Description of Hines Global REIT, Inc. Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

The following is a summary of the material terms of shares of common stock of Hines Global REIT, Inc. registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) as set forth in our charter and bylaws, as amended and supplemented from time to time. This summary is qualified in its entirety by reference to our charter and bylaws. References herein to “us,” “we,” “our,” or the “Company” refer to Hines Global REIT, Inc. We were formed as a corporation under the laws of the State of Maryland. The rights of our stockholders are governed by Maryland law as well as our charter and bylaws.

Our charter authorizes us to issue up to 1,500,000,000 common shares, $0.001 par value per share, and 500,000,000 preferred shares, $0.001 par value per share. Our board of directors may amend our charter to increase or decrease the aggregate number of our authorized shares or the number of shares of any class or series that we have authority to issue without any action by our stockholders.

 

Our charter and bylaws contain certain provisions that could make it more difficult to acquire control of us by means of a tender offer, a proxy contest or otherwise. These provisions are expected to discourage certain types of coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids and to encourage persons seeking to acquire control of us to negotiate first with our board of directors. We believe that these provisions increase the likelihood that any such proposals initially will be on more attractive terms than would be the case in their absence and will facilitate negotiations which may result in improvement of the terms of an initial offer. 

Subject to any preferential rights of any other class or series of shares and to the provisions of our charter regarding the restriction on the transfer of our common shares, the holders of common shares are entitled to such distributions as may be authorized from time to time by our board of directors and declared by us out of legally available funds and, upon liquidation, are entitled to receive all assets available for distribution to our stockholders. Holders of common shares do not have preemptive rights, which means that they do not have an automatic option to purchase any new shares that we issue. We currently have only one class of common shares, which have equal distribution, liquidation and other rights. All outstanding shares of our common stock are fully paid and non-assessable. 

Subject to the limitations described in our charter, our board of directors, without any action by our stockholders, may classify or reclassify any of our unissued common shares into one or more classes or series by setting or changing the preferences, conversion, restrictions or other rights. 

We do not issue certificates for our shares. Shares are held in “uncertificated” form, which eliminates the physical handling and safekeeping responsibilities inherent in owning transferable stock certificates and eliminate the need to return a duly executed stock certificate to effect a transfer. DST Systems, Inc. acts as our registrar and as the transfer agent for our shares. A transfer of a stockholder’s shares can be effected simply by mailing to DST Systems, Inc. a transfer and assignment form, which we provide to the stockholder upon written request. 

Each common stockholder is entitled at each meeting of stockholders to one vote per share owned by such common stockholder on all matters submitted to a vote of common stockholders, including the election of directors. There is no cumulative voting in the election of our board of directors, which means that the holders of a majority of our outstanding common shares can elect all of the directors then standing for election and the holders of the remaining common shares are not able to elect any directors. An annual meeting of our stockholders is held each year, at least 30 days after delivery of our annual report. Special meetings of stockholders may be called only upon the request of a majority of our directors, a majority of our independent directors, our chief executive officer or our president or upon the written request of stockholders holding at least 10% of the common shares entitled to vote at such meeting. The presence of stockholders, either in person or by proxy, entitled to cast at least 50% of all the votes entitled to be cast at a meeting constitutes a quorum. Generally, the affirmative vote of a majority of all votes cast at a meeting at which a quorum is present is necessary to take stockholder

action, except that a majority of the votes represented in person or by proxy at a meeting at which a quorum is present is required to elect a director. 

Under the Maryland General Corporation Law and our charter, stockholders are generally entitled to vote at a duly held meeting at which a quorum is present on: 

 

 

 

No such action can be taken by our board of directors without a vote of our stockholders entitled to cast at least a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast on the matter or, in the case of director elections, a majority of the votes present in person or by proxy at a meeting at which a quorum is present. Stockholders are not entitled to exercise any of the rights of an objecting stockholder provided for in Title 3, Subtitle 2 of the Maryland General Corporation Law unless our board of directors determines that such rights shall apply with respect to all or any classes or series of shares, to a particular transaction or all transactions occurring after the date of such determination in connection with which stockholders would otherwise be entitled to exercise such rights. 

We maintain, as part of our books and records, and make available for inspection by any stockholder or the stockholder’s designated agent at our office an alphabetical list of the names, addresses and telephone numbers of our stockholders, along with the number of shares of our common stock held by each of them. We update the stockholder list at least quarterly to reflect changes in the information contained therein. A copy of the list shall be mailed to any stockholder who requests the list within 10 days of the request. A stockholder may request a copy of the stockholder list in connection with matters relating to voting rights and the exercise of stockholder rights under federal proxy laws. A stockholder requesting a list is required to pay the reasonable costs of producing the list. We have the right to request that a requesting stockholder represent to us that the list is not used to pursue commercial interests. Stockholders also have rights under Rule 14a-7 under the Exchange Act, which provides that, upon the request of investors and the payment of the expenses of the distribution, we are required to distribute specific materials to stockholders in the context of the solicitation of proxies for voting on matters presented to stockholders or, at our option, provide requesting stockholders with a copy of the list of stockholders so that the requesting stockholders may make the distribution of proxies themselves. If we do not honor a proper request for the stockholder list, then the requesting stockholder shall be entitled to recover certain costs incurred in compelling the production of the list as well as actual damages suffered by reason of the refusal or failure to produce the list. A stockholder, however, shall not have the right to, and we may require a requesting stockholder to represent that it will not, secure the stockholder list or other information for the purpose of selling or using the list for a commercial purpose, including a tender offer for our shares, or any other purpose not related to the requesting stockholder’s interest in our affairs. 

In order for us to qualify as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes, no more than 50% in value of the outstanding shares of our common stock may be owned, directly or indirectly through the application of certain attribution rules under the Code, by any five or fewer individuals, as defined in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), to include specified entities, during the last half of any taxable year. In addition, the outstanding shares of our common stock must be owned by 100 or more persons independent of us and each other during at least 335 days of a 12-month taxable year or during a proportionate part of a shorter taxable year, excluding our first taxable year ending December 31, 2009. In addition, we must meet requirements regarding the nature of our gross income in order to qualify as a REIT. One of these requirements is that at least 75% of our gross income for each calendar year must consist of rents from real property and income from other real property investments (and a similar test requires that at least 95% of our gross income for each calendar year must consist of rents from real property and income from other real property investments together with certain other passive items such as dividend and interest). The rents received by Hines Global REIT Properties

LP (the “Operating Partnership”) from any tenant does not qualify as rents from real property, which could result in our loss of REIT status, if we own, actually or constructively within the meaning of certain provisions of the Code, 10% or more of the ownership interests in that tenant. In order to assist us in preserving our status as a REIT, among other purposes, our charter provides generally that (i) no person may beneficially or constructively own common shares in excess of 9.9% (in value or number of shares) of the outstanding common shares; (ii) no person may beneficially or constructively own shares in excess of 9.9% of the value of the total outstanding shares; (iii) no person may beneficially or constructively own shares that would result in us being “closely held” under Section 856(h) of the Code or otherwise cause us to fail to qualify as a REIT (including, but not limited to, beneficial or constructive ownership that would result in us owning (actually or constructively) an interest in a tenant that is described in Section 856(d)(2)(B) of the Code if the income derived by us from such tenant would cause us to fail to satisfy any of the gross income requirements of Section 856(c) of the Code); and (iv) no person may transfer or attempt to transfer shares if such transfer would result in our shares being owned by fewer than 100 Persons. 

Our charter provides that if any of the restrictions on transfer or ownership described above are violated, the shares represented hereby will be automatically transferred to a charitable trust for the benefit of one or more charitable beneficiaries effective on the day before the purported transfer of such shares. We will designate a trustee of the charitable trust that will not be affiliated with us or the purported transferee or record holder. We will also name a charitable organization as beneficiary of the charitable trust. The trustee will receive all distributions on the shares of our capital stock in the same trust and will hold such distributions or distributions in trust for the benefit of the beneficiary. The trustee also will vote the shares of capital stock in the same trust. The purported transferee will acquire no rights in such shares of capital stock, unless, in the case of a transfer that would cause a violation of the 9.9% ownership limit, the transfer is exempted by our board of directors from the ownership limit based upon receipt of information (including certain representations and undertakings from the purported transferee) that such transfer would not violate the provisions of the Code for our qualification as a REIT. In addition, our charter provides that we may redeem shares upon the terms and conditions specified by the Board of Directors in its sole discretion if our Board of Directors determines that ownership or a transfer or other event may violate the restrictions described above. Furthermore, upon the occurrence of certain events, attempted transfers in violation of the restrictions described above may immediately be void. 

 

The trustee will transfer the shares of our capital stock to a person whose ownership of shares of our capital stock will not violate the ownership limits. The transfer shall be made within 20 days of receiving notice from us that shares of our capital stock have been transferred to the trust. During this 20-day period, we will have the option of redeeming such shares of our capital stock. Upon any such transfer or purchase, the purported transferee or holder shall receive a per share price equal to the lesser of (a) the price paid by the purported transferee for the shares or, if the purported transferee did not give value for the shares in connection with the event causing the shares to be held in the charitable trust (e.g., in the case of a gift, devise or other such transaction), the market price of the shares on the day of the event causing the shares to be held in the charitable trust and (b) the price per share received by the charitable trustee (net of any commissions and other expenses of sale) from the sale or other disposition of the shares held in the charitable trust. The charitable trustee may reduce the amount payable to the purported transferee by the amount of dividends and distributions which have been paid to the purported transferee and are owed by the purported transferee to the charitable trustee pursuant to our charter. Any net sales proceeds in excess of the amount payable to the purported transferee shall be immediately paid to the charitable beneficiary. If, prior to our discovery that shares have been transferred to the charitable trustee, such shares are sold by a purported transferee, then (i) such shares shall be deemed to have been sold on behalf of the charitable trust and (ii) to the extent that the purported transferee received an amount for such shares that exceeds the amount that such purported transferee was entitled to receive pursuant to our charter, such excess shall be paid to the charitable trustee upon demand. 

Any person who acquires or attempts or intends to acquire beneficial ownership or constructive ownership of shares that will or may violate the foregoing restrictions, or any person who would have owned shares that resulted in a transfer to the charitable trust pursuant to our charter, is required to immediately give us written notice of such event, or in the case of such a proposed or attempted transaction, give at least 15 days prior written notice, and shall provide us such other information as we may request in order to determine the effect, if any, of such transfer on our status as a REIT. 

The ownership limits do not apply to a person or persons which our Board of Directors has, in its sole discretion, determined to exempt from the ownership limit upon appropriate assurances that our qualification as a REIT is not jeopardized. Any person who owns more than 5% (or such lower percentage applicable under the Code or Treasury regulations) of the outstanding shares of our capital stock during any taxable year is asked to deliver a statement or affidavit setting forth the number of shares of our capital stock beneficially owned and other information related to such ownership. 

In order to qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we generally must distribute at least 90% of our taxable income (excluding capital gains) to our stockholders. Distributions are authorized at the discretion of our board of directors, which considers the requirements for our qualification as a REIT pursuant to the Code.

On April 23, 2018, in connection with its review of potential strategic alternatives available to the Company, our board of directors determined that it is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders to sell all or substantially all of our properties and assets and for the Company to liquidate and dissolve pursuant to our Plan of Liquidation and Dissolution (the “Plan of Liquidation”). The principal purpose of the liquidation is to provide liquidity to our stockholders by selling the Company’s assets, making payments on property and corporate level debt, and distributing the net proceeds from liquidation to our stockholders. As required by Maryland law and our charter, the Plan of Liquidation was approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the shares of our common stock outstanding and entitled to vote thereon at the Company’s annual meeting of stockholders held on July 17, 2018. Any future distributable income earned from our remaining properties will be included in future liquidating distributions to stockholders. Our board of directors will determine, in its sole discretion, the amount and timing of any liquidating distributions paid to stockholders.

Our charter contains various limitations on our ability to participate in Roll-up Transactions. In connection with any proposed transaction considered a “Roll-up Transaction” involving us and the issuance of securities of an entity, which we refer to as a Roll-up Entity, that would be created or would survive after the successful completion of the Roll-up Transaction, an appraisal of all our properties must be obtained from a competent independent appraiser. The properties must be appraised on a consistent basis, and the appraisal shall be based on the evaluation of all relevant information and shall indicate the value of the properties as of a date immediately prior to the announcement of the proposed Roll-up Transaction. The appraisal shall assume an orderly liquidation of our properties over a 12-month period. The terms of the engagement of the independent appraiser must clearly state that the engagement is for our benefit and that of our stockholders. A summary of the appraisal, indicating all material assumptions underlying the appraisal, shall be included in a report to our stockholders in connection with any proposed Roll-up Transaction. If the appraisal will be included in a prospectus used to offer the securities of a Roll-up Entity, the appraisal will be filed as an exhibit to the registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission and with any state where such securities are registered. 

A “Roll-up Transaction” is a transaction involving the acquisition, merger, conversion or consolidation, either directly or indirectly, of us and the issuance of securities of a Roll-up Entity. This term does not include: 

 

 

In connection with a proposed Roll-up Transaction, the person sponsoring the Roll-up Transaction must offer to our common stockholders who vote “no” on the proposal the choice of: 

 

 

 

 

We are prohibited from participating in any proposed Roll-up Transaction: 

 

 

 

 

Both the Maryland General Corporation Law and our charter provide that our stockholders are not liable personally or individually in any manner whatsoever for any debt, act, omission or obligation incurred by us or our board of directors. 

The Maryland General Corporation Law provides that our stockholders are under no obligation to us or our creditors with respect to their shares other than the obligation to pay to us the full amount of the consideration for which their shares were issued. 

The Maryland General Corporation Law prohibits certain business combinations between a Maryland corporation and an interested stockholder or the interested stockholder’s affiliate for five years after the most recent date on which the stockholder becomes an interested stockholder. These business combinations include a merger, consolidation or share exchange, or, in circumstances specified in the statute, an asset transfer or issuance or reclassification of equity securities. An interested stockholder is defined as: 

 

 

A person is not an interested stockholder under the statute if the board of directors approved in advance the transaction by which the person otherwise would have become an interested stockholder. However, in approving a transaction, the board of directors may provide that its approval is subject to compliance, at or after the time of approval, with any terms and conditions determined by the board. 

After the five-year prohibition, any business combination between the Maryland corporation and an interested stockholder generally must be recommended by the board of directors of the corporation and approved by the affirmative vote of at least: 

 

 

These super-majority vote requirements do not apply if the corporation’s common stockholders receive a minimum price, as defined under the Maryland General Corporation Law, for their shares in the form of cash or other consideration in the same form as previously paid by the interested stockholder for its shares. 

The statute permits various exemptions from its provisions, including business combinations that are exempted by the board of directors of the corporation prior to the time that the interested stockholder becomes an interested stockholder. As permitted by the Maryland General Corporation Law, our board of directors has adopted a resolution presently opting out of the business combination provisions of Maryland law, but our board of directors retains discretion to alter or repeal, in whole or in part, this resolution at any time. 

With some exceptions, Maryland law provides that control shares of a Maryland corporation acquired in a control share acquisition have no voting rights except to the extent approved by a vote of two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter, excluding “control shares:” 

 

 

 

“Control shares” mean voting shares which, if aggregated with all other voting shares owned by an acquiring person or shares on which the acquiring person can exercise or direct the exercise of voting power, except solely by virtue of a revocable proxy, would entitle the acquiring person to exercise voting power in electing directors within one of the following ranges of voting power: 

 

 

 

 

Control shares do not include shares the acquiring person is then entitled to vote as a result of having previously obtained stockholder approval. A control share acquisition occurs when, subject to some exceptions, a person directly or indirectly acquires ownership or the power to direct the exercise of voting power of issued and outstanding control shares. A person who has made or proposes to make a control share acquisition, upon satisfaction of some specific conditions, including an undertaking to pay expenses, may compel our board of directors to call a special meeting of our stockholders to

be held within 50 days of a demand to consider the voting rights of the control shares. If no request for a meeting is made, we may present the question at any stockholders’ meeting. 

If voting rights are not approved at the meeting or if the acquiring person does not deliver an acquiring person statement as required by the statute, then, subject to some conditions and limitations, we may redeem any or all of the control shares (except those for which voting rights have been previously been approved) for fair value determined, without regard to the absence of voting rights for the control shares, as of the date of the last control share acquisition by the acquiror or of any meeting of stockholders at which the voting rights of such shares are considered and not approved. If voting rights for control shares are approved at a stockholders meeting and the acquiror becomes entitled to vote a majority of the shares entitled to vote, all other stockholders may exercise appraisal rights. The fair value of the shares as determined for purposes of such appraisal rights may not be less than the highest price per share paid by the acquiror in the control share acquisition. The control share acquisition statute does not apply to shares acquired in a merger, consolidation or share exchange if we are a party to the transaction or to acquisitions approved or exempted by our charter or bylaws. 

As permitted by Maryland General Corporation Law, we have provided in our bylaws that the control share provisions of the Maryland General Corporation Law will not apply to any and all acquisitions by any person of our shares but our board of directors retains the discretion to change this provision in the future. 

Subtitle 8 of Title 3 of the Maryland General Corporation Law permits a Maryland corporation with a class of equity securities registered under the Exchange Act and at least three independent directors to elect to be subject, by provision in its charter or bylaws or a resolution of its board of directors and notwithstanding any contrary provision in the charter or bylaws, to any or all of five provisions: 

 

 

 

 

 

We have elected, pursuant to Subtitle 8, to provide that vacancies on our board of directors may be filled only by the remaining directors and for the remainder of the full term of the directorship in which the vacancy occurred. Through provisions in our charter and bylaws unrelated to Subtitle 8, we already vest in our board of directors the exclusive power to fix the number of directorships. We have not elected to be subject to any of the other provisions of Subtitle 8. 

Our charter provides that if any person makes a tender offer, including any “mini-tender” offer, such person must comply with most of the provisions of Regulation 14D of the Exchange Act, including the notice and disclosure requirements. Among other things, the offeror must provide us notice of such tender offer at least ten business days before initiating the tender offer. If the offeror does not comply with the provisions set forth above, we have the right to redeem that offeror’s shares, if any, and any shares acquired in such tender offer. In addition, the non-complying offeror is responsible for all of our expenses in connection with that offeror’s noncompliance. 

Our bylaws provide that unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland, or if that Court does not have jurisdiction, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, Baltimore Division, shall be the sole and exclusive forum for (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of any duty owed by any director or officer or employee of Hines Global to us or to our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against Hines Global or any director or officer or employee of Hines Global arising pursuant to any provision of the Maryland General Corporation Law, our charter or our bylaws, or (iv) any action asserting a claim against Hines Global or any director or officer or employee of Hines Global that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine. This choice of forum will not apply to claims arising under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act.

Our charter requires that we prepare an annual report and deliver it to our stockholders within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year. Among the matters that must be included in the annual report are: