Underwriting Agreement for Class A Common Stock Offering by Chime Financial, Inc. and Selling Stockholders
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Summary
Chime Financial, Inc. and certain of its stockholders are entering into an agreement with Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and other underwriters to sell shares of Chime’s Class A common stock. The agreement outlines the terms for the underwriters to purchase and resell these shares to the public, including an option for the underwriters to buy additional shares. The document also covers representations, warranties, and procedures related to the offering, ensuring compliance with SEC regulations. The agreement is effective upon execution and is a key step in Chime’s public stock offering process.
EX-1.1 3 exhibit11-sx1a.htm EX-1.1 Document
Exhibit 1.1
[_______________] Shares
CHIME FINANCIAL, INC.
CLASS A COMMON STOCK, PAR VALUE $0.0001 PER SHARE
UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
[__________], 2025
[●], 2025
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
As representatives of the several Underwriters named in
Schedule I hereto
c/o Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
1585 Broadway
New York, New York 10036
c/o Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
200 West Street
New York, New York 10282
c/o J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
383 Madison Avenue
New York, New York 10179
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Chime Financial, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to the several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “Underwriters”), and certain stockholders of the Company named in Schedule II hereto (the “Selling Stockholders”) severally propose to sell to the several Underwriters, an aggregate of [●] shares of the Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Class A common stock”), of the Company (the “Firm Shares”), of which [●] shares are to be issued and sold by the Company and [●] shares are to be sold by the Selling Stockholders, each Selling Stockholder selling the amount set forth opposite such Selling Stockholder’s name in Schedule II hereto.
The Company also proposes to issue and sell to the several Underwriters not more than an additional [●] shares of its Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Additional Shares”), if and to the extent that Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC (“Goldman Sachs”) and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC (“J.P. Morgan”) as representatives of the several Underwriters (collectively, the “Representatives”), shall have determined to exercise, on behalf of the Underwriters, the right to purchase such Additional Shares from the Company granted to the Underwriters in Section 3 hereof. The Firm Shares and the Additional Shares are hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Shares.” The shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company are hereinafter referred to as the “Class B common stock.” The Class A common stock and the Class B common stock are collectively hereinafter referred to as the “Common Stock.” The
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Company and the Selling Stockholders are hereinafter sometimes collectively referred to as the “Sellers.”
The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) a registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-287223), including a preliminary prospectus, relating to the Shares. The registration statement as amended at the time it becomes effective, including the information (if any) deemed to be part of the registration statement at the time of effectiveness pursuant to Rule 430A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), is hereinafter referred to as the “Registration Statement”; the prospectus in the form first used to confirm sales of Shares (or in the form first made available to the Underwriters by the Company to meet requests of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) is hereinafter referred to as the “Prospectus.” If the Company has filed an abbreviated registration statement to register additional shares of Class A common stock pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act (a “Rule 462 Registration Statement”), then any reference herein to the term “Registration Statement” shall be deemed to include such Rule 462 Registration Statement.
For purposes of this Underwriting Agreement (the “Agreement”), “free writing prospectus” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 under the Securities Act, “preliminary prospectus” shall mean each prospectus used prior to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, and each prospectus that omitted information pursuant to Rule 430A under the Securities Act that was used after such effectiveness and prior to the execution and delivery of this Agreement, “Time of Sale Prospectus” means the preliminary prospectus contained in the Registration Statement at the time of its effectiveness together with the documents, pricing information and free writing prospectuses, if any, set forth in Schedule III hereto, and “broadly available road show” means a “bona fide electronic road show” as defined in Rule 433(h)(5) under the Securities Act that has been made available without restriction to any person. As used herein, the terms “Registration Statement,” “preliminary prospectus,” “Time of Sale Prospectus” and “Prospectus” shall include the documents, if any, incorporated by reference therein as of the date hereof.
Morgan Stanley has agreed to reserve a portion of the Shares to be purchased by it under this Agreement for sale to the Company’s directors, officers, employees and business associates and other parties related to the Company (collectively, “Participants”), as set forth in each of the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus under the heading “Underwriters—Directed Share Program” (the “Directed Share Program”). The Shares to be sold by Morgan Stanley and its affiliates pursuant to the Directed Share Program, at the direction of the Company, are referred to hereinafter as the “Directed Shares”. Any Directed Shares not orally confirmed for purchase by any Participant by the end of the business day on which this Agreement is executed will be offered to the public by the Underwriters as set forth in the Prospectus.
1. Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to and agrees with each of the Underwriters that:
(a) The Registration Statement has become effective; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement is in effect, and no
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proceedings for such purpose or pursuant to Section 8A under the Securities Act are pending before or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened by the Commission.
(b) (i) The Registration Statement, when it became effective, did not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, 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 not misleading, (ii) the Registration Statement and the Prospectus comply and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will comply, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, (iii) the Time of Sale Prospectus does not, and at the time of each sale of the Shares in connection with the offering when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and at the Closing Date (as defined in Section 5), the Time of Sale Prospectus, as then amended or supplemented by the Company, if applicable, will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, (iv) each broadly available road show, if any, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading and (v) the Prospectus does not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, except that the representations and warranties set forth in this paragraph do not apply to statements or omissions in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus based upon Underwriter Information (as defined in Section 8(b) herein).
(c) The Company is not an “ineligible issuer” in connection with the offering pursuant to Rules 164, 405 and 433 under the Securities Act. Any free writing prospectus that the Company is required to file pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act has been, or will be, filed with the Commission in accordance with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder. Each free writing prospectus that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act or that was prepared by or on behalf of or used or referred to by the Company complies, or, if filed after the effective date of this Agreement, will comply, when filed, in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder. Except for the free writing prospectuses, if any, identified in Schedule III hereto, and electronic road shows, if any, each furnished to the Representatives before first use, the Company has not prepared, used or referred to, and will not, without the Representatives’ prior consent, prepare, use or refer to, any free writing prospectus.
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(d) The Company has been duly incorporated, is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation, has the corporate power and authority to own or lease its property and to conduct its business as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing in each jurisdiction (to the extent the concept of good standing is applicable in such jurisdiction) in which the conduct of its business or its ownership or leasing of property requires such qualification, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or be in good standing would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(e) Each subsidiary of the Company has been duly incorporated, organized or formed, is validly existing as a corporation or other business entity in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation, organization or formation (to the extent the concept of good standing is applicable in such jurisdiction), has the corporate or other business entity power and authority to own or lease its property and to conduct its business as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing in each jurisdiction (to the extent the concept of good standing is applicable in such jurisdiction) in which the conduct of its business or its ownership or leasing of property requires such qualification, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or be in good standing would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; all of the issued shares of capital stock or other equity interests of each such subsidiary of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned directly or indirectly by the Company, free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, equities, or claims, except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, or to the extent that such liens, encumbrances, equities, or claims would not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(f) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.
(g) As of the Closing Date (as defined in Section 5), the authorized capital stock of the Company will conform as to legal matters to the description thereof contained in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus.
(h) The shares of Common Stock (including the Shares to be sold by the Selling Stockholders) outstanding prior to the issuance of the Shares to be sold by the Company have been duly authorized and are validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.
(i) Except as described in or expressly contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, there are no outstanding
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rights (including, without limitation, preemptive rights), warrants or options to acquire, or instruments convertible into or exchangeable for, any shares of capital stock or other equity interest in the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or any contract, commitment, agreement, understanding or arrangement of any kind relating to the issuance of any capital stock of the Company or any such subsidiary, any such convertible or exchangeable securities or any such rights, warrants or options.
(j) The Shares to be sold by the Company have been duly authorized and, when issued, delivered and paid for in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, and the issuance of the Shares will not be subject to any preemptive or similar rights that have not been validly waived or satisfied.
(k) The execution and delivery by the Company of, and the performance by the Company of its obligations under, this Agreement will not contravene any provision of (i) applicable law, (ii) the certificate of incorporation or bylaws of the Company, (iii) any agreement or other instrument binding upon the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or (iv) any judgment, order or decree of any governmental body, agency or court having jurisdiction over the Company or any subsidiary, except that in the case of clauses (i), (iii) and (iv) above, where such contravention would not reasonably be expected to, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or on the power or ability of the Company to perform its obligations under this Agreement or to consummate the transactions contemplated by each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus; and no consent, approval, authorization or order of, or qualification with, any governmental body, agency or court is required for the performance by the Company of its obligations under this Agreement, except such as has previously been obtained or waived or may be required by the securities or Blue Sky laws of the various states or foreign jurisdictions or the rules and regulations of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares.
(l) There has not occurred any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business or operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, from that set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus.
(m) There are no legal or governmental proceedings pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or to which any of the properties of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject (i) other than proceedings accurately described in all material respects in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and proceedings that would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or on the power or ability of the Company to perform its obligations under this Agreement or to consummate the transactions contemplated by each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus or (ii) that are required to be described in the
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Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus and are not so described in all material respects; and there are no statutes, regulations, contracts or other documents to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject or by which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is bound that are required to be described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus or to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement that are not described in all material respects or filed as required.
(n) Each preliminary prospectus filed as part of the Registration Statement as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act, complied when so filed in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.
(o) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has any securities rated by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as such term is defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”).
(p) The Company is not, and immediately after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus will not be, required to register as an “investment company” as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.
(q) The Company and each of its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, (i) are in compliance with any and all applicable foreign, federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of human health and safety, the environment or hazardous or toxic substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants (“Environmental Laws”), (ii) have received all permits, licenses or other approvals required of them under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct their respective businesses as presently conducted and (iii) are in compliance with all terms and conditions of any such permit, license or approval, except where such noncompliance with Environmental Laws, failure to receive required permits, licenses or other approvals or failure to comply with the terms and conditions of such permits, licenses or approvals would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(r) There are no costs or liabilities associated with Environmental Laws (including, without limitation, any capital or operating expenditures required for clean-up, closure of properties or compliance with Environmental Laws or any permit, license or approval, any related constraints on operating activities and any potential liabilities to third parties) which would reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(s) Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, there are no contracts, agreements or understandings
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between the Company and any person granting such person the right to require the Company to file a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to any securities of the Company or to require the Company to include such securities with the Shares registered pursuant to the Registration Statement, except as otherwise have been validly waived or complied with in connection with the issuance and sale of the Shares contemplated hereby.
(t) Except as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company and its subsidiaries are in compliance with any and all applicable federal and state laws, rules, regulations and regulatory capital requirements or court decrees relating to money-lending, servicing, consumer finance, unsecured installment lending, consumer protection or other regulations applicable to the business of the Company as currently conducted, including, but not limited to, rules and regulations promulgated by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (including, but not limited to, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Truth in Lending Act, the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Consumer Financial Protection Act, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act), state laws and regulations that impose requirements related to loan disclosures and terms, credit discrimination, credit reporting, money transmission, recordkeeping, debt servicing and collection and unfair or deceptive business practices, and other federal laws (including, but not limited to, as applicable, the Federal Trade Commission Act, the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act) except to the extent that the failure to comply would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(u) None of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or controlled affiliates, or any director, officer, or employee thereof, or, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent or representative of the Company or of any of its subsidiaries or controlled affiliates, has taken or will take any action in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization or approval of the payment, giving or receipt of money, property, gifts or anything else of value, directly or indirectly, to any person to improperly influence official action by that person for the benefit of the Company or its subsidiaries or controlled affiliates, or to otherwise secure any improper advantage, or to any person in violation of (a) the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, (b) the UK Bribery Act 2010, and (c) any other applicable law, regulation, order, decree or directive having the force of law and relating to bribery or corruption (collectively, the “Anti-Corruption Laws”).
(v) The operations of the Company and each of its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in material compliance with all applicable anti-money laundering laws, rules, regulations and guidance including the financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements contained therein, and including the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970, applicable provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, the Money Laundering
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Control Act of 1986, the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 and the applicable anti-money laundering statutes of jurisdictions where the Company and each of its subsidiaries conduct business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Anti-Money Laundering Laws”) and the Company and its subsidiaries maintain all licenses and approvals required under applicable law, except to the extent that such licenses and approvals would not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(w) (i) None of the Company, any of its subsidiaries, or any director, officer, or employee thereof, or, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent, affiliate or representative of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, is an individual or entity (“Person”) that is, or is owned or controlled by one or more Persons that are:
(A) the subject or the target of any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States Government (including the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the U.S. Department of State), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, His Majesty’s Treasury, or any other applicable sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”), or
(B) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of comprehensive territorial Sanctions (including, without limitation, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic, or any other Covered Region of Ukraine identified pursuant to Executive Order 14065, the Crimea and non-government controlled areas of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Regions of Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria).
(ii) The Company and each of its subsidiaries, (a) have not, since the more recent of April 24, 2019 or 10 years prior to the date of the Agreement, engaged in, (b) are not now engaged in, and (c) will not engage in, any dealings or transactions with any Person, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was, or whose government is or was, the subject of Sanctions except to the extent permitted for a Person required to comply with Sanctions.
(x) The Company will not, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other Person:
(i) to fund or facilitate any activities or business of or with any Person or in any country or territory that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is, or whose government is, the subject of Sanctions except to the extent permitted for a Person required to comply with Sanctions;
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(ii) to fund or facilitate any money laundering or terrorist financing activities; or
(iii) in any other manner that would cause or result in a violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws, Anti-Money Laundering Laws, or Sanctions by any Person (including any Person participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).
(y) The Company and its subsidiaries have conducted and will conduct their businesses in compliance with the Anti-Corruption Laws, the Anti-Money Laundering Laws, and Sanctions, and no investigation, inquiry, action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Anti-Corruption Laws, the Anti-Money Laundering Laws or Sanctions is pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened. The Company and its subsidiaries and controlled affiliates have instituted and maintained and will continue to maintain policies and procedures reasonably designed to promote and achieve compliance with the Anti-Corruption Laws, the Anti-Money Laundering Laws, Sanctions, and with the representations and warranties contained herein.
(z) Subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, (i) the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, have not incurred any material liability or obligation, direct or contingent, nor entered into any material transaction other than in the ordinary course of business; (ii) the Company has not purchased any of its outstanding capital stock (except for acquisitions of capital stock by the Company pursuant to agreements that permit the Company to repurchase such shares upon the applicable party’s termination of service to the Company or in connection with the exercise of the Company’s right of first refusal upon a proposed transfer), nor declared, paid or otherwise made any dividend or distribution of any kind on its capital stock other than ordinary and customary dividends; and (iii) there has not been any material change in the capital stock (other than the exercise or settlement (including any “net” or “cashless” exercises or settlements) or grants of equity awards or forfeiture of equity awards outstanding under the Company’s equity incentive plans or agreements as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus), short-term debt or long-term debt of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, except in each case as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus.
(aa) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries own real property. The Company and each of its subsidiaries have good and marketable title to all personal property owned by them which is material to the business of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus or such as do not materially diminish the value of such property and do
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not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and its subsidiaries; and any real property and buildings held under lease by the Company and its subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and, to the Company’s knowledge, enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material and do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company and its subsidiaries.
(bb) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, (i) the Company and its subsidiaries own or have a valid and enforceable license to use all patents, inventions, copyrights and copyrightable works, know how (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or confidential information, systems or procedures), software, domain names, social media identifiers and accounts, trademarks, service marks and trade names and all other worldwide intellectual property and proprietary rights (including all registrations and applications for registration of, and all goodwill associated with, any of the foregoing, as applicable) (collectively, “Intellectual Property Rights”) used in, held for use in or reasonably necessary to the conduct of their respective businesses as now conducted by them, provided that this subclause (i) shall not be deemed a representation or warranty of non-infringement, which is covered by subclauses (iii), (iv) and (v) below; (ii) the Intellectual Property Rights owned by the Company and its subsidiaries are valid, subsisting and, to the Company’s knowledge, enforceable, and there is no pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others challenging the validity, scope or enforceability of, or any rights of the Company or any of its subsidiaries in, any such Intellectual Property Rights in each case, except as would not, singularly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries; (iii) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has received any notice alleging, or is involved in any proceeding relating to, any infringement, misappropriation or other violation of third-party Intellectual Property Rights which, singly or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; (iv) to the Company’s knowledge, no third party is infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating, or has infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated, any Intellectual Property Rights owned or controlled by the Company or any of its subsidiaries except as would not, singularly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; (v) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries, nor the conduct of their respective businesses (including as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus), infringes, misappropriates or otherwise violates, or has infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated, any third-party Intellectual Property Rights except as would not, singularly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; (vi) all employees and contractors engaged in the development of Intellectual Property Rights on behalf of the Company or any subsidiary of the Company have executed an invention assignment agreement whereby such employees and contractors presently assign all of their right, title and interest in and to such Intellectual Property Rights to the Company or
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the applicable subsidiary, and to the Company’s knowledge no such agreement has been breached or violated, in each case, except as would not, singularly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; and (vii) the Company and its subsidiaries use, and have used, commercially reasonable efforts in accordance with customary industry practice to appropriately maintain the confidentiality of all information intended to be maintained by them as a trade secret, and no such trade secrets have been disclosed other than to employees, representatives and agents of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, all of whom are bound by written confidentiality agreements, in each case, except as would not, singularly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(cc) Except as would not, singularly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, (i) the Company and its subsidiaries use and have used any and all software and other materials distributed under a “free,” “open source,” or similar licensing model (including but not limited to the MIT License, Apache License, GNU General Public License, GNU Lesser General Public License and GNU Affero General Public License) (collectively, “Open Source Software”) in compliance with all license terms applicable to the Company’s and its subsidiaries’ use of such Open Source Software; and (ii) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries uses or distributes or has used or distributed any Open Source Software in any manner that requires or has required (A) the Company or any of its subsidiaries to permit reverse engineering of any software code or other technology owned by the Company or any of its subsidiaries or (B) any software code or other technology owned by the Company or any of its subsidiaries to be (1) disclosed or distributed in source code form to any third party (except as intentionally disclosed or distributed by the Company or its subsidiaries to a third party subject to confidentiality restrictions), (2) licensed for the purpose of making derivative works or (3) redistributed at no charge.
(dd) Except as would not, singly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, (i) the Company and each of its subsidiaries have complied and are presently in compliance with all of their internal and external privacy policies, all of their contractual obligations, all applicable laws and binding judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or other governmental or regulatory authority and any other legal obligations, in each case, relating to the collection, use, transfer, import, export, storage, protection, disposal, disclosure and other processing by the Company or any of its subsidiaries of personal, personally identifiable, household, sensitive, confidential or regulated data or information (“Data Security Obligations”, and such data and information, “Confidential or Regulated Data”); (ii) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries have received any notification of or complaint regarding non-compliance with any Data Security Obligation by the Company or any of its subsidiaries; and (iii) there is no action, suit, proceeding or, to the Company’s knowledge, investigation by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body pending or, to the Company’s knowledge,
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threatened in writing alleging non-compliance with any Data Security Obligation by the Company or any of its subsidiaries.
(ee) Except as would not, singly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, the Company and each of its subsidiaries have taken commercially reasonable technical, physical, administrative and organizational measures designed to protect their respective information technology systems, assets, equipment, networks, hardware, and software, and their respective websites, computers, applications, technology, data and databases (including Confidential or Regulated Data) used by or on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries in connection with the operation of the Company’s and each of its subsidiaries’ respective businesses (“IT Systems and Data”), including reasonable information technology, information security, cyber security and data protection controls, policies and procedures that include, as applicable, oversight, access controls, encryption, technological and physical safeguards and business continuity/disaster recovery and security measures that are designed to protect against and prevent breach of and unauthorized destruction, loss, outage, disruption, distribution, use, access, disablement, misappropriation or modification of any IT Systems and Data (“Breach”). Except as would not, singly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, there has been no such Breach, and the Company and its subsidiaries have not been notified of, and have no knowledge of any event or condition that could reasonably be expected to result in, any such Breach, nor any incidents under internal review or investigations relating to the same. Except as would not, singly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, the IT Systems and Data (i) are adequate in capacity and performance for, and operate and perform in all respects as required in connection with the operation of the respective businesses of the Company and each of its subsidiaries as currently conducted, (ii) have not malfunctioned or failed in a manner that has not been remediated in a commercially reasonable manner and (iii) are free and clear of all Trojan horses, time bombs, back doors, drop dead devices, and of all malware and other corruptants that would reasonably be expected to result in a Breach. The Company and each of its subsidiaries own or have a valid right to access and use all IT Systems and Data used by or on behalf of the Company and its subsidiaries in the conduct of their respective businesses as now conducted by them, except where such failure to have such ownership or right would not, singly or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(ff) No material labor dispute with the employees of the Company or any of its subsidiaries exists, or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent; and the Company is not aware of any existing, threatened or imminent labor disturbance by the employees of any of its principal suppliers, manufacturers or contractors that would reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
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(gg) The Company and each of its subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as the Company reasonably believes are prudent and customary in the businesses in which they are currently engaged; neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for; and neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has any reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(hh) The Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, possess all certificates, authorizations and permits issued by the appropriate federal, state or foreign regulatory authorities necessary to conduct their respective businesses as currently conducted, except where the failure to obtain such certificates, authorizations or permits would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company or its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, and neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any such certificate, authorization or permit which, singly or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(ii) The financial statements included in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, together with the related schedules and notes thereto, comply as to form in all material respects with the applicable accounting requirements of the Securities Act and present fairly in all material respects the consolidated financial position of the Company and its subsidiaries as of the dates shown and its results of operations and cash flows for the periods shown, and such financial statements have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“U.S. GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods covered thereby except for any normal year-end adjustments in the Company’s quarterly financial statements. The other financial information included in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus has been derived from the accounting records of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries and presents fairly in all material respects the information shown thereby. The statistical, industry-related and market-related data included in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company reasonably and in good faith believes are reliable and accurate and such data is consistent with the sources from which they are derived, in each case in all material respects.
(jj) Ernst & Young LLP, who have certified certain financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries and delivered its report with respect to the audited consolidated financial statements and schedules filed with the Commission as part of the
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Registration Statement and included in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, is an independent registered public accounting firm with respect to the Company within the meaning of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations thereunder adopted by the Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States).
(kk) The Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, maintain a system of internal accounting controls designed to provide reasonable assurance that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations; (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP and to maintain asset accountability; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences. Since the end of the Company’s most recent audited fiscal year, there has been (i) no material weakness in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (whether or not remediated) and (ii) no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially and adversely affected, or is reasonably likely to materially and adversely affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (it being understood that clauses (i) and (ii) shall not require the Company to comply with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith as of an earlier date than it would otherwise be required to do so under applicable law).
(ll) Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company has not sold, issued or distributed any shares of Common Stock during the six-month period preceding the date hereof, including any sales pursuant to Rule 144A under, or Regulation D or S of, the Securities Act, other than shares issued pursuant to employee benefit plans, qualified equity incentive plans or other employee compensation plans or pursuant to outstanding options, rights or warrants.
(mm) The Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus and any preliminary prospectus comply, and any amendments or supplements thereto will comply, with any applicable laws or regulations of foreign jurisdictions in which the Prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any preliminary prospectus, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, are distributed in connection with the Directed Share Program.
(nn) No consent, approval, authorization or order of, or qualification with, any government body or agency, other than those obtained, is required in connection with the offering of the Directed Shares in any jurisdiction where the Directed Shares are being offered.
(oo) The Company has not offered, or caused Morgan Stanley or any Morgan Stanley Entity as defined in Section 12 to offer, Shares to any person pursuant to the Directed Share Program with the specific intent to unlawfully influence (i) a customer or
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supplier of the Company to alter the customer’s or supplier’s level or type of business with the Company, or (ii) a trade journalist or publication to write or publish favorable information about the Company or its products.
(pp) The Company and each of its subsidiaries have filed all U.S. federal, state, local and non-U.S. foreign tax returns required to be filed through the date of this Agreement or have requested extensions thereof (except where the failure to file would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole) and have paid all taxes required to be paid thereon (except for cases in which the failure to file or pay would not reasonably be expected to, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or, except as currently being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and for which reserves required by U.S. GAAP have been created in the consolidated financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries), and no tax deficiency has been determined adversely to the Company or any of its subsidiaries which, singly or in the aggregate, has had (nor does the Company nor any of its subsidiaries have any notice or knowledge of any tax deficiency which could reasonably be expected to be determined adversely to the Company or its subsidiaries and which would reasonably be expected to have) a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(qq) The Company (i) has not alone engaged in any Testing-the-Waters Communication with any person other than Testing-the-Waters Communications with the consent of the Representatives with entities that are reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act or institutions that are reasonably believed to be accredited investors within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act and (ii) has not authorized anyone other than the Representatives to engage in Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company reconfirms that the Representatives have been authorized to act on its behalf in undertaking Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company has not distributed any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act other than those listed on Schedule IV hereto. “Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Section 5(d) or Rule 163B of the Securities Act.
(rr) As of the time of each sale of the Shares in connection with the offering when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, none of (A) the Time of Sale Prospectus, (B) any free writing prospectus, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, and (C) any individual Testing-the-Waters Communication, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, 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; provided, however, that this representation and warranty shall not apply to any statements or omissions made in
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reliance upon and in conformity with Underwriter Information (as defined in Section 8(b) herein).
(ss) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is subject to regulation as a “bank holding company” under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHCA”) and to regulation by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve”). Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries owns or controls, directly or indirectly, 5% or more of the outstanding shares of any class of voting securities or 33.33% or more of the total equity of a bank or any entity that is subject to the BHCA or to regulation by the Federal Reserve. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries or affiliates exercises a controlling influence over the management or policies of a bank or any entity that is subject to the BHCA or to regulation by the Federal Reserve.
(tt) Chime Payments, Inc. is duly registered to the extent required with all applicable state, federal and other governmental authorities under applicable Money Transmitter Laws in the United States and any other applicable non-U.S. countries relating to licensing or registration for its activities, except to the extent the failure to be so registered would not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect. For purposes of this paragraph, “Money Transmitter Laws” means all legal or regulatory requirements relating to the licensing or registration of a person that provides services relating to the acceptance of currency, funds, or other value that substitutes for currency from one person and the transmission of currency, funds, or other value that substitutes for currency to another location or person by any means, including through a financial agency or institution, a Federal Reserve Bank or other facility of one or more Federal Reserve Banks, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, or both, an electronic funds transfer network or an informal value transfer system, or any other person engaged in the transfer of funds.
(uu) The holders of shares of Common Stock or securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock that have not delivered executed lock-up agreements (as described in Section 5(f)) to the Representatives as of the date hereof are bound by market standoff provisions with the Company pursuant to which such holders have agreed not to sell or otherwise transfer or dispose of such holder’s securities during the Restricted Period (as defined below) without the consent of the Company (“Market Standoff Provisions”) that are enforceable by the Company. Each such Market Standoff Provision is in full force and effect as of the date hereof and shall remain in full force and effect during the Restricted Period, except that this provision shall not prevent the Company from effecting such a waiver or amendment to permit a transfer of securities which would be permissible if such securities were subject to the terms of the lock-up agreement in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A (the “Lock-up Agreement”).
(vv) None of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a “covered foreign person” within the meaning of the investment regulations of the United States Department of the Treasury found at 31 C.F.R Part 850.
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2. Representations and Warranties of the Selling Stockholders. Each Selling Stockholder, severally and not jointly, represents and warrants to and agrees with each of the Underwriters that:
(a) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by or on behalf of such Selling Stockholder.
(b) The execution and delivery by or on behalf of such Selling Stockholder of, and the performance by such Selling Stockholder of its obligations under, this Agreement, the Custody Agreement signed by or on behalf of such Selling Stockholders and Computershare Inc., as Custodian, relating to the deposit of the Shares to be sold by such Selling Stockholder (the “Custody Agreement”) and the Power of Attorney appointing certain individuals as such Selling Stockholder’s attorneys in fact to the extent set forth therein, relating to the transactions contemplated hereby and by the Registration Statement (the “Power of Attorney”) will not contravene (i) any provision of applicable law, or (ii) the certificate of incorporation or bylaws of such Selling Stockholder (if such Selling Stockholder is a corporation), or (iii) any agreement or other instrument binding upon such Selling Stockholder or (iv) any judgment, order or decree of any governmental body, agency or court having jurisdiction over such Selling Stockholder except, in the case of clauses (i), (iii) or (iv), as would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the ability of the Selling Shareholder to perform its obligations under this Agreement, the Custody Agreement and the Power of Attorney, and no consent, approval, authorization or order of, or qualification with, any governmental body, agency or court is required for the performance by such Selling Stockholder of its obligations under this Agreement or the Custody Agreement or Power of Attorney of such Selling Stockholder, except such as have already been obtained or may be required under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder, or by the securities or Blue Sky laws of the various states or non-U.S. jurisdictions or the rules and regulations of FINRA in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares.
(c) Such Selling Stockholder has, and on the Closing Date will have, valid title to, or a valid “security entitlement” within the meaning of Section 8-501 of the New York Uniform Commercial Code in respect of, the Shares to be sold by such Selling Stockholder free and clear of all security interests, claims, liens, equities or other encumbrances and the legal right and power, and all authorization and approval required by law, to enter into this Agreement, the Custody Agreement and the Power of Attorney and to sell, transfer and deliver the Shares to be sold by such Selling Stockholder or a security entitlement in respect of such Shares.
(d) The Custody Agreement and the Power of Attorney have been duly authorized, executed and delivered by or on behalf of such Selling Stockholder and are valid and binding agreements of such Selling Stockholder subject to the effects of bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and similar laws
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of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles.
(e) Upon payment for the Shares to be sold by such Selling Stockholder pursuant to this Agreement, delivery of such Shares, as directed by the Underwriters, to Cede & Co. (“Cede”) or such other nominee as may be designated by the Depository Trust Company (“DTC”), registration of such Shares in the name of Cede or such other nominee and the crediting of such Shares on the books of DTC to securities accounts of the Underwriters (assuming that neither DTC nor any such Underwriter has notice of any adverse claim (within the meaning of Section 8-105 of the New York Uniform Commercial Code (the “UCC”)) to such Shares), (A) DTC shall be a “protected purchaser” of such Shares within the meaning of Section 8-303 of the UCC, (B) under Section 8-501 of the UCC, the Underwriters will acquire a valid security entitlement in respect of such Shares and (C) no action based on any “adverse claim”, within the meaning of Section 8-102 of the UCC, to such Shares may be successfully asserted against the Underwriters with respect to such security entitlement; for purposes of this representation, such Selling Stockholder may assume that when such payment, delivery and crediting occur, (x) such Shares will have been registered in the name of Cede or another nominee designated by DTC, in each case on the Company’s share registry in accordance with its certificate of incorporation, bylaws and applicable law, (y) DTC will be registered as a “clearing corporation” within the meaning of Section 8-102 of the UCC and (z) appropriate entries to the accounts of the several Underwriters on the records of DTC will have been made pursuant to the UCC.
(f) Such Selling Stockholder has delivered to the Representatives an executed Lock-up Agreement in substantially the form attached hereto as Exhibit A.
(g) Such Selling Stockholder is not prompted by any material information concerning the Company or its subsidiaries which is not set forth in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus to sell its Shares pursuant to this Agreement.
(h) (i) The Registration Statement, when it became effective, did not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, will 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 not misleading, (ii) the Time of Sale Prospectus does not, and at the time of each sale of the Shares in connection with the offering when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and at the Closing Date (as defined in Section 5), the Time of Sale Prospectus, as then amended or supplemented by the Company, if applicable, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, (iii) each broadly available road show, if any, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a
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material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading and (iv) the Prospectus does not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, except that the representations and warranties set forth in this paragraph are limited solely to statements or omissions made in reliance upon information relating to such Selling Stockholder furnished in writing to the Company or Representatives by or on behalf of such Selling Stockholder expressly for use in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, any issuer free writing prospectus, road show, or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, it being understood and agreed that the only information furnished in writing by such Selling Stockholder consists of the name of such Selling Stockholder, the number of offered shares and the address and other information with respect to such Selling Stockholder (excluding percentages), which appear in the Registration Statement or any Prospectus in the table (and corresponding footnotes) under the caption “Principal and Selling Stockholders” and, if such Selling Stockholder is an executive officer or director of the Company (including any person who is named in the Registration Statement or any Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto as a person who is to become a director of the Company at a future date), the biographical information of such Selling Stockholder as set forth under the caption “Management” in the Registration Statement or any Prospectus (with respect to each such Selling Stockholder, the “Selling Stockholder Information”).
(i) (i) None of such Selling Stockholder or, if such Selling Stockholder is an entity, any of its subsidiaries, or, to the knowledge of such Selling Stockholder, any director, officer, employee, agent, representative, or affiliate thereof, is a Person that is, or is owned or controlled by one or more Persons that are:
(A) the subject of any Sanctions, or
(B) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of comprehensive territorial Sanctions (including, without limitation, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic, or any other Covered Region of Ukraine identified pursuant to Executive Order 14065, the Crimea and non-government controlled areas of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Regions of Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria).
(ii) Such Selling Stockholder will not, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other Person:
(A) to fund or facilitate any activities or business of or with any Person in any country or territory that, at the time of such
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funding or facilitation, is, or whose government is, the subject of Sanctions;
(B) to fund or facilitate any money laundering or terrorist financing activities; or
(C) in any other manner that would cause or result in a violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws, Anti-Money Laundering Laws, or Sanctions by any Person (including any Person participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).
(iii) The Selling Stockholder and, if such Selling Stockholder is an entity, any of its subsidiaries, (a) have not, since the more recent of April 24, 2019 or 10 years prior to the date of the Agreement, engaged in, (b) are not now engaged in, and (c) will not engage in, any dealings or transactions with any Person, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was, or whose government is or was, the subject of Sanctions.
(iv) (a) None of such Selling Stockholder or, if such Selling Stockholder is an entity, any of its subsidiaries, or, to the knowledge of such Selling Stockholder, any director, officer, employee, agent, representative, or affiliate thereof has taken or will take any action in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization or approval of the payment giving or receipt of money, property, gifts or anything else of value, directly or indirectly, to any Government Official in order to influence official action, or to any person in violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws; (b) such Selling Stockholder and, if such Selling Stockholder is an entity, each of its subsidiaries have conducted their businesses in compliance with Anti-Corruption Laws and have instituted and maintained and will continue to maintain policies and procedures reasonably designed to promote and achieve compliance with such laws and with the representations and warranties contained here; and (c) neither the Selling Stockholder nor, if such Selling Stockholder is an entity, any of its subsidiaries will use, directly or indirectly, the proceeds of the offering in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment or giving of money, or anything else of value, to any person in violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws.
(v) The operations of such Selling Stockholder and, if such Selling Stockholder is an entity, each of its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in material compliance with all applicable Anti-Money Laundering Laws, and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving such Selling Stockholder or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Anti-Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Selling Stockholder, threatened.
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(j) Such Selling Stockholder represents and warrants that it is not (i) an employee benefit plan subject to Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), (ii) a plan or account subject to Section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended or (iii) an entity deemed to hold “plan assets” of any such plan or account under Section 3(42) of ERISA, 29 C.F.R. 2510.3-101, or otherwise.
(k) Each Selling Stockholder listed on Schedule II hereto and organized or domiciled or otherwise resident for tax purposes in a jurisdiction outside of the United States (each, a “Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder”) specifically agrees that no stamp, documentary, issuance, registration, transfer, withholding, capital gains, income or other taxes or duties are payable by or on behalf of the Underwriters, the Company or any of the Company’s subsidiaries in such Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder’s jurisdiction of organization or to any taxing authority thereof or therein in connection with (i) the execution, delivery or consummation of this Agreement, (ii) the sale and delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters or purchasers procured by the Underwriters or (iii) the resale and delivery of the Shares by the Underwriters in the manner contemplated herein.
3. Agreements to Sell and Purchase. Each Seller, severally and not jointly, hereby agrees to sell to the several Underwriters, and each Underwriter, upon the basis of the representations and warranties herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions hereinafter stated, agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from such Seller at $[●] a share (the “Purchase Price”) the number of Firm Shares (subject to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as the Representatives may determine) that bears the same proportion to the number of Firm Shares to be sold by such Seller as the number of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule I hereto opposite the name of such Underwriter bears to the total number of Firm Shares.
On the basis of the representations and warranties contained in this Agreement, and subject to its terms and conditions, the Company agrees to sell to the Underwriters the Additional Shares, and the Underwriters shall have the right to purchase, severally and not jointly, up to [●] Additional Shares at the Purchase Price, provided, however, that the amount paid by the Underwriters for any Additional Shares shall be reduced by an amount per share equal to any dividends declared by the Company and payable on the Firm Shares but not payable on such Additional Shares. The Representatives may exercise this right on behalf of the Underwriters in whole or from time to time in part by giving written notice to the Company not later than 30 days after the date of this Agreement. Any exercise notice shall specify the number of Additional Shares to be purchased by the Underwriters and the date on which such Additional Shares are to be purchased. Each purchase date must be at least one business day after the written notice is given and may not be earlier than the closing date for the Firm Shares or later than ten business days after the date of such notice. Additional Shares may be purchased as provided in Section 5 hereof solely for the purpose of covering over-allotments made in connection with the offering of the Firm Shares. On each day, if any, that Additional Shares are to be purchased (an “Option Closing Date”), each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase the number of Additional Shares (subject to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as the
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Representatives may determine) that bears the same proportion to the total number of Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date as the number of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule I hereto opposite the name of such Underwriter bears to the total number of Firm Shares.
4. Terms of Public Offering. The Sellers are advised by the Representatives that the Underwriters propose to make a public offering of their respective portions of the Shares as soon after the Registration Statement and this Agreement have become effective as in the Representatives’ judgment is advisable. The Sellers are further advised by the Representatives that the Shares are to be offered to the public initially at $[●] a share (the “Public Offering Price”) and to certain dealers selected by the Representatives at a price that represents a concession not in excess of $[●] a share under the Public Offering Price, and that any Underwriter may allow, and such dealers may reallow, a concession, not in excess of $[●] a share, to any Underwriter or to certain other dealers.
5. Payment and Delivery. Payment for the Firm Shares to be sold by each Seller shall be made to such Seller in Federal or other funds immediately available in New York City against delivery of such Firm Shares for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters at 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on [●], 2025, or at such other time on the same or such other date, not later than [●], 2025, as shall be designated in writing by the Representatives. The time and date of such payment are hereinafter referred to as the “Closing Date.”
Payment for any Additional Shares shall be made to the Company in Federal or other funds immediately available in New York City against delivery of such Additional Shares for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters at 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on the date specified in the corresponding notice described in Section 3 or at such other time on the same or on such other date, in any event not later than [●], 2025, as shall be designated in writing by the Representatives.
The Firm Shares and Additional Shares shall be registered in such names and in such denominations as the Representatives shall request not later than one full business day prior to the Closing Date or the applicable Option Closing Date, as the case may be. The Firm Shares and Additional Shares shall be delivered to the Representatives on the Closing Date or an Option Closing Date, as the case may be, for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters. The Purchase Price payable by the Underwriters shall be reduced by (i) any transfer taxes paid by, or on behalf of, the Underwriters in connection with the transfer of the Shares to the Underwriters duly paid (other than any refundable stock transfer tax imposed by the State of New York) and (ii) any withholding required by law.
6. Conditions to the Underwriters’ Obligations. The obligations of the Sellers to sell the Shares to the Underwriters and the several obligations of the Underwriters to purchase and pay for the Shares on the Closing Date are subject to the condition that the Registration Statement shall have become effective not later than [●] (New York City time) on the date hereof.
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The several obligations of the Underwriters are subject to the following further conditions:
(a) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date:
(i) no order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement shall be in effect, and no proceeding for such purpose or pursuant to Section 8A under the Securities Act shall be pending before or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened by the Commission; and
(ii) there shall not have occurred any change, or any development involving a prospective change, in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business or operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, from that set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus that, in the Representatives’ judgment, is material and adverse and that makes it, in the Representatives’ judgment, impracticable to market the Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus.
(b) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date a certificate, dated the Closing Date and signed on behalf of the Company by an executive officer of the Company, to the effect set forth in Sections 6(a)(i) and 6(a)(ii) above and to the effect that the representations and warranties of the Company contained in this Agreement are true and correct as of the Closing Date and that the Company has complied with all of the agreements and satisfied all of the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder on or before the Closing Date. The officer signing and delivering such certificate may rely upon his or her knowledge as to proceedings threatened.
(c) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion and negative assurance letter of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Professional Corporation (“WSGR”), outside counsel for the Company, dated the Closing Date, each in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.
(d) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion letter of (i) Whalen LLP, outside counsel for the Selling Stockholders, and (ii) Hogan Lovells (Paris) LLP, counsel to FPCI Sino French (Innovation) Fund, each dated the Closing Date and each in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.
(e) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion and negative assurance letter of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, dated the Closing Date, each in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.
With respect to the negative assurance letters to be delivered pursuant to Sections 6(c), 6(d) and 6(e) above, WSGR, Whalen LLP and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP may state that their
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opinions and beliefs are based upon their participation in the preparation of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto and review and discussion of the contents thereof, but are without independent check or verification, except as specified. With respect to Section 6(d) above, Whalen LLP may rely upon an opinion or opinions of counsel for any Selling Stockholders and, with respect to factual matters and to the extent such counsel deems appropriate, upon the representations of each Selling Stockholder contained herein and in the Custody Agreement and Power of Attorney of such Selling Stockholder and in other documents and instruments; provided that (A) each such counsel for the Selling Stockholders is satisfactory to the Underwriters’ counsel, (B) a copy of each opinion so relied upon is delivered to the Underwriters and is in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters’ counsel, (C) copies of such Custody Agreements and Powers of Attorney and of any such other documents and instruments shall be delivered to the Underwriters and shall be in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters’ counsel and (D) Whalen LLP shall state in their opinion that they are justified in relying on each such other opinion.
The opinions of WSGR and Whalen LLP described in Sections 6(c) and 6(d) above (and any opinions of counsel for any Selling Stockholder referred to in the immediately preceding paragraph) shall be rendered to the Underwriters at the request of the Company or one or more of the Selling Stockholders, as the case may be, and shall so state therein.
(f) The Underwriters shall have received, on each of the date hereof and the Closing Date, a letter dated the date hereof or the Closing Date, as the case may be, in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters, from Ernst & Young LLP, independent public accountants, containing statements and information of the type ordinarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus; provided that the letter delivered on the Closing Date shall use a “cut-off date” not earlier than the date hereof.
(g) The Lock-up Agreements, each substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto, between the Representatives and certain stockholders, officers and directors of the Company relating to restrictions on sales and certain other dispositions of shares of Common Stock or certain other securities, delivered to the Representatives on or before the date hereof, shall be in full force and effect on the Closing Date.
(h) The Underwriters shall have received, on each of the date hereof and the Closing Date, a certificate signed on behalf of the Company by the Chief Financial Officer of the Company, dated the date hereof or the Closing Date, as the case may be, with respect to certain financial and accounting information in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, in the form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.
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(i) The several obligations of the Underwriters to purchase Additional Shares hereunder are subject to the delivery to the Representatives on the applicable Option Closing Date of the following:
(i) a certificate, dated the Option Closing Date and signed by an executive officer of the Company, confirming that the certificate delivered on the Closing Date pursuant to Section 6(b) hereof remains true and correct as of such Option Closing Date;
(ii) an opinion and negative assurance letter of WSGR, outside counsel for the Company, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion and negative assurance letter required by Section 6(c) hereof;
(iii) an opinion letter of (i) Whalen LLP, outside counsel for the Selling Stockholders, and (ii) Hogan Lovells (Paris) LLP, counsel to FPCI Sino French (Innovation) Fund, each dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion letter required by Section 6(d) hereof;
(iv) an opinion and negative assurance letter of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion and negative assurance letter required by Section 6(e) hereof;
(v) a letter dated the Option Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters, from Ernst & Young LLP, independent public accountants, substantially in the same form and substance as the letter furnished to the Underwriters pursuant to Section 6(f) hereof; provided that the letter delivered on the Option Closing Date shall use a “cut-off date” not earlier than two business days prior to such Option Closing Date;
(vi) a certificate signed on behalf of the Company by the Chief Financial Officer of the Company, dated the Option Closing Date, substantially in the same form and substance as the certificate delivered to the Underwriters pursuant to Section 6(h) hereof; and
(vii) such other documents as the Representatives may reasonably request with respect to the good standing of the Company, the due authorization and issuance of the Additional Shares to be sold on such Option Closing Date and other matters related to the issuance of such Additional Shares.
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7. Covenants of the Company. The Company covenants with each Underwriter as follows:
(a) To furnish to the Representatives upon written request, without charge, four signed copies of the Registration Statement (including exhibits thereto) (which may be an electronic facsimile) and for delivery to each other Underwriter a conformed copy of the Registration Statement (without exhibits thereto) and to furnish to the Representatives in New York City, without charge, prior to 10:00 a.m. New York City time on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement and during the period mentioned in Section 7(e) or 7(f) below, as many copies of the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus and any supplements and amendments thereto or to the Registration Statement as the Representatives may reasonably request.
(b) Before amending or supplementing the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, to furnish to the Representatives a copy of each such proposed amendment or supplement and not to file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which the Representatives reasonably object, and to file with the Commission within the applicable period specified in Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act any prospectus required to be filed pursuant to such Rule.
(c) To furnish to the Representatives a copy of each proposed free writing prospectus to be prepared by or on behalf of, used by, or referred to by the Company and not to use or refer to any proposed free writing prospectus to which the Representatives reasonably object.
(d) Not to take any action that would result in an Underwriter or the Company being required to file with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of the Underwriter that the Underwriter otherwise would not have been required to file thereunder.
(e) If the Time of Sale Prospectus is being used to solicit offers to buy the Shares at a time when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Time of Sale Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, or if any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which the Time of Sale Prospectus conflicts with the information contained in the Registration Statement then on file, or if, in the reasonable opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, it is necessary to amend or supplement the Time of Sale Prospectus to comply with applicable law, forthwith to prepare, file with the Commission and furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to any dealer upon request, either amendments or supplements to the Time of Sale Prospectus so that the statements in the Time of Sale Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when the Time of Sale Prospectus is delivered to a prospective purchaser, be misleading or so that the Time of Sale Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will no longer conflict with the
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Registration Statement, or so that the Time of Sale Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will comply with applicable law.
(f) If, during such period after the first date of the public offering of the Shares as in the reasonable opinion of counsel for the Underwriters the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is required by law to be delivered in connection with sales by an Underwriter or dealer, any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading, or if, in the reasonable opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus to comply with applicable law, forthwith to prepare, file with the Commission and furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to the dealers (whose names and addresses the Representatives will furnish to the Company) to which Shares may have been sold by the Representatives on behalf of the Underwriters and to any other dealers upon request, either amendments or supplements to the Prospectus so that the statements in the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will comply with applicable law.
(g) To endeavor to qualify the Shares for offer and sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as the Representatives shall reasonably request; provided that in no event shall the Company be obligated to qualify to do business in any jurisdiction where it is not now so qualified or to take any action that would subject it to service of process in suits, other than those arising out of the offering or sale of the Shares, or taxation in any jurisdiction where it is not now so subject.
(h) To make generally available to the Company’s security holders (which may be satisfied by filing with the Commission on its Electronic Data Gathering Analysis and Retrieval System) and to the Representatives as soon as practicable an earnings statement covering a period of at least twelve months beginning with the first fiscal quarter of the Company occurring after the date of this Agreement which shall satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.
(i) To comply with all applicable securities and other laws, rules and regulations in each jurisdiction in which the Directed Shares are offered in connection with the Directed Share Program.
(j) If any Seller is not a U.S. person for U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Company will deliver to each Underwriter (or its agent), on or before the Closing Date, (i) a certificate with respect to the Company’s status as not a “United States real property holding corporation,” dated not more than thirty (30) days prior to the Closing Date, as described in Treasury Regulations Sections 1.897-2(h) and 1.1445-2(c)(3), and (ii) proof
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of delivery to the IRS of the required notice, as described in Treasury Regulations 1.897-2(h)(2).
(k) If at any time following the distribution of any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such 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 Representatives and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Testing-the-Waters Communication to eliminate or correct such untrue statement or omission.
(l) The Company will deliver to each Underwriter (or its agent), on the date of execution of this Agreement, a properly completed and executed Certification Regarding Beneficial Owners of Legal Entity Customers, together with copies of identifying documentation, and the Company undertakes to provide such additional supporting documentation as each Underwriter may reasonably request in connection with the verification of the foregoing certification.
The Company also covenants with each Underwriter that, without the prior written consent of the Representatives on behalf of the Underwriters, it will not, and will not publicly disclose an intention to, during the period ending on the earlier of (i) 180 days after the date of the Prospectus or (ii) such earlier date on which the restrictions in the Lock-up Agreements have ended (the “Restricted Period”), (1) 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, lend, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock or (2) enter into any swap or other arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock, whether any such transaction described in clause (1) or (2) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise or (3) confidentially submit (unless the Company has provided the Representatives with written notice at least three business days prior to such confidential submission) or file any registration statement with the Commission relating to the offering of any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock.
The restrictions contained in the preceding paragraph shall not apply to (A) the Shares to be sold hereunder, (B) the issuance by the Company of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of an option or warrant or the conversion or vesting and settlement of a security outstanding on the date hereof as described in each of the Time of Sale Prospectus and Prospectus, (C) the grant of options or any other type of equity award described in the Registration Statement, Time of Sale Prospectus and Prospectus, or the issuance of shares of Common Stock by the Company (whether upon the exercise of stock options or otherwise) to employees, officers, directors, advisors or consultants of the Company pursuant to employee
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benefit plans in effect on the date hereof and described in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, (D) the filing by the Company of a registration statement on Form S-8 relating to the issuance, vesting, exercise or settlement of equity awards granted or to be granted pursuant to any employee benefit plan in effect on the date hereof and described in the Time of Sale Prospectus, (E) facilitating the establishment of a trading plan on behalf of itself or a stockholder, officer or director of the Company pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of shares of Common Stock, provided that (i) such plan does not provide for the transfer of Common Stock during the Restricted Period (except to the extent otherwise allowed pursuant to the terms of the Lock-up Agreement) and (ii) to the extent a public announcement or filing under the Exchange Act, if any, is required of or voluntarily made by the Company regarding the establishment of such plan, such announcement or filing shall include a statement to the effect that no transfer of Common Stock may be made under such plan during the Restricted Period, or (F) the sale or issuance of or entry into an agreement to sell or issue Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock in connection with one or more mergers; acquisitions of securities, businesses, property or other assets, products or technologies; joint ventures; commercial relationships or other strategic corporate transactions or alliances; provided that the aggregate amounts of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock (on an as-converted, as-exercised or as-exchanged basis) that the Company may sell or issue or agree to sell or issue pursuant to this clause (F) shall not exceed 10% of the total number of shares of Common Stock of the Company issued and outstanding immediately following the completion of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement determined on a fully-diluted basis, and provided, further, that each recipient of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock pursuant to this clause (F) shall execute and deliver to the Representatives a lock-up letter substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto covering the remainder of the Restricted Period, subject to any earlier release as provided in such lock-up letter to the extent the securities held by such person are not otherwise bound by a market standoff agreement that is at least as restrictive as the terms contained in the Lock-up Agreement.
In addition, during the Restricted Period, the Company agrees to (a) enforce the Market Standoff Provisions and any similar transfer restrictions contained in any agreement between the Company and any of its securityholders, including, without limitation, through the issuance of stop transfer instructions to the Company’s transfer agent with respect to any transaction that would constitute a breach of, or default under, the transfer restrictions, except that this provision shall not prevent the Company from effecting such a waiver or amendment to permit a transfer of securities that would be permissible under the terms of the Lock-up Agreement, and (b) not amend or waive any such transfer restrictions with respect to any such holder without the prior written consent of the Representatives.
If the Representatives, in their sole discretion, agree to release or waive the restrictions on the transfer of Shares set forth in a Lock-up Agreement for an officer or director of the Company and provides the Company with notice of the impending release or waiver at least three business days before the effective date of the release or waiver, the Company agrees to announce the impending release or waiver by a press release substantially in the form of Exhibit B hereto
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through a major news service at least two business days before the effective date of the release or waiver.
8. Covenants of the Sellers. Each Seller, severally and not jointly, covenants with each Underwriter as follows:
(a) Each Seller will deliver to each Underwriter (or its agent), prior to or at the Closing Date, a properly completed and executed Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) Form W-9 or an IRS Form W-8, as appropriate, together with all required attachments to such form.
(b) Each Seller will deliver to each Underwriter (or its agent), on the date of execution of this Agreement, a properly completed and executed Certification Regarding Beneficial Owners of Legal Entity Customers, together with copies of identifying documentation, and each Seller undertakes to provide such additional supporting documentation as each Underwriter may reasonably request in connection with the verification of the foregoing Certification.
(c) All sums payable by each Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder under this Agreement shall be paid free and clear of and without deductions or withholding of any present or future taxes or duties, unless the deduction or withholding is required by law, in which case each Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder shall pay such additional amount as will result in the receipt by each Underwriter of the full amount that would have been received had no deduction or withholding been made.
(d) All sums payable to an Underwriter shall be considered exclusive of any value added or similar taxes. Where a Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder is obliged to pay value added or similar tax on any amount payable hereunder to an Underwriter, such Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder shall, in addition to the sum payable hereunder, pay an amount equal to any applicable value added or similar tax.
9. Expenses. Whether or not the transactions contemplated in this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, the Company agrees to pay or cause to be paid all expenses incident to the performance of their obligations under this Agreement, including: (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel, the Company’s accountants and counsel for the Selling Stockholders in connection with the registration and delivery of the Shares under the Securities Act and all other fees or expenses in connection with the preparation and filing of the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of, used by, or referred to by the Company and amendments and supplements to any of the foregoing, including all printing costs associated therewith, and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers, in the quantities hereinabove specified, (ii) all costs and expenses related to the transfer and delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters, including any transfer or other taxes payable thereon, (iii) the reasonable cost of printing or producing any Blue Sky or Legal Investment memorandum in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares under state securities laws and all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Shares for offer and
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sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 7(g) hereof, including filing fees and the reasonable and documented out-of-pocket fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky or Legal Investment memorandum, (iv) all filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters incurred in connection with the review and qualification of the offering of the Shares by FINRA (provided that the amount payable by the Company with respect to the disbursements for counsel for the Underwriters incurred pursuant to subsections (iii) and (iv) of this Section 9 shall not exceed $75,000 in the aggregate), (v) all fees and expenses in connection with the preparation and filing of the registration statement on Form 8 A relating to the Class A common stock and all costs and expenses incident to listing the Shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, (vi) the cost of printing certificates representing the Shares, (vii) the costs and charges of any transfer agent, registrar or depositary, (viii) the costs and expenses of the Company relating to investor presentations on any “road show” undertaken in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Shares, including, without limitation, expenses associated with the preparation or dissemination of any electronic road show, 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 with the prior approval of the Company, travel and lodging expenses of the representatives and officers of the Company and any such consultants, and fifty percent (50%) of the cost of any aircraft chartered in connection with the road show (the remaining fifty percent (50%) of the cost of such aircraft to be paid by the Underwriters), (ix) the document production charges and expenses associated with printing this Agreement, (x) all fees and disbursements of counsel incurred by the Underwriters in connection with the Directed Share Program and stamp duties, similar taxes and duties or other taxes, if any, incurred by the Underwriters in connection with the Directed Share Program (other than any refundable stock transfer tax imposed by the State of New York) and (xi) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of the obligations of the Company hereunder for which provision is not otherwise made in this Section 9. It is understood, however, that except as provided in this Section 9, Section 11 entitled “Indemnity and Contribution”, Section 12 entitled “Directed Share Program Indemnification” and the last paragraph of Section 14 below, the Underwriters will pay all of their costs and expenses, including fees and disbursements of their counsel, stock transfer taxes and any other taxes payable on resale of any of the Shares by them and any advertising expenses connected with any offers they may make. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Underwriters and the Company will each be responsible for any costs and expenses that the parties may agree to in writing.
The provisions of this Section shall not supersede or otherwise affect any agreement that the Sellers may otherwise have for the allocation of such expenses among themselves.
10. Covenants of the Underwriters. Each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, covenants with the Company not to take any action that would result in the Company being required to file with the Commission under Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of such Underwriter that otherwise would not be required to be filed by the Company thereunder, but for the action of the Underwriter.
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11. Indemnity and Contribution. (a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, and each affiliate of any Underwriter within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act, any Company information that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any “road show” as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act (a “road show”), the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Testing-the-Waters Communication, or arise out of, or are based upon, any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, except insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities arise out of, or are based upon, any such untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with any information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriters through the Representatives consists of the Underwriter Information as defined in paragraph (c) below.
(b) Each Selling Stockholder agrees, severally and not jointly, to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act and each affiliate of any Underwriter within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act, any Company information that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any road show, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Testing-the-Waters Communication or arise out of, or are based upon, any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, but only with reference to the Selling Stockholder Information relating to such Selling Stockholder. The liability of each Selling Stockholder under the indemnity agreement contained in this paragraph shall be limited to an amount equal to the aggregate net proceeds (after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions but before deducting expenses) of the Shares sold by such Selling Stockholder under this Agreement (with respect to each Selling Stockholder, the “Selling Stockholder Proceeds”) less any
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amounts such Selling Stockholder actually pays pursuant to contribution provisions of this Section 11(e) below.
(c) Each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its directors, its officers who sign the Registration Statement and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act, any Company information that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any “road show,” the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Testing-the-Waters Communication, or arise out of, or are based upon, any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, but only with reference to information relating to such Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through or on behalf of the Representatives expressly for use in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, any issuer free writing prospectus, road show, or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto (the “Underwriter Information”), it being understood and agreed that the only such information shall be furnished by any such Underwriter consists of the following information in the Prospectus furnished on behalf of each Underwriter: the selling concession amount appearing in the fourth paragraph under the caption “Underwriters,” the information concerning sales to discretionary accounts appearing in the eighth paragraph under the caption “Underwriters,” and the information concerning stabilization in the fifteenth paragraph under the caption “Underwriters.”
(d) In case any proceeding (including any governmental investigation) shall be instituted involving any person in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to Section 11(a), 11(b) or 11(c), such person (the “indemnified party”) shall promptly notify the person against whom such indemnity may be sought (the “indemnifying party”) in writing and the indemnifying party, upon request of the indemnified party, shall retain counsel chosen by the indemnifying party and reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party to represent the indemnified party and any others the indemnifying party may designate in such proceeding and shall pay the reasonable and documented out-of-pocket fees and disbursements of such counsel related to such proceeding. In any such proceeding, any indemnified party shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party unless (i) the indemnifying party and the indemnified party shall have mutually agreed in writing to the retention of such counsel; or (ii) the named parties to any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the indemnifying party and the
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indemnified party and representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them. It is understood that the indemnifying party shall not, in respect of the legal expenses of any indemnified party in connection with any proceeding or related proceedings in the same jurisdiction, be liable for the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to any local counsel) for all such indemnified parties and that all such fees and expenses shall be reimbursed as they are incurred. Such firm shall be designated in writing by the Representatives, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 11(a), by the person(s) named as attorney(s)-in-fact for the Selling Stockholders, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 11(b), and by the Company, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 11(c). The indemnifying party shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, but if settled with such consent or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff, the indemnifying party agrees to indemnify the indemnified party from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment. Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by the second and third sentences of this paragraph, the indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 60 days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request and (ii) such indemnifying party shall not have reimbursed the indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which any indemnified party is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such indemnified party, unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding and does not include any statement as to any admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of any indemnified party.
(e) To the extent the indemnification provided for in Section 11(a), 11(b), or 11(c) is unavailable to an indemnified party or insufficient in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to therein, then each indemnifying party under such paragraph, in lieu of indemnifying such indemnified party thereunder, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Sellers on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand from the offering of the Shares or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause 11(e)(i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause 11(e)(i) above but also the relative fault of the Sellers on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Sellers on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand in connection with the offering of the Shares shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the net
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proceeds from the offering of the Shares (after deducting underwriting commissions and discounts but before deducting expenses) received by such Seller and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover of the Prospectus, bear to the aggregate Public Offering Price of the Shares. The relative fault of the Sellers on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Sellers or by the Underwriters and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Underwriters’ respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 11 are several in proportion to the respective number of Shares they have purchased hereunder, and not joint. The Selling Stockholders’ respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 11 are several, and not joint. The liability of each Selling Stockholder under the contribution agreement contained in this paragraph shall be limited to an amount equal to the Selling Stockholder Proceeds of such Selling Stockholder less any amounts that such Selling Stockholder actually pays pursuant to Section 11(b) above.
(f) The Sellers and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just or equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 11 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 that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in Section 11(e). The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages and liabilities referred to in Section 11(e) shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 11, no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Shares underwritten by it and distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The remedies provided for in this Section 11 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.
(g) The indemnity and contribution provisions contained in this Section 11 and the representations, warranties and other statements of the Company and the Selling Stockholders contained in this Agreement shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of (i) any termination of this Agreement, (ii) any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter, any person controlling any Underwriter or any affiliate of any Underwriter, by or on behalf of any Selling Stockholder or any person controlling any Selling Stockholder, or by or on behalf of the Company, its officers or directors or
35
any person controlling the Company and (iii) acceptance of and payment for any of the Shares.
12. Directed Share Program Indemnification.
(a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless Morgan Stanley, each person, if any, who controls Morgan Stanley within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act and each affiliate of Morgan Stanley within the meaning of Rule 405 of the Securities Act (“Morgan Stanley Entities”) from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) (i) that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any material prepared by or with the consent of the Company for distribution to Participants in connection with the Directed Share Program or arise out of, or are based upon, any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; (ii) that arise out of, or are based upon, the failure of any Participant to pay for and accept delivery of Directed Shares that the Participant agreed to purchase; or (iii) related to, arising out of, or in connection with the Directed Share Program, other than losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or expenses relating thereto) that are finally judicially determined to have resulted from the bad faith or gross negligence of Morgan Stanley Entities.
(b) In case any proceeding (including any governmental investigation) shall be instituted involving any Morgan Stanley Entity in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to Section 12(a), the Morgan Stanley Entity seeking indemnity, shall promptly notify the Company in writing and the Company, upon request of the Morgan Stanley Entity, shall retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Morgan Stanley Entity to represent the Morgan Stanley Entity and any others the Company may designate in such proceeding and shall pay the fees and disbursements of such counsel related to such proceeding. In any such proceeding, any Morgan Stanley Entity shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such Morgan Stanley Entity unless (i) the Company shall have agreed to the retention of such counsel or (ii) the named parties to any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the Company and the Morgan Stanley Entity and representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them. The Company shall not, in respect of the legal expenses of the Morgan Stanley Entities in connection with any proceeding or related proceedings in the same jurisdiction, be liable for the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to any local counsel) for all Morgan Stanley Entities. Any such separate firm for the Morgan Stanley Entities shall be designated in writing by Morgan Stanley. The Company shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, but if settled with such consent or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff, the Company agrees to indemnify the Morgan Stanley Entities from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment. Notwithstanding
36
the foregoing sentence, if at any time a Morgan Stanley Entity shall have requested the Company to reimburse it for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by the second and third sentences of this paragraph, the Company agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 30 days after receipt by the Company of the aforesaid request and (ii) the Company shall not have reimbursed the Morgan Stanley Entity in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement. The Company shall not, without the prior written consent of Morgan Stanley, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which any Morgan Stanley Entity is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such Morgan Stanley Entity, unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of the Morgan Stanley Entities from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding.
(c) To the extent the indemnification provided for in Section 12(a) is unavailable to a Morgan Stanley Entity or insufficient in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to therein, then the Company in lieu of indemnifying the Morgan Stanley Entity thereunder, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by the Morgan Stanley Entity as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Morgan Stanley Entities on the other hand from the offering of the Directed Shares or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause 12(c)(i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause 12(c)(i) above but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and of the Morgan Stanley Entities on the other hand in connection with any statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Morgan Stanley Entities on the other hand in connection with the offering of the Directed Shares shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the net proceeds from the offering of the Directed Shares (before deducting expenses) and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Morgan Stanley Entities for the Directed Shares, bear to the aggregate Public Offering Price of the Directed Shares. If the loss, claim, damage or liability is caused by an untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact, the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Morgan Stanley Entities on the other hand shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement or the omission or alleged omission relates to information supplied by the Company or by the Morgan Stanley Entities and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.
(d) The Company and the Morgan Stanley Entities agree that it would not be just or equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 12 were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Morgan Stanley Entities were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in Section 12(c). The amount paid or payable by the Morgan
37
Stanley Entities as a result of the losses, claims, damages and liabilities referred to in the immediately preceding paragraph shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the Morgan Stanley Entities in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 12, no Morgan Stanley Entity shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Directed Shares distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages that such Morgan Stanley Entity has otherwise been required to pay. The remedies provided for in this Section 12 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.
(e) The indemnity and contribution provisions contained in this Section 12 shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of (i) any termination of this Agreement, (ii) any investigation made by or on behalf of any Morgan Stanley Entity or the Company, its officers or directors or any person controlling the Company and (iii) acceptance of and payment for any of the Directed Shares.
13. Termination. The Underwriters may terminate this Agreement by notice given by the Representatives to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to or on the Closing Date or any Option Closing Date, as the case may be, (i) trading generally shall have been suspended or materially limited on, or by, as the case may be, any of the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq Stock Market, (ii) trading of any securities of the Company shall have been suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market, (iii) a material disruption in securities settlement, payment or clearance services in the United States shall have occurred, (iv) any moratorium on commercial banking activities shall have been declared by Federal or New York State authorities or (v) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities, or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis that, in the Representatives’ judgment, is material and adverse and which, singly or together with any other event specified in this clause (v), makes it, in the Representatives’ judgment, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offer, sale or delivery of the Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus.
14. Effectiveness; Defaulting Underwriters. This Agreement shall become effective upon the execution and delivery hereof by the parties hereto.
If, on the Closing Date or an Option Closing Date, as the case may be, any one or more of the Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Shares that it has or they have agreed to purchase hereunder on such date, and the aggregate number of Shares which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase is not more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of the Shares to be purchased on such date, the other Underwriters shall be obligated severally in the proportions that the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite their respective names in Schedule I bears to the aggregate number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the names of all such non-defaulting Underwriters, or in such other proportions as the Representatives may specify, to purchase the Shares which such defaulting Underwriter or
38
Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase on such date; provided that in no event shall the number of Shares that any Underwriter has agreed to purchase pursuant to this Agreement be increased pursuant to this Section 14 by an amount in excess of one-ninth of such number of Shares without the written consent of such Underwriter. If, on the Closing Date, any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Firm Shares and the aggregate number of Firm Shares with respect to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of Firm Shares to be purchased on such date, and arrangements satisfactory to the Representatives, the Company and the Selling Stockholders for the purchase of such Firm Shares are not made within 36 hours after such default, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter, the Company or the Selling Stockholders. In any such case either the Representatives or the relevant Sellers shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date, but in no event for longer than seven days, in order that the required changes, if any, in the Registration Statement, in the Time of Sale Prospectus, in the Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements may be effected. If, on an Option Closing Date, any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Additional Shares and the aggregate number of Additional Shares with respect to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date, the non-defaulting Underwriters shall have the option to (i) terminate their obligation hereunder to purchase the Additional Shares to be sold on such Option Closing Date or (ii) purchase not less than the number of Additional Shares that such non-defaulting Underwriters would have been obligated to purchase in the absence of such default. Any action taken under this paragraph shall not relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability in respect of any default of such Underwriter under this Agreement.
If this Agreement shall be terminated by the Underwriters, or any of them, because of any failure or refusal on the part of any Seller to comply with the terms or to fulfill any of the conditions of this Agreement, and not as a result of the default by the Underwriters or the occurrence of any of the events set forth in subsections (i), (iii), (iv) or (v) of Section 13 hereof, or if for any reason any Seller shall be unable to perform its obligations under this Agreement, the Company will reimburse the Underwriters or such Underwriters as have so terminated this Agreement with respect to themselves, severally, for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the reasonable and documented fees and disbursements of their counsel) reasonably incurred by such Underwriters in connection with this Agreement or the offering contemplated hereunder.
15. Entire Agreement. (a) This Agreement, together with any contemporaneous written agreements and any prior written agreements (to the extent not superseded by this Agreement) that relate to the offering of the Shares, represents the entire agreement between the Company and the Selling Stockholders, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, with respect to the preparation of any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, the conduct of the offering, and the purchase and sale of the Shares.
(b) The Company and each Selling Stockholder acknowledge that in connection with the offering of the Shares: (i) the Underwriters have acted at arm’s length, are not agents of, and owe no fiduciary duties to, the Company, any of the Selling Stockholders or any other person, (ii) the Underwriters owe the Company and each
39
Selling Stockholder only those duties and obligations set forth in this Agreement, any contemporaneous written agreements and prior written agreements (to the extent not superseded by this Agreement), if any, (iii) the Underwriters may have interests that differ from those of the Company and each Selling Stockholder, and (iv) none of the activities of the Underwriters in connection with the transactions contemplated herein constitutes a recommendation, investment advice, or solicitation of any action by the Underwriters with respect to any entity or natural person. None of the Underwriters are advising the Company or any other person as to any legal, tax, investment, accounting or regulatory matters in any jurisdiction. The Company shall consult with its own advisors concerning such matters and shall be responsible for making its own independent investigation and appraisal of the transactions contemplated hereby, and the Underwriters shall not have any responsibility or liability to the Company with respect thereto. Any review by the Underwriters of the Company, the transactions contemplated hereby or other matters relating to such transaction will be performed solely for the benefit of the Underwriters and shall not be on behalf of the Company. The Company and each Selling Stockholder waive to the full extent permitted by applicable law any claims it may have against the Underwriters arising from an alleged breach of fiduciary duty in connection with the offering of the Shares.
(c) Each Selling Stockholder further acknowledges and agrees that although the Underwriters may provide certain Selling Stockholders with certain Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS disclosures or other related documentation in connection with the offering, the Underwriters are not making a recommendation to any Selling Stockholder to participate in the offering or sell any Shares at the Purchase Price, and nothing set forth in such disclosures or documentation is intended to suggest that any Underwriter is making such a recommendation.
16. 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.
(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.
For purposes of this Section 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
40
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.
17. Submission to Jurisdiction. Each Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of any New York State or United States Federal court sitting in The City of New York (the “Specified Courts”) over any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, the Registration Statement or the offering of the Shares (each, a “Related Proceeding”). Each Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any Related Proceeding brought in such a court and any claim that any such Related Proceeding brought in such a court has been brought in an inconvenient forum. To the extent that any Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder has or hereafter may acquire any immunity (on the grounds of sovereignty or otherwise) from the jurisdiction of any court or from any legal process with respect to itself or its property, such Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, such immunity in respect of any such suit, action or proceeding.
18. Judgment Currency. If for the purposes of obtaining judgment in any court it is necessary to convert a sum due hereunder into any currency other than United States dollars, the parties hereto agree, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that the rate of exchange used shall be the rate at which in accordance with normal banking procedures the Underwriters could purchase United States dollars with such other currency in The City of New York on the business day preceding that on which final judgment is given. The obligation of each Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder with respect to any sum due from it to any Underwriter or any person controlling any Underwriter shall, notwithstanding any judgment in a currency other than United States dollars, not be discharged until the first business day following receipt by such Underwriter or controlling person of any sum in such other currency, and only to the extent that such Underwriter or controlling person may in accordance with normal banking procedures purchase United States dollars with such other currency. If the United States dollars so purchased are less than the sum originally due to such Underwriter or controlling person hereunder, each Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder agrees as a separate obligation and notwithstanding any such judgment, to indemnify such Underwriter or controlling person against such loss. If the United States dollars so purchased are greater than the sum originally due to such Underwriter or controlling person hereunder, such Underwriter or controlling person agrees to pay the relevant Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder(s), as applicable, an amount equal to the excess of the dollars so purchased over the sum originally due to such Underwriter or controlling person hereunder.
19. Taxes If any sum payable by a Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder under this Agreement is subject to tax in the hands of an Underwriter or taken into account as a receipt in computing the taxable income of that Underwriter (excluding net income taxes on underwriting
41
commissions payable hereunder), the sum payable to the Underwriter under this Agreement shall be increased to such sum as will ensure that the Underwriter shall be left with the sum it would have had in the absence of such tax; provided, however, that the Company shall have no liability with respect to such sum payable by a Non-U.S. Selling Stockholder, nor any obligation to make or increase any payment to be made by the Company pursuant to this Agreement to any party, including the Underwriters or any Selling Stockholder, with respect to such payment.
20. Counterparts. This Agreement may be signed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be an original, with the same effect as if the signatures thereto and hereto were upon the same instrument. Counterparts may be delivered via facsimile, electronic mail (including any electronic signature complying with the U.S. federal ESIGN Act of 2000, Uniform Electronic Transactions Act or other applicable law, e.g., www.Docusign.com) or other transmission method and any counterpart so delivered shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes.
21. Applicable Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York.
22. Headings. The headings of the sections of this Agreement have been inserted for convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed a part of this Agreement.
23. Notices. All communications hereunder shall be in writing and effective only upon receipt and if to the Underwriters shall be delivered, mailed or sent to Morgan Stanley at 1585 Broadway, New York, New York 10036, Attention: Equity Syndicate Desk, with a copy to the Legal Department, Goldman Sachs at 200 West Street New York, New York 10282 Attention: Registration Department, and J.P. Morgan at 383 Madison Avenue New York, New York 10179 (fax: (212) 622-8358) Attention: Equity Syndicate Desk; if to the Company shall be delivered, mailed or sent to Chime Financial, Inc. at 101 California Street, Suite 500, San Francisco, California 94111 Attention: Chief Financial Officer and if to the Selling Stockholders shall be delivered, mailed or sent to each of the Attorneys-in-Fact named in the Power of Attorney, c/o the Company at the address set forth on the cover of the Registration Statement, Attention: General Counsel, with a copy, which shall not constitute notice, to Whalen LLP at 4701 Von Karman Suite 325 Newport Beach, California 92660.
[Signature Page Follows]
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Very truly yours, | ||||||||||||||
Chime Financial, Inc. | ||||||||||||||
By: | ||||||||||||||
Name: | ||||||||||||||
Title: |
The Selling Stockholders named in Schedule
II hereto, acting severally
By: | ||||||||||||||
Name: | ||||||||||||||
Title: Attorney-in Fact |
Accepted as of the date hereof
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
Acting severally on behalf of themselves and the
several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC | ||||||||||||||
By: | ||||||||||||||
Name: | ||||||||||||||
Title: | ||||||||||||||
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC | ||||||||||||||
By: | ||||||||||||||
Name: | ||||||||||||||
Title: | ||||||||||||||
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC | ||||||||||||||
By: | ||||||||||||||
Name: | ||||||||||||||
Title: |
[Signature Page to Underwriting Agreement]
SCHEDULE I
Underwriter | Number of Firm Shares To Be Purchased | ||||||||||||||||
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Barclays Capital Inc. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Evercore Group L.L.C. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
UBS Securities LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Piper Sandler & Co. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Nomura Securities International Inc. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
WR Securities, LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
William Blair & Company, L.L.C. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Canaccord Genuity LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
First Citizens Capital Securities, LLC | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
TCBI Securities, Inc. | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Total: | [●] |
I-1
SCHEDULE II
Selling Stockholder | Number of Firm Shares To Be Sold | ||||||||||||||||
[NAMES OF SELLING STOCKHOLDERS] | [●] | ||||||||||||||||
Total: | [●] |
II-1
SCHEDULE III
Time of Sale Prospectus
1.Preliminary Prospectus issued [●], 2025
2.[to list any free writing prospectuses filed by the Company under Rule 433(d) of the Securities Act]
3.[free writing prospectus containing a description of terms that does not reflect final terms, if the Time of Sale Prospectus does not include a final term sheet]
4.Pricing information:
Firm Shares: [●]
Additional Shares: [●]
Public Offering Price: $[●] per share
III-1
Schedule IV
Written Testing-the-Waters Communications
1. [●]
IV-1
EXHIBIT A
FORM OF LOCK-UP AGREEMENT
_______________, 2025
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
As representatives of the several Underwriters named in Schedule I of the Underwriting Agreement
c/o Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
1585 Broadway
New York, New York 10036
c/o Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
200 West Street
New York, New York 10282
c/o J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
383 Madison Avenue
New York, New York 10179
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The undersigned understands that Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC (collectively, the “Representatives”) propose to enter into an Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Chime Financial, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), providing for the public offering (the “Public Offering”) by the several Underwriters, including the Representatives (the “Underwriters”), of shares (the “Shares”) of the Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company (the “Common Stock”).
To induce the Underwriters that may participate in the Public Offering to continue their efforts in connection with the Public Offering, the undersigned hereby agrees that, without the prior written consent of the Representatives on behalf of the Underwriters, he, she or it will not, and will not cause any direct or indirect affiliate to, and will not publicly disclose an intention to, during the period commencing on the date of this letter agreement (the “Letter Agreement”) and ending on the earlier of (x) 12:01 AM Eastern Time on the second Trading Day (as defined below) immediately following the Company’s release of earnings via a press release and/or Form 8-K furnished under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) (which release of earnings for this purpose shall not include “flash” numbers or preliminary or partial earnings “Flash Numbers”) for the second quarter following the most recent period for which financial statements are included in the final prospectus relating to the Public Offering
A-1
(the “Prospectus”) (which for this purpose shall not include Flash Numbers), provided, however, that such release of earnings is at least 145 days after the date of the Prospectus, and (y) 180 days after the date of the Prospectus (such period, the “Restricted Period”, and the date of such Prospectus, the “Public Offering Date”), (1) 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, lend, make any short sale or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any shares of Common Stock beneficially owned (as such term is used in Rule 13d-3 of the Exchange Act), by the undersigned or any other securities so owned that are convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable (directly or indirectly) for, or that represent the right to receive, shares of Common Stock (including, without limitation, the Company’s Class B common stock, the Company’s preferred stock or securities which may be issued upon exercise of stock options, restricted stock units or warrants) (collectively, the “Other Securities”) or (2) enter into any swap, hedging transaction or other arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock or Other Securities, whether any such transaction described in clause (1) or (2) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or Other Securities, in cash or otherwise, other than any shares of Common Stock sold to the Underwriters pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, if any, or as otherwise provided herein. The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that the foregoing precludes the undersigned from engaging in any hedging or other transactions or arrangements (including without limitation, any short sale or the purchase or sale of, or entry into, any put or call option, or combination thereof, forward, swap or any other derivative transaction or instrument, however described or defined) designed or intended, or which could reasonably be expected to lead to or result in, a sale or disposition or transfer (whether by the undersigned or any other person) of any economic consequences of ownership, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, of any Common Stock or Other Securities, whether any such transaction or arrangement (or instrument provided for thereunder) would be settled by delivery of Common Stock, Other Securities, in cash or otherwise.
Notwithstanding the forgoing, if the undersigned is an employee of the Company as of the date of the Public Offering (excluding any officer within the meaning of Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act or any employee designated as an “Executive Officer” in the Management section of the Prospectus and any director of the Company), the undersigned may sell in the public market, beginning at the later of (i) 12:01 AM Eastern Time on the second Trading Day immediately following the Company’s release of earnings via a press release and/or Form 8-K furnished under the Exchange Act (which release of earnings for this purpose shall not include Flash Numbers) for the first quarter following the most recent period for which financial statements are included in the Prospectus (which for this purpose shall not include Flash Numbers) and (ii) the first date that is (x) more than 90 days following the Public Offering Date and (y) not during a Blackout Period (as defined below), a number of shares of Common Stock not in excess of 25% of the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock and Other Securities owned by the undersigned, rounded down to the nearest whole share, as of the Public Offering Date; provided, for the avoidance of doubt, that the undersigned may not sell any shares of Common Stock that have not fully vested. The release of the undersigned’s shares from the restrictions contained in this Letter Agreement pursuant to this paragraph shall not include shares owned by any limited liability company, partnership, corporation, trust or other entity (including,
A-2
without limitation, any investment fund), unless all of the equity interests and other economic interests in such entity are owned exclusively by the undersigned and immediate family members (as defined below) of the undersigned and the undersigned makes a representation to such effect to the Company. The undersigned acknowledges that the Company will instruct the transfer agent and registrar to remove stop transfer instructions using a “first in, first out” methodology if less than all of the undersigned’s Common Stock is to be released.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, in addition to, and not by way of limitation of, any transfers by the undersigned that are permitted pursuant to the preceding paragraph, the restrictions in the second paragraph of this Letter Agreement shall not apply:
(a) to transactions relating to shares of Common Stock or Other Securities acquired (1) from the Underwriters in the Public Offering or (2) in open market transactions after the completion of the Public Offering, provided that no filing under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act shall be required or shall be voluntarily made during the Restricted Period in connection with subsequent sales of Common Stock or Other Securities acquired in the Public Offering or in such open market transactions;
(b) to transfers of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities upon death or by will, testamentary document or intestate succession, including to the transferee’s nominee or custodian;
(c) to transfers of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities as a bona fide gift, charitable contribution or for bona fide estate planning purposes;
(d) to transfers of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities (1) to an immediate family member of the undersigned or any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family member of the undersigned (for purposes of this Letter Agreement, “immediate family member” shall mean any spouse or domestic partner and relationship by blood, current or former marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin) or (2) not involving a change in beneficial ownership;
(e) to transfers or distributions of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities by a stockholder that is a trust to a trustor or beneficiary of the trust or to the estate of a beneficiary of such trust;
(f) if the undersigned is a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, trust or other business entity, (1) to transfers or distributions of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities to current or former partners (general or limited), members, managers, beneficiaries, stockholders or holders of similar equity interests in the undersigned, or to the estates of any of the foregoing (or in each case its nominee or custodian) or (2) to transfers or distributions of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities to another corporation, partnership, limited liability company, trust, or other business entity (or in each case its nominee or custodian) that is an affiliate (as defined in Rule 405 promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended) of the undersigned, or to any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by the undersigned or affiliates of the undersigned;
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(g) to transfers of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities by operation of law pursuant to a qualified domestic order or in connection with a divorce settlement or other court order;
(h)(1) to the receipt by the undersigned from the Company of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise, vesting, or settlement of options, restricted stock units, or other equity awards granted under an equity incentive plan or other equity award arrangement, which plan or arrangement is described in the registration statement related to the Public Offering (the “Registration Statement”) and the Prospectus, or the exercise or conversion of warrants, convertible securities or other shares of convertible capital stock of the Company described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or (2) to transfers of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities to the Company for the purposes of exercising or settling (including any transfer for the payment of tax withholdings or remittance payments, including estimated taxes, due as a result of such vesting, settlement, or exercise of such options, restricted stock units, or other rights) on a “net exercise” or “cashless” basis options, restricted stock units, or other rights to purchase shares of Common Stock, pursuant to equity awards granted under an equity incentive plan or other equity award arrangement, which plan or arrangement is described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, or warrants described in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, in each case, to the extent permitted by the instruments representing such equity awards or warrants, and only in an amount necessary to cover the applicable exercise price or tax withholding obligations, including estimated taxes, of the undersigned in connection with the vesting, settlement or exercise so long as the “net exercise” or “cashless exercise” is effected solely by the surrender of outstanding equity awards or warrants (or the Common Stock issuable upon the exercise thereof) to the Company and the Company’s cancellation of all or a portion thereof to pay the exercise price and/or withholding tax and remittance obligations; provided that in the case of either (1) or (2), any shares of Common Stock received as a result of such exercise, vesting or settlement shall remain subject to the terms of this Letter Agreement;
(i) to transfers to the Company of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities in connection with the repurchase by the Company from the undersigned of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities pursuant to arrangements under which the Company has the option to repurchase such shares of Common Stock or Other Securities or a right of first refusal with respect to such shares of Common Stock or Other Securities;
(j) to transfers of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities in connection with a Change of Control (as defined below) of the Company after the Public Offering Date that has been approved by the board of directors of the Company and made to all holders of Common Stock; provided that in the event that the Change of Control transaction is not completed, the Common Stock or Other Securities held by the undersigned shall remain subject to the provisions of this Letter Agreement (for purposes of this clause (j), “Change of Control” shall mean any bona fide third party tender offer, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction, in one transaction or a series of related transactions, the result of which is that any “person” (as defined in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act), or group of persons, other than the Company or an Underwriter pursuant to the Public Offering or any existing stockholder or stockholders in connection with a transaction contemplated by clause (k)(2) below, becomes the beneficial
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owner (as defined in Rules 13d-3 and 13d-5 of the Exchange Act) of at least a majority of the total voting power of the voting stock of the Company (or the surviving entity));
(k)(1) to the conversion of outstanding preferred stock into shares of Common Stock in connection with the consummation of the Public Offering or (2) to any conversion, reclassification, exchange or swap of preferred stock, Common Stock or Other Securities as described in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus; provided that such shares of Common Stock received upon conversion, reclassification, exchange or swap remain subject to the terms of this Letter Agreement;
(l) to any sales of Common Stock by the undersigned to the Underwriters pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement or to the underwriters in any other future registered public offering in which at least one of the Representatives serves as an underwriter; or
(m) to establishing or facilitating the establishment of a trading plan pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of shares of Common Stock or Other Securities, provided that (i) such plan does not provide for the transfer of Common Stock or Other Securities during the Restricted Period and (ii) to the extent a public announcement or filing under the Exchange Act, if any, is required of or voluntarily made by or on behalf of the undersigned or the Company regarding the establishment of such plan, such announcement or filing shall include a statement to the effect that no transfer of Common Stock may be made under such plan during the Restricted Period;
provided that (A) in the case of any transfer, distribution or disposition pursuant to clauses (b)-(g), each donee, distributee, transferee or acquirer shall sign and deliver a lock-up agreement substantially in the form of this Letter Agreement, (B) in the case of any transfer or distribution pursuant to clauses (b)-(i) and (k), any filing under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act, reporting a reduction in beneficial ownership of shares of Common Stock, shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto the nature of the transaction, and (C) in the case of any transfer or distribution pursuant to clauses (b)-(f), such transfer or disposition shall not involve a disposition for value.
In addition, the undersigned agrees that, without the prior written consent of the Representatives on behalf of the Underwriters, he, she or it will not, during the Restricted Period, make any demand for or exercise any right with respect to, the registration of any shares of Common Stock or Other Securities. The undersigned also agrees and consents to the entry of stop transfer instructions with the Company’s transfer agent and registrar against the transfer of the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock and Other Securities except in compliance with the foregoing restrictions. The undersigned further confirms that it has furnished the Representatives with the details of any transaction the undersigned, or any of its affiliates, is a party to as of the date hereof, which transaction would have been restricted by this Letter Agreement if it had been entered into by the undersigned during the Restricted Period.
In addition, and notwithstanding the provisions of the second and third paragraphs of this Letter Agreement, if (A) at least 100 calendar days have elapsed since the Public Offering Date and (B) the Restricted Period is scheduled to end during a Blackout Period (as defined below) or
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within five Trading Days (as defined below) prior to a Blackout Period (such period, the “Specified Period”), the Restricted Period shall end 10 Trading Days prior to the commencement of the Blackout Period (the “Blackout-Related Release”); provided that in the event that the Restricted Period will end during the Specified Period, the Company shall notify the Representatives of the date of the impending Blackout-Related Release promptly upon the Company’s determination of the date of the Blackout-Related Release and in any event at least seven Trading Days in advance of the date of the Blackout-Related Release, and shall announce the date of the expected Blackout-Related Release through a major news service, or on a Form 8-K, at least two Trading Days in advance of the Blackout-Related Release; and provided further that the Blackout-Related Release shall not occur unless the Company shall have publicly released its earnings results via a press release and/or Form 8-K furnished under the Exchange Act for the quarterly period during which the Public Offering occurred. For the avoidance of doubt, in no event shall the Restricted Period end earlier than 100 days after the Public Offering Date pursuant to the Blackout-Related Release. For the avoidance of doubt, in the event that this paragraph conflicts with any other paragraph of this Letter Agreement, the undersigned will be entitled to the earliest release date for the maximum number of shares available under this Letter Agreement.
If the undersigned is an officer (as defined in Rule 16a-1(f) of the Exchange Act) or director of the Company, the undersigned further agrees that the foregoing restrictions shall be equally applicable to any issuer-directed Shares the undersigned may purchase in the offering.
For purposes of this Letter Agreement, (i) a “Trading Day” is a day on which the Nasdaq Stock Market is open for the buying and selling of securities, (ii) “IPO RSUs” means restricted stock units that vest and settle in connection with the Public Offering, and (iii)“Blackout Period” shall mean a broadly applicable and regularly scheduled period during which trading in the Company’s securities would not be permitted under the Company’s insider trading policy.
If the undersigned is an officer (as defined in Rule 16a-1(f) of the Exchange Act) or director of the Company, (i) the Representatives agree that, at least three business days before the effective date of any release or waiver of the foregoing restrictions in connection with a transfer of shares of Common Stock, the Representatives will notify the Company of the impending release or waiver, and (ii) the Company will agree or has agreed in the Underwriting Agreement, if required by FINRA rules, to announce the impending release or waiver by press release through a major news service at least two business days before the effective date of the release or waiver. Any release or waiver granted by the Representatives hereunder to any such officer or director shall only be effective two business days after the publication date of such press release. The provisions of this paragraph will not apply if (a) the release or waiver is effected solely to permit a transfer not for consideration or to an immediate family member as defined in FINRA Rule 5130(i)(5) and (b) the transferee has agreed in writing to be bound by the same terms described in this Letter Agreement to the extent and for the duration that such terms remain in effect at the time of the transfer.
The undersigned understands that the Company and the Underwriters are relying upon this Letter Agreement in proceeding toward consummation of the Public Offering. The
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undersigned further understands that this Letter Agreement is irrevocable and shall be binding upon the undersigned’s heirs, legal representatives, successors and assigns.
The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriters have not provided any recommendation or investment advice nor have the Underwriters solicited any action from the undersigned with respect to the Public Offering of the Shares and the undersigned has consulted their own legal, accounting, financial, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent deemed appropriate. The undersigned further acknowledges and agrees that, although the Underwriters may provide certain Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS disclosures or other related documentation to you in connection with the Public Offering, the Underwriters are not making a recommendation to you to participate in the Public Offering or sell any Shares at the price determined in the Public Offering, and nothing set forth in such disclosures or documentation is intended to suggest that any Underwriter is making such a recommendation.
In the event that one or two of the Representatives withdraws from or declines to participate in the Public Offering, all references to the Representatives contained in this Letter Agreement shall be deemed to refer to the other Representatives or sole Representative, as applicable, that continue(s) to participate in the Public Offering (the “Remaining Representative(s)”), and, in such event, any written consent, waiver or notice given or delivered in connection with this Letter Agreement by the Remaining Representative(s) shall be deemed to be sufficient and effective for all purposes under this Letter Agreement.
This Letter Agreement shall automatically terminate, and the undersigned will be released from all of his, her or its obligations hereunder, upon the earliest to occur, if any, of (a) the date that the Company advises the Representatives, in writing, prior to the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, that it has determined not to proceed with the Public Offering, (b) the date that the Company files an application with the SEC to withdraw the registration statement related to the Public Offering before the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, (c) if the Underwriting Agreement is executed but terminated (other than the provisions thereof that survive termination) prior to payment for and delivery of the shares of Common Stock to be sold thereunder, the date that the Underwriting Agreement is terminated or (d) July 31, 2025 if the Public Offering of the Shares has not been completed by such date (provided that the Company may by written notice to the undersigned prior to July 31, 2025 extend such date for a period of up to an additional three months).
Whether or not the Public Offering actually occurs depends on a number of factors, including market conditions. Any Public Offering will only be made pursuant to an Underwriting Agreement, the terms of which are subject to negotiation between the Company and the Underwriters.
This Letter Agreement may be delivered via facsimile, electronic mail (including any electronic signature covered by the U.S. federal ESIGN Act of 2000, Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, the Electronic Signatures and Records Act or other applicable law, e.g., www.docusign.com) or other transmission method and any counterpart so delivered shall be deemed to have been duly and validly delivered and be valid and effective for all purposes.
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This Letter Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.
[Signature page follows]
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Very truly yours,
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EXHIBIT B
FORM OF WAIVER OF LOCK-UP
_____________, 2025
[Name and Address of
Officer or Director
Requesting Waiver]
Dear Mr./Ms. [Name]:
This letter is being delivered to you in connection with the offering by Chime Financial, Inc. (the “Company”) of _____ shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Class A Common Stock”), of the Company and the lock-up agreement dated ______, 2025 (the “Lock-up Agreement”), executed by you in connection with such offering, and your request for a [waiver] [release] dated ______, 2025, with respect to ______ shares of Class A Common Stock (the “Shares”).
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC hereby agree to [waive] [release] the transfer restrictions set forth in the Lock-up Agreement, but only with respect to the Shares, effective _____, 2025; provided, however, that such [waiver] [release] is conditioned on the Company announcing the impending [waiver] [release] by press release through a major news service at least two business days before effectiveness of such [waiver] [release]. This letter will serve as notice to the Company of the impending [waiver] [release].
Except as expressly [waived] [released] hereby, the Lock-up Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.
[signature page follows]
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Very truly yours,
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
Acting severally on behalf of themselves and the
several Underwriters named in Schedule I to
the Underwriting Agreement
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Title: | ||||||||||||||
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC | ||||||||||||||
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J.P. Morgan Securities LLC | ||||||||||||||
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cc: Company
[Signature Page to Waiver of Lock-Up]
FORM OF PRESS RELEASE
Chime Financial, Inc.
_______, 2025
Chime Financial, Inc. (the “Company”) announced today that Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, the lead book-running managers in the Company’s recent public sale of ______ shares of its common stock are [waiving] [releasing] a lock-up restriction with respect to ______ shares of the Company’s Class A common stock held by [certain officers or directors] [an officer or director] of the Company. The [waiver] [release] will take effect on ______, 2025, and the shares may be sold on or after such date.
This press release is not an offer for sale of the securities in the United States or in any other jurisdiction where such offer is prohibited, and such securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended.