly give written notice of such appointment to all Holders of Securities of the series with respect to which such Authenticating Agent will serve in the manner set forth in Section 1.06. Any successor Authenticating Agent upon acceptance of its
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appointment hereunder shall become vested with all the rights, powers and duties of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as an Authenticating Agent herein. No successor Authenticating Agent shall be appointed unless eligible under the provisions of this Section.
The Company agrees to pay to each Authenticating Agent from time to time reasonable compensation including reimbursement of its reasonable expenses for its services under this Section.
If an appointment with respect to one or more series is made pursuant to this Section, the Securities of such series may have endorsed thereon, in addition to or in lieu of the Trustees certificate of authentication, an alternate certificate of authentication substantially in the following form:
This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Authenticating Agent | ||
By: |
|
|
Authorized Signatory |
If all of the Securities of a series may not be originally issued at one time, and the Trustee does not have an office capable of authenticating Securities upon original issuance located in a Place of Payment where the Company wishes to have Securities of such series authenticated upon original issuance, the Trustee, if so requested by the Company in writing (which writing need not comply with Section 1.02 and need not be accompanied by an Opinion of Counsel), shall appoint in accordance with this Section an Authenticating Agent (which, if so requested by the Company, shall be an Affiliate of the Company) having an office in a Place of Payment designated by the Company with respect to such series of Securities, provided that the terms and conditions of such appointment are reasonably acceptable to the Trustee.
Section 6.13. Preferential Collection of Claims Against Company.
The Trustee is subject to TIA Section 311(a), excluding any creditor relationship listed in TIA Section 311(b). A Trustee who has resigned or been removed shall be subject to TIA Section 311(a) to the extent indicated therein.
ARTICLE SEVEN
HOLDERS LISTS AND REPORTS BY TRUSTEE AND COMPANY
Section 7.01. Disclosure of Names and Addresses of Holders.
Every Holder of Securities, by receiving and holding the same, agrees with the Company and the Trustee that neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any Authenticating Agent nor any Paying Agent nor any Security Registrar nor any agent of any of them shall be held accountable by reason of the disclosure of any information as to the names and addresses of the Holders of Securities in accordance with TIA Section 312, regardless of the source from which such information was derived, and that the Trustee shall not be held accountable by reason of mailing or sending any material pursuant to a request made under TIA Section 312(b).
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Section 7.02. Preservation of Information; Communications to Holders.
(a) The Trustee shall preserve, in as current a form as is reasonably practicable, the names and addresses of Holders contained in the most recent list furnished to the Trustee as provided in Section 7.01 and the names and addresses of Holders received by the Trustee in its capacity as Security Registrar. The Trustee may destroy any list furnished to it as provided in Section 7.01 upon receipt of a new list so furnished.
(b) The rights of Holders to communicate with other Holders with respect to their rights under this Indenture or under the Securities, and the corresponding rights and duties of the Trustee, shall be as provided by the Trust Indenture Act.
(c) Every Holder of Securities, by receiving and holding the same, agrees with the Company and the Trustee that neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any agent of either of them shall be held accountable by reason of any disclosure of information as to the names and addresses of Holders made pursuant to the Trust Indenture Act.
Section 7.03. Reports by Trustee.
Within 60 days after May 15 of each year commencing with the first May 15 after the first issuance of Securities pursuant to this Indenture, the Trustee shall transmit by mail or send to all Holders of Securities as provided in TIA Section 313(c) a brief report dated as of such May 15 which meets the requirements of TIA Section 313(a).
A copy of each such report shall, at the time of such transmission to Holders, be filed by the Trustee with each stock exchange, if any, upon which the Securities are listed, with the Commission and with the Company. The Company will promptly notify the Trustee of the listing of the Securities on any stock exchange. In the event that, on any such reporting date, no events have occurred under the applicable sections of the TIA within the 12 months preceding such reporting date, the Trustee shall be under no duty or obligation to provide such reports.
Section 7.04. Reports by Company.
The Company will file with the Trustee and the Commission, and transmit to Holders, such information, documents and other reports, and such summaries thereof, as may be required pursuant to the Trust Indenture Act; provided, that any such information, documents or reports filed electronically with the Commission pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act shall be deemed filed with and delivered to the Trustee and the Holders at the same time as filed with the Commission. The Trustee shall have no obligation whatsoever to determine whether or not such information, documents or reports have been filed pursuant to the EDGAR filing system (or its successor) or postings to any website have occurred.
Delivery of such reports, information, and documents to the Trustee is for informational purposes only and the Trustees receipt of such shall not constitute constructive notice of any information contained therein or determinable from information contained therein, including the Companys compliance with any of its covenants hereunder (as to which the Trustee is entitled to conclusively rely exclusively on Officers Certificates).
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Section 7.05. Calculation of Original Issue Discount.
The Company shall file with the Trustee promptly at the end of each calendar year a written notice specifying (i) the amount of original issue discount (including daily rates and accrual periods), if any, accrued on Outstanding Securities as of the end of such year and (ii) such other specific information relating to such original issue discount as may then be relevant under the Code.
ARTICLE EIGHT
CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, CONVEYANCE OR TRANSFER
Section 8.01. Merger, Consolidation or Sale of Assets.
The Company shall not merge or consolidate with or into any other Person (other than a merger of a wholly owned Subsidiary of the Company into the Company) or sell, transfer, lease, convey or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of its property (provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, a pledge of assets pursuant to any secured debt instrument of the Company or its Subsidiaries shall not be deemed to be any such sale, transfer, lease, conveyance or disposition; and provided further that this Section 8.01 shall not apply to any sale, transfer, lease, conveyance, or other disposition of all or substantially all of the Companys property to a wholly owned Subsidiary) in one transaction or series of related transactions unless:
(i) the Company shall be the surviving Person (the Surviving Person) or the Surviving Person (if other than the Company) formed by such merger or consolidation or to which such sale, transfer, lease, conveyance or disposition is made shall be a corporation or limited liability company or trust organized and existing under the laws of the United States of America or any state or territory thereof or the District of Columbia;
(ii) the Surviving Person (if other than the Company) expressly assumes, by supplemental indenture in form reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, executed and delivered to the Trustee by such Surviving Person, the due and punctual payment of the principal of, and premium, if any, and interest on, all the Securities Outstanding, and the due and punctual performance and observance of all the covenants and conditions of this Indenture to be performed by the Company;
(iii) immediately before and immediately after giving effect to such transaction or series of related transactions, no Default or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing; and
(iv) the Company shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, to the Trustee, an Officers Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that such transaction and the supplemental indenture, if any, in respect thereto comply with this Section 8.01, that all conditions precedent in this Indenture relating to such transaction have been complied with.
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For the purposes of this Section 8.01, the sale, transfer, lease, conveyance or other disposition of all the property of one or more Subsidiaries of the Company, which property, if held by the Company instead of such Subsidiaries, would constitute all or substantially all the property of the Company on a consolidated basis, shall be deemed to be the transfer of all or substantially all the property of the Company.
Section 8.02. Successor Person Substituted.
Upon any consolidation or merger, or any conveyance or transfer of the properties and assets of the Company substantially as an entirety in accordance with Section 8.01, the successor Person formed by such consolidation or into which the Company is merged or the successor Person to which such conveyance or transfer is made shall succeed to, and be substituted for, and may exercise every right and power of, the Company under this Indenture with the same effect as if such successor had been named as the Company herein; and in the event of any such conveyance or transfer, the Company shall be discharged from all obligations and covenants under this Indenture and the Securities and may be dissolved and liquidated.
ARTICLE NINE
SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES
Section 9.01. Supplemental Indentures Without Consent of Holders.
Without the consent of any Holders of Securities, the Company, when authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, and the Trustee, at any time and from time to time, may enter into one or more indentures supplemental hereto, in form reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, for any of the following purposes:
(i) to evidence the succession of another Person to the Company and the assumption by any such successor of the covenants of the Company herein and in the Securities contained; or
(ii) to add to the covenants of the Company for the benefit of the Holders of all or any series of Securities (and if such covenants are to be for the benefit of less than all series of Securities, stating that such covenants are expressly being included solely for the benefit of such series) or to surrender any right or power herein conferred upon the Company; or
(iii) to add any additional Events of Default for the benefit of the Holders of all or any series of Securities (and if such Events of Default are to be for the benefit of less than all series of Securities, stating that such Events of Default are expressly being included solely for the benefit of such series); provided, however, that in respect of any such additional Events of Default such supplemental indenture may provide for a particular period of grace after default (which period may be shorter or longer than that allowed in the case of other defaults) or may provide for an immediate enforcement upon such default or may limit the remedies available to the Trustee upon such default or may limit the right of the Holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of that or those series of Securities to which such additional Events of Default apply to waive such default; or
(iv) to change or eliminate any of the provisions of this Indenture; provided that any such change or elimination shall become effective only when there is no Security Outstanding of any series created prior to the execution of such supplemental indenture that is entitled to the benefit of such provision; or
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(v) to secure any series of the Securities pursuant to the requirements of Section 8.01, or otherwise; or
(vi) to establish the form or terms of Securities of any series as permitted by Sections 2.01 and 3.01, including the provisions and procedures relating to Securities convertible into or exchangeable for any securities of any Person (including the Company), or to authorize the issuance of additional Securities of a series previously authorized or to add to the conditions, limitations or restrictions on the authorized amount, terms or purposes of issue, authentication or delivery of the Securities of any series, as herein set forth, or other conditions, limitations or restrictions thereafter to be observed; or
(vii) to evidence and provide for the acceptance of appointment hereunder by a successor Trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more series and to add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one Trustee; or
(viii) to cure any ambiguity, to correct or supplement any provision herein that may be inconsistent with any other provision herein, or to make any other provisions with respect to the matters or questions arising under this Indenture; provided that such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the Holders of Securities of any series in any material respect, in each case as determined in good faith by the Company, as evidenced by an Officers Certificate; or
(ix) to supplement any of the provisions of this Indenture to such extent as shall be necessary to permit or facilitate the defeasance and discharge of any series of Securities pursuant to Sections 4.01, 14.02 and 14.03; provided that any such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the Holders of Securities of such series or any other series of Securities in any material respect as determined in good faith by the Company, as evidenced in an Officers Certificate; or
(x) to add guarantors or co-obligors with respect to any series of Securities or to release guarantors from their guarantees of Securities in accordance with the terms of the applicable series of Securities; or
(xi) to make any change in any series of Securities that does not adversely affect in any material respect the rights of the Holders of such Securities as determined in good faith by the Company, as evidenced in an Officers Certificate.
Section 9.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Holders.
With the consent of the Holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of all Outstanding Securities affected by such supplemental indenture, by Act of said Holders delivered to the Company and the Trustee, the Company, when authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto for the purpose of adding any provisions to or changing in any manner or eliminating any of the provisions of this Indenture that affects such series of Securities or of modifying in any manner the rights of the Holders of such series of Securities under this Indenture; provided, however, that no such supplemental indenture shall, without the consent of the Holder of each Outstanding Security affected thereby:
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(i) change the Stated Maturity of the principal of (or premium, if any) or any installment of principal of or interest on, any Security, subject to the provisions of Section 3.08; or the terms of any sinking fund with respect to any Security; or reduce the principal amount thereof or the rate of interest (or change the manner of calculating the rate of interest, thereon, or any premium payable upon the redemption thereof, or change any obligation of the Company to pay Additional Amounts pursuant to Section 10.04 (except as contemplated by Section 8.01(i) and permitted by Section 9.01(i)), or reduce the portion of the principal of an Original Issue Discount Security or Indexed Security that would be due and payable upon a declaration of acceleration of the Maturity thereof pursuant to Section 5.02, or upon the redemption thereof or the amount thereof provable in bankruptcy pursuant to Section 5.04, or adversely affect any right of repayment at the option of the Holder of any Security, or change any Place of Payment where, or the Currency in which, any Security or any premium or interest thereon is payable, or impair the right to institute suit for the enforcement of any such payment on or after the Stated Maturity thereof (or, in the case of redemption or repayment at the option of the Holder, on or after the Redemption Date or the Repayment Date, as the case may be), or adversely affect any right to convert or exchange any Security as may be provided pursuant to Section 3.01 herein, or modify the subordination provisions set forth in Article Sixteen in a manner that is adverse to the Holder of any Security, or
(ii) reduce the percentage in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of any series, the consent of whose Holders is required for any such supplemental indenture, or the consent of whose Holders is required for any waiver with respect to such series (of compliance with certain provisions of this Indenture or certain defaults hereunder and their consequences) provided for in this Indenture, or reduce the requirements of Section 15.04 for quorum or voting, or
(iii) modify any of the provisions of this Section, Section 5.13 or Section 10.06, except to increase any such percentage or to provide that certain other provisions of this Indenture cannot be modified or waived without the consent of the Holder of each Outstanding Security affected thereby; provided, however, that this clause shall not be deemed to require the consent of any Holder of a Security with respect to changes in the references to the Trustee and concomitant changes in this Section, or the deletion of this proviso, in accordance with the requirements of Sections 6.10(b) and 9.01(viii).
It shall not be necessary for any Act of Holders under this Section to approve the particular form of any proposed supplemental indenture, but it shall be sufficient if such Act shall approve the substance thereof.
A supplemental indenture that changes or eliminates any covenant or other provision of this Indenture which has expressly been included solely for the benefit of one or more particular series of Securities, or that modifies the rights of the Holders of Securities of such series with respect to such covenant or other provision, shall be deemed not to affect the rights under this Indenture of the Holders of Securities of any other series.
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The Company may, but shall not be obligated to, fix a record date for the purpose of determining the Persons entitled to consent to any indenture supplemental hereto. If a record date is fixed, the Holders on such record date, or their duly designated proxies, and only such Persons, shall be entitled to consent to such supplemental indenture, whether or not such Holders remain Holders after such record date; provided, that unless such consent shall have become effective by virtue of the requisite percentage having been obtained prior to the date that is eleven months after such record date, any such consent previously given shall automatically and without further action by any Holder be cancelled and of no further effect.
Section 9.03. Execution of Supplemental Indentures.
In executing, or accepting the additional trusts created by, any supplemental indenture permitted by this Article or the modification thereby of the trusts created by this Indenture, the Trustee shall receive, and shall be fully protected in relying upon, in addition to the documents required by Section 1.02 of this Indenture, an Officers Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel stating that the execution of such supplemental indenture is authorized or permitted by this Indenture, constitutes the legal, valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms and that all conditions precedent to such supplemental indenture have been complied with, subject to customary assumptions and exceptions. The Trustee may, but shall not be obligated to, enter into any such supplemental indenture that affects the Trustees own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise.
Section 9.04. Effect of Supplemental Indentures.
Upon the execution of any supplemental indenture under this Article, this Indenture shall be modified in accordance therewith, and such supplemental indenture shall form a part of this Indenture for all purposes; and every Holder of Securities theretofore or thereafter authenticated and delivered hereunder shall be bound thereby.
Section 9.05. Conformity with Trust Indenture Act.
Every supplemental indenture executed pursuant to this Article shall conform to the requirements of the Trust Indenture Act as then in effect.
Section 9.06. Reference in Securities to Supplemental Indentures.
Securities of any series authenticated and delivered after the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to this Article may, and shall, if required by the Trustee, bear a notation in form approved by the Trustee as to any matter provided for in such supplemental indenture. If the Company shall so determine, new Securities of any series so modified as to conform, in the opinion of the Trustee and the Company, to any such supplemental indenture may be prepared and executed by the Company and authenticated and delivered by the Trustee in exchange for Outstanding Securities of such series.
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ARTICLE TEN
COVENANTS
Section 10.01. Payment of Principal, Premium, if any, and Interest.
The Company covenants and agrees for the benefit of the Holders of each series of Securities that it will duly and punctually pay the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on the Securities of that series in accordance with the terms of such series of Securities and this Indenture. Unless otherwise specified with respect to Securities of any series pursuant to Section 3.01, at the option of the Company, all payments of principal may be paid by check to the registered Holder of the Registered Security or other person entitled thereto against surrender of such Security.
Section 10.02. Maintenance of Office or Agency.
The Company shall maintain in each Place of Payment for any series of Securities an office or agency where Securities of that series may be presented or surrendered for payment, provided that payment by wire transfer of immediately available funds will be required with respect to principal of, premium on, if any, and interest, if any, on, all Global Notes, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer or exchange, where Securities of that series that are convertible or exchangeable may be surrendered for conversion or exchange, as applicable, and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served.
The Company may also from time to time designate one or more other offices or agencies where the Securities of one or more series may be presented or surrendered for any or all of such purposes, and may from time to time rescind such designations; provided, however, that no such designation or rescission shall in any manner relieve the Company of its obligation to maintain an office or agency in accordance with the requirements set forth above for Securities of any series for such purposes. The Company will give prompt written notice to the Trustee of any such designation or rescission and of any change in the location of any such other office or agency. Unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01 with respect to a series of Securities, the Company hereby designates as a Place of Payment for each series of Securities the Corporate Trust Office, and initially appoints the Trustee at its Corporate Trust Office as Paying Agent, and as its agent to receive all such presentations, surrenders, notices and demands.
Unless otherwise specified with respect to any Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, if and so long as the Securities of any series (i) are denominated in a currency other than Dollars or (ii) may be payable in a currency other than Dollars, or so long as it is required under any other provision of the Indenture, then the Company will maintain with respect to each such series of Securities, or as so required, at least one Exchange Rate Agent. The Company will notify the Trustee of the name and address of any Exchange Rate Agent retained by it.
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Section 10.03. Money for Securities Payments to Be Held in Trust.
If the Company shall at any time act as its own Paying Agent with respect to any series of any Securities, it will, on or before each due date of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any of the Securities of that series, segregate and hold in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled thereto a sum in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)) sufficient to pay the principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on Securities of such series so becoming due until such sums shall be paid to such Persons or otherwise disposed of as herein provided, and will promptly notify the Trustee of its action or failure so to act.
Whenever the Company shall have one or more Paying Agents for any series of Securities, it will, on or before each due date of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Securities of that series, deposit with a Paying Agent a sum (in the Currency or Currencies described in the preceding paragraph), sufficient to pay the principal (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, so becoming due, such sum of money to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled to such principal, premium or interest and (unless such Paying Agent is the Trustee) the Company will promptly notify the Trustee of its action or failure so to act.
The Company may at any time, for the purpose of obtaining the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture or for any other purpose, pay, or by Company Order direct any Paying Agent to pay, to the Trustee all sums of money held in trust by the Company or such Paying Agent, such sums to be held by the Trustee upon the same trusts as those upon which such sums were held by the Company or such Paying Agent; and, upon such payment by any Paying Agent to the Trustee, such Paying Agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such sums.
Except as otherwise provided in the Securities of any series, any money deposited with the Trustee or any Paying Agent, or then held by the Company, in trust for the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Security of any series, and remaining unclaimed for two years after such principal, premium or interest has become due and payable shall be paid to the Company upon Company Request, or (if then held by the Company) shall be discharged from such trust; and the Holder of such Security shall thereafter, as an unsecured general creditor, look only to the Company for payment thereof, and all liability of the Trustee or such Paying Agent with respect to such money held in trust, and all liability of the Company as trustee thereof, shall thereupon cease; provided, however, that the Trustee or such Paying Agent, before being required to make any such repayment, may at the expense of the Company cause to be published once, in an Authorized Newspaper, notice that such money remains unclaimed and that, after a date specified therein, which shall not be less than 30 days from the date of such publication, any unclaimed balance of such money then remaining will be repaid to the Company, subject to abandoned property laws.
Section 10.04. Additional Amounts.
If the Securities of a series provide for the payment of Additional Amounts, the Company will pay to the Holder of any Security of such series such Additional Amounts as may be specified as contemplated by Section 3.01. Whenever in this Indenture there is mentioned, in any context, the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Security of any series or the net proceeds received on the sale or exchange of any Security of any series, such mention shall be deemed to include mention of the payment of Additional Amounts
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provided for by the terms of such series established pursuant to Section 3.01 to the extent that, in such context, Additional Amounts are, were or would be payable in respect thereof pursuant to such terms and express mention of the payment of Additional Amounts (if applicable) in any provisions hereof shall not be construed as excluding Additional Amounts in those provisions hereof where such express mention is not made.
Except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01, if the Securities of a series provide for the payment of Additional Amounts, at least 10 days prior to the first Interest Payment Date with respect to that series of Securities (or if the Securities of that series will not bear interest prior to Maturity, the first day on which a payment of principal premium is made), and at least 10 days prior to each date of payment of principal, premium or interest if there has been any change with respect to the matters set forth in the below-mentioned Officers Certificate, the Company will furnish the Trustee and the Companys principal Paying Agent or Paying Agents, if other than the Trustee, with an Officers Certificate instructing the Trustee and such Paying Agent or Paying Agents whether such payment of principal, premium or interest on the Securities of that series shall be made to Holders of Securities of that series who are not United States persons without withholding for or on account of any tax, assessment or other governmental charge described in the Securities of that series. If any such withholding shall be required, then such Officers Certificate shall specify by country the amount, if any, required to be withheld on such payments to such Holders of Securities of that series and the Company will pay to the Trustee or such Paying Agent the Additional Amounts required by the terms of such Securities. In the event that the Trustee or any Paying Agent, as the case may be, shall not so receive the above-mentioned certificate, then the Trustee or such Paying Agent shall be entitled (i) to assume that no such withholding or deduction is required with respect to any payment of principal or interest with respect to any Securities of a series until it shall have received a certificate advising otherwise and (ii) to make all payments of principal and interest with respect to the Securities of a series without withholding or deductions until otherwise advised. The Company covenants to indemnify the Trustee and any Paying Agent for, and to hold them harmless against, any loss, liability or expense reasonably incurred without negligence or willful misconduct on their part arising out of or in connection with actions taken or omitted by any of them in reliance on any Officers Certificate furnished pursuant to this Section or in reliance on the Companys not furnishing such an Officers Certificate.
Section 10.05. Statement as to Compliance.
The Company will deliver to the Trustee, within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year ending after the date hereof so long as any Security is Outstanding hereunder, an Officers Certificate one signer of which shall be either the principal executive officer, the principal financial officer or the principal accounting officer of the Company, that need not comply with Section 1.02 stating to the knowledge of the signers thereof whether the Company is in default in the performance of any of the terms, provisions or conditions of this Indenture. For purposes of this Section 10.05, such default shall be determined without regard to any period of grace or requirement of notice under this Indenture.
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Section 10.06. Waiver of Certain Covenants.
The Company may omit in any particular instance to comply with any covenant or condition of the Company set forth herein or added to Article Ten pursuant to Section 3.01(xiv) or Section 3.01(xv) in connection with the Securities of a series, if before or after the time for such compliance the Holders of at least a majority in aggregate principal amount of all Outstanding Securities of such series, by Act of such Holders, either waive such compliance in such instance or generally waive compliance with such covenant or condition, but no such waiver shall extend to or affect such covenant or condition except to the extent so expressly waived, and, until such waiver shall become effective, the obligations of the Company and the duties of the Trustee in respect of any such covenant or condition shall remain in full force and effect.
ARTICLE ELEVEN
REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES
Section 11.01. Applicability of Article.
Securities of any series that are redeemable before their Stated Maturity shall be redeemable in accordance with their terms and (except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01 for Securities of any series) in accordance with this Article.
Section 11.02. Election to Redeem; Notice to Trustee.
The election of the Company to redeem any Securities shall be evidenced by or pursuant to a Board Resolution. In case of any redemption at the election of the Company of less than all of the Securities of any series, the Company shall, at least 60 days prior to the Redemption Date fixed by the Company (unless a shorter notice shall be satisfactory to the Trustee), notify the Trustee in writing of such Redemption Date and of the principal amount of Securities of such series to be redeemed, and, if applicable, of the tenor of the Securities to be redeemed, and shall deliver to the Trustee such documentation and records as shall enable the Trustee to select the Securities to be redeemed pursuant to Section 11.03. In the case of any redemption of Securities of any series prior to the expiration of any restriction on such redemption provided in the terms of such Securities or elsewhere in this Indenture, the Company shall furnish the Trustee with an Officers Certificate evidencing compliance with such restriction.
Section 11.03. Selection by Trustee of Securities to Be Redeemed.
If less than all of the Securities are to be redeemed at any time, and the Securities are global Securities, the Securities to be redeemed will be selected by the Trustee in accordance with applicable Depositary procedures. If the Securities to be redeemed or repurchased are not global Securities then held by the Depositary, the Trustee shall select the Securities to be redeemed (i) if the Securities are listed on any national securities exchange, in compliance with the requirements of the principal national securities exchange on which the Securities are listed, (ii) on a pro rata basis to the extent practicable or (iii) to the extent that selection on a pro rata basis is not practicable by lot or such other similar method the Trustee deems to be fair and appropriate from the Outstanding Securities of such series issued on such date with the same terms not previously called for redemption, not less than 30 nor more than 60 days prior to the
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redemption date; provided that such method complies with the rules of any national securities exchange or quotation system on which the Securities are listed, and may provide for the selection for redemption of portions (equal to the minimum authorized denomination for Securities of that series or any integral multiple thereof) of the principal amount of Securities of such series of a denomination larger than the minimum authorized denomination for Securities of that series; provided, however, that no such partial redemption shall reduce the portion of the principal amount of a Security not redeemed to less than the minimum authorized denomination for Securities of such series.
The Trustee shall promptly notify the Company and the Security Registrar (if other than itself) in writing of the Securities selected for redemption and, in the case of any Securities selected for partial redemption, the principal amount thereof to be redeemed.
For all purposes of this Indenture, unless the context otherwise requires, all provisions relating to the redemption of Securities shall relate, in the case of any Security redeemed or to be redeemed only in part, to the portion of the principal amount of such Security which has been or is to be redeemed.
Section 11.04. Notice of Redemption.
Notice of redemption shall be given in the manner provided in Section 1.06, not less than 30 days nor more than 60 days prior to the Redemption Date, unless a shorter period is specified by the terms of such series established pursuant to Section 3.01, to each Holder of Securities to be redeemed, but failure to give such notice in the manner herein provided to the Holder of any Security designated for redemption as a whole or in part, or any defect in the notice to any such Holder, shall not affect the validity of the proceedings for the redemption of any other such Security or portion thereof.
Any notice that is mailed or sent to the Holders of Registered Securities in the manner herein provided shall be conclusively presumed to have been duly given, whether or not the Holder receives the notice.
All notices of redemption shall identify the Securities to be redeemed and shall state:
(i) the Redemption Date,
(ii) the Redemption Price and accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date payable as provided in Section 11.06,
(iii) if less than all Outstanding Securities of any series are to be redeemed, the identification (and, in the case of partial redemption, the principal amount) of the particular Security or Securities to be redeemed,
(iv) in case any Security is to be redeemed in part only, the notice that relates to such Security shall state that on and after the Redemption Date, upon surrender of such Security, the Holder will receive, without a charge, a new Security or Securities of authorized denominations for the principal amount thereof remaining unredeemed,
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(v) that on the Redemption Date, the Redemption Price and accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date payable as provided in Section 11.06 will become due and payable upon each such Security, or the portion thereof, to be redeemed and, if applicable, that interest thereon shall cease to accrue on and after said date,
(vi) the Place or Places of Payment where such Securities, if any, maturing after the Redemption Date, are to be surrendered for payment of the Redemption Price and accrued interest, if any, and the name of any Paying Agent,
(vii) that the redemption is for a sinking fund, if such is the case, and
(viii) the CUSIP number of such Security, if any, and that no representation is made as to the correctness or accuracy of the CUSIP number, if any, listed in such notice or printed on the Security.
A notice of redemption published as contemplated by Section 1.06 need not identify particular Registered Securities to be redeemed. Notice of redemption of Securities to be redeemed shall be given by the Company or, at the Companys request, delivered to the Trustee at least 5 Business Days prior to the date the notice of redemption is to be sent (unless a shorter period shall be satisfactory to the Trustee), an Officers Certificate requesting that the Trustee give such notice together with the notice to be given setting forth the information to be stated therein as provided in the preceding paragraph, by the Trustee in the name and at the expense of the Company.
Section 11.05. Deposit of Redemption Price.
On or prior to 11:00 am, New York City time, on the Business Day prior to any Redemption Date, the Company shall deposit with the Trustee or with a Paying Agent (or, if the Company is acting as its own Paying Agent, in accordance with the terms of this Indenture, segregate and hold in trust as provided in Section 10.03) an amount of money in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)) sufficient to pay on the Redemption Date the Redemption Price of, and (unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01) accrued interest on, all the Securities or portions thereof which are to be redeemed on that date.
Section 11.06. Securities Payable on Redemption Date.
Notice of redemption having been given as aforesaid, the Securities so to be redeemed shall, on the Redemption Date, become due and payable at the Redemption Price therein specified in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)) (together with accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date), and from and after such date (unless the Company shall default in the payment of the Redemption Price and accrued interest, if any) such Securities shall if the same were interest-bearing cease to bear interest. Upon surrender of any such Security for redemption in accordance with said notice, such Security shall be paid by the Company at the Redemption Price, together with accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date; provided, however, that,
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unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01, installments of interest on Registered Securities whose Stated Maturity is on or prior to the Redemption Date shall be payable to the Holders of such Securities, or one or more Predecessor Securities, registered as such at the close of business on the relevant Record Dates according to their terms and the provisions of Section 3.07.
If any Security called for redemption shall not be so paid upon surrender thereof for redemption, the Redemption Price shall, until paid, bear interest from the Redemption Date at the rate of interest set forth in such Security or, in the case of an Original Issue Discount Security, at the Yield to Maturity of such Security.
Section 11.07. Securities Redeemed in Part.
Any Registered Security that is to be redeemed only in part (pursuant to the provisions of this Article or of Article Twelve) shall be surrendered at a Place of Payment therefor (with, if the Company or the Trustee so requires, due endorsement by, or a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee duly executed by, the Holder thereof or such Holders attorney duly authorized in writing) and the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver to the Holder of such Security without service charge a new Security or Securities of the same series and of like tenor, of any authorized denomination as requested by such Holder in aggregate principal amount equal to and in exchange for the unredeemed portion of the principal of the Security so surrendered. If a temporary global Security or permanent global Security is so surrendered, such new Security so issued shall be a new temporary global Security or permanent global Security, respectively. However, if less than all the Securities of any series with differing issue dates, interest rates and stated maturities are to be redeemed, the Company in its sole discretion shall select the particular Securities to be redeemed and shall notify the Trustee in writing thereof at least 45 days prior to the relevant redemption date.
ARTICLE TWELVE
SINKING FUNDS
Section 12.01. Applicability of Article.
The provisions of this Article shall be applicable to any sinking fund for the retirement of Securities of a series except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 3.01 for Securities of such series.
The minimum amount of any sinking fund payment provided for by the terms of Securities of any series is herein referred to as a mandatory sinking fund payment, and any payment in excess of such minimum amount provided for by the terms of such Securities of any series is herein referred to as an optional sinking fund payment. If provided for by the terms of any Securities of any series, the cash amount of any mandatory sinking fund payment may be subject to reduction as provided in Section 12.02. Each sinking fund payment shall be applied to the redemption of Securities of any series as provided for by the terms of Securities of such series.
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Section 12.02. Satisfaction of Sinking Fund Payments with Securities.
The Company may, in satisfaction of all or any part of any mandatory sinking fund payment with respect to the Securities of a series, (i) deliver Outstanding Securities of such series (other than any previously called for redemption) and (ii) apply as a credit Securities of such series which have been redeemed either at the election of the Company pursuant to the terms of such Securities or through the application of permitted optional sinking fund payments pursuant to the terms of such Securities, as provided for by the terms of such Securities; provided that such Securities so delivered or applied as a credit have not been previously so credited. Such Securities shall be received and credited for such purpose by the Trustee at the applicable Redemption Price specified in such Securities for redemption through operation of the sinking fund and the amount of such mandatory sinking fund payment shall be reduced accordingly.
Section 12.03. Redemption of Securities for Sinking Fund.
Not less than 60 days prior to each sinking fund payment date for Securities of any series, the Company will deliver to the Trustee an Officers Certificate specifying the amount of the next ensuing mandatory sinking fund payment for that series pursuant to the terms of that series, the portion thereof, if any, which is to be satisfied by payment of cash in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)) and the portion thereof, if any, which is to be satisfied by delivering and crediting Securities of that series pursuant to Section 12.02, and the optional amount, if any, to be added in cash to the next ensuing mandatory sinking fund payment, and will also deliver to the Trustee any Securities to be so delivered and credited. If such Officers Certificate shall specify an optional amount to be added in cash to the next ensuing mandatory sinking fund payment, the Company shall thereupon be obligated to pay the amount therein specified. Not less than 30 days before each such sinking fund payment date the Trustee shall select the Securities to be redeemed upon such sinking fund payment date in the manner specified in Section 11.03 and cause notice of the redemption thereof to be given in the name of and at the expense of the Company in the manner provided in Section 11.04. Such notice having been duly given, the redemption of such Securities shall be made upon the terms and in the manner stated in Sections 11.06 and 11.07.
ARTICLE THIRTEEN
REPAYMENT AT THE OPTION OF HOLDERS
Section 13.01. Applicability of Article.
Repayment of Securities of any series before their Stated Maturity at the option of Holders thereof shall be made in accordance with the terms of such Securities and (except as otherwise specified by the terms of such series established pursuant to Section 3.01) in accordance with this Article.
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Section 13.02. Repayment of Securities.
Securities of any series subject to repayment in whole or in part at the option of one or more Holders thereof will, unless otherwise provided in the terms of such Securities, be repaid at the Repayment Price thereof, together with interest, if any, thereon accrued to the Repayment Date specified in or pursuant to the terms of such Securities. The Company covenants that on or before 11:00 am, New York City time, on the Business Day preceding the Repayment Date it will deposit with the Trustee or with a Paying Agent (or, if the Company is acting as its own Paying Agent, segregate and hold in trust as provided in Section 10.03) an amount of money in the Currency in which the Securities of such series are payable (except as otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01 for the Securities of such series and except, if applicable, as provided in Sections 3.12(b), 3.12(d) and 3.12(e)) sufficient to pay the Repayment Price of, and (unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 3.01) accrued interest on, all the Securities or portions thereof, as the case may be, to be repaid on such date.
Section 13.03. Exercise of Option.
Securities of any series subject to repayment at the option of one or more Holders thereof will contain an Option to Elect Repayment form on the reverse of such Securities. To be repaid at the option of the Holder, any Security so providing for such repayment, with the Option to Elect Repayment form on the reverse of such Security duly completed by the Holder (or by the Holders attorney duly authorized in writing), must be received by the Company at the Place of Payment therefor specified in the terms of such Security (or at such other place or places of which the Company shall from time to time notify the Holders of such Securities) not earlier than 45 days nor later than 30 days prior to the Repayment Date. If less than the entire Repayment Price of such Security is to be repaid in accordance with the terms of such Security, the portion of the Repayment Price of such Security to be repaid, in increments of the minimum denomination for Securities of such series, and the denomination or denominations of the Security or Securities to be issued to the Holder for the portion of such Security surrendered that is not to be repaid, must be specified. Any Security providing for repayment at the option of the Holder thereof may not be repaid in part if, following such repayment, the unpaid principal amount of such Security would be less than the minimum authorized denomination of Securities of the series of which such Security to be repaid is a part. Except as otherwise may be provided by the terms of any Security providing for repayment at the option of the Holder thereof, exercise of the repayment option by the Holder shall be irrevocable unless waived by the Company. If the Security is in global form, the exercise of such option and payment thereof shall also be made in compliance with the applicable procedures of the Depositary.
Section 13.04. When Securities Presented for Repayment Become Due and Payable.
If Securities of any series providing for repayment at the option of the Holders thereof shall have been surrendered as provided in this Article and as provided by or pursuant to the terms of such Securities, such Securities or the portions thereof, as the case may be, to be repaid shall become due and payable and shall be paid by the Company on the Repayment Date therein specified, and on and after such Repayment Date (unless the Company shall default in the payment of such Securities on such Repayment Date) such Securities shall, if the same were interest-bearing, cease to bear interest. Upon surrender of any such Security for repayment in accordance with such provisions, the Repayment Price of such Security so to be repaid shall be paid by the Company, together with accrued interest, if any, to the Repayment Date; provided, however, that installments of interest on Registered Securities, whose Stated Maturity is prior to (or, if specified pursuant to Section 3.01, on) the Repayment Date shall be payable (but without interest thereon, unless the Company shall default in the payment thereof) to the Holders of such Securities, or one or more Predecessor Securities, registered as such at the close of business on the relevant Record Dates according to their terms and the provisions of Section 3.07.
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If any Security surrendered for repayment shall not be so repaid upon surrender thereof, the Repayment Price shall, until paid, bear interest from the Repayment Date at the rate of interest set forth in such Security or, in the case of an Original Issue Discount Security, at the Yield to Maturity of such Security.
Section 13.05. Securities Repaid in Part.
Upon surrender of any Registered Security that is to be repaid in part only, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver to the Holder of such Security (or through book-entry transfer for any Global Notes), without service charge and at the expense of the Company, a new Registered Security or Securities of the same series, and of like tenor, of any authorized denomination specified by the Holder, in an aggregate principal amount equal to and in exchange for the portion of the principal of such Security so surrendered that is not to be repaid. If a temporary global Security or permanent global Security is so surrendered, such new Security so issued shall be a new temporary global Security or a new permanent global Security, respectively.
ARTICLE FOURTEEN
DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE
Section 14.01. Applicability of Article; Companys Option to Effect Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance.
If pursuant to Section 3.01 provision is made for either or both of (a) defeasance of the Securities of or within a series under Section 14.02 or (b) covenant defeasance of the Securities of or within a series under Section 14.03, then the provisions of such Section or Sections, as the case may be, together with the other provisions of this Article (with such modifications thereto as may be specified pursuant to Section 3.01 with respect to any Securities), shall be applicable to such Securities, and the Company may at its option by Board Resolution, at any time, with respect to such Securities, elect to have either Section 14.02 (if applicable) or Section 14.03 (if applicable) be applied to such Outstanding Securities upon compliance with the conditions set forth below in this Article.
Section 14.02. Defeasance and Discharge.
Upon the Companys exercise of the above option applicable to this Section with respect to any Securities of or within a series, the Company shall be deemed to have been discharged from its obligations with respect to such Outstanding Securities on and after the date the conditions set forth in Section 14.04 are satisfied (hereinafter, defeasance). For this purpose, such defeasance means that the Company shall be deemed to have paid and discharged the entire indebtedness represented by such Outstanding Securities, which shall thereafter be deemed to be Outstanding only for the purposes of Section 14.05 and the other Sections of this Indenture referred to in clauses (A) and (B) of this Section, and to have satisfied all its other obligations under such Securities and this Indenture insofar as such Securities are concerned (and the
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Trustee, at the expense of the Company, shall execute proper instruments acknowledging the same), except for the following which shall survive until otherwise terminated or discharged hereunder: (A) the rights of Holders of such Outstanding Securities to receive, solely from the trust fund described in Section 14.04 and as more fully set forth in such Section, payments in respect of the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on such Securities when such payments are due, (B) the Companys obligations with respect to such Securities under Sections 3.05, 3.06, 10.02 and 10.03 and with respect to the payment of Additional Amounts, if any, on such Securities as contemplated by Section 10.04, (C) the rights, powers, trusts, duties and immunities of the Trustee hereunder and (D) this Article. Subject to compliance with this Article Fourteen, the Company may exercise its option under this Section notwithstanding the prior exercise of its option under Section 14.03 with respect to such Securities. Following a defeasance, payment of such Securities may not be accelerated because of an Event of Default.
Section 14.03. Covenant Defeasance.
Upon the Companys exercise of the above option applicable to this Section with respect to any Securities of or within a series, the Company shall be released from its obligations, if specified pursuant to Section 3.01, under any covenant with respect to such Outstanding Securities on and after the date the conditions set forth in Section 14.04 are satisfied (hereinafter, covenant defeasance), and such Securities shall thereafter be deemed to be not Outstanding for the purposes of any direction, waiver, consent or declaration or Act of Holders (and the consequences of any thereof) in connection with such covenant, but shall continue to be deemed Outstanding for all other purposes hereunder. For this purpose, such covenant defeasance means that, with respect to such Outstanding Securities, the Company may omit to comply with and shall have no liability in respect of any term, condition or limitation set forth in any such Section or such other covenant, whether directly or indirectly, by reason of any reference elsewhere herein to any such Section or such other covenant or by reason of reference in any such Section or such other covenant to any other provision herein or in any other document and such omission to comply shall not constitute a Default or an Event of Default under Section 5.01(iv) or 5.01(vii) or otherwise, as the case may be, but, except as specified above, the remainder of this Indenture and such Securities shall be unaffected thereby. Following a covenant defeasance, payment of such Securities may not be accelerated because of an Event of Default solely by reference to such Sections specified above in this Section 14.03.
Section 14.04. Conditions to Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance.
The following shall be the conditions to application of either Section 14.02 or Section 14.03 to any Outstanding Securities of or within a series:
(i) The Company shall have irrevocably deposited or caused to be irrevocably deposited with the Trustee (or another trustee satisfying the requirements of Section 6.07 who shall agree to comply with the provisions of this Article Fourteen applicable to it) as trust funds in trust for the purpose of making the following payments, specifically pledged as security for the benefit of, and dedicated solely to, the Holders of such Securities, (A) an amount (in such Currency in which such Securities are then specified as payable at Stated Maturity), or (B) Government Obligations applicable to such Securities (determined on the basis of the Currency in which such Securities are then specified as payable at Stated Maturity) which through the
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scheduled payment of principal and interest in respect thereof in accordance with their terms will provide, without reinvestment thereof, not later than one day before the due date of any payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on such Securities, money in an amount, or (C) a combination thereof in an amount, sufficient, in the opinion of a nationally recognized investment bank, appraisal firm or firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, to pay and discharge, and which shall be applied by the Trustee (or other qualifying trustee) to pay and discharge, (1) the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on such Outstanding Securities on the Stated Maturity of such principal or installment of principal or interest and (2) any mandatory sinking fund payments or analogous payments applicable to such Outstanding Securities on the day on which such payments are due and payable in accordance with the terms of this Indenture and of such Securities.
(ii) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under, this Indenture or any other material agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which it is bound.
(iii) No Default or Event of Default with respect to such Securities shall have occurred and be continuing on the date of such deposit or, insofar as Sections 5.01(v) and 5.01(vi) are concerned, at any time during the period ending on the 91st day after the date of such deposit (it being understood that this condition shall not be deemed satisfied until the expiration of such period).
(iv) In the case of an election under Section 14.02, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel stating, subject to customary limitations and exclusions, that (i) the Company has received from, or there has been published by, the Internal Revenue Service a ruling, or (ii) since the date of execution of this Indenture, there has been a change in the applicable Federal income tax law, in either case to the effect that, and based thereon such opinion shall confirm that, the Holders of such Outstanding Securities will not recognize income, gain or loss for Federal income tax purposes as a result of such defeasance and will be subject to Federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such defeasance had not occurred.
(v) In the case of an election under Section 14.03, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel, subject to customary limitations and exclusions, to the effect that the Holders of such Outstanding Securities will not recognize income, gain or loss for Federal income tax purposes as a result of such covenant defeasance and will be subject to Federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such covenant defeasance had not occurred.
(vi) The Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Officers Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent to either the defeasance under Section 14.02 or the covenant defeasance under Section 14.03 (as the case may be) have been complied with.
(vii) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Section, such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall be effected in compliance with any additional or substitute terms, conditions or limitations which may be imposed on the Company in connection therewith pursuant to Section 3.01.
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Section 14.05. Deposited Money and Government Obligations to Be Held in Trust; Other Miscellaneous Provisions.
Subject to the provisions of the last paragraph of Section 10.03, all money and Government Obligations (or other property as may be provided pursuant to Section 3.01) (including the proceeds thereof) deposited with the Trustee (or other qualifying trustee, collectively for purposes of this Section 14.05, the Trustee) pursuant to Section 14.04 in respect of any Outstanding Securities of any series shall be held in trust and applied by the Trustee, in accordance with the provisions of such Securities and this Indenture, to the payment, either directly or through any Paying Agent (including the Company acting as its own Paying Agent) as the Trustee may determine, to the Holders of such Securities of all sums due and to become due thereon in respect of principal (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, but such money need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law.
Unless otherwise specified with respect to any Security pursuant to Section 3.01, if, after a deposit referred to in Section 14.04(a) has been made, (a) the Holder of a Security in respect of which such deposit was made is entitled to, and does, elect pursuant to Section 3.12(b) or the terms of such Security to receive payment in a Currency other than that in which the deposit pursuant to Section 14.04(a) has been made in respect of such Security, or (b) a Conversion Event occurs as contemplated in Section 3.12 (d) or 3.12(e) or by the terms of any Security in respect of which the deposit pursuant to Section 14.04(a) has been made, the indebtedness represented by such Security shall be deemed to have been, and will be, fully discharged and satisfied through the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on such Security as the same becomes due out of the proceeds yielded by converting (from time to time as specified below in the case of any such election) the amount or other property deposited in respect of such Security into the Currency in which such Security becomes payable as a result of such election or Conversion Event based on the applicable Market Exchange Rate for such Currency in effect on the second Business Day prior to each payment date, except, with respect to a Conversion Event, for such Currency in effect (as nearly as feasible) at the time of the Conversion Event.
The Company shall pay and indemnify the Trustee against any tax, fee or other charge imposed on or assessed against the money or Government Obligations deposited pursuant to Section 14.04 or the principal and interest received in respect thereof other than any such tax, fee or other charge which by law is for the account of the Holders of such Outstanding Securities.
Anything in this Article to the contrary notwithstanding, the Trustee shall deliver or pay to the Company from time to time upon Company Request any money or Government Obligations (or other property and any proceeds therefrom) held by it as provided in Section 14.04 which, in the opinion of a nationally recognized investment bank, appraisal firm or firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, are in excess of the amount thereof which would then be required to be deposited to effect a defeasance or covenant defeasance, as applicable, in accordance with this Article.
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If, after the Company has made a deposit with the Trustee pursuant to Section 14.04, the Trustee is unable to apply any money in accordance with Section 14.05 by reason of any legal proceeding or by reason of any order or judgment of any court or governmental authority enjoining, restraining or otherwise prohibiting such application, then the Companys obligations under this Indenture and the applicable Securities shall be revived and reinstated as though no deposit had occurred pursuant to Section 14.04 until such time as the Trustee is permitted to apply all such money in accordance with this Article Fourteen; provided, however, that if the Company has made any payment of the principal of or interest on any series of Securities because of the reinstatement of its obligations, the Company shall be subrogated to the rights of the Holders of such Securities to receive any such payment from the money held by the Trustee.
Money deposited with the Trustee in trust pursuant to this Section 14.05 shall not be subject to the subordination provisions of Article Sixteen.
ARTICLE FIFTEEN
MEETINGS OF HOLDERS OF SECURITIES
Section 15.01. Purposes for Which Meetings may be Called.
A meeting of Holders of any series of Securities may be called at any time and from time to time pursuant to this Article to make, give or take any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action provided by this Indenture to be made, given or taken by Holders of Securities of such series.
Section 15.02. Call, Notice and Place of Meetings.
(a) The Trustee may at any time call a meeting of Holders of Securities of any series for any purpose specified in Section 15.01, to be held at such time and at such place in the Borough of Manhattan, the City of New York as the Trustee shall determine. Notice of every meeting of Holders of Securities of any series, setting forth the time and the place of such meeting and in general terms the action proposed to be taken at such meeting, shall be given, in the manner provided in Section 1.06, not less than 21 nor more than 180 days prior to the date fixed for the meeting.
(b) In case at any time the Company, pursuant to a Board Resolution, or the Holders of at least 10% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of any series shall have requested the Trustee to call a meeting of the Holders of Securities of such series for any purpose specified in Section 15.01, by written request setting forth in reasonable detail the action proposed to be taken at the meeting, and the Trustee shall not have made the first publication or mailing or sending of the notice of such meeting within 21 days after receipt of such request or shall not thereafter proceed to cause the meeting to be held as provided herein, then the Company or the Holders of Securities of such series in the amount above specified, as the case may be, may determine the time and the place in the Borough of Manhattan, the City of New York for such meeting and may call such meeting for such purposes by giving notice thereof as provided in subsection (a) of this Section.
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Section 15.03. Persons Entitled to Vote at Meetings.
To be entitled to vote at any meeting of Holders of Securities of any series, a Person shall be (i) a Holder of one or more Outstanding Securities of such series, or (ii) a Person appointed by an instrument in writing as proxy for a Holder or Holders of one or more Outstanding Securities of such series by such Holder or Holders. The only Persons who shall be entitled to be present or to speak at any meeting of Holders of Securities of any series shall be the Persons entitled to vote at such meeting and their counsel, any representatives of the Trustee and its counsel and any representatives of the Company and its counsel.
Section 15.04. Quorum; Action.
The Persons entitled to vote a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of a series shall constitute a quorum for a meeting of Holders of Securities of such series; provided, however, that if any action is to be taken at such meeting with respect to a consent, waiver, request, demand, notice, authorization, direction or other action that this Indenture expressly provides may be made, given or taken by the Holders of not less than a specified percentage in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of a series, the Persons entitled to vote such specified percentage in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series shall constitute a quorum. In the absence of a quorum within 30 minutes of the time appointed for any such meeting, the meeting shall, if convened at the request of Holders of Securities of such series, be dissolved. In any other case the meeting may be adjourned for a period of not less than 10 days as determined by the chairman of the meeting prior to the adjournment of such meeting. In the absence of a quorum at any such adjourned meeting, such adjourned meeting may be further adjourned for a period of not less than 10 days as determined by the chairman of the meeting prior to the adjournment of such adjourned meeting. Notice of the reconvening of any adjourned meeting shall be given as provided in Section 15.02(a), except that such notice need be given only once not less than five days prior to the date on which the meeting is scheduled to be reconvened. Notice of the reconvening of any adjourned meeting shall state expressly the percentage, as provided above, of the principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series which shall constitute a quorum.
Except as limited by the proviso to Section 9.02, any resolution presented to a meeting or adjourned meeting duly reconvened at which a quorum is present as aforesaid may be adopted by the affirmative vote of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series; provided, however, that, except as limited by the proviso to Section 9.02, any resolution with respect to any consent, waiver, request, demand, notice, authorization, direction or other action which this Indenture expressly provides may be made, given or taken by the Holders of a specified percentage, which is less than a majority, in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of a series may be adopted at a meeting or an adjourned meeting duly reconvened and at which a quorum is present as aforesaid by the affirmative vote of the Holders of such specified percentage in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series.
Any resolution passed or decision taken at any meeting of Holders of Securities of any series duly held in accordance with this Section shall be binding on all the Holders of Securities of such series, whether or not present or represented at the meeting.
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Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 15.04, if any action is to be taken at a meeting of Holders of Securities of any series with respect to any consent, waiver, request, demand, notice, authorization, direction or other action that this Indenture expressly provides may be made, given or taken by the Holders of a specified percentage in principal amount of all Outstanding Securities affected thereby, or of the Holders of such series and one or more additional series:
(i) there shall be no minimum quorum requirement for such meeting; and
(ii) the principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series that vote in favor of such consent, waiver, request, demand, notice, authorization, direction or other action shall be taken into account in determining whether such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver or other action has been made, given or taken under this Indenture.
Section 15.05. Determination of Voting Rights; Conduct and Adjournment of Meetings.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Indenture, the Trustee may make such reasonable regulations as it may deem advisable for any meeting of Holders of Securities of a series in regard to proof of the holding of Securities of such series and of the appointment of proxies and in regard to the appointment and duties of inspectors of votes, the submission and examination of proxies, certificates and other evidence of the right to vote, and such other matters concerning the conduct of the meeting as it shall deem appropriate. Except as otherwise permitted or required by any such regulations, the holding of Securities shall be proved in the manner specified in Section 1.04 and the appointment of any proxy shall be proved in the manner specified in Section 1.04. Such regulations may provide that written instruments appointing proxies, regular on their face, may be presumed valid and genuine without the proof specified in Section 1.04 or other proof.
(b) The Trustee shall, by an instrument in writing appoint a temporary chairman of the meeting, unless the meeting shall have been called by the Company or by Holders of Securities as provided in Section 15.02(b), in which case the Company or the Holders of Securities of the series calling the meeting, as the case may be, shall in like manner appoint a temporary chairman. A permanent chairman and a permanent secretary of the meeting shall be elected by vote of the Persons entitled to vote a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series represented at the meeting.
(c) At any meeting of Holders, each Holder of a Security of such series or proxy shall be entitled to one vote for each $1,000 principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series held or represented by such Holder; provided, however, that no vote shall be cast or counted at any meeting in respect of any Security challenged as not Outstanding and ruled by the chairman of the meeting to be not Outstanding. The chairman of the meeting shall have no right to vote, except as a Holder of a Security of such series or proxy.
(d) Any meeting of Holders of Securities of any series duly called pursuant to Section 15.02 at which a quorum is present may be adjourned from time to time by Persons entitled to vote a majority in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of such series represented at the meeting, and the meeting may be held as so adjourned without further notice.
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Section 15.06. Counting Votes and Recording Action of Meetings.
The vote upon any resolution submitted to any meeting of Holders of Securities of any series shall be by written ballots on which shall be subscribed the signatures of the Holders of Securities of such series or of their representatives by proxy and the principal amounts and serial numbers of the Outstanding Securities of such series held or represented by them. The permanent chairman of the meeting shall appoint two inspectors of votes who shall count all votes cast at the meeting for or against any resolution and who shall make and file with the secretary of the meeting their verified written reports in duplicate of all votes cast at the meeting. A record, at least in duplicate, of the proceedings of each meeting of Holders of Securities of any Series shall be prepared by the secretary of the meeting and there shall be attached to said record the original reports of the inspectors of votes on any vote by ballot taken thereat and affidavits by one or more persons having knowledge of the fact, setting forth a copy of the notice of the meeting and showing that said notice was given as provided in Section 15.02 and, if applicable, Section 15.04. Each copy shall be signed and verified by the affidavits of the permanent chairman and secretary of the meeting and one such copy shall be delivered to the Company and another to the Trustee to be preserved by the Trustee, the latter to have attached thereto the ballots voted at the meeting. Any record so signed and verified shall be conclusive evidence of the matters therein stated.
ARTICLE SIXTEEN
SUBORDINATION OF SECURITIES
Section 16.01. Agreement to Subordinate.
The Company, for itself, its successors and assigns, covenants and agrees, and each Holder of Senior Subordinated Securities by his acceptance thereof, whether upon original issue or upon transfer, assignment or exchange thereof, likewise covenants and agrees, that the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on each and all of the Senior Subordinated Securities is hereby expressly subordinated, to the extent and in the manner hereinafter set forth, in right of payment to the prior payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness.
The Company, for itself, its successors and assigns, covenants and agrees, and each Holder of Junior Subordinated Securities by his acceptance thereof, likewise covenants and agrees, that the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on each and all of the Junior Subordinated Securities is hereby expressly subordinated, to the extent and in the manner hereinafter set forth, in right of payment to the prior payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness and Senior Subordinated Indebtedness.
Section 16.02. Distribution on Dissolution, Liquidation and Reorganization; Subrogation of Subordinated Securities.
Upon any distribution of assets of the Company upon any dissolution, winding up, liquidation or reorganization of the Company, whether in bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or receivership proceedings or upon an assignment for the benefit of creditors or any other
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marshalling of the assets and liabilities of the Company or otherwise (subject to the power of a court of competent jurisdiction to make other equitable provision reflecting the rights conferred in this Indenture upon the Senior Indebtedness and the Holders thereof with respect to the Securities and the holders thereof by a lawful plan of reorganization under applicable bankruptcy law):
(i) the Holders of all Senior Indebtedness shall be entitled to receive payment in full of the principal thereof (and premium, if any) and interest due thereon before the Holders of the Subordinated Securities (except that, anything in this Indenture to the contrary notwithstanding, Holders of Subordinated Securities may receive and retain Permitted Junior Securities) are entitled to receive any payment upon the principal (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on indebtedness evidenced by the Subordinated Securities (except that, anything in this Indenture to the contrary notwithstanding, Holders of Subordinated Securities may receive and retain Permitted Junior Securities); and
(ii) the Holders of all Senior Subordinated Indebtedness shall be entitled to receive payment in full of the principal thereof (and premium, if any) and interest due thereon before the Holders of the Junior Subordinated Securities are entitled to receive any payment upon the principal (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on indebtedness evidenced by the Junior Subordinated Securities; and
(iii) any payment or distribution of assets of the Company of any kind or character, whether in cash, property or securities, to which the Holders of the Securities or the Trustee would be entitled except for the provisions of this Article Sixteen shall be paid by the liquidating trustee or agent or other person making such payment or distribution, whether a trustee in bankruptcy, a receiver or liquidating trustee or otherwise, directly to the Holders of Senior Indebtedness or their representative or representatives or to the trustee or trustees under any indenture under which any instruments evidencing any of such Senior Indebtedness may have been issued, ratably according to the aggregate amounts remaining unpaid on account of the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest on the Senior Indebtedness held or represented by each, to the extent necessary to make payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness remaining unpaid, after giving effect to any concurrent payment or distribution to the Holders of such Senior Indebtedness; and
(iv) in the event that, notwithstanding the foregoing, any payment or distribution of assets of the Company of any kind or character, whether in cash, property or securities, shall be received by the Trustee or the Holders of the Subordinated Securities before all Senior Indebtedness is paid in full, such payment or distribution shall be paid over, upon written notice to the Trustee, to the Holder of such Senior Indebtedness or their representative or representatives or to the trustee or trustees under any indenture under which any instrument evidencing any of such Senior Indebtedness may have been issued, ratably as aforesaid, for application to payment of all Senior Indebtedness remaining unpaid until all such Senior Indebtedness shall have been paid in full, after giving effect to any concurrent payment or distribution to the Holders of such Senior Indebtedness.
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Permitted Junior Securities means:
(i) Equity Interests in the Company; or
(ii) debt securities that are subordinated to all Senior Indebtedness and any debt securities issued in exchange for Senior Indebtedness to substantially the same extent as, or to a greater extent than, the Subordinated Securities and the Junior Subordinated Securities are subordinated to Senior Indebtedness under this Indenture.
Subject to the payment in full of all Senior Indebtedness, the Holders of the Subordinated Securities shall be subrogated in order of seniority to the rights of the Holders of Senior Indebtedness to receive payments or distributions of cash, property or securities of the Company applicable to Senior Indebtedness until the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on the Subordinated Securities shall be paid in full and no such payments or distributions to the Holders of the Subordinated Securities of cash, property or securities otherwise distributable to the Holders of Senior Indebtedness shall, as between the Company, its creditors other than the Holders of Senior Indebtedness, and the Holders of the Subordinated Securities be deemed to be a payment by the Company to or on account of the Subordinated Securities. It is understood that the provisions of this Article Sixteen are and are intended solely for the purpose of defining the relative rights of the Holders of the Subordinated Securities, on the one hand, and the Holders of the Senior Indebtedness, on the other hand. Nothing contained in this Article Sixteen or elsewhere in this Indenture or in the Subordinated Securities is intended to or shall impair, as between the Company, its creditors other than the Holders of Senior Indebtedness, and the Holders of the Subordinated Securities, the obligation of the Company, which is unconditional and absolute, to pay to the Holders of the Subordinated Securities the principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on the Subordinated Securities as and when the same shall become due and payable in accordance with their terms, or to affect the relative rights of the Holders of the Subordinated Securities and creditors of the Company other than the Holders of Senior Indebtedness, nor shall anything herein or in the Subordinated Securities prevent the Trustee or the Holder of any Subordinated Security from exercising all remedies otherwise permitted by applicable law upon default under this Indenture, subject to the rights, if any, under this Article Sixteen of the Holders of Senior Indebtedness in respect of cash, property or securities of the Company received upon the exercise of any such remedy. Upon any payment or distribution of assets of the Company referred to in this Article Sixteen, the Trustee, subject to the provisions of Section 6.01, shall be entitled to rely upon a certificate of the liquidating trustee or agent or other person making any distribution to the Trustee for the purpose of ascertaining the Persons entitled to participate in such distribution, the Holders of Senior Indebtedness and other indebtedness of the Company, the amount thereof or payable thereon, the amount or amounts paid or distributed thereon and all other facts pertinent thereto or to this Article Sixteen.
If the Trustee or any Holder of Subordinated Securities does not file a proper claim or proof of debt in the form required in any proceeding referred to above prior to 30 days before the expiration of the time to file such claim in such proceeding, then the Holder of any Senior Indebtedness is hereby authorized, and has the right, to file an appropriate claim or claims for or on behalf of such Holder of Subordinated Securities.
With respect to the Holders of Senior Indebtedness, the Trustee undertakes to perform or to observe only such of its covenants or obligations as are specifically set forth in this Article and no implied covenants or obligations with respect to Holders of Senior Indebtedness shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee. The Trustee does not owe any fiduciary duties to the holders of Senior Indebtedness, including any holder of any instrument other than Securities issued under this Indenture.
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Section 16.03. No Payment on Subordinated Securities in Event of Default on Senior Indebtedness.
No payment by the Company on account of principal (or premium, if any), sinking funds or interest, if any, on the Subordinated Securities shall be made unless full payment of amounts then due for principal (premium, if any), sinking funds and interest on Senior Indebtedness has been made or duly provided for in money or moneys worth.
Section 16.04. Payments on Subordinated Securities Permitted.
Nothing contained in this Indenture or in any of the Subordinated Securities shall (a) affect the obligation of the Company to make, or prevent the Company from making, at any time except as provided in Sections 16.02 and 16.03, payments of principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on the Subordinated Securities or (b) prevent the application by the Trustee of any moneys deposited with it hereunder to the payment of or on account of the principal of (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on the Subordinated Securities, unless the Trustee shall have received at its Corporate Trust Office written notice of any event prohibiting the making of such payment more than three Business Days prior to the date fixed for such payment.
Section 16.05. Authorization of Holders to Trustee to Effect Subordination.
Each Holder of Subordinated Securities by his acceptance thereof authorizes and directs the Trustee on his behalf to take such action as may be necessary or appropriate to effectuate the subordination as provided in this Article Sixteen and appoints the Trustee his attorney-in-fact for any and all such purposes.
Section 16.06. Notices to Trustee.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this Article or any other provisions of this Indenture, neither the Trustee nor any Paying Agent (other than the Company) shall be charged with knowledge of the existence of any Senior Indebtedness or of any event which would prohibit the making of any payment of moneys to or by the Trustee or such Paying Agent, unless and until the Trustee or such Paying Agent shall have received (in the case of the Trustee, at its Corporate Trust Office) written notice thereof from the Company or from the Holder of any Senior Indebtedness or from the trustee for any such Holder, together with proof reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee of such holding of Senior Indebtedness or of the authority of such trustee; provided, however, that if at least three Business Days prior to the date upon which by the terms hereof any such moneys may become payable for any purpose (including, without limitation, the payment of either the principal (or premium, if any) or interest, if any, on any Subordinated Security) the Trustee shall not have received with respect to such moneys the notice provided for in this Section 16.06, then, anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding, the Trustee shall have full power and authority to receive such moneys and to apply the same to the purpose for which they were received, and shall not be affected by any notice to the contrary, which may be received by it within three Business Days prior to such date. The Trustee shall be
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entitled to rely on the delivery to it of a written notice by a Person representing himself to be a Holder of Senior Indebtedness (or a trustee on behalf of such Holder) to establish that such a notice has been given by a holder of Senior Indebtedness or a trustee on behalf of any such Holder. In the event that the Trustee determines in good faith that further evidence is required with respect to the right of any Person as a Holder of Senior Indebtedness to participate in any payment or distribution pursuant to this Article Sixteen, the Trustee may request such Person to furnish evidence to the reasonable satisfaction of the Trustee as to the amount of Senior Indebtedness held by such Person, the extent to which such Person is entitled to participate in such payment or distribution and any other facts pertinent to the rights of such Person under this Article Sixteen and, if such evidence is not furnished, the Trustee may defer any payment to such Person pending judicial determination as to the right of such Person to receive such payment.
Section 16.07. Trustee as Holder of Senior Indebtedness.
The Trustee in its individual capacity shall be entitled to all the rights set forth in this Article Sixteen in respect of any Senior Indebtedness at any time held by it to the same extent as any other Holder of Senior Indebtedness and nothing in this Indenture shall be construed to deprive the Trustee of any of its rights as such Holder.
Nothing in this Article Sixteen shall apply to claims of, or payments to, the Trustee under or pursuant to Section 6.06.
Section 16.08. Modifications of Terms of Senior Indebtedness.
Any renewal or extension of the time of payment of any Senior Indebtedness or the exercise by the Holders of Senior Indebtedness of any of their rights under any instrument creating or evidencing Senior Indebtedness, including, without limitation, the waiver of default thereunder, may be made or done all without notice to or assent from the Holders of the Subordinated Securities or the Trustee.
No compromise, alteration, amendment, modification, extension, renewal or other change of, or waiver, consent or other action in respect of, any liability or obligation under or in respect of, or of any of the terms, covenants or conditions of any indenture or other instrument under which any Senior Indebtedness is outstanding or of such Senior Indebtedness, whether or not such release is in accordance with the provisions of any applicable document, shall in any way alter or affect any of the provisions of this Article Sixteen or of the Subordinated Securities relating to the subordination thereof.
Section 16.09. Reliance on Judicial Order or Certificate of Liquidating Agent.
Upon any payment or distribution of assets of the Company referred to in this Article Sixteen, the Trustee and the Holders of the Securities shall be entitled to rely upon any order or decree entered by any court of competent jurisdiction in which such insolvency, bankruptcy, receivership, liquidation, reorganization, dissolution, winding up or similar case or proceeding is pending, or a certificate of the trustee in bankruptcy, liquidating trustee, custodian, receiver, assignee for the benefit of creditors, agent or other person making such payment or distribution, delivered to the Trustee or to the Holders of Subordinated Securities, for the purpose of ascertaining the persons entitled to participate in such payment or distribution, the Holders of Senior Indebtedness and other indebtedness of the Company, the amount thereof or payable thereon, the amount or amounts paid or distributed thereon and all other facts pertinent thereto or to this Article Sixteen.
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* * * * *
This Indenture may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which so executed shall be deemed to be an original, but all such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same Indenture. The exchange of copies of this Indenture and of signature pages by facsimile, .pdf transmission or electronic mail shall constitute effective execution and delivery of this Indenture for all purposes. Signatures of the parties hereto transmitted by facsimile, .pdf transmission or electronic mail shall be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Indenture to be duly executed, as of the date first written above.
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC. | ||
By: |
/s/ Jonathan Lamm |
|
Name: Jonathan Lamm | ||
Title: Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer | ||
WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, | ||
as Trustee | ||
By: |
/s/ Gregory S. Clarke |
|
Name: Gregory S. Clarke | ||
Title: Vice President |
[Signature Page to Indenture]
Exhibit 4.2
FIRST SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURE
between
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC.
and
WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,
as Trustee
Dated as of February 10, 2020
FIRST SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURE
THIS FIRST SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURE (this First Supplemental Indenture), dated as of February 10, 2020, is between Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the Company), and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as trustee (the Trustee). All capitalized terms used herein shall have the meaning set forth in the Base Indenture (as defined below) unless otherwise defined herein.
RECITALS OF THE COMPANY
The Company and the Trustee executed and delivered an Indenture, dated as of February 10, 2020 (the Base Indenture and, as supplemented by this First Supplemental Indenture, collectively, the Indenture), to provide for the issuance by the Company from time to time of the Companys unsecured debentures, notes or other evidences of indebtedness (the Securities), to be issued in one or more series as provided in the Indenture.
The Company desires to issue and sell $360,000,000 aggregate principal amount of the Companys 3.750% Notes due 2025 (the Notes).
Sections 9.01(iv) and 9.01(vi) of the Base Indenture provide that without the consent of Holders of the Securities of any series issued under the Indenture, the Company, when authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, and the Trustee, at any time and from time to time, may enter into one or more indentures supplemental to the Base Indenture to (i) change or eliminate any of the provisions of the Indenture when there is no Security Outstanding of any series created prior to the execution of a supplemental indenture that is entitled to the benefit of such provision and (ii) establish the form or terms of Securities of any series as permitted by Section 2.01 and Section 3.01 of the Base Indenture.
The Company desires to establish the form and terms of the Notes and to modify, alter, supplement and change certain provisions of the Base Indenture for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes (except as may be provided in a future supplemental indenture to the Indenture (Future Supplemental Indenture)).
The Company has duly authorized the execution and delivery of this First Supplemental Indenture to provide for the issuance of the Notes and all acts and things necessary to make this First Supplemental Indenture a valid, binding, and legal obligation of the Company and to constitute a valid agreement of the Company, in accordance with its terms, have been done and performed.
NOW, THEREFORE, THIS INDENTURE WITNESSETH:
For and in consideration of the premises and the purchase of the Notes by the Holders thereof, it is mutually agreed, for the equal and proportionate benefit of all Holders of the Notes, as follows:
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ARTICLE I
TERMS OF THE NOTES
Section 1.01 Terms of the Notes. The following terms relating to the Notes are hereby established:
(a) The Notes shall constitute a series of Securities having the title 3.750% Notes due 2025 and shall be designated as Senior Securities under the Indenture. The Notes shall bear a CUSIP number of 38147U AC1 and an ISIN number of US38147UAC18.
(b) The aggregate principal amount of the Notes that may be initially authenticated and delivered under the Indenture (except for Notes authenticated and delivered upon registration of, transfer of, or in exchange for, or in lieu of, other Notes pursuant to Sections 3.04, 3.05, 3.06, 9.06 or 11.07 of the Base Indenture) shall be $360,000,000. Under a Board Resolution, Officers Certificate pursuant to Board Resolutions or an indenture supplement, the Company may from time to time, without the consent of the Holders of Notes, issue additional Notes (in any such case Additional Notes) having the same ranking and the same interest rate, maturity, CUSIP number and other terms as the Notes; provided that such Additional Notes must be part of the same issue as the Notes for U.S. federal income tax purposes if represented by the same CUSIP number as the Notes. Any Additional Notes and the existing Notes will constitute a single series under the Indenture and all references to the relevant Notes herein shall include the Additional Notes unless the context otherwise requires.
(c) The entire Outstanding principal amount of the Notes shall be payable on February 10, 2025, unless earlier redeemed or repurchased in accordance with the provisions of this First Supplemental Indenture.
(d) The rate at which the Notes shall bear interest shall be 3.750% per annum (the Applicable Interest Rate). The date from which interest shall accrue on the Notes shall be February 10, 2020, or the most recent Interest Payment Date to which interest has been paid or provided for; the Interest Payment Dates for the Notes shall be February 10 and August 10 of each year, commencing August 10, 2020 (if an Interest Payment Date falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then the applicable interest payment will be made on the next succeeding Business Day with the same force and effect as if made on the scheduled Interest Payment Date and no additional interest will accrue as a result of such delayed payment); the initial interest period will be the period from and including February 10, 2020 (or the most recent Interest Payment Date to which interest has been paid or provided for), to, but excluding, the initial Interest Payment Date, and the subsequent interest periods will be the periods from and including an Interest Payment Date to, but excluding, the next Interest Payment Date or the Stated Maturity, as the case may be; the interest so payable, and punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date, will be paid to the Person in whose name the Note (or one or more predecessor Notes) is registered at the close of business on the Regular Record Date for such interest, which shall be January 25 and July 25 (whether or not a Business Day), as the case may be, next preceding such Interest Payment Date. Payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and any such interest on the Notes will be made at the Corporate Trust Office of the Paying Agent, which shall initially be the Trustee, in such coin or currency of the United States of America as at the time of payment is legal tender for payment of public and private debts; provided, however, that in the case of Notes that are not in global form, at the option of the Company, payment of interest may be made by check mailed to the address of the Person entitled thereto as such address shall appear in the Security Register. Interest on the Notes will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months.
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(e) The Notes shall be initially issuable in global form (each such Note, a Global Note). The Global Notes and the Trustees certificate of authentication thereon shall be substantially in the form of Exhibit A to this First Supplemental Indenture. Each Global Note shall represent the Outstanding Notes as shall be specified therein and each shall provide that it shall represent the aggregate amount of Outstanding Notes from time to time endorsed thereon and that the aggregate amount of Outstanding Notes represented thereby may from time to time be reduced or increased, as appropriate, to reflect exchanges and redemptions. Any endorsement of a Global Note to reflect the amount of any increase or decrease in the amount of Outstanding Notes represented thereby shall be made by the Trustee or the Security Registrar, in accordance with Sections 2.03 and 3.05 of the Base Indenture.
(f) The depositary for such Global Notes shall be the Depositary Custodian. The Security Registrar with respect to the Global Notes shall be the Trustee.
(g) The Notes shall be defeasible pursuant to Section 14.02 or Section 14.03 of the Base Indenture. Covenant defeasance contained in Section 14.03 of the Base Indenture shall apply to the covenants contained in Sections 10.07 and 10.08 of the Indenture.
(h) The Notes shall be redeemable pursuant to Section 11.01 of the Base Indenture and as follows:
(i) The Notes will be redeemable, in whole or in part, at any time, or from time to time, at the option of the Company, at a Redemption Price equal to the greater of the following amounts, plus, in each case, accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the Redemption Date:
A. 100% of the principal amount of the Notes to be redeemed, or
B. the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest (exclusive of accrued and unpaid interest to the Redemption Date) on the Notes to be redeemed, discounted to the Redemption Date on a semi-annual basis (assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months) using the applicable Treasury Rate plus 35 basis points;
provided, however, that if the Company redeems any Notes on or after January 10, 2025, the Redemption Price for the Notes will be equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Notes to be redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the Redemption Date.
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For purposes of calculating the Redemption Price in connection with the redemption of the Notes, on any Redemption Date, the following terms have the meanings set forth below:
Treasury Rate means, with respect to any Redemption Date, the rate per annum equal to the semi-annual equivalent yield-to-maturity of the Comparable Treasury Issue (computed as of the third Business Day immediately preceding the redemption), assuming a price for the Comparable Treasury Issue (expressed as a percentage of its principal amount) equal to the Comparable Treasury Price for such Redemption Date. The Redemption Price and the Treasury Rate will be determined by the Company.
Comparable Treasury Issue means the United States Treasury security selected by the Reference Treasury Dealer as having a maturity comparable to the remaining term of the Notes to be redeemed that would be utilized, at the time of selection and in accordance with customary financing practice, in pricing new issues of corporate debt securities of comparable maturity to the remaining term of the Notes being redeemed.
Comparable Treasury Price means (1) the average of the remaining Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations for the Redemption Date, after excluding the highest and lowest Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations, or (2) if the Quotation Agent obtains fewer than four such Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations, the average of all such quotations.
Quotation Agent means a Reference Treasury Dealer selected by the Company.
Reference Treasury Dealer means each of (1) BofA Securities, Inc. or its affiliates which is a primary U.S. government securities dealer in the United States (a Primary Treasury Dealer) and its successors; provided, however, that if BofA Securities, Inc. or its affiliates shall cease to be a Primary Treasury Dealer, the Company shall select another Primary Treasury Dealer, and (2) three other Primary Treasury Dealers selected by the Company.
Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations means, with respect to each Reference Treasury Dealer and any Redemption Date, the average, as determined by the Quotation Agent, of the bid and asked prices for the Comparable Treasury Issue (expressed in each case as a percentage of its principal amount) quoted in writing to the Quotation Agent by such Reference Treasury Dealer at 3:30 p.m. New York time on the third Business Day preceding such Redemption Date.
All determinations made by any Reference Treasury Dealer, including the Quotation Agent, with respect to determining the Redemption Price will be final and binding absent manifest error.
(ii) Notice of redemption shall be given in writing and mailed, first-class postage prepaid or by overnight courier guaranteeing next-day delivery, or sent electronically in accordance with Applicable Procedures with respect to Notes in global form, to each Holder of the Notes to be redeemed, not less than 30 nor more than 60 days prior to the Redemption Date, at the Holders address appearing in the Security Register. All notices of redemption shall contain the information set forth in Section 11.04 of the Base Indenture. If the Redemption Price is not known at the time such notice is to be given, the actual Redemption Price, calculated as described in the terms of the Notes, will be set forth in an Officers Certificate of the Company delivered to the Trustee no later than two Business Days prior to the Redemption Date.
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(iii) Any exercise of the Companys option to redeem the Notes will be done in compliance with the Investment Company Act, to the extent applicable.
(iv) If the Company elects to redeem only a portion of the Notes, the particular Notes to be redeemed will be selected by the Trustee on a pro rata basis to the extent practicable, or, if a pro rata basis is not practicable for any reason, by lot or in such other manner as the Trustee shall deem fair and appropriate, and in any case in accordance with the applicable procedures of the Depositary and in accordance with the Investment Company Act as directed by the Company; provided, however, that no such partial redemption shall reduce the portion of the principal amount of a Note not redeemed to less than $2,000.
(v) Unless the Company defaults in payment of the Redemption Price, on and after the Redemption Date, interest will cease to accrue on the Notes or portion of the Notes called for redemption hereunder.
(i) The Notes shall not be subject to any sinking fund pursuant to Section 12.01 of the Base Indenture.
(j) The Notes shall be issuable in denominations of $2,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof.
(k) Holders of the Notes will not have the option to have the Notes repaid prior to the Stated Maturity other than in accordance with Article Thirteen of the Indenture.
ARTICLE II
DEFINITIONS AND OTHER PROVISIONS OF GENERAL APPLICATION
Section 2.01 Except as may be provided in a Future Supplemental Indenture, for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes but no other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding, Article One of the Base Indenture shall be amended by adding the following defined terms to Section 1.01 of the Base Indenture in appropriate alphabetical sequence, as follows:
Below Investment Grade Rating Event means the Notes are downgraded below Investment Grade by both Rating Agencies on any date from the date of the public notice of an arrangement that results in a Change of Control until the end of the 60-day period following public notice of the occurrence of a Change of Control (which period shall be extended so long as the rating of the Notes is under publicly announced consideration for possible downgrade by either of the Rating Agencies); provided that a Below Investment Grade Rating Event otherwise arising by virtue of a particular reduction in rating shall not be deemed to have occurred in respect of a particular Change of Control (and thus shall not be deemed a Below Investment Grade Rating Event for purposes of the definition of Change of Control Repurchase Event hereunder) if the Rating Agencies making the reduction in rating to which this definition would otherwise apply do not announce or publicly confirm or inform the Company in writing that the reduction was the result, in whole or in part, of any event or circumstance comprised of or arising as a result of, or in respect of, the applicable Change of Control (whether or not the applicable Change of Control shall have occurred at the time of the Below Investment Grade Rating Event).
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Change of Control means the occurrence of any of the following:
(1) the direct or indirect sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other disposition (other than by way of merger or consolidation) in one or a series of related transactions, of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company and its Controlled Subsidiaries taken as a whole to any person or group (as those terms are used in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act), other than to any Permitted Holders; provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, a pledge of assets pursuant to any secured debt instrument of the Company or its Controlled Subsidiaries shall not be deemed to be any such sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or disposition;
(2) the consummation of any transaction (including, without limitation, any merger or consolidation) the result of which is that any person or group (as those terms are used in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act) (other than any Permitted Holders) becomes the beneficial owner (as defined in Rules 13d-3 and 13d-5 under the Exchange Act), directly or indirectly, of more than 50% of the outstanding Voting Stock of the Company, measured by voting power rather than number of shares; or
(3) the approval by the Companys stockholders of any plan or proposal relating to the liquidation or dissolution of the Company.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Merger shall not constitute a Change of Control.
Change of Control Repurchase Event means the occurrence of a Change of Control and a Below Investment Grade Rating Event.
Controlled Subsidiary means any Subsidiary of the Company, 50% or more of the outstanding equity interests of which are owned by the Company and its direct or indirect Subsidiaries and of which the Company possesses, directly or indirectly, the power to direct or cause the direction of the management or policies, whether through the ownership of voting equity interests, by agreement or otherwise.
Depositary means, with respect to each Note in global form, The Depository Trust Company, until a successor shall have been appointed and becomes such person, and thereafter, Depositary shall mean or include such successor.
Fitch means Fitch, Inc., also known as Fitch Ratings, or any successor thereto.
GSAM means Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P.
Investment Grade means a rating of BBB- or better by Fitch (or its equivalent under any successor rating categories of Fitch) and Baa3 or better by Moodys (or its equivalent under any successor rating categories of Moodys) (or, in each case, if such Rating Agency ceases to rate the Notes for reasons outside of the Companys control, the equivalent investment grade credit rating from any Rating Agency selected by the Company as a replacement Rating Agency).
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Merger means the transactions entered into pursuant to the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated December 9, 2019, among the Company, MMLC, Evergreen Merger Sub Inc., a Delaware corporation and the Companys wholly owned subsidiary, and GSAM, pursuant to which Evergreen Merger Sub, Inc. will merge with and into MMLC, with MMLC continuing as the surviving company and, immediately thereafter, MMLC will merge with and into the Company, with the Company continuing as the surviving company.
MMLC means Goldman Sachs Middle Market Lending Corp.
Moodys means Moodys Investor Service, or any successor thereto.
Permitted Holders means (i) the Company, (ii) one or more of the Companys Controlled Subsidiaries and (iii) GSAM or any Affiliate of GSAM that is organized under the laws of a jurisdiction located in the United States of America and in the business of managing or advising clients.
Rating Agency means (1) each of Fitch and Moodys; and (2) if either of Fitch or Moodys ceases to rate the Notes or fails to make a rating of the Notes publicly available for reasons outside of the Companys control, a nationally recognized statistical rating organization as defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the Exchange Act selected by the Company as a replacement agency for Fitch or Moodys, or both, as the case may be.
Significant Subsidiary means any Subsidiary that would be a significant subsidiary as defined in Article 1, Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X under the Exchange Act, as such regulation is in effect on the original date of this Indenture (but excluding any Subsidiary which is (a) a non-recourse or limited recourse Subsidiary, (b) a bankruptcy remote special purpose vehicle or (c) is not consolidated with the Company for purposes of GAAP).
Voting Stock as applied to stock of any Person, means shares, interests, participations or other equivalents in the equity interest (however designated) in such Person having ordinary voting power for the election of a majority of the directors (or the equivalent) of such Person, other than shares, interests, participations or other equivalents having such power only by reason of the occurrence of a contingency.
ARTICLE III
REMEDIES
Section 3.01 Except as may be provided in a Future Supplemental Indenture, for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes but no other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding, Section 5.01 of the Base Indenture shall be amended by replacing clause (ii) thereof with the following:
(ii) |
default in the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) any Note when it becomes due and payable at its Maturity, including upon any Redemption Date or required repurchase date; or |
Section 3.02 Except as may be provided in a Future Supplemental Indenture, for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes but no other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding, Section 5.01 of the Base Indenture shall be amended by adding the following language as clause (ix):
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(ix): |
default by the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries, with respect to any mortgage, agreement or other instrument under which there may be outstanding, or by which there may be secured or evidenced, any indebtedness for money borrowed in excess of $100 million in the aggregate of the Company and/or any such Significant Subsidiary, whether such indebtedness now exists or shall hereafter be created (i) resulting in such indebtedness becoming or being declared due and payable or (ii) constituting a failure to pay the principal or interest of any such debt when due and payable at its stated maturity, upon required repurchase, upon declaration of acceleration or otherwise, unless, in either case, such indebtedness is discharged, or such acceleration is rescinded, stayed or annulled, within a period of 30 calendar days after written notice of such failure is given to the Company by the Trustee or to the Company and the Trustee by the Holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Notes then Outstanding. |
Section 3.03 Except as may be provided in in a Future Supplemental Indenture, for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes but no other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding, Section 5.02 of the Base Indenture shall be amended by replacing the first paragraph of Section 5.02 with the following:
If an Event of Default with respect to the Notes occurs and is continuing, then and in every such case (other than an Event of Default specified in Section 5.01(v) or 5.01(vi)), the Trustee or the Holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the Outstanding Notes may declare the principal of all the Outstanding Notes to be due and payable immediately, by a notice in writing to the Company (and to the Trustee if given by the Holders), and upon any such declaration such principal shall become immediately due and payable; provided that 100% of the principal of, and accrued and unpaid interest on, the Notes will automatically become due and payable in the case of an Event of Default specified in Section 5.01(v) or 5.01(vi) hereof.
ARTICLE IV
COVENANTS
Section 4.01 Except as may be provided in a Future Supplemental Indenture, for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes but no other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding, Article Ten of the Base Indenture shall be amended by adding the following new Sections 10.07 and 10.08 thereto, each as set forth below:
Section 10.07 Section 18(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act.
The Company hereby agrees that for the period of time during which Notes are Outstanding, the Company will not violate, whether or not it is subject to, Section 18(a)(1)(A) as modified by Section 61(a) of the Investment Company Act or any successor provisions thereto of the Investment Company Act, giving effect to any exemptive relief granted to the Company by the Commission.
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Section 10.08 Commission Reports and Reports to Holders.
If, at any time, the Company is not subject to the reporting requirements of Sections 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act to file any periodic reports with the Commission, the Company agrees to furnish to the Holders of Notes and the Trustee for the period of time during which the Notes are Outstanding: (i) within 90 days after the end of the each fiscal year of the Company, audited annual consolidated financial statements of the Company and (ii) within 45 days after the end of each fiscal quarter of the Company (other than the Companys fourth fiscal quarter), unaudited interim consolidated financial statements of the Company. All such financial statements shall be prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with GAAP, as applicable.
Delivery of such reports, information, and documents to the Trustee is for informational purposes only and the Trustees receipt of such shall not constitute constructive notice of any information contained therein or determinable from information contained therein, including the Companys compliance with any of its covenants hereunder (as to which the Trustee is entitled to conclusively rely exclusively on Officers Certificates).
ARTICLE V
THE TRUSTEE
Section 5.01 Neither the Trustee nor any Paying Agent shall be responsible for determining whether any Change of Control or Below Investment Grade Rating Event has occurred and whether any Change of Control offer with respect to the Notes is required.
ARTICLE VI
OFFER TO REPURCHASE UPON A CHANGE OF CONTROL REPURCHASE EVENT
Section 6.01 Except as may be provided in a Future Supplemental Indenture, for the benefit of the Holders of the Notes but no other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding, Article Thirteen of the Base Indenture shall be amended by replacing Sections 13.01 to 13.05 thereto with the following:
Section 13.01 Change of Control.
If a Change of Control Repurchase Event occurs, unless the Company shall have exercised its right to redeem the Notes in full, the Company shall make an offer to each Holder of the Notes to repurchase all or any part (in minimum denominations of $2,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 principal amount thereabove) of that Holders Notes at a repurchase price in cash equal to 100% of the aggregate principal amount of Notes repurchased plus any accrued and unpaid interest on the Notes repurchased to the date of purchase. Within 30 days following any Change of Control Repurchase Event or, at the Companys option, prior to any Change of Control, but after the public announcement of the Change of Control, the Company will send a notice to each Holder and the Trustee describing the transaction or transactions that constitute or may constitute the Change of Control Repurchase Event and offering to repurchase Notes on the payment date specified in the
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notice, which date will be no earlier than 30 days and no later than 60 days from the date such notice is sent. The notice shall, if sent prior to the date of consummation of the Change of Control, state that the offer to purchase is conditioned on the Change of Control Repurchase Event occurring on or prior to the payment date specified in the notice. The Company shall comply with the requirements of Rule 14e-1 under the Exchange Act and any other securities laws and regulations thereunder to the extent those laws and regulations are applicable in connection with the repurchase of the Notes as a result of a Change of Control Repurchase Event.
To the extent that the provisions of any securities laws or regulations conflict with this Section 13.01, the Company shall comply with the applicable securities laws and regulations and shall not be deemed to have breached its obligations under this Section 13.01 by virtue of such conflict.
On the Change of Control Repurchase Event payment date, subject to extension if necessary to comply with the provisions of the Investment Company Act, the Company shall, to the extent lawful:
(1) accept for payment all Notes or portions of Notes properly tendered pursuant to its offer;
(2) deposit with the Paying Agent by 11:00 am New York City time, an amount equal to the aggregate purchase price in respect of all Notes or portions of Notes properly tendered; and
(3) deliver or cause to be delivered to the Trustee the Notes properly accepted, together with an Officers Certificate stating the aggregate principal amount of Notes being purchased by the Company.
The Paying Agent will promptly remit to each Holder of Notes properly tendered the purchase price for the Notes, and the Trustee will promptly authenticate upon receipt of a Company Order and mail (or cause to be transferred by book-entry) to each Holder a new Note equal in principal amount to any unpurchased portion of any Notes surrendered; provided that each new Note will be in a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof.
If any Repayment Date upon a Change of Control Repurchase Event falls on a day that is not a Business Day, then the required payment will be made on the next succeeding Business Day and no additional interest will accrue as a result of such delayed payment.
The Company will not be required to make an offer to repurchase the Notes upon a Change of Control Repurchase Event if a third party makes an offer in respect of the Notes in the manner, at the time and otherwise in compliance with the requirements for an offer made by the Company and such third party purchases all Notes properly tendered and not withdrawn under its offer.
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ARTICLE VII
MISCELLANEOUS
Section 7.01 This First Supplemental Indenture and the Notes shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to principles of conflicts of laws that would cause the application of laws of another jurisdiction. This First Supplemental Indenture is subject to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act that are required to be part of the Indenture and shall, to the extent applicable, be governed by such provisions. If any provision of the Indenture limits, qualifies or conflicts with the duties imposed by Section 318(c) of the Trust Indenture Act, the imposed duties will control.
Section 7.02 In case any provision in this First Supplemental Indenture or in the Notes shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.
Section 7.03 This First Supplemental Indenture may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which will be an original, but such counterparts will together constitute but one and the same First Supplemental Indenture. The exchange of copies of this First Supplemental Indenture and of signature pages by facsimile, .pdf transmission, email or other electronic means shall constitute effective execution and delivery of this First Supplemental Indenture for all purposes. Signatures of the parties hereto transmitted by facsimile, .pdf transmission, email or other electronic means shall be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes.
Section 7.04 The Base Indenture, as supplemented and amended by this First Supplemental Indenture, is in all respects ratified and confirmed, and the Base Indenture and this First Supplemental Indenture shall be read, taken and construed as one and the same instrument with respect to the Notes. All provisions included in this First Supplemental Indenture supersede any conflicting provisions included in the Base Indenture with respect to the Notes, unless not permitted by law. The Trustee accepts the trusts created by the Indenture, as supplemented by this First Supplemental Indenture, and agrees to perform the same upon the terms and conditions of the Indenture, as supplemented by this First Supplemental Indenture. All of the provisions contained in the Base Indenture in respect of the rights, privileges, immunities, powers, and duties of the Trustee shall be applicable in respect of this First Supplemental Indenture as fully and with like force and effect as though fully set forth in full herein.
Section 7.05 The provisions of this First Supplemental Indenture shall become effective as of the date hereof.
Section 7.06 No past, present or future director, officer, employee, incorporator, or stockholder of the Company shall have any liability for any obligations of the Company under the Indenture or the Notes or for any claim based on, in respect of, or by reason of, such obligations or their creation. By accepting any Note, each Holder shall have been deemed to waive and release all such liability, and such waiver and release are part of the consideration for issuance of the Notes.
11
Section 7.07 Notwithstanding anything else to the contrary herein, the terms and provisions of this First Supplemental Indenture shall apply only to the Notes and shall not apply to any other series of Securities under the Indenture and this First Supplemental Indenture shall not and does not otherwise affect, modify, alter, supplement or change the terms and provisions of any other series of Securities under the Indenture, whether now or hereafter issued and Outstanding.
Section 7.08 The recitals contained herein and in the Notes shall be taken as the statements of the Company, and the Trustee assumes no responsibility for their correctness. The Trustee makes no representations as to and shall not be responsible for the validity or sufficiency of this First Supplemental Indenture, the Notes or any Additional Notes, except that the Trustee represents that it is duly authorized to execute and deliver this First Supplemental Indenture, authenticate the Notes and any Additional Notes and perform its obligations hereunder. The Trustee shall not be accountable for the use or application by the Company of the Notes or any Additional Notes or the proceeds thereof.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this First Supplemental Indenture to be duly executed as of the date first above written.
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC. |
/s/ Jonathan Lamm |
Name: Jonathan Lamm |
Title: Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer |
WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, as Trustee |
/s/ Gregory S. Clarke |
Name: Gregory S. Clarke |
Title: Vice President |
[Signature Page to First Supplemental Indenture]
Exhibit A Form of Global Note
THIS SECURITY IS A GLOBAL NOTE WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE INDENTURE HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AND IS REGISTERED IN THE NAME OF THE DEPOSITORY TRUST COMPANY OR A NOMINEE THEREOF. THIS SECURITY MAY NOT BE EXCHANGED IN WHOLE OR IN PART FOR A SECURITY REGISTERED, AND NO TRANSFER OF THIS SECURITY IN WHOLE OR IN PART MAY BE REGISTERED, IN THE NAME OF ANY PERSON OTHER THAN THE DEPOSITORY TRUST COMPANY OR A NOMINEE THEREOF, EXCEPT IN THE LIMITED CIRCUMSTANCES DESCRIBED IN THE INDENTURE.
Unless this certificate is presented by an authorized representative of The Depository Trust Company to the issuer or its agent for registration of transfer, exchange or payment and such certificate issued in exchange for this certificate is registered in the name of Cede & Co., or such other name as requested by an authorized representative of The Depository Trust Company, any transfer, pledge or other use hereof for value or otherwise by or to any person is wrongful, as the registered owner hereof, Cede & Co., has an interest herein.
Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.
No. | Initially $ | |||
CUSIP No. 38147U AC1 | ||||
ISIN No. US38147UAC18 |
3.750% Notes due 2025
Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of Delaware (herein called the Company, which term includes any successor Person under the Indenture hereinafter referred to), for value received, hereby promises to pay to Cede & Co., or registered assigns, the principal sum of [] dollars (U.S. $[]), or such other principal sum as shall be set forth in the Schedule of Increases or Decreases attached hereto, on February 10, 2025, and to pay interest thereon from February 10, 2020 or from the most recent Interest Payment Date to which interest has been paid or duly provided for, semi-annually on February 10 and August 10 in each year, commencing August 10, 2020, at the rate of 3.750% per annum, until the principal hereof is paid or made available for payment. The interest so payable, and punctually paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date will, as provided in such Indenture, be paid to the Person in whose name this Security is registered at the close of business on the Regular Record Date for such interest, which shall be January 25 and July 25 (whether or not a Business Day), as the case may be, next preceding such Interest Payment Date. Any such interest not so punctually paid or duly provided for will forthwith cease to be payable to the Holder on such Regular Record Date and may either be paid to the Person in whose name this Security is registered at the close of business on a Special Record Date for the payment of such Defaulted Interest to be fixed by the Company, notice whereof shall be given to Holders of Securities of this series not less than 10 days prior to such Special Record Date, or be paid at any time in any other lawful manner not inconsistent with the requirements of any securities exchange on which the Securities of this series may be listed, and upon such notice as may be required by such exchange, all as more fully provided in said Indenture. This Security may be issued as part of a series.
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Payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) and any such interest on this Security will be made at the Corporate Trust Office of the Paying Agent, which shall initially be the Trustee, in such coin or currency of the United States of America as at the time of payment is legal tender for payment of public and private debts; provided, however, that at the option of the Company payment of interest may be made by check mailed to the address of the Person entitled thereto as such address shall appear in the Security Register; provided, further, however, that so long as this Security is registered to Cede & Co., such payment will be made by wire transfer in accordance with the procedures established by the Depository Trust Company and the Trustee.
Reference is hereby made to the further provisions of this Security set forth on the reverse hereof, which further provisions shall for all purposes have the same effect as if set forth at this place.
Unless the certificate of authentication hereon has been executed by the Trustee referred to on the reverse hereof by manual signature, this Security shall not be entitled to any benefit under the Indenture or be valid or obligatory for any purpose.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this instrument to be duly executed.
Dated:
GOLDMAN SACHS BDC, INC. | ||
By: |
|
|
Name: | ||
Title: |
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This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
Dated:
WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, as Trustee |
By: |
|
|
Authorized Signatory |
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[BACK OF NOTE]
Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.
3.750% Notes due 2025
This Security is one of a duly authorized issue of securities of the Company (herein called the Securities), issued and to be issued in one or more series under an Indenture, dated as of February 10, 2020 (herein called the Base Indenture, which term shall have the meaning assigned to it in such instrument), between the Company and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Trustee (herein called the Trustee, which term includes any successor trustee under the Base Indenture), and reference is hereby made to the Base Indenture for a statement of the respective rights, limitations of rights, duties and immunities thereunder of the Company, the Trustee, and the Holders of the Securities and of the terms upon which the Securities are, and are to be, authenticated and delivered, as supplemented by the First Supplemental Indenture, relating to the Securities, dated as of February 10, 2020, by and between the Company and the Trustee (herein called the First Supplemental Indenture; and together with the Base Indenture, the Indenture). In the event of any conflict between the Base Indenture and the First Supplemental Indenture, the First Supplemental Indenture shall govern and control.
This Security is one of the series designated on the face hereof, initially limited in aggregate principal amount to $[]. Under a Board Resolution, Officers Certificate pursuant to Board Resolutions or an indenture supplement, the Company may from time to time, without the consent of the Holders of Securities, issue additional Securities of this series (in any such case Additional Securities) having the same ranking and the same interest rate, maturity, CUSIP number and other terms as the Securities, provided that such Additional Securities must be part of the same issue as the Securities for U.S. federal income tax purposes if represented by the same CUSIP number as the Notes. Any Additional Securities and the existing Securities will constitute a single series under the Indenture and all references to the relevant Securities herein shall include the Additional Securities unless the context otherwise requires. The aggregate amount of Outstanding Securities represented hereby may from time to time be reduced or increased, as appropriate, to reflect exchanges and redemptions.
The Securities of this series are subject to redemption in whole or in part at any time or from time to time, at the option of the Company, at a Redemption Price equal to the greater of the following amounts, plus, in each case, accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the Redemption Date:
(a) |
100% of the principal amount of the Securities to be redeemed, or |
(b) |
the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest (exclusive of accrued and unpaid interest to the Redemption Date) on the Securities to be redeemed, discounted to the Redemption Date on a semi-annual basis (assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months) using the applicable Treasury Rate plus 35 basis points; |
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provided, however, that if the Company redeems any Securities on or after January 10, 2025, the Redemption Price for the Securities will be equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Securities to be redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the Redemption Date.
For purposes of calculating the Redemption Price in connection with the redemption of the Securities, on any Redemption Date, the following terms have the meanings set forth below:
Treasury Rate means, with respect to any Redemption Date, the rate per annum equal to the semi-annual equivalent yield-to-maturity of the Comparable Treasury Issue (computed as of the third Business Day immediately preceding the redemption), assuming a price for the Comparable Treasury Issue (expressed as a percentage of its principal amount) equal to the Comparable Treasury Price for such Redemption Date. The Redemption Price and the Treasury Rate will be determined by the Company.
Comparable Treasury Issue means the United States Treasury security selected by the Reference Treasury Dealer as having a maturity comparable to the remaining term of the Securities to be redeemed that would be utilized, at the time of selection and in accordance with customary financing practice, in pricing new issues of corporate debt securities of comparable maturity to the remaining term of the Securities being redeemed.
Comparable Treasury Price means (1) the average of the remaining Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations for the Redemption Date, after excluding the highest and lowest Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations, or (2) if the Quotation Agent obtains fewer than four such Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations, the average of all such quotations.
Quotation Agent means a Reference Treasury Dealer selected by the Company.
Reference Treasury Dealer means each of (1) BofA Securities, Inc. or its affiliates which is a primary U.S. government securities dealer in the United States (a Primary Treasury Dealer) and its successors; provided, however, that if BofA Securities, Inc. or its affiliates shall cease to be a Primary Treasury Dealer, the Company shall select another Primary Treasury Dealer, and (2) three other Primary Treasury Dealers selected by the Company.
Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations means, with respect to each Reference Treasury Dealer and any Redemption Date, the average, as determined by the Quotation Agent, of the bid and asked prices for the Comparable Treasury Issue (expressed in each case as a percentage of its principal amount) quoted in writing to the Quotation Agent by such Reference Treasury Dealer at 3:30 p.m. New York time on the third Business Day preceding such Redemption Date.
All determinations made by any Reference Treasury Dealer, including the Quotation Agent, with respect to determining the Redemption Price will be final and binding absent manifest error.
Notice of redemption shall be given in writing and mailed, first-class postage prepaid or by overnight courier guaranteeing next-day delivery, or sent electronically in accordance with Applicable Procedures with respect to Notes in global form, to each Holder of the Securities to be redeemed, not less than 30 nor more than 60 days prior to the Redemption Date, at the Holders address appearing in the Security Register. All notices of redemption shall contain the information set forth in Section 11.04 of the Base Indenture.
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Any exercise of the Companys option to redeem the Securities will be done in compliance with the Investment Company Act, to the extent applicable.
If the Company elects to redeem only a portion of the Securities, the particular Securities to be redeemed will be selected by the Trustee in accordance with the applicable procedures of the Depositary and in accordance with the Investment Company Act. In the event of redemption of this Security in part only, a new Security or Securities of this series and of like tenor for the unredeemed portion hereof will be issued in the name of the Holder hereof upon the cancellation hereof; provided, however, that no such partial redemption shall reduce the portion of the principal amount of a Security not redeemed to less than $2,000.
Unless the Company defaults in payment of the Redemption Price, on and after the Redemption Date, interest will cease to accrue on the Securities called for redemption.
Holders will have the right to require the Company to repurchase their Securities upon the occurrence of a Change of Control Repurchase Event as set forth in the Indenture.
The Indenture contains provisions for defeasance at any time of the entire indebtedness of this Security or certain restrictive covenants and Events of Default with respect to this Security, in each case upon compliance with certain conditions set forth in the Indenture.
If an Event of Default with respect to Securities of this series shall occur and be continuing (other than Events of Default related to certain events of bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization as set forth in the Indenture), the principal of the Securities of this series may be declared due and payable in the manner and with the effect provided in the Indenture. In the case of certain events of bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization described in the Indenture, 100% of the principal of and accrued and unpaid interest on the Securities will automatically become due and payable.
The Indenture permits, with certain exceptions as therein provided, the amendment thereof and the modification of the rights and obligations of the Company and the rights of the Holders of the Securities of each series to be affected under the Indenture at any time by the Company and the Trustee with the consent of the Holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the Securities at the time Outstanding of each series to be affected. The Indenture also contains provisions permitting the Holders of specified percentages in principal amount of the Securities of each series at the time Outstanding, on behalf of the Holders of all Securities of such series, to waive compliance by the Company with certain provisions of the Indenture and certain past defaults under the Indenture and their consequences. Any such consent or waiver by the Holder of this Security shall be conclusive and binding upon such Holder and upon all future Holders of this Security and of any Security issued upon the registration of transfer hereof or in exchange herefor or in lieu hereof, whether or not notation of such consent or waiver is made upon this Security.
As provided in and subject to the provisions of the Indenture, the Holder of this Security shall not have the right to institute any proceeding with respect to the Indenture or for the appointment of a receiver or trustee or for any other remedy thereunder, unless such Holder shall
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have previously given the Trustee written notice of a continuing Event of Default with respect to the Securities of this series, the Holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the Securities of this series at the time Outstanding shall have made written request to the Trustee to institute proceedings in respect of such Event of Default as Trustee and offered the Trustee indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities to be incurred in compliance with such request, and the Trustee shall not have received from the Holders of a majority in principal amount of Securities of this series at the time Outstanding a direction inconsistent with such request, and shall have failed to institute any such proceeding, for 90 days after receipt of such notice, request and offer of indemnity. The foregoing shall not apply to any suit instituted by the Holder of this Security for the enforcement of any payment of principal hereof or any premium or interest hereon on or after the respective due dates expressed herein.
No reference herein to the Indenture and no provision of this Security or of the Indenture shall alter or impair the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay the principal of and any premium and interest on this Security at the times, place and rate, and in the coin or currency, herein prescribed.
As provided in the Indenture and subject to certain limitations therein set forth, the transfer of this Security is registrable in the Security Register, upon surrender of this Security for registration of transfer at the office or agency of the Company in any place where the principal of and any premium and interest on this Security are payable, duly endorsed by, or accompanied by a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Security Registrar duly executed by, the Holder hereof or his attorney duly authorized in writing, and thereupon one or more new Securities of this series and of like tenor, of authorized denominations and for the same aggregate principal amount, will be issued to the designated transferee or transferees.
The Securities of this series are issuable only in registered form without coupons in denominations of $2,000 and any integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof. As provided in the Indenture and subject to certain limitations therein set forth, Securities of this series are exchangeable for a like aggregate principal amount of Securities of this series and of like tenor of a different authorized denomination, as requested by the Holder surrendering the same.
No service charge shall be made for any such registration of transfer or exchange, but the Company or Trustee may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge payable in connection therewith.
Prior to due presentment of this Security for registration of transfer, the Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or the Trustee may treat the Person in whose name this Security is registered as the owner hereof for all purposes, whether or not this Security be overdue, and neither the Company, the Trustee nor any such agent shall be affected by notice to the contrary.
All terms used in this Security which are defined in the Indenture shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Indenture.
To the extent any provision of this Security conflicts with the express provisions of the Indenture, the provisions of the Indenture shall govern and be controlling.
The Indenture and this Security shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to principles of conflicts of laws.
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ASSIGNMENT FORM
To assign this Note, fill in the form below:
(I) or (we) assign and transfer this Note to: |
|
|
(INSERT ASSIGNEES LEGAL NAME) |
(Insert assignees soc. sec. or tax I.D. no.)
(Print or type assignees name, address and zip code)
and irrevocably appoint |
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to transfer this Note on the books of the Company. The agent may substitute another to act for him.
Date:
Your Signature: |
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|||
(Sign exactly as your name appears on the face of this Note) |
Signature Guarantee*:
* |
Participant in a recognized Signature Guarantee Medallion Program (or other signature guarantor acceptable to the Trustee). |
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OPTION OF HOLDER TO ELECT PURCHASE
If you want to elect to have this Note purchased by the Company pursuant to Section 13.01 of the Indenture, check the box below:
☐ Section 13.01
If you want to elect to have only part of the Note purchased by the Company pursuant to Section 13.01 of the Indenture, state the amount you elect to have purchased:
$
Date:
Your Signature: |
|
|||
(Sign exactly as your name appears on the face of this Note) |
Tax Identification No.: |
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Signature Guarantee*:
* |
Participant in a recognized Signature Guarantee Medallion Program (or other signature guarantor acceptable to the Trustee). |
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SCHEDULE OF INCREASES AND DECREASES OF GLOBAL NOTE
The initial principal amount of this Global Note is $[]. The following increases and decreases to this Global Note have been made:
Date of Increase or Decrease |
Amount of Decrease in
|
Amount of Increase in
|
Principal Amount at
|
Signature of
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Exhibit 5.1
February 11, 2020
Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc.
200 West Street
New York, New York 10282
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as counsel to Goldman Sachs BDC, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the Company), in connection with the Companys (i) Registration Statement on Form N-2 (Registration No. 333-230801) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act) (as amended from time to time, the Initial Registration Statement) and (ii) an additional Registration Statement on Form N-2 (Registration No. 333-236303) filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act (the 462(b) Registration Statement and, together with the Initial Registration Statement, the Registration Statement).
This opinion letter is rendered in connection with the issuance and sale by the Company of $360,000,000 aggregate principal amount of the Companys 3.750% Notes due 2025 (the Notes), as described in the prospectus, dated as of February 6, 2020, filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 497 under the Securities Act (the Prospectus). The Notes are being sold by the Company pursuant to an underwriting agreement, dated as of February 6, 2020, by and among the Company, Goldman Sachs Asset Management L.P. and BofA Securities, Inc., as representative of the several underwriters named therein (the Underwriting Agreement). The Notes were issued pursuant to a base indenture dated as of February 10, 2020 (the Base Indenture) between the Company and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as trustee (the Trustee), as supplemented by a first supplemental indenture dated as of February 10, 2020 (together with the Base Indenture, the Indenture), between the Company and the Trustee.
With your permission, all assumptions and statements of reliance herein have been made without any independent investigation or verification on our part, and we express no opinion with respect to the subject matter or accuracy of such assumptions or items relied upon.
In connection with this opinion, we have (i) investigated such questions of law, (ii) examined originals or certified, conformed, electronic or reproduction copies of such agreements, instruments, documents and records of the Company, such certificates of public officials and such other documents, and (iii) received such information from officers and representatives of the Company as we have deemed necessary or appropriate for the purposes of this opinion. We have examined, among other documents, the following:
(a) |
the Registration Statement; |
(b) |
the Prospectus; |
(c) |
the Underwriting Agreement; |
(d) |
a copy of the Notes in global form as executed by the Company and authenticated by the Trustee; |
(e) |
the Indenture; |
(f) |
the Certificate of Incorporation of the Company (the Certificate of Incorporation); |
(g) |
the Bylaws of the Company (the Bylaws); and |
(h) |
resolutions of the board of directors of the Company relating to, among other things, the authorization and issuance of the Notes. |
The documents referred to in items (c) through (e), inclusive, are referred to collectively herein as the Documents.
In all such examinations, we have assumed the legal capacity of all natural persons, the genuineness of all signatures, the authenticity of original and certified documents and the conformity to original or certified documents of all copies submitted to us as certified, conformed, electronic or reproduction copies. As to various questions of fact relevant to the opinion expressed herein, we have relied upon, and assume the accuracy of, certificates and oral or written statements and other information of or from public officials and officers and representatives of the Company and others.
To the extent it may be relevant to the opinion expressed below, we have assumed that (i) the Notes have been duly authenticated, executed and delivered by the Trustee, (ii) all of the parties to the Documents (other than the Company) are validly existing and in good standing under the laws of their respective jurisdictions of organization, (iii) all of the parties to the Documents (other than the Company) have the power and authority to (a) execute and deliver the Documents, (b) perform their obligations thereunder, and (c) consummate the transactions contemplated thereby, (iv) each of the Documents has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by each of the parties thereto (other than the Company), (v) each of the Documents constitutes a valid and binding obligation of each of the parties thereto (other than as expressly addressed in the opinion below as to the Company), enforceable against such parties in accordance with their respective terms, and (vi) all of the parties to the Documents will comply with all of their obligations under the Documents and all laws applicable thereto.
Based upon the foregoing and subject to the limitations, qualifications and assumptions set forth herein, we are of the opinion that the Notes constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms and entitled to the benefits of the Indenture.
We express no opinion as to the validity or binding effect of any provision of the Documents:
(i) relating to indemnification, contribution or exculpation;
(ii) containing any purported waiver, release, variation, disclaimer, consent or other agreement of similar effect (all of the foregoing, collectively, a Waiver) by any party under any provision of the Documents to the extent limited by provisions of applicable law (including judicial decisions), or to the extent that such a Waiver applies to a right, claim, duty, defense or ground for discharge otherwise existing or occurring as a matter of law (including judicial decisions), except to the extent that such a Waiver is effective under, and is not prohibited by or void or invalid under, provisions of applicable law (including judicial decisions);
(iii) related to (a) forum selection or submission to jurisdiction (including, without limitation, any waiver of any objection to venue in any court or of any objection that a court is an inconvenient forum) to the extent that the validity or binding effect of any such provision is to be determined by any court other than a court of the State of New York, (b) choice of governing law to the extent that the validity or binding effect of any such provision is to be determined by any court other than a court of the State of New York or a federal district court sitting in the State of New York, in each case, applying the choice of law principles of the State of New York, (c) service of process or (d) waiver of any rights to trial by jury;
(iv) specifying that provisions thereof may be waived only in writing;
(v) that purports to create a trust or other fiduciary relationship or a power of attorney;
(vi) specifying that any person may exercise set-off or similar rights other than in accordance with applicable law;
(vii) relating to payment of late charges, interest (or discount or equivalent amounts), premium, make-whole payments, collection costs or fees at a rate or in an amount, after or upon the maturity or acceleration of the liabilities evidenced or secured thereby or after or during the continuance of any default or other circumstance, or upon prepayment, that a court would determine in the circumstances to be unreasonable, a penalty or a forfeiture;
(viii) purporting to give any person or entity the power to accelerate obligations without any notice to the obligor; and
(ix) which may be construed to be in the nature of a penalty.
We express no opinion as to the validity or binding effect of any provision of the Documents (i) providing for payments thereunder in a currency other than currency of the United States of America to the extent that a court of competent jurisdiction, under applicable law, will convert any judgment rendered in such other currency into currency of the United States of America or to the extent that payment in a currency other than currency of the United States of America is contrary to applicable law, (ii) providing for governmental authority to limit, delay or prohibit the making of payments outside the United States or in foreign currency or composite currency or (iii) concerning the enforceability of the waiver of rights or defenses contained in the Documents relating to waiver of stay, extension or usury laws.
The opinion set forth above is subject to the following qualifications: (i) applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other similar laws (or related judicial doctrines) now or hereafter in effect affecting creditors rights and remedies generally, (ii) general principles of equity including, without limitation, standards of materiality, good faith, fair dealing and reasonableness, equitable defenses and limits as to the availability of equitable remedies, whether such principles are considered in a proceeding at law or in equity, and (iii) the application of any applicable fraudulent conveyance, fraudulent transfer, fraudulent obligation, or preferential transfer law or any law governing the distribution of assets of any person now or hereafter in effect affecting creditors rights and remedies generally.
The opinion expressed herein is limited to the laws of the State of New York and the applicable provisions of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, each as currently in effect, and no opinion is expressed with respect to any other laws or any effect that such other laws may have on the opinion expressed herein. The opinion expressed herein is limited to the matters stated herein, and no opinion is implied or may be inferred beyond the matters expressly stated herein. This letter is given only as of the time of its delivery, and we undertake no responsibility to update or supplement this letter after its delivery.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as an exhibit to the Companys Form 8-K, which will be incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement and to the reference to this firm under the caption Legal Matters in the prospectus which forms a part of the Registration Statement. In giving these consents, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act.
Very truly yours, |
/s/ Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP |
FRIED, FRANK, HARRIS, SHRIVER & JACOBSON LLP |