Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, dated as of March 16, 2021, among Ingredion Incorporated, as Borrower, the lenders party thereto and Bank of America, N.A., National Association, as Administrative Agent

Contract Categories: Business Finance - Loan Agreements
EX-10.1 2 d134576dex101.htm EX-10.1 EX-10.1

Exhibit 10.1

Execution Version

 

 

 

SECOND AMENDED AND RESTATED TERM LOAN CREDIT AGREEMENT

dated as of

March 16, 2021

among

INGREDION INCORPORATED,

as Borrower

the Lenders Party Hereto,

BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.,

as Administrative Agent

and

BofA SECURITIES, INC.,

as Sole Bookrunner and Sole Lead Arranger

 

 

 


ARTICLE I DEFINITIONS

     1  

SECTION 1.01

  Defined Terms      1  

SECTION 1.02

  Classification of Loans and Borrowings      20  

SECTION 1.03

  Terms Generally      20  

SECTION 1.04

  Accounting Terms; GAAP      20  

SECTION 1.05

  Foreign Currency Calculations      21  

SECTION 1.06

  Amendment and Restatement      21  

ARTICLE II THE CREDITS

     22  

SECTION 2.01

  Commitments      22  

SECTION 2.02

  Loans and Borrowings      22  

SECTION 2.03

  Requests for Borrowings      23  

SECTION 2.04

  [Reserved]      23  

SECTION 2.05

  [Reserved]      23  

SECTION 2.06

  [Reserved]      23  

SECTION 2.07

  [Reserved]      23  

SECTION 2.08

  Interest Elections      24  

SECTION 2.09

  [Reserved]      25  

SECTION 2.10

  Repayment of Loans; Evidence of Debt      25  

SECTION 2.11

  Prepayment of Loans      25  

SECTION 2.12

  [Reserved]      26  

SECTION 2.13

  Interest      26  

SECTION 2.14

  Alternate Rate of Interest; Illegality      26  

SECTION 2.15

  Increased Costs      30  

SECTION 2.16

  Break Funding Payments      31  

SECTION 2.17

  Taxes      32  

SECTION 2.18

  Payments Generally; Pro Rata Treatment; Sharing of Set-offs      35  

SECTION 2.19

  Mitigation Obligations; Replacement of Lenders      37  

SECTION 2.20

  Defaulting Lenders      38  

ARTICLE III REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

     38  

SECTION 3.01

  Organization; Powers      38  

SECTION 3.02

  Authorization; Enforceability      38  

SECTION 3.03

  Governmental Approvals; No Conflicts      38  

SECTION 3.04

  Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change      39  

SECTION 3.05

  Properties      39  

SECTION 3.06

  Litigation and Environmental Matters      39  

SECTION 3.07

  Compliance with Laws and Agreements      40  

SECTION 3.08

  Investment Company Status      40  

SECTION 3.09

  Taxes      40  

SECTION 3.10

  ERISA      40  

SECTION 3.11

  Disclosure      40  

SECTION 3.12

  Regulation U      41  

SECTION 3.13

  Labor Relations      41  

SECTION 3.14

  Anti-Corruptions Laws and Sanctions      41  

SECTION 3.15

  Affected Financial Institution      41  

SECTION 3.16

  Covered Entity. The Borrower is not a Covered Entity      41  

 

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ARTICLE IV CONDITIONS

     41  

SECTION 4.01

  Effective Date      41  

SECTION 4.02

  Each Credit Event      43  

ARTICLE V AFFIRMATIVE COVENANTS

     43  

SECTION 5.01

  Financial Statements and Other Information      43  

SECTION 5.02

  Notices of Material Events      45  

SECTION 5.03

  Existence; Conduct of Business      45  

SECTION 5.04

  Payment of Tax Obligations      46  

SECTION 5.05

  Maintenance of Properties; Insurance      46  

SECTION 5.06

  Books and Records; Inspection Rights      46  

SECTION 5.07

  Compliance with Laws      46  

SECTION 5.08

  Use of Proceeds      47  

ARTICLE VI NEGATIVE COVENANTS

     47  

SECTION 6.01

  Subsidiary Indebtedness      47  

SECTION 6.02

  Liens      48  

SECTION 6.03

  Fundamental Changes; Asset Sales      50  

SECTION 6.04

  Restricted Payments      50  

SECTION 6.05

  Transactions with Affiliates      50  

SECTION 6.06

  Maximum Leverage Ratio      50  

SECTION 6.07

  Minimum Interest Coverage Ratio      51  

ARTICLE VII EVENTS OF DEFAULT

     51  

ARTICLE VIII THE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT

     53  

ARTICLE IX MISCELLANEOUS

     55  

SECTION 9.01

  Notices      55  

SECTION 9.02

  Waivers; Amendments      56  

SECTION 9.03

  Expenses; Indemnity; Damage Waiver      58  

SECTION 9.04

  Successors and Assigns      59  

SECTION 9.05

  Survival      62  

SECTION 9.06

  Counterparts; Integration; Effectiveness      63  

SECTION 9.07

  Severability      63  

SECTION 9.08

  Right of Setoff      63  

SECTION 9.09

  Governing Law; Jurisdiction; Consent to Service of Process      63  

SECTION 9.10

  WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL      64  

SECTION 9.11

  Headings      64  

SECTION 9.12

  Confidentiality      64  

SECTION 9.13

  Interest Rate Limitation      65  

SECTION 9.14

  USA PATRIOT Act      66  

SECTION 9.15

  Electronic Execution of Documents      66  

SECTION 9.16

  Acknowledgement and Consent to Bail-In of Affected Financial Institutions      66  

SECTION 9.17

  Acknowledgement Regarding Any Supported QFCs      67  

SECTION 9.18

  Certain ERISA Matters      68  

 

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SCHEDULES:

 

Schedule 2.01 - Commitments
Schedule 6.02 - Existing Liens

EXHIBITS:

 

Exhibit A    -      Form of Assignment and Assumption
Exhibit B    -      [Reserved]
Exhibit C-1    -      U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (For Foreign Lenders that are not Partnerships for U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)
Exhibit C-2    -      U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (For Foreign Participants that are not Partnerships for U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)
Exhibit C-3    -      U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (For Foreign Participants that are Partnerships for U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)
Exhibit C-4    -      U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (For Foreign Lenders that are Partnerships for U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

 

 

iii


SECOND AMENDED AND RESTATED TERM LOAN CREDIT AGREEMENT dated as of March 16, 2021, between INGREDION INCORPORATED (the “Borrower”), BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., as a lender (the “Initial Lender”), the other Lenders as may be party hereto from time to time and BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., as Administrative Agent.

PRELIMINARY STATEMENTS:

WHEREAS, the Borrower and Bank of America, N.A. as the sole lender and administrative agent are parties to that certain Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement dated as of April 12, 2019 (as the same has heretofore been amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified prior to the Closing Date, the “Existing Credit Agreement”), pursuant to which Bank of America, N.A. has made a term loan to the Borrower;

WHEREAS, the Borrower has requested that Bank of America, N.A. as the Administrative Agent and Initial Lender enter into this Agreement in order to provide for a term loan to, among other things, refinance the Borrower’s indebtedness outstanding under the Existing Credit Agreement.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements herein contained, the parties hereto hereby agree as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS

SECTION 1.01 Defined Terms. As used in this Agreement, the following terms have the meanings specified below:

ABR”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether such Loan, or the Loans comprising such Borrowing, are bearing interest at a rate determined by reference to the Alternate Base Rate.

Act” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.14.

Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate” means, with respect to any Eurocurrency Borrowing for any Interest Period, an interest rate per annum equal to the sum of (a) the Eurocurrency Rate for such Interest Period multiplied by (b) the Statutory Reserve Rate.

Administrative Agent” means Bank of America, N.A., in its capacity as administrative agent for the Lenders hereunder.

Administrative Questionnaire” means an Administrative Questionnaire in a form supplied by the Administrative Agent.

Affiliate” means, with respect to a specified Person, another Person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, Controls or is Controlled by or is under common Control with the Person specified.

 

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Affected Financial Institution” means (a) any EEA Financial Institution, or (b) any UK Financial Institution.

Agreement” means this Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, as amended, restated, modified or supplemented from time to time.

Alternate Base Rate” means, for any day, a rate per annum equal to the greatest of (a) the Prime Rate in effect on such day, (b) the Federal Funds Effective Rate in effect on such day plus 1/2 of 1% and (c) the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate for a one month Interest Period on such day (or if such day is not a Business Day, the immediately preceding Business Day) plus 1%, provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate for any Business Day shall be based on the LIBOR Screen Rate at approximately 11:00 a.m. London time on such day; provided further that if the Alternate Base Rate shall be less than zero, such rate shall be deemed zero for purposes of this Agreement. Any change in the Alternate Base Rate due to a change in the Prime Rate, the Federal Funds Effective Rate or the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate shall be effective from and including the effective date of such change in the Prime Rate, the Federal Funds Effective Rate or the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate, respectively.

Anti-Corruption Laws” means all laws, rules, and regulations of any jurisdiction applicable to the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries from time to time concerning or relating to bribery or corruption.

Applicable Lending Installation” is defined in Section 2.02(d).

Applicable Percentage” means, with respect to any Lender, the percentage of the total Commitments represented by such Lender’s Commitment; provided that in the case of Section 2.20 when a Defaulting Lender shall exist, “Applicable Percentage” shall mean the percentage of the total Commitments (disregarding any Defaulting Lender’s Commitment) represented by such Lender’s Commitment. If the Commitments have terminated or expired, the Applicable Percentages shall be determined based upon the Commitments most recently in effect, giving effect to any assignments and to any Lender’s status as a Defaulting Lender at the time of determination.

Applicable Rate” means, for any day, with respect to (i) any Eurocurrency Loan a rate per annum equal to 0.75%, and (ii) any ABR Loan, a rate per annum equal to 0.00%.

Approved Fund” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 9.04.

Assignment and Assumption” means an assignment and assumption entered into by a Lender and an assignee (with the consent of any party whose consent is required by Section 9.04), and accepted by the Administrative Agent, in the form of Exhibit A or any other form approved by the Administrative Agent.

Bail-In Action” means the exercise of any Write-Down and Conversion Powers by the applicable Resolution Authority in respect of any liability of an Affected Financial Institution.

 

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Bail-In Legislation” means, (a) with respect to any EEA Member Country implementing Article 55 of Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of the European Union, the implementing law, rule, regulation or requirement for such EEA Member Country from time to time which is described in the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule, and (b) with respect to the United Kingdom, Part I of the United Kingdom Banking Act 2009 (as amended from time to time) and any other law, regulation or rule applicable in the United Kingdom relating to the resolution of unsound or failing banks, investment firms or other financial institutions or their affiliates (other than through liquidation, administration or other insolvency proceedings).

Bankruptcy Event” means, with respect to any Person, such Person becomes the subject of a bankruptcy or insolvency proceeding, or has had a receiver, conservator, trustee, administrator, custodian, assignee for the benefit of creditors or similar Person charged with the reorganization or liquidation of its business appointed for it, or, in the good faith determination of the Administrative Agent, has taken any action in furtherance of, or indicating its consent to, approval of, or acquiescence in, any such proceeding or appointment, provided that a Bankruptcy Event shall not result solely by virtue of any ownership interest, or the acquisition of any ownership interest, in such Person by a Governmental Authority or instrumentality thereof, provided, further, that such ownership interest does not result in or provide such Person with immunity from the jurisdiction of courts within the United States or from the enforcement of judgments or writs of attachment on its assets or permit such Person (or such Governmental Authority or instrumentality) to reject, repudiate, disavow or disaffirm any contracts or agreements made by such Person.

BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

Board” means the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System of the United States of America.

Borrowed Debt” of any Person means the sum, without duplication, of (a) all Indebtedness of such Person for borrowed money and Indebtedness of such Person evidenced by bonds, debentures, notes or other similar instruments, plus (b) all Receivables Transaction Attributed Indebtedness of such Person, plus (c) all Indebtedness, contingent or otherwise, of such Person in respect of letters of credit, letters of guaranty, bankers’ acceptances or similar extensions of credit, plus (d) all Capital Lease Obligations of such Person, plus (e) any monetary obligation of such Person under a synthetic, off-balance sheet or tax retention lease or any other monetary obligation arising under a similar transaction, plus (f) all Guarantees by such Person of Borrowed Debt of others.

Borrower” means Ingredion Incorporated, a Delaware corporation.

Borrowing” means Loans of the same Type, made, converted or continued on the same date and to which a single Interest Period is in effect.

Borrowing Request” means a request by the Borrower for a Borrowing in accordance with Section 2.03.

Business Day” means any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banks in New York City are authorized or required by law to remain closed; provided that, when used in connection with a Eurocurrency Loan, the term “Business Day” shall also exclude any day on which banks are not open for dealings in Dollar deposits in the London interbank market.

 

3


Capital Lease Obligations” of any Person means the obligations of such Person to pay rent or other amounts under any lease of (or other arrangement conveying the right to use) real or personal property, or a combination thereof, which obligations are required to be classified and accounted for as capital leases on a balance sheet of such Person under GAAP, and the amount of such obligations shall be the capitalized amount thereof determined in accordance with GAAP.

Change in Control” means (a) the acquisition of ownership, directly or indirectly, beneficially or of record, by any Person or group (within the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission thereunder as in effect on the date hereof), of Equity Interests representing more than 30% of the aggregate ordinary voting power represented by the issued and outstanding Equity Interests of the Borrower; (b) occupation of a majority of the seats (other than vacant seats) on the board of directors of the Borrower by Persons who were neither (i) nominated or approved by the board of directors of the Borrower nor (ii) appointed or approved by a majority of directors so nominated or approved; or (c) the acquisition of direct or indirect Control of the Borrower by any Person or group.

Change in Law” means the occurrence, after the date of this Agreement (or with respect to any Lender, if later, the date on which such Lender becomes a Lender), of any of the following: (a) the adoption or taking effect of any law, rule, regulation or treaty, (b) any change in any law, rule, regulation or treaty or in the administration, interpretation, implementation or application thereof by any Governmental Authority, or (c) the making or issuance of any request, rules, guideline or directive (whether or not having the force of law) in each case by any Governmental Authority; provided however, that notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary,(i) the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and all requests, rules, guidelines or directives thereunder or issued in connection therewith and (ii) all requests, rules, guidelines or directives promulgated by the Bank for International Settlements, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (or any successor or similar authority) or the United States or foreign regulatory authorities, in each case pursuant to Basel III, shall in each case be deemed to be a “Change in Law” regardless of the date enacted, adopted or issued.

Charges” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.13.

Closing Date” means March 16, 2021.

Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time.

Commitment” as to any Lender, its obligation to make Loans to the Borrowers pursuant to Section 2.01 (and to continue the Existing Term Loans under this Agreement as described in Section 2.01) in an aggregate amount not to exceed at any one time outstanding the amount set forth opposite such Lender’s name on Schedule 2.01, as such amount may change from time to time as provided herein; provided that the Commitments shall not at any time exceed $380,000,000 in the aggregate; collectively, the “Commitments.”

 

4


Connection Income Taxes” means Other Connection Taxes that are imposed on or measured by net income (however denominated) or that are franchise Taxes or branch profits Taxes.

Consolidated EBITDA” means, for any period, an amount equal to consolidated net income (or net loss) of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries plus, to the extent deducted in determining consolidated net income (or net loss) for such period, the sum of (a) net interest expense, (b) income tax expense, (c) depreciation expense, (d) amortization expense, (e) non-recurring, non-cash charges and non-cash restructuring charges, (f) net income attributable to non-controlling interests and (g) acquisition expenses incurred in cash in an aggregate amount not to exceed $75,000,000 in any four fiscal quarter period, minus, to the extent included in determining consolidated net income (or net loss) for such period, the sum of (y) net loss attributable to non-controlling interests and (z) non-recurring, non-cash gains and non-cash restructuring gains, in each case determined in accordance with GAAP by reference to the consolidated financial statements of the Borrower required to be delivered pursuant to the Credit Documents. If the Borrower or a Subsidiary consummates or has consummated an acquisition or a disposition at any time since the commencement of such period but on or prior to the applicable date of determination, then, for the purposes of calculating the financial covenants set forth in Sections 6.06 and 6.07 for the applicable period, Consolidated EBITDA for such period shall be adjusted on a pro forma basis to give effect to such acquisition or disposition as though such acquisition or disposition had been consummated as of the first day of such period; provided that, with respect to any acquisition, such pro forma adjustments (including any pro rated amounts necessary to give effect to such acquisition for all of such period) shall, with respect to the acquired entity or business, be based on the financial information (such as internal monthly reports) available to (and in good faith relied upon by) the Borrower.

Consolidated Net Assets” means, as of the date of any determination thereof, total assets of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries calculated in accordance with GAAP on a consolidated basis as of such date minus goodwill of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries as of such date.

Control” means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of a Person, whether through the ability to exercise voting power, by contract or otherwise. “Controlling” and “Controlled” have meanings correlative thereto.

Covered Entity” has the meaning set forth in in Section 9.17.

Covered Party” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

Credit Documents” means this Agreement, after the execution and delivery thereof pursuant to the terms of this Agreement, each promissory note, if any, delivered pursuant to Section 2.10(e).

Default” means any event or condition which constitutes an Event of Default or which upon notice, lapse of time or both would, unless cured or waived, become an Event of Default.

Default Right” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

 

5


Defaulting Lender” means any Lender that (a) has failed, within two Business Days of the date required to be funded or paid, to (i) fund any portion of its Loans o or (ii) pay over to any Specified Party any other amount required to be paid by it hereunder, unless, in the case of clause (i) above, such Lender notifies the Administrative Agent in writing that such failure is the result of such Lender’s good faith determination that a condition precedent to funding (specifically identified and including the particular default, if any) has not been satisfied, (b) has notified the Borrower or any Specified Party in writing, or has made a public statement to the effect, that it does not intend or expect to comply with any of its funding obligations under this Agreement (unless such writing or public statement indicates that such position is based on such Lender’s good faith determination that a condition precedent (specifically identified and including the particular default, if any) to funding a Loan under this Agreement cannot be satisfied) or generally under other agreements in which it commits to extend credit, (c) has failed, within three Business Days after reasonable request by a Specified Party, acting in good faith, to provide a certification in writing from an authorized officer of such Lender that it will comply with its obligations (and is financially able to meet such obligations) to fund prospective Loans an, provided that such Lender shall cease to be a Defaulting Lender pursuant to this clause (c) upon such Specified Party’s receipt of such certification in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to it and the Administrative Agent, or (d) has, or has a direct or indirect parent company that has, become the subject of (i) a Bankruptcy Event at a time it has an unfunded Commitment or (ii) a Bail-In Action.

Dollars” or “$” refers to lawful money of the United States of America.

Dollar Equivalent” means, on any date of determination (a) with respect to any amount in Dollars, such amount, and (b) with respect to any amount in any Foreign Currency, the equivalent in Dollars of such amount, determined by the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 1.05 using the Exchange Rate with respect to such Foreign Currency at the time in effect under the provisions of such Section.

EEA Financial Institution” means (a) any credit institution or investment firm established in any EEA Member Country which is subject to the supervision of an EEA Resolution Authority, (b) any entity established in an EEA Member Country which is a parent of an institution described in clause (a) of this definition, or (c) any financial institution established in an EEA Member Country which is a subsidiary of an institution described in clauses (a) or (b) of this definition and is subject to consolidated supervision with its parent.

EEA Member Country” means any of the member states of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.

EEA Resolution Authority” means any public administrative authority or any Person entrusted with public administrative authority of any EEA Member Country (including any delegee) having responsibility for the resolution of any EEA Financial Institution.

Effective Date” means the date on which the conditions specified in Section 4.01 are satisfied (or waived in accordance with Section 9.02).

Electronic Delivery” has the meaning set forth in Section 5.01.

 

6


Environmental Laws” means all laws, rules, regulations, codes, ordinances, orders, decrees, judgments or binding agreements issued, promulgated or entered into by or with any Governmental Authority, relating to the environment, the management, release or threatened release of any Hazardous Material or to health and safety matters.

Environmental Liability” means any liability, contingent or otherwise (including any liability for damages, costs of environmental remediation, fines, penalties or indemnities), of the Borrower or any Subsidiary directly or indirectly resulting from or based upon (a) violation of any Environmental Law, (b) the generation, use, handling, transportation, storage, treatment or disposal of any Hazardous Materials, (c) exposure to any Hazardous Materials, (d) the release or threatened release of any Hazardous Materials into the environment or (e) any contract, agreement or other consensual arrangement pursuant to which liability is assumed or imposed with respect to any of the foregoing.

Equity Interests” means shares of capital stock, partnership interests, membership interests in a limited liability company, beneficial interests in a trust or other equity ownership interests in a Person, and any warrants, options or other rights entitling the holder thereof to purchase or acquire any such equity interest.

ERISA” means the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended from time to time.

ERISA Affiliate” means any trade or business (whether or not incorporated) that, together with the Borrower, is treated as a single employer under Section 414(b) or (c) of the Code or, solely for purposes of Section 302 of ERISA and Section 412 of the Code, is treated as a single employer under Section 414 of the Code.

ERISA Event” means (a) any Plan shall fail to satisfy the minimum funding standards of ERISA or the Code for any plan year or part thereof or a waiver of such standards or extension of any amortization period is sought or granted under section 412 of the Code, (b) a notice of intent to terminate any Plan shall have been or is reasonably expected to be filed with the PBGC or the PBGC shall have instituted proceedings under ERISA section 4042 to terminate or appoint a trustee to administer any Plan or the PBGC shall have notified the Borrower or any ERISA Affiliate that a Plan may become a subject of such proceedings, (c) the Borrower or any ERISA Affiliate shall have incurred, or is reasonably expected to incur, any liability pursuant to Title I or Title IV of ERISA or the penalty or excise tax provisions of the Code relating to employee benefit plans or (d) the Borrower or any ERISA Affiliate withdraws from any Multiemployer Plan.

EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule” means the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule published by the Loan Market Association (or any successor Person), as in effect from time to time.

Euro” or “” means the single currency unit of the Participating Member States.

Eurocurrency”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether such Loan, or the Loans comprising such Borrowing, are bearing interest at a rate determined by reference to the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate.

 

7


Eurocurrency Rate” means, with respect to any Eurocurrency Borrowing, the rate per annum equal to the London Interbank Offered Rate as administered by ICE Benchmark Administration (or any other Person that takes over the administration of such rate for such currency for a period equal in length to such Interest Period) (“LIBOR”), as published on the applicable Bloomberg screen page (or such other commercially available source providing such quotations as may be designated by the Administrative Agent from time to time) at approximately 11:00 a.m., London time, two Business Days prior to the commencement of such Interest Period, for deposits in Dollars (for delivery on the first day of such Interest Period) with a term equivalent to such Interest Period. If the Eurocurrency Rate shall be less than zero, such rate shall be deemed zero for purposes of this Agreement.

Event of Default” has the meaning assigned to such term in Article VII.

Exchange Rate” means on any day, for purposes of determining the Dollar Equivalent of any currency other than Dollars, the rate at which such currency may be exchanged into Dollars at 11:00 a.m. Local Time on such day on the Reuters Currency pages, if available, for such currency. In the event that such rate does not appear on any Reuters Currency pages, the Exchange Rate shall be determined by reference to such other publicly available service for displaying exchange rates as may be agreed upon by the Administrative Agent and the Borrower, or, in the absence of such an agreement, such Exchange Rate shall instead be the arithmetic average of the spot rates of exchange of the Administrative Agent in the market where its foreign currency exchange operations in respect of such currency are then being conducted, at or about such time as the Administrative Agent shall elect after determining that such rates shall be the basis for determining the Exchange Rate, on such date for the purchase of Dollars for delivery two Business Days later; provided that if at the time of any such determination, for any reason, no such spot rate is being quoted, after consultation with the Borrower, the Administrative Agent may use any reasonable method it deems appropriate to determine such rate, and such determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error.

Excluded Taxes” means any of the following Taxes imposed on or with respect to a Recipient or required to be withheld or deducted from a payment to a Recipient, (a) Taxes imposed on or measured by net income (however denominated), franchise Taxes, and branch profits Taxes, in each case, (i) imposed as a result of such Recipient being organized under the laws of, or having its principal office or, in the case of any Lender, its applicable lending office located in, the jurisdiction imposing such Tax (or any political subdivision thereof) or (ii) that are Other Connection Taxes, (b) in the case of a Lender, U.S. Federal withholding Taxes imposed on amounts payable to or for the account of such Lender with respect to an applicable interest in a Loan or Commitment pursuant to a law in effect on the date on which (i) such Lender acquires such interest in the Loan or Commitment (other than pursuant to an assignment request by the Borrower under Section 2.19(b)) or (ii) such Lender changes its lending office, except in each case to the extent that, pursuant to Section 2.17, amounts with respect to such Taxes were payable either to such Lender’s assignor immediately before such Lender acquired the applicable interest in a Loan or Commitment or to such Lender immediately before it changed its lending office, (c) Taxes attributable to such Recipient’s failure to comply with Section 2.17(f) and (d) any U.S. Federal withholding Taxes imposed under FATCA.

 

8


Existing Credit Agreement” has the meaning specified in the preliminary statements hereto.

Existing Loan Documents” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 1.06(b).

Existing Term Loans” means those term loans advanced under the Existing Credit Agreement, which term loans are in the outstanding principal amount of $380,000,000.00 as of the Closing Date.

FATCA” means Sections 1471 through 1474 of the Code, as of the date of this Agreement (or any amended or successor version that is substantively comparable and not materially more onerous to comply with), any current or future regulations or official interpretations thereof, any agreements entered into pursuant to Section 1471 (b) (1) of the Code, and any fiscal or regulatory legislation, rules or practices adopted pursuant to any intergovernmental agreement, treaty or convention among Governmental Authorities and implementing such Sections of the Code.

Federal Funds Effective Rate” means, for any day, the rate calculated by the NYFRB based on such day’s federal funds transactions by depositary institutions, as determined in such manner as the NYFRB shall set forth on its public website from time to time, and published on the next succeeding Business Day by the NYFRB as the federal funds effective rate.

Financial Officer” means the chief financial officer, principal accounting officer, treasurer or controller of the Borrower.

Foreign Currency” means any currency other than Dollars that is freely available, freely transferable and freely convertible into Dollars and in which dealings in deposits are carried on in the London interbank market.

Foreign Lender” means any Lender that is not a U.S. Person.

Foreign Subsidiary” means any Subsidiary that is incorporated or organized under the laws of any jurisdiction other than the United States of America, any State thereof or the District of Columbia.

GAAP” means generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America.

Governmental Authority” means the government of the United States of America or any political subdivision thereof, whether state or local, any foreign nation and any agency, authority, instrumentality, regulatory body, court, central bank or other entity similar to any of the foregoing exercising executive, legislative, judicial, taxing, regulatory or administrative powers or functions of or pertaining to government, including any applicable supranational bodies (such as the European Union or the European Central Bank).

 

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Guarantee” of or by any Person (the “guarantor”) means any direct or indirect liability, contingent or otherwise, of the guarantor with respect to any Indebtedness or other obligation of another Person (the “primary obligor”), including, without limitation, any such obligation directly or indirectly guaranteed by the guarantor, or in respect of which the guarantor is otherwise directly or indirectly liable, including, without limitation, any such obligation in effect guaranteed by the guarantor through any agreement (contingent or otherwise) to purchase, repurchase or otherwise acquire such obligation or any security therefor, or to provide funds for the payment or discharge of such obligation (whether in the form of loans, advances, stock purchases, capital contributions or otherwise), or to maintain the solvency or any balance sheet or other financial condition of the primary obligor of such obligation. The amount of any Guarantee made by any guarantor shall be deemed to be the lower of (a) an amount equal to the stated or determinable amount of the primary obligation in respect of which such Guarantee is made and (b) the maximum amount for which such guarantor may be liable pursuant to the terms of the instrument embodying such Guarantee, unless (in the case of a primary obligation that is not Indebtedness) such primary obligation and the maximum amount for which such guarantor may be liable are not stated or determinable, in which case the amount of such Guarantee shall be such guarantor’s maximum reasonably anticipated liability in respect thereof as determined by the Borrower in good faith.

Hazardous Materials” means all petroleum and petroleum products, byproducts or breakdown products, radioactive materials, asbestos-containing materials, radon gas and any other chemicals, materials or substances designated, classified or regulated as being “hazardous” or “toxic,” or words of similar import, under any Environmental Law.

Indebtedness” of any Person means, without duplication, (a) all obligations of such Person for borrowed money, (b) all obligations of such Person evidenced by bonds, debentures, notes or similar instruments, (c) all obligations of such Person upon which interest charges are customarily paid, (d) all obligations of such Person under conditional sale or other title retention agreements relating to property acquired by such Person, (e) all obligations of such Person in respect of the deferred purchase price of property or services (excluding trade payables incurred in the ordinary course of business), (f) all Indebtedness of others secured by (or for which the holder of such Indebtedness has an existing right, contingent or otherwise, to be secured by) any Lien on property owned or acquired by such Person, whether or not the Indebtedness secured thereby has been assumed, provided that to the extent recourse is limited to recovery against a specific asset, the amount of such Indebtedness shall be the lesser of (X) the amount of any such Lien and (Y) the fair market value of such asset, (g) all Guarantees by such Person of Indebtedness of others, (h) all Capital Lease Obligations of such Person, (i) all obligations, contingent or otherwise, of such Person as an account party in respect of letters of credit and letters of guaranty, (j) all obligations, contingent or otherwise, of such Person in respect of bankers’ acceptances, (k) all Receivables Transaction Attributed Indebtedness of such Person, (l) all net obligations of such Person under any Swap Agreement, (m) any monetary obligation of such Person under a synthetic, off-balance sheet or tax retention lease or any other monetary obligation arising under a similar transaction and (n) Permitted Receivable Sales Transaction Indebtedness.

Indemnified Taxes” means (a) Taxes, other than Excluded Taxes, imposed on or with respect to any payment made by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower under any Credit Document and (b) to the extent not otherwise described in clause (a), Other Taxes.

Initial Lender” has the meaning set forth in the preamble hereto.

 

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Interest Coverage Ratio” means as of the end of any fiscal quarter of the Borrower, the ratio of Consolidated EBITDA to net interest expense of all Indebtedness of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries, in each case for the period of the four fiscal quarters then ended, computed on a consolidated basis for the Borrower and its Subsidiaries.

Interest Election Request” means a request by the Borrower to convert or continue a Borrowing in accordance with Section 2.08.

Interest Payment Date” means (a) with respect to any ABR Loan, the last day of each March, June, September and December, (b) with respect to any Eurocurrency Loan, the last day of the Interest Period applicable to the Borrowing of which such Loan is a part and, in the case of a Eurocurrency Borrowing with an Interest Period of more than three months’ duration, each day prior to the last day of such Interest Period that occurs at intervals of three months’ duration after the first day of such Interest Period.

Interest Period” means with respect to any Eurocurrency Borrowing, the period commencing on the date of such Borrowing and ending on the numerically corresponding day in the calendar month that is one, three or six months (or, to the extent available to all Lenders, twelve months) thereafter, as the Borrower may elect; provided, that (i) if any Interest Period would end on a day other than a Business Day, such Interest Period shall be extended to the next succeeding Business Day unless, in the case of a Eurocurrency Borrowing only, such next succeeding Business Day would fall in the next calendar month, in which case such Interest Period shall end on the next preceding Business Day and (ii) any Interest Period pertaining to a Eurocurrency Borrowing that commences on the last Business Day of a calendar month (or on a day for which there is no numerically corresponding day in the last calendar month of such Interest Period) shall end on the last Business Day of the last calendar month of such Interest Period. For purposes hereof, the date of a Borrowing initially shall be the date on which such Borrowing is made and thereafter shall be the effective date of the most recent conversion or continuation of such Borrowing.

ISDA Definitions” means the 2006 ISDA Definitions published by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. or any successor thereto, as amended or supplemented from time to time, or any successor definitional booklet for interest rate derivatives published from time to time by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. or such successor thereto.

Lead Arranger” means, BofA Securities, Inc., as Sole Lead Arranger and Sole Lead Bookrunner.

Lender Parent” means, with respect to any Lender, any Person as to which such Lender is, directly or indirectly, a subsidiary.

Lenders” means the Initial Lender and any other Person that shall have become a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption or pursuant to Section 2.19 other than any such Person that ceases to be a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption.

 

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Leverage Ratio” means, as of any Measurement Date, the ratio of Net Borrowed Debt as of such Measurement Date to Consolidated EBITDA for the most recently completed four fiscal quarters of the Borrower, computed on a consolidated basis for the Borrower and its Subsidiaries.

LIBOR” has the meaning specified in the definition of Eurocurrency Rate.

LIBOR Replacement Date” has the meaning specified in Section 2.14(b).

LIBOR Screen Rate” means the LIBOR quote on the applicable Bloomberg screen page (or such other commercially available source providing such quotations as may be designated by the Administrative Agent from time to time) the Administrative Agent designates to determine LIBOR.

LIBOR Successor Rate” has the meaning specified in Section 2.14(b).

LIBOR Successor Rate Conforming Changes” means, with respect to any proposed LIBOR Successor Rate, any conforming changes to the definition of Base Rate, Interest Period, timing and frequency of determining rates and making payments of interest and other technical, administrative or operational matters (including, for the avoidance of doubt, the definition of Business Day, timing of borrowing requests or prepayment, conversion or continuation notices and length of lookback periods) as may be appropriate, in the discretion of the Administrative Agent, to reflect the adoption and implementation of such LIBOR Successor Rate and to permit the administration thereof by the Administrative Agent in a manner substantially consistent with market practice (or, if the Administrative Agent determines that adoption of any portion of such market practice is not administratively feasible or that no market practice for the administration of such LIBOR Successor Rate exists, in such other manner of administration as the Administrative Agent determines is reasonably necessary in connection with the administration of this Agreement and any other Loan Document).

Lien” means, with respect to any asset, (a) any mortgage, deed of trust, lien, pledge, hypothecation, encumbrance, charge or security interest in, on or of such asset and (b) the interest of a vendor or a lessor under any conditional sale agreement, capital lease or title retention agreement (or any financing lease having substantially the same economic effect as any of the foregoing) relating to such asset.

Loans” means, collectively, the Existing Term Loans and the term loan made by the Lenders to the Borrower pursuant to this Agreement.

Local Time” means New York City time.

Material Acquisition” means the acquisition (by purchase, merger or otherwise) by the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries of (a) the assets constituting a business, division, facility, product line or line of business of any Person not already a Subsidiary or (b) more than 50% of the capital stock of any such Person, in each case under clauses (a) or (b), for aggregate consideration in excess of $250,000,000.

Material Adverse Effect” means a material adverse effect on (a) the business, assets, operations or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Borrower and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, (b) the ability of the Borrower to perform its obligations under this Agreement or the other Credit Documents or (c) the rights or remedies of the Administrative Agent or the Lenders under this Agreement or any other Credit Document.

 

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Material Indebtedness” means Indebtedness (other than the Loans) or obligations in respect of one or more Swap Agreements of any one or more of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries in an aggregate principal amount exceeding $50,000,000. For purposes of determining Material Indebtedness, the “principal amount” of the obligations of the Borrower or any Subsidiary in respect of any Swap Agreement at any time shall be the maximum aggregate amount (giving effect to any netting agreements) that the Borrower or such Subsidiary would be required to pay if such Swap Agreement were terminated at such time.

Material Subsidiary” means a Subsidiary which either (a) has 5% or more of the assets (valued at the greater of book or fair market value) of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries determined on a consolidated basis as of the fiscal quarter end next preceding the date of determination or (b) is responsible for 5% or more of consolidated net sales of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries for the four quarter period ending on the fiscal quarter end next preceding the date of determination.

Maturity Date” means March 15, 2022.

Maximum Rate” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.13.

Measurement Date” means (a) the last day of each fiscal quarter of the Borrower and (b) the date of any Material Acquisition.

Multiemployer Plan” means a multiemployer plan as defined in Section 4001(a)(3) of ERISA.

Net Borrowed Debt” means (a) Borrowed Debt of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries, on a consolidated basis, calculated in accordance with GAAP minus (b) an amount (not less than zero) equal to (i) the amount of cash on the consolidated balance sheet of the Borrower minus (ii) $50,000,000.

Non-Consenting Lender” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.02(c).

NYFRB” means the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

OFAC” has the meaning set forth in Section 3.14.

Other Connection Taxes” means, with respect to any Recipient, Taxes imposed as a result of a present or former connection between such Recipient and the jurisdiction imposing such Taxes (other than connections arising from such Recipient having executed, delivered, become a party to, performed its obligations under, received payments under, received or perfected a security interest under, engaged in any other transaction pursuant to or enforced any Credit Document, or sold or assigned an interest in any Loan or Credit Document).

 

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Other Taxes” means all present or future stamp, court or documentary, intangible, recording, filing or similar Taxes that arise from any payment made under, from the execution, delivery, performance, enforcement or registration of, from the receipt or perfection of a security interest under, or otherwise with respect to, any Credit Document, except any such Taxes that are Other Connection Taxes imposed with respect to an assignment (other than an assignment made pursuant to Section 2.19).

Outstanding Amount” means Loans on any date, the aggregate outstanding principal amount thereof after giving effect to any borrowings and prepayments or repayments of Loans occurring on such date.

Participant” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.04(c).

Participating Member State” means, at any time, any member state of the European Communities that is using the Euro at such time as its lawful currency in accordance with the legislation of the European Community relating to the Economic and Monetary Union.

PBGC” means the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation referred to and defined in ERISA and any successor entity performing similar functions.

Permitted Encumbrances” means:

(a) Liens imposed by law for Taxes that are not yet due or are being contested in compliance with Section 5.04;

(b) carriers’, warehousemen’s, mechanics’, materialmen’s, repairmen’s and other like Liens imposed by law, arising in the ordinary course of business and securing obligations that are not overdue by more than 30 days or are being contested in compliance with Section 5.04;

(c) pledges and deposits made in the ordinary course of business in compliance with workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance and other social security laws or regulations;

(d) deposits to secure the performance of bids, trade contracts, leases, statutory and regulatory obligations, surety and appeal bonds, performance bonds and other obligations of a like nature, in each case in the ordinary course of business;

(e) judgment liens in respect of judgments that do not constitute an Event of Default under clause (k) of Article VII;

(f) easements, zoning restrictions, rights-of-way and similar encumbrances on real property imposed by law or arising in the ordinary course of business that do not secure any monetary obligations and do not materially detract from the value of the affected property or interfere with the ordinary conduct of business of the Borrower or any Subsidiary; and

(g) customary Liens arising in the ordinary course of business solely on deposits, advances, contractual payments, including implementation allowances or escrows to or with landlords, customers or clients or in connection with insurance arrangements;

 

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provided that the term “Permitted Encumbrances” shall not include any Lien securing Indebtedness.

Permitted Receivable Sales Transaction” means any receivables sale transaction in which the Borrower or any Subsidiary agrees to sell certain accounts receivable of the Borrower or such Subsidiary to a counterparty pursuant to an accelerated payment program established by a customer of the Borrower or such Subsidiary in the ordinary course of business pursuant to the terms of such accelerated payment program in order to secure early payment and to improve working capital.

Permitted Receivable Sales Transaction Indebtedness” means at any time any portion of obligations outstanding under a Permitted Receivable Sales Transaction which, pursuant to GAAP, are characterized as indebtedness.

Permitted Securitization” means any receivables financing program or programs providing for the sale of accounts receivable and related rights by the Borrower or its Subsidiaries (other than a Permitted Receivables Sales Transaction) to an SPC for cash and/or other customary consideration for fair value in transactions intending to be sales, which SPC shall finance the purchase of such assets by the sale, transfer, conveyance, lien or pledge of such assets to one or more limited purpose financing companies, special purpose entities and/or other financial institutions, in each case pursuant to documentation in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, provided that the Receivables Transaction Attributable Indebtedness associated with all such programs shall at no time aggregate in excess of $250,000,000.

Person” means any natural person, corporation, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, association, company, partnership, Governmental Authority or other entity.

Plan” means any employee pension benefit plan (other than a Multiemployer Plan) subject to the provisions of Title IV of ERISA or Section 412 of the Code or Section 302 of ERISA, and in respect of which the Borrower or any ERISA Affiliate is (or; if such plan were terminated, would under Section 4069 of ERISA be deemed to be) an “employer” as defined in Section 3(5) of ERISA.

Pre-Adjustment Successor Rate” has the meaning specified in Section 2.17(b).

Prime Rate” means the rate of interest per annum publicly announced from time to time by Bank of America, N.A. as its prime rate in effect; each change in the Prime Rate shall be effective from and including the date such change is publicly announced as being effective.

QFC” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

QFC Credit Support” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

Recipient” means, as applicable, (a) the Administrative Agent and (b) any Lender.

 

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Receivables Transaction Attributed Indebtedness” means the amount of obligations outstanding under any Permitted Securitization that on any date of determination would be characterized as principal if such Permitted Securitization were structured as a secured lending transaction rather than as a purchase.

Rescindable Amount” has the meaning as defined in Article VIII.

Register” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.04.

Related Adjustment” means, in determining any LIBOR Successor Rate, the first relevant available alternative set forth in the order below that can be determined by the Administrative Agent applicable to such LIBOR Successor Rate:

(a) the spread adjustment, or method for calculating or determining such spread adjustment, that has been selected or recommended by the Relevant Governmental Body for the relevant Pre-Adjustment Successor Rate (taking into account the interest period, interest payment date or payment period for interest calculated and/or tenor thereto) and which adjustment or method (x) is published on an information service as selected by the Administrative Agent from time to time in its reasonable discretion or (y) solely with respect to Term SOFR, if not currently published, which was previously so recommended for Term SOFR and published on an information service acceptable to the Administrative Agent; or

(b) the spread adjustment that would apply (or has previously been applied) to the fallback rate for a derivative transaction referencing the ISDA Definitions (taking into account the interest period, interest payment date or payment period for interest calculated and/or tenor thereto).

Related Parties” means, with respect to any specified Person, such Person’s Affiliates and the respective directors, officers, employees, agents and advisors of such Person and such Person’s Affiliates.

Relevant Governmental Body” means the Federal Reserve Board and/or the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, or a committee officially endorsed or convened by the Federal Reserve Board and/or the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Required Lenders” means, as of any date of determination, Lenders having more than 50% of sum of the aggregate unused Commitments and Total Outstandings or, if the commitment of each Lender to make Loans have been terminated pursuant to Article VII, Lenders holding in the aggregate more than 50% of the Total Outstandings; provided that the Commitment of, and the portion of the Total Outstandings held or deemed held by, any Defaulting Lender shall be excluded for purposes of making a determination of Required Lenders.

Resolution Authority” means an EEA Resolution Authority or, with respect to any UK Financial Institution, a UK Resolution Authority.

Responsible Officer” means the chief executive officer, president, chief financial officer, treasurer, assistant treasurer or controller of the Borrower, and, solely for purposes of notices given pursuant to Article II, any other officer of the Borrower so designated by any of the foregoing officers in a notice to the Administrative Agent. Any document delivered hereunder that is signed by a Responsible Officer of the Borrower shall be conclusively presumed to have been authorized by all necessary corporate, partnership and/or other action on the part of the Borrower and such Responsible Officer shall be conclusively presumed to have acted on behalf of the Borrower.

 

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Restricted Payment” means any dividend or other distribution (whether in cash, securities or other property) with respect to any Equity Interests in the Borrower or any Subsidiary, or any payment (whether in cash, securities or other property), including any sinking fund or similar deposit, on account of the purchase, redemption, retirement, acquisition, cancellation or termination of any such Equity Interests in the Borrower or any Subsidiary or any option, warrant or other right to acquire any such Equity Interests in the Borrower or any Subsidiary.

Revolving Credit Agreement” means that certain Revolving Credit Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2016, by and among the Borrower, the lenders party thereto and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. as Administrative Agent.

Sale and Leaseback Transaction” means any sale or other transfer of property by any Person with the intent to lease such property as lessee.

Sanctioned Country” means, at any time, a country, region or territory which is itself the subject or target of any comprehensive Sanctions (at the time of this Agreement, limited to Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria and Crimea).

Sanctioned Person” means, at any time, (a) any Person listed in any Sanctions-related list of designated Persons maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Department of State, or by the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, any European Union member state or Her Majesty’s Treasury of the United Kingdom, (b) any Person operating, organized or resident in a Sanctioned Country or (c) any Person owned or controlled by any such Person or Persons described in the foregoing clauses (a) or (b).

Sanctions” means economic or financial sanctions or trade embargoes imposed, administered or enforced from time to time by (a) the U.S. government, including those administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the U.S. Department of State, or (b) the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, any European Union member state or Her Majesty’s Treasury of the United Kingdom.

Scheduled Unavailability Date” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.14(b).

SOFR” with respect to any Business Day means the secured overnight financing rate published for such day by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, as the administrator of the benchmark (or a successor administrator) on the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s website (or any successor source) at approximately 8:00 a.m. (New York City time) on the immediately succeeding Business Day and, in each case, that has been selected or recommended by the Relevant Governmental Body.

 

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SPC” means a special purpose, bankruptcy-remote Person formed for the sole and exclusive purpose of engaging in activities in connection with the purchase, sale and financing of accounts receivable and related rights and assets in connection with and pursuant to a Permitted Securitization and reasonably related corporate maintenance and similar activities.

Specified Party” means the Administrative Agent or any Lender.

Statutory Reserve Rate” means a fraction (expressed as a decimal), the numerator of which is the number one and the denominator of which is the number one minus the aggregate of the maximum reserve percentage (including any marginal, special, emergency or supplemental reserves) expressed as a decimal established by the Board to which the Administrative Agent is subject with respect to the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate, for eurocurrency funding (currently referred to as “Eurocurrency Liabilities” in Regulation D of the Board). Such reserve percentage shall include those imposed pursuant to such Regulation D. Eurocurrency Loans shall be deemed to constitute eurocurrency funding and to be subject to such reserve requirements without benefit of or credit for proration, exemptions or offsets that may be available from time to time to any Lender under such Regulation D or any comparable regulation. The Statutory Reserve Rate shall be adjusted automatically on and as of the effective date of any change in any reserve percentage.

subsidiary” means, with respect to any Person (the “parent”) at any date, any corporation, partnership, joint venture, limited liability company, trust or estate of which (or in which) more than 50% of (a) the issued and outstanding capital stock or other Equity Interests having ordinary voting power to elect a majority of the board of directors, board of managers or persons performing similar functions of such entity (irrespective of whether at the time capital stock or other Equity Interests of any other class or classes of such entity shall or might have voting power upon the occurrence of any contingency), (b) the interest in the capital or profits of such partnership, joint venture or limited liability company or (c) the beneficial interest in such trust or estate is at the time directly or indirectly owned or controlled by the parent, by the parent and one or more of its other subsidiaries or by one or more of the parent’s other subsidiaries.

Subsidiary” means any subsidiary of the Borrower.

Supported QFC” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

Swap Agreement” means any interest rate swap, cap or collar agreements, interest rate future or option contracts, currency swap agreements, currency future or option contracts and other similar agreements.

Taxes” means all present or future taxes, levies, imposts, duties, deductions, withholdings (including backup withholding), assessments, fees or other charges imposed by any Governmental Authority, including any interest, additions to tax or penalties applicable thereto.

Term SOFR” means the forward-looking term rate for any period that is approximately (as determined by the Administrative Agent) as long as any of the Interest Period options set forth in the definition of “Interest Period” and that is based on SOFR and that has been selected or recommended by the Relevant Governmental Body, in each case as published on an information service as selected by the Administrative Agent from time to time in its reasonable discretion.

 

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Total Outstandings” means the aggregate Outstanding Amount of all Loans.

Transactions” means the execution, delivery and performance by the Borrower of this Agreement, the borrowing of Loans and the use of the proceeds thereof.

Type”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether the rate of interest on such Loan, or on the Loans comprising such Borrowing, is determined by reference to the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate or the Alternate Base Rate.

UK Financial Institution” means any BRRD Undertaking (as such term is defined under the PRA Rulebook (as amended form time to time) promulgated by the United Kingdom Prudential Regulation Authority) or any person falling within IFPRU 11.6 of the FCA Handbook (as amended from time to time) promulgated by the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority, which includes certain credit institutions and investment firms, and certain affiliates of such credit institutions or investment firms.

UK Resolution Authority” means the Bank of England or any other public administrative authority having responsibility for the resolution of any UK Financial Institution.

U.S. Person” means a “United States person” within the meaning of Section 7701(a)(30) of the Code.

U.S. Special Resolution Regimes” has the meaning set forth in Section 9.17.

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.17(f)(ii)(B)(3).

Wholly-Owned Subsidiary” of a Person means (a) any subsidiary all of the outstanding voting securities of which shall at the time be owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by such Person or one or more Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries of such Person, or by such Person and one or more Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries of such Person, or (b) any partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture or similar business organization 100% of the ownership interests having ordinary voting power of which shall at the time be so owned or controlled (other than in the case of Foreign Subsidiaries, director’s qualifying shares and/or other nominal amounts of shares required to be held by Persons other than the Borrower and its Subsidiaries under applicable law).

Write-Down and Conversion Powers” means, (a) with respect to any EEA Resolution Authority, the write-down and conversion powers of such EEA Resolution Authority from time to time under the Bail-In Legislation for the applicable EEA Member Country, which write-down and conversion powers are described in the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule, and (b) with respect to the United Kingdom, any powers of the applicable Resolution Authority under the Bail-In Legislation to cancel, reduce, modify or change the form of a liability of any UK Financial Institution or any contract or instrument under which that liability arises, to convert all or part of that liability into shares, securities or obligations of that person or any other person, to provide that any such contract or instrument is to have effect as if a right had been exercised under it or to suspend any obligation in respect of that liability or any of the powers under that Bail-In Legislation that are related to or ancillary to any of those powers.

 

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SECTION 1.02 Classification of Loans and Borrowings. For purposes of this Agreement, Loans may be classified and referred to by Type (e.g., a “Eurocurrency Loan”).

SECTION 1.03 Terms Generally. The definitions of terms herein shall apply equally to the singular and plural forms of the terms defined. Whenever the context may require, any pronoun shall include the corresponding masculine, feminine and neuter forms. The words “include”, “includes” and “including” shall be deemed to be followed by the phrase “without limitation”. The word “will” shall be construed to have the same meaning and effect as the word “shall”. Unless the context requires otherwise (a) any definition of or reference to any agreement, instrument or other document herein shall be construed as referring to such agreement, instrument or other document as from time to time amended, supplemented or otherwise modified (subject to any restrictions on such amendments, supplements or modifications set forth herein), (b) any reference herein to any Person shall be construed to include such Person’s successors and assigns, (c) the words “herein”, “hereof” and “hereunder”, and words of similar import, shall be construed to refer to this Agreement in its entirety and not to any particular provision hereof, (d) all references herein to Articles, Sections, Exhibits and Schedules shall be construed to refer to Articles and Sections of, and Exhibits and Schedules to, this Agreement and (e) the words “asset” and “property” shall be construed to have the same meaning and effect and to refer to any and all tangible and intangible assets and properties, including cash, securities, accounts and contract rights.

SECTION 1.04 Accounting Terms; GAAP. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, all terms of an accounting or financial nature shall be construed in accordance with GAAP, as in effect from time to time; provided that, if the Borrower notifies the Administrative Agent that the Borrower requests an amendment to any provision hereof to eliminate the effect of any change occurring after the date hereof in GAAP or in the application thereof on the operation of such provision (or if the Administrative Agent notifies the Borrower that the Required Lenders request an amendment to any provision hereof for such purpose), regardless of whether any such notice is given before or after such change in GAAP or in the application thereof, then such provision shall be interpreted on the basis of GAAP as in effect and applied immediately before such change shall have become effective until such notice shall have been withdrawn or such provision amended in accordance herewith. Notwithstanding any other provision contained herein, all terms of an accounting or financial nature used herein shall be construed, and all computations of amounts and ratios referred to herein shall be made, (i) without giving effect to any election under Accounting Standards Codification 825 (previously referred to as Statement of Financial Accounting Standards 159) (or any other Accounting Standards Codification or update having a similar result or effect) to value any Indebtedness or other liabilities of the Borrower or any Subsidiary at “fair value”, as defined therein, (ii) without giving effect to any treatment of Indebtedness in respect of convertible debt instruments under Accounting Standards Codification 470-20 (or any other Accounting Standards Codification or update having a similar result or effect) to value any such Indebtedness in a reduced or bifurcated manner as described in such provision and (iii) in a manner such that any obligations relating to a lease that (A), in accordance with GAAP as in effect on August 18, 2017, would be accounted

 

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for by the Borrower as an operating lease or (B) was so accounted for on August 18, 2017, whether or not amended such that it would be reassessed as a capital lease under the transition guidance in EITF Issue No. 01-8, “Determining Whether an Arrangement Contains a Lease,” shall, in either case, be accounted for as obligations relating to an operating lease and not as obligations relating to a capital lease (and shall not constitute Indebtedness hereunder).

SECTION 1.05 Foreign Currency Calculations. For purposes of (i) determining the amount of Indebtedness incurred, outstanding or proposed to be incurred or outstanding under Section 6.01 (but excluding, for the avoidance of doubt, any calculation of Consolidated Net Assets), (ii) determining the amount of obligations secured by Liens incurred, outstanding or proposed to be incurred or outstanding under Section 6.02 or (iii) determining the amount of Material Indebtedness or judgments outstanding under paragraphs (f), (g) or (k) of Article VII, all amounts incurred, outstanding or proposed to be incurred or outstanding in currencies other than Dollars shall be translated into Dollars at the Exchange Rate; provided that no Default shall arise as a result of any limitation set forth in Dollars in Section 6.01 or 6.02 being exceeded solely as a result of changes in Exchange Rates from those rates applicable at the time or times Indebtedness or Liens were initially consummated or acquired in reliance on the exceptions under such Sections. Such Exchange Rates shall be determined in good faith by the Borrower.

SECTION 1.06 Amendment and Restatement.

(a) The Administrative Agent and the Lenders hereby agree that upon the effectiveness of this Agreement, the terms and provisions of the Existing Credit Agreement which in any manner govern or evidence the obligations arising hereunder, the rights and interests of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders and any terms, conditions or matters related to any thereof, shall be and hereby are amended and restated in their entirety by the terms, conditions and provisions of this Agreement, and the terms and provisions of the Existing Credit Agreement, except as otherwise expressly provided herein, shall be superseded by this Agreement.

(b) Notwithstanding this amendment and restatement of the Existing Credit Agreement, including anything in this Section 1.06, and of any related “Credit Document” (as such term is defined in the Existing Credit Agreement and referred to herein, individually or collectively, as the “Existing Loan Documents”), (i) all of the indebtedness, liabilities and obligations owing by the Borrower or any other Person under the Existing Credit Agreement and the other Existing Loan Documents (as amended and restated hereby) shall continue as obligations hereunder and thereunder; and (ii) this Agreement is given as a renewal, extension, modification, amendment and substitution of, and not as a novation, discharge, termination or payment of the indebtedness, liabilities and obligations of the Borrower under the Existing Credit Agreement or any Existing Loan Document and neither the execution and delivery of this Agreement nor the consummation of any other transaction contemplated hereunder is intended to constitute a novation, discharge, termination or payment of the Existing Credit Agreement or of any of the other Existing Loan Documents or any obligations thereunder.

 

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ARTICLE II

THE CREDITS

SECTION 2.01 Commitments. Pursuant to the Existing Credit Agreement, the Initial Lender made the Existing Term Loans. Immediately prior to the Closing Date, the aggregate outstanding principal amount of the Existing Term Loans is $380,000,000. Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, (i) each Existing Term Loan shall continue as a Term Loan hereunder, and (ii) each Lender agrees to make a Loan denominated in Dollars to the Borrower in an aggregate principal amount at any one time outstanding which does not exceed the amount of such Lender’s then current Commitment; provided, that the aggregate amount of the Loans outstanding shall not at any time exceed the aggregate amount of the Commitments; provided further, that the initial Borrowing shall be in an amount no less than $50,000,000. All Loans borrowed under this Section 2.01 and subsequently repaid or prepaid may not be reborrowed.

SECTION 2.02 Loans and Borrowings. (a) Subject to Section 2.14, each Borrowing shall be comprised entirely of ABR Loans or Eurocurrency Loans as the Borrower may request in accordance herewith. Each Lender at its option may make any Eurocurrency Loan by causing any domestic or foreign branch or Affiliate of such Lender to make such Loan; provided that any exercise of such option shall not affect the obligation of the Borrower to repay such Loan in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

(b) At the commencement of each Interest Period for any Eurocurrency Borrowing, such Borrowing shall be in an aggregate amount that is an integral multiple of $1,000,000 and not less than $5,000,000. At the time that each ABR Borrowing is made, such Borrowing shall be in an aggregate amount that is an integral multiple of $500,000 and not less than $1,000,000. Borrowings of more than one Type may be outstanding at the same time; provided that there shall not at any time be more than a total of twelve Eurocurrency Borrowings outstanding in the aggregate for all Loans.

(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the Borrower shall not be entitled to request, or to elect to convert or continue, any Borrowing if the Interest Period requested with respect thereto would end after the Maturity Date.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, each Lender at its option may make any ABR Loan or Eurocurrency Loan by causing any domestic or foreign office, branch or Affiliate of such Lender that has been designated by such Lender to the Administrative Agent and the Borrower (an “Applicable Lending Installation”) to make such Loan (so long as such designation does not result in any increased costs to the Borrower pursuant to Sections 2.14, 2.15 and 2.17 that would not have otherwise been applicable with respect to such Lender or any such increased costs are waived by such Lender). All terms of this Agreement shall apply to any such Applicable Lending Installation of such Lender and the Loans and any promissory notes issued hereunder shall be deemed held by each Lender for the benefit of any such Applicable Lending Installation. Each Lender may, by written notice to the Administrative Agent and the Borrower, designate replacement or additional Applicable Lending Installations through which Loans will be made by it and for whose account Loan payments are to be made. The making of any Loan by a foreign Applicable Lending Installation or the replacement or addition of any foreign Applicable Lending Installation with respect to an existing Loan shall be treated as an assignment (other than pursuant to Section 2.19(b)) to a Foreign Lender for purposes of the definition of Excluded Taxes and Section 2.17.

 

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SECTION 2.03 Requests for Borrowings. To request a Borrowing, the Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of such request by telephone (a) in the case of a Eurocurrency Borrowing, not later than 1:00 p.m., Local Time, three Business Days before the date of the proposed Borrowing or (b) in the case of an ABR Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, Local Time, on the date of the proposed Borrowing. Each such telephonic Borrowing Request shall be irrevocable and shall be confirmed promptly by hand delivery or telecopy to the Administrative Agent of a written Borrowing Request in a form approved by the Administrative Agent, appropriately completed and signed by a Responsible Officer of the Borrower, or such other form as may be approved by the Administrative Agent (including any form on an electronic platform or electronic transmission system as shall be approved by the Administrative Agent). Each such telephonic and written Borrowing Request shall specify the following information in compliance with Section 2.02:

(i) the aggregate amount of the requested Borrowing;

(ii) the date of such Borrowing, which shall be a Business Day;

(iii) whether such Borrowing is to be an ABR Borrowing or a Eurocurrency Borrowing;

(iv) in the case of a Eurocurrency Borrowing, the initial Interest Period to be applicable thereto, which shall be a period contemplated by the definition of the term “Interest Period”; and

(v) the location and number of the account to which funds are to be disbursed.

If no election as to the Type of Borrowing is specified, then the requested Borrowing shall be an ABR Borrowing. If no Interest Period is specified with respect to any requested Eurocurrency Borrowing, then the Borrower shall be deemed to have selected an Interest Period of one month’s duration. Promptly following receipt of a Borrowing Request in accordance with this Section, the Administrative Agent shall advise each Lender of the details thereof and of the amount of such Lender’s Loan to be made as part of the requested Borrowing.

SECTION 2.04 [Reserved].

SECTION 2.05 [Reserved].

SECTION 2.06 [Reserved].

SECTION 2.07 [Reserved].

 

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SECTION 2.08 Interest Elections. (a) Each Borrowing initially shall be of the Type specified in the applicable Borrowing Request and, in the case of a Eurocurrency Borrowing, shall have an initial Interest Period as specified in such Borrowing Request. Thereafter, the Borrower may elect to convert such Borrowing to a different Type, or to continue such Borrowing and, in the case of a Eurocurrency Borrowing, may elect Interest Periods therefor, all as provided in this Section. The Borrower may elect different options with respect to different portions of the affected Borrowing, in which case each such Borrowing, and the Loans comprising each such portion shall be considered a separate Borrowing.

(b) To make an election pursuant to this Section, the Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of such election by telephone by the time that a Borrowing Request would be required under Section 2.03 if the Borrower were requesting a Borrowing of the Type resulting from such election to be made on the effective date of such election. Each such telephonic Interest Election Request shall be irrevocable and shall be confirmed promptly by hand delivery or telecopy to the Administrative Agent of a written Interest Election Request in a form approved by the Administrative Agent and signed by the Borrower.

(c) Each telephonic and written Interest Election Request shall specify the following information in compliance with Section 2.02:

(i) the Borrowing to which such Interest Election Request applies and, if different options are being elected with respect to different portions thereof, the portions thereof to be allocated to each resulting Borrowing (in which case the information to be specified pursuant to clauses (iii) and (iv) below shall be specified for each resulting Borrowing);

(ii) the effective date of the election made pursuant to such Interest Election Request, which shall be a Business Day;

(iii) whether the resulting Borrowing is to be an ABR Borrowing or a Eurocurrency Borrowing; and

(iv) if the resulting Borrowing is a Eurocurrency Borrowing, the Interest Period to be applicable thereto after giving effect to such election, which shall be a period contemplated by the definition of the term “Interest Period”.

If any such Interest Election Request requests a Eurocurrency Borrowing but does not specify an Interest Period, then the Borrower shall be deemed to have selected an Interest Period of one month’s duration.

(d) Promptly following receipt of an Interest Election Request, the Administrative Agent shall advise each Lender of the details thereof and of such Lender’s portion of each resulting Borrowing.

(e) If the Borrower fails to deliver a timely Interest Election Request with respect to a Eurocurrency Borrowing prior to the end of the Interest Period applicable thereto, then, unless such Borrowing is repaid as provided herein, at the end of such Interest Period such Borrowing shall be converted to an ABR Borrowing. Notwithstanding any contrary provision hereof, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing and the Administrative Agent, at the request of the Required Lenders, so notifies the Borrower, then, so long as an Event of Default is continuing (i) no outstanding Borrowing may be converted to or continued as a Eurocurrency Borrowing and (ii) unless repaid, each Eurocurrency Borrowing denominated in Dollars shall be converted to an ABR Borrowing at the end of the Interest Period applicable thereto.

 

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SECTION 2.09 [Reserved].

SECTION 2.10 Repayment of Loans; Evidence of Debt. (a) The Borrower hereby unconditionally promises to repay to the Administrative Agent, for the account of each Lender, the then outstanding principal amount of each Loan on the Maturity Date.

(b) Each Lender shall maintain in accordance with its usual practice an account or accounts evidencing the indebtedness of the Borrower to such Lender resulting from each Loan made by such Lender, including the amounts of principal and interest payable and paid to such Lender from time to time hereunder.

(c) The Administrative Agent shall maintain accounts in which it shall record (i) the amount of each Loan made hereunder and Type thereof and the Interest Period applicable thereto, (ii) the amount of any principal or interest due and payable or to become due and payable from the Borrower to each Lender hereunder and (iii) the amount of any sum received by the Administrative Agent hereunder for the account of the Lenders and each Lender’s share thereof.

(d) The entries made in the accounts maintained pursuant to paragraph (b) or (c) of this Section shall be prima facie evidence of the existence and amounts of the obligations recorded therein; provided that the failure of any Lender or the Administrative Agent to maintain such accounts or any error therein shall not in any manner affect the obligation of the Borrower to repay the Loans and pay interest thereon in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

(e) Any Lender may request that Loans made by it be evidenced by a promissory note. In such event, the Borrower shall prepare, execute and deliver to such Lender a promissory note payable to such Lender (or, if requested by such Lender, to such Lender and its registered assigns) and in a form approved by the Administrative Agent. Thereafter, the Loans evidenced by such promissory note and interest thereon shall at all times (including after assignment pursuant to Section 9.04) be represented by one or more promissory notes in such form payable to the payee named therein (or, if such promissory note is a registered note, to such payee and its registered assigns).

SECTION 2.11 Prepayment of Loans. (a) The Borrower shall have the right at any time and from time to time to prepay any Borrowing (other than with respect to Eurocurrency Borrowing, payments that may become due under Section 2.16) in whole or in part, subject to prior notice in accordance with paragraph (b) of this Section.

(b) The Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent by telephone (confirmed by telecopy) of any prepayment hereunder (i) in the case of prepayment of a Eurocurrency Borrowing, not later than 1:00 p.m., Local Time, three Business Days before the date of prepayment or (ii) in the case of prepayment of an ABR Borrowing, not later than 1:00 p.m., Local Time, one Business Day before the date of prepayment. Each such notice shall be irrevocable and shall specify the prepayment date and the principal amount of each Borrowing or portion thereof to be prepaid. Each prepayment of a Borrowing under this Section 2.11 shall not be reborrowed.

 

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SECTION 2.12 [Reserved].

SECTION 2.13 Interest. (a) The Loans comprising each ABR Borrowing shall bear interest at the Alternate Base Rate plus the Applicable Rate.

(b) The Loans comprising each Eurocurrency Borrowing shall bear interest at the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate for the Interest Period in effect for such Borrowing plus the Applicable Rate.

(c) Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any principal of or interest on any Loan or any fee or other amount payable by the Borrower hereunder is not paid when due, whether at stated maturity, upon acceleration or otherwise, such overdue amount shall bear interest, after as well as before judgment, at a rate per annum equal to (i) in the case of overdue principal of any Loan, 2.00% per annum plus the rate otherwise applicable to such Loan as provided in the preceding paragraphs of this Section or (ii) in the case of any other amount, 2.00% per annum plus the rate applicable to ABR Loans as provided in paragraph (a) of this Section.

(d) Accrued interest on each Loan shall be payable in arrears on each Interest Payment Date for such Loan; provided that (i) interest accrued pursuant to paragraph (c) of this Section shall be payable on demand, (ii) in the event of any repayment or prepayment of any Loan (other than a prepayment of an ABR Loan prior to the Maturity Date), accrued interest on the principal amount repaid or prepaid shall be payable on the date of such repayment or prepayment and (iii) in the event of any conversion of any Eurocurrency Loan prior to the end of the current Interest Period therefor, accrued interest on such Loan shall be payable on the effective date of such conversion.

(e) All interest hereunder shall be computed on the basis of a year of 360 days, except that interest computed by reference to the Alternate Base Rate at times when the Alternate Base Rate is based on the Prime Rate shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), and in each case shall be payable for the actual number of days elapsed (including the first day but excluding the last day). The applicable Alternate Base Rate or Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate shall be determined by the Administrative Agent, and such determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error.

SECTION 2.14 Alternate Rate of Interest; Illegality. (a) If prior to the commencement of any Interest Period for any Eurocurrency Borrowing:

(i) the Administrative Agent determines (which determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error) that adequate and reasonable means do not exist for ascertaining the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate for such Interest Period; or

(ii) the Administrative Agent is advised by the Required Lenders that in their reasonable determination the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate for such Interest Period will not adequately and fairly reflect the cost to such Lenders (or Lender) of making or maintaining their Loans (or its Loan) included in such Borrowing for such Interest Period;

 

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then the Administrative Agent shall give notice thereof to the Borrower and the Lenders by telephone or telecopy as promptly as practicable thereafter and, until the Administrative Agent notifies (as promptly as practicable after making such determination) the Borrower and the Lenders that the circumstances giving rise to such notice no longer exist, (i) any Interest Election Request that requests the conversion of any Borrowing to, or continuation of any Borrowing as, a Eurocurrency Borrowing shall be ineffective, (ii) such Borrowing shall be converted to or continued as on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto an ABR Borrowing.

(b) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement or any other Credit Documents, if the Administrative Agent determines (which determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error), or the Borrower or Required Lenders notify the Administrative Agent (with, in the case of the Required Lenders, a copy to the Borrower) that the Borrower or Required Lenders (as applicable) have determined, that:

(i) adequate and reasonable means do not exist for ascertaining LIBOR for any Interest Period hereunder or any other tenors of LIBOR, including, without limitation, because the LIBOR Screen Rate is not available or published on a current basis and such circumstances are unlikely to be temporary; or

(ii) the administrator of the LIBOR Screen Rate or a Governmental Authority having jurisdiction over the Administrative Agent or such administrator has made a public statement identifying a specific date after which LIBOR or the LIBOR Screen Rate shall no longer be made available, or used for determining the interest rate of loans, provided that, at the time of such statement, there is no successor administrator that is satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, that will continue to provide LIBOR after such specific date (such specific date, the “Scheduled Unavailability Date”); or

(iii) the administrator of the LIBOR Screen Rate or a Governmental Authority having jurisdiction over such administrator has made a public statement announcing that all Interest Periods and other tenors of LIBOR are no longer representative; or

(iv) syndicated loans currently being executed, or that include language similar to that contained in this Section 2.14, are being executed or amended (as applicable) to incorporate or adopt a new benchmark interest rate to replace LIBOR;,

then, in the case of clauses (i)-(iii) above, on a date and time determined by the Administrative Agent (any such date, the “LIBOR Replacement Date”), which date shall be at the end of an Interest Period or on the relevant interest payment date, as applicable, for interest calculated and shall occur within a reasonable period of time after the occurrence of any of the events or circumstances under clauses (i), (ii) or (iii) above and, solely with respect to clause (ii) above, no later than the Scheduled Unavailability Date, LIBOR will be replaced hereunder and under any Credit Document with, subject to the proviso below, the first available alternative set forth in the order below for any payment period for interest calculated that can be determined by the Administrative Agent, in each case, without any amendment to, or further action or consent of any other party to, this Agreement or any other Credit Document (the “LIBOR Successor Rate”; and any such rate before giving effect to the Related Adjustment, the “Pre-Adjustment Successor Rate”):

 

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(x) Term SOFR plus the Related Adjustment; and

(y) SOFR plus the Related Adjustment;

and in the case of clause (iv) above, the Borrower and Administrative Agent may amend this Agreement solely for the purpose of replacing LIBOR under this Agreement and under any other Credit Document in accordance with the definition of “LIBOR Successor Rate” and such amendment will become effective at 5:00 p.m., on the fifth Business Day after the Administrative Agent shall have notified all Lenders and the Borrower of the occurrence of the circumstances described in clause (iv) above unless, prior to such time, Lenders comprising the Required Lenders have delivered to the Administrative Agent written notice that such Required Lenders object to the implementation of a LIBOR Successor Rate pursuant to such clause;

provided that, if the Administrative Agent determines that Term SOFR has become available, is administratively feasible for the Administrative Agent and would have been identified as the Pre-Adjustment Successor Rate in accordance with the foregoing if it had been so available at the time that the LIBOR Successor Rate then in effect was so identified, and the Administrative Agent notifies the Borrower and each Lender of such availability, then from and after the beginning of the Interest Period, relevant interest payment date or payment period for interest calculated, in each case, commencing no less than thirty (30) days after the date of such notice, the Pre-Adjustment Successor Rate shall be Term SOFR and the LIBOR Successor Rate shall be Term SOFR plus the relevant Related Adjustment.

The Administrative Agent will promptly (in one or more notices) notify the Borrower and each Lender of (x) any occurrence of any of the events, periods or circumstances under clauses (i) through (iii) above, (y) a LIBOR Replacement Date and (z) the LIBOR Successor Rate.

Any LIBOR Successor Rate shall be applied in a manner consistent with market practice; provided that to the extent such market practice is not administratively feasible for the Administrative Agent, such LIBOR Successor Rate shall be applied in a manner as otherwise reasonably determined by the Administrative Agent.

Notwithstanding anything else herein, if at any time any LIBOR Successor Rate as so determined would otherwise be less than zero, the LIBOR Successor Rate will be deemed to be zero for the purposes of this Agreement and the other Credit Documents.

In connection with the implementation of a LIBOR Successor Rate, the Administrative Agent will have the right to make LIBOR Successor Rate Conforming Changes from time to time and, notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein or in any other Credit Document, any amendments implementing such LIBOR Successor Rate Conforming Changes will become effective without any further action or consent of any other party to this Agreement; provided that, with respect to any such amendment effected, the Administrative Agent shall post each such amendment implementing such LIBOR Successor Rate Conforming Changes to the Borrower and the Lenders reasonably promptly after such amendment becomes effective.

 

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If the events or circumstances of the type described in Section 2.14(b)(i)-(iii) have occurred with respect to the LIBOR Successor Rate then in effect, then the successor rate thereto shall be determined in accordance with the definition of “LIBOR Successor Rate.”

(c) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, (i) after any such determination by the Administrative Agent or receipt by the Administrative Agent of any such notice described under Section 2.14(b)(i)-(iii), as applicable, if the Administrative Agent determines that none of the LIBOR Successor Rates is available on or prior to the LIBOR Replacement Date, (ii) if the events or circumstances described in Section 2.14(b)(iv) have occurred but none of the LIBOR Successor Rates is available, or (iii) if the events or circumstances of the type described in Section 2.14(b)(i)-(iii) have occurred with respect to the LIBOR Successor Rate then in effect and the Administrative Agent determines that none of the LIBOR Successor Rates is available, then in each case, the Administrative Agent and the Borrower may amend this Agreement solely for the purpose of replacing LIBOR or any then current LIBOR Successor Rate in accordance with this Section 2.14 at the end of any Interest Period, relevant interest payment date or payment period for interest calculated, as applicable, with another alternate benchmark rate giving due consideration to any evolving or then existing convention for similar Dollar denominated syndicated credit facilities for such alternative benchmarks and, in each case, including any Related Adjustments and any other mathematical or other adjustments to such benchmark giving due consideration to any evolving or then existing convention for similar Dollar denominated syndicated credit facilities for such benchmarks, which adjustment or method for calculating such adjustment shall be published on an information service as selected by the Administrative Agent from time to time in its reasonable discretion and may be periodically updated. For the avoidance of doubt, any such proposed rate and adjustments shall constitute a LIBOR Successor Rate. Any such amendment shall become effective at 5:00 p.m. on the fifth Business Day after the Administrative Agent shall have posted such proposed amendment to all Lenders and the Borrower unless, prior to such time, Lenders comprising the Required Lenders have delivered to the Administrative Agent written notice that such Required Lenders object to such amendment.

(d) If, at the end of any Interest Period, relevant interest payment date or payment period for interest calculated, no LIBOR Successor Rate has been determined in accordance with clauses (b) or (c) of this Section 2.14 and the circumstances under clauses (b)(i) or (b)(iii) above exist or the Scheduled Unavailability Date has occurred (as applicable), the Administrative Agent will promptly so notify the Borrower and each Lender. Thereafter, (x) the obligation of the Lenders to make or maintain Eurocurrency Loans shall be suspended, (to the extent of the affected Eurocurrency Loans, Interest Periods, interest payment dates or payment periods), and (y) the Eurocurrency Rate component shall no longer be utilized in determining the Base Rate, until the LIBOR Successor Rate has been determined in accordance with clauses (b) or (c). Upon receipt of such notice, the Borrower may revoke any pending request for a Borrowing of, conversion to or continuation of Eurocurrency Loans (to the extent of the affected Eurocurrency Loans, Interest Periods, interest payment dates or payment periods) or, failing that, will be deemed to have converted such request into a request for a Borrowing of Base Rate Loans (subject to the foregoing clause (y)) in the amount specified therein.

 

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(e) If any Lender determines that any applicable law, rule or regulation has made it unlawful, or that any Governmental Authority has asserted that it is unlawful, for any Lender or its applicable lending office to make, maintain or fund Eurocurrency Loans, or to determine or charge interest rates based upon the Eurocurrency Rate, or any Governmental Authority has imposed material restrictions on the authority of such Lender to purchase or sell, or to take deposits in the London interbank market, then, on written notice thereof by such Lender to the Administrative Agent and the Borrower (and confirmation that such Lender is generally suspending such loans for similarly situated borrowers), any obligation of such Lender to make or continue Eurocurrency Loans or to convert ABR Loans to Eurocurrency Loans shall be suspended until such Lender notifies the Administrative Agent and the Borrower that the circumstances giving rise to such determination no longer exist. Upon receipt of such notice, the Borrower shall, upon demand from such Lender (with a copy to the Administrative Agent), prepay or, if applicable, convert all Eurocurrency Loans of such Lender to ABR Loans, either on the last day of the Interest Period therefor, if such Lender may lawfully continue to maintain such Eurocurrency Loans to such day, or immediately, if such Lender may not lawfully continue to maintain such Eurocurrency Loans. Upon any such prepayment or conversion, the Borrower shall also pay accrued interest on the amount so prepaid or converted. Prior to giving any notice contemplated above, a Lender shall designate a different lending office if such designation would avoid the need for giving such notice and if such designation would not otherwise be disadvantageous to such Lender in its good faith discretion.

SECTION 2.15 Increased Costs. (a) If any Change in Law shall:

(i) impose, modify or deem applicable any reserve, special deposit, compulsory loan, insurance charge or similar requirement against assets of, deposits with or for the account of, or credit extended or participated in by, any Lender (except any such reserve requirement reflected in the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate);

(ii) impose on any Lender or the London interbank market any other condition, cost or expense (other than Taxes) affecting this Agreement or Eurocurrency Loans made by such Lender; or

(iii) subject any Recipient to any Taxes (other than (A) Indemnified Taxes, (B) Taxes described in clauses (b) through (d) of the definition of Excluded Taxes and (C) Connection Income Taxes) on its loans, loan principal, or other obligations, or its deposits, reserves, other liabilities or capital attributable thereto;

and the result of any of the foregoing shall be to increase the cost to such Lender or such other Recipient of making, converting into, continuing or maintaining any Eurocurrency Loan (or of maintaining its obligation to make any such Loan) or to increase the cost to such Lender or such other Recipient to reduce the amount of any sum received or receivable by such Lender or such other Recipient hereunder (whether of principal, interest or otherwise), then the Borrower will pay to such Lender or such other Recipient, as the case may be, such additional amount or amounts as will compensate such Lender or such other Recipient, as the case may be, for such additional costs incurred or reduction suffered.

 

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(b) If any Lender determines that any Change in Law regarding capital or liquidity requirements has or would have the effect of reducing the rate of return on such Lender’s capital or on the capital of such Lender’s holding company, if any, as a consequence of this Agreement or the Loans made by such Lender to a level below that which such Lender or such Lender’s holding company could have achieved but for such Change in Law (taking into consideration such Lender’s policies and the policies of such Lender’s holding company with respect to capital adequacy and liquidity), then from time to time the Borrower will pay to such Lender such additional amount or amounts as will compensate such Lender or such Lender’s holding company for any such reduction suffered.

(c) A certificate of a Lender (i) setting forth the amount or amounts necessary to compensate such Lender or its holding company, as the case may be, as specified in paragraph (a) or (b) of this Section and (ii) confirming that the applicable increased costs incurred or reduction suffered are being similarly assessed by such Lender generally upon similarly situated borrowers, shall be delivered to the Borrower and shall be conclusive absent manifest error. The Borrower shall pay such Lender the amount shown as due on any such certificate within 10 days after receipt thereof.

(d) Failure or delay on the part of any Lender to demand compensation pursuant to this Section shall not constitute a waiver of such Lender’s right to demand such compensation; provided that the Borrower shall not be required to compensate a Lender pursuant to this Section for any increased costs or reductions incurred more than 180 days prior to the date that such Lender notifies the Borrower of the Change in Law giving rise to such increased costs or reductions and of such Lender’s intention to claim compensation therefor; provided further that, if the Change in Law giving rise to such increased costs or reductions is retroactive, then the 180-day period referred to above shall be extended to include the period of retroactive effect thereof.

SECTION 2.16 Break Funding Payments. In the event of (a) the payment of any principal of any Eurocurrency Loan other than on the last day of an Interest Period applicable thereto (including as a result of an Event of Default), (b) the conversion of any Eurocurrency Loan other than on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto, (c) the failure to borrow, convert, continue or prepay any Eurocurrency Loan on the date specified in any notice delivered pursuant hereto (regardless of whether such notice may be revoked under Section 2.11(b) and is revoked in accordance therewith) or (d) the assignment of any Eurocurrency Loan other than on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto as a result of a request by the Borrower pursuant to Section 2.19, then, in any such event, the Borrower shall compensate each Lender for the loss, cost and expense attributable to such event. In the case of a Eurocurrency Loan, such loss, cost or expense to any Lender shall be deemed to include an amount determined by such Lender to be the excess, if any, of (i) the amount of interest which would have accrued at the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate that would have been applicable to such Loan on the principal amount of such Loan had such event not occurred, for the period from the date of such event to the last day of the then current Interest Period therefor (or, in the case of a failure to borrow, convert or continue, for the period that would have been the Interest Period for such Loan), over (ii) the amount of interest which would accrue on such principal amount for the same period if the Adjusted Eurocurrency Rate applicable to such Loan was set on the date such event occurred. A certificate of any Lender setting forth any amount or amounts that such Lender is entitled to receive pursuant to this Section shall be delivered to the Borrower and shall be conclusive absent manifest error. The Borrower shall pay such Lender the amount shown as due on any such certificate within 10 days after the Borrower’s receipt thereof.

 

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SECTION 2.17 Taxes. (a) Payments Free of Taxes. Any and all payments by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower under any Credit Document shall be made without deduction or withholding for any Taxes, except as required by applicable law. If any applicable law (as determined in the good faith discretion of an applicable withholding agent) requires the deduction or withholding of any Tax from any such payment by a withholding agent, then the applicable withholding agent shall be entitled to make such deduction or withholding and shall timely pay the full amount deducted or withheld to the relevant Governmental Authority in accordance with applicable law and, if such Tax is an Indemnified Tax, then the sum payable by the Borrower shall be increased as necessary so that after such deduction or withholding has been made (including such deductions and withholdings applicable to additional sums payable under this Section 2.17) the applicable Recipient receives an amount equal to the sum it would have received had no such deduction or withholding been made.

(b) Payment of Other Taxes by the Borrower. The Borrower shall timely pay to the relevant Governmental Authority in accordance with applicable law, or at the option of the Administrative Agent timely reimburse it for, Other Taxes.

(c) Evidence of Payments. As soon as practicable after any payment of Taxes by the Borrower to a Governmental Authority pursuant to this Section 2.17, the Borrower shall deliver to the Administrative Agent the original or a certified copy of a receipt issued by such Governmental Authority evidencing such payment, a copy of the return reporting such payment or other evidence of such payment reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

(d) Indemnification by the Borrower. The Borrower shall indemnify each Recipient, within 10 days after demand therefor, for the full amount of any Indemnified Taxes (including Indemnified Taxes imposed or asserted on or attributable to amounts payable under this Section) payable or paid by such Recipient or required to be withheld or deducted from a payment to such Recipient and any reasonable expenses arising therefrom or with respect thereto, whether or not such Indemnified Taxes were correctly or legally imposed or asserted by the relevant Governmental Authority. A certificate as to the amount of such payment or liability delivered to the Borrower by a Lender (with a copy to the Administrative Agent), or by the Administrative Agent on its own behalf or on behalf of a Lender, shall be conclusive absent manifest error.

(e) Indemnification by the Lenders. Each Lender shall severally indemnify the Administrative Agent, within 10 days after demand therefor, for (i) any Indemnified Taxes attributable to such Lender (but only to the extent that the Borrower has not already indemnified the Administrative Agent for such Indemnified Taxes and without limiting the obligation of the Borrower to do so), (ii) any Taxes attributable to such Lender’s failure to comply with the provisions of Section 9.04(c) relating to the maintenance of a Participant Register and (iii) any Excluded Taxes attributable to such Lender, in each case, that are payable or paid by the Administrative Agent in connection with any Credit Document, and any reasonable expenses arising therefrom or with respect thereto, whether or not such Taxes were correctly or legally imposed or asserted by the relevant Governmental Authority. A certificate as to the amount of such payment or liability delivered to any Lender by the Administrative Agent shall be conclusive absent manifest error. Each Lender hereby authorizes the Administrative Agent to setoff and apply any and all amounts at any time owing to such Lender under any Credit Document or otherwise payable by the Administrative Agent to such Lender from any other source against any amount due to the Administrative Agent under this paragraph (e).

 

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(f) Status of Lenders. (i) Any Lender that is entitled to an exemption from or reduction of withholding Tax with respect to payments made under any Credit Document shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, at the time or times reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, such properly completed and executed documentation reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as will permit such payments to be made without withholding or at a reduced rate of withholding. In addition, any Lender, if reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, shall deliver such other documentation prescribed by applicable law or reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as will enable the Borrower or the Administrative Agent to determine whether or not such Lender is subject to backup withholding or information reporting requirements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the preceding two sentences, the completion, execution and submission of such documentation (other than such documentation set forth in Section 2.17(f)(ii)(A), (ii)(B) and (ii)(D) below) shall not be required if in the Lender’s reasonable judgment such completion, execution or submission would subject such Lender to any material unreimbursed cost or expense or would materially prejudice the legal or commercial position of such Lender.

(ii) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing,

(A) any Lender that is a U.S. Person shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent on or prior to the date on which such Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent) executed originals of IRS Form W-9 certifying that such Lender is exempt from U.S. Federal backup withholding tax;

(B) any Foreign Lender shall, to the extent it is legally entitled to do so, deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent (in such number of copies as shall be requested by the recipient) on or prior to the date on which such Foreign Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), whichever of the following is applicable:

(1) In the case of a Foreign Lender claiming the benefits of an income tax treaty to which the United States is a party (x) with respect to payments of interest under any Credit Document, executed originals of IRS Form W-8BEN-E or W-8BEN, as applicable, establishing an exemption from, or reduction of, U.S. Federal withholding Tax pursuant to the “interest” article of such tax treaty and (y) with respect to any other applicable payments under any Credit Document, IRS Form W-8BEN-E or W-8BEN, as applicable, establishing an exemption from, or reduction of, U.S. Federal withholding Tax pursuant to the “business profits” or “other income” article of such tax treaty;

(2) executed originals of IRS Form W-8ECI;

 

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(3) in the case of a Foreign Lender claiming the benefits of the exemption for portfolio interest under Section 881(c) of the Code, (x) a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit C-1 to the effect that such Foreign Lender is not a “bank” within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, a “10 percent shareholder” of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code, or a “controlled foreign corporation” described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code (a “U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate”) and (y) executed originals of IRS Form W-8BEN-E or W-8BEN, as applicable; or

(4) to the extent a Foreign Lender is not the beneficial owner, executed originals of IRS Form W-8IMY, accompanied by IRS Form W-8ECI, IRS Form W-8BEN-E or W-8BEN, as applicable, a U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit C-2 or Exhibit C-3, IRS Form W-9, and/or other certification documents from each beneficial owner, as applicable; provided that if the Foreign Lender is a partnership and one or more direct or indirect partners of such Foreign Lender are claiming the portfolio interest exemption, such Foreign Lender may provide a U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit C-4 on behalf of each such direct and indirect partner;

(C) any Foreign Lender shall, to the extent it is legally entitled to do so, deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent (in such number of copies as shall be requested by the recipient) on or prior to the date on which such Foreign Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), executed originals of any other form prescribed by applicable law as a basis for claiming exemption from or a reduction in U.S. Federal withholding Tax, duly completed, together with such supplementary documentation as may be prescribed by applicable law to permit the Borrower or the Administrative Agent to determine the withholding or deduction required to be made; and

(D) if a payment made to a Lender under any Credit Document would be subject to U.S. Federal withholding Tax imposed by FATCA if such Lender were to fail to comply with the applicable reporting requirements of FATCA (including those contained in Section 1471(b) or 1472(b) of the Code, as applicable), such Lender shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent at the time or times prescribed by law and at such time or times reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent such documentation prescribed by applicable law (including as prescribed by Section 1471(b)(3)(C)(i) of the Code) and such additional documentation reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as may be necessary for the Borrower and the Administrative Agent to comply with their obligations under FATCA and to determine that such Lender has complied with such Lender’s obligations under FATCA or to determine the amount to deduct and withhold from such payment. Solely for purposes of this clause (D), “FATCA” shall include any amendments made to FATCA after the date of this Agreement.

(iii) Each Lender agrees that if any form or certification it previously delivered expires or becomes obsolete or inaccurate in any respect, it shall update such form or certification or promptly notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent in writing of its legal inability to do so.

 

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(g) Treatment of Certain Refunds. If any party determines, in its sole discretion exercised in good faith, that it has received a refund of any Taxes as to which it has been indemnified pursuant to this Section 2.17 (including by the payment of additional amounts pursuant to this Section 2.17), it shall pay to the indemnifying party an amount equal to such refund (but only to the extent of indemnity payments made under this Section 2.17 with respect to the Taxes giving rise to such refund), net of all out-of-pocket expenses (including Taxes) of such indemnified party and without interest (other than any interest paid by the relevant Governmental Authority with respect to such refund). Such indemnifying party, upon the request of such indemnified party, shall repay to such indemnified party the amount paid over pursuant to this paragraph (g) (plus any penalties, interest or other charges imposed by the relevant Governmental Authority) in the event that such indemnified party is required to repay such refund to such Governmental Authority. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this paragraph (g), in no event will the indemnified party be required to pay any amount to an indemnifying party pursuant to this paragraph (g) the payment of which would place the indemnified party in a less favorable net after-Tax position than the indemnified party would have been in if the indemnification payments or additional amounts giving rise to such refund had never been paid. This paragraph shall not be construed to require any indemnified party to make available its Tax returns (or any other information relating to its Taxes that it deems confidential) to the indemnifying party or any other Person.

(h) Survival. Each party’s obligations under this Section 2.17 shall survive the resignation or replacement of the Administrative Agent or any assignment of rights by, or the replacement of, a Lender and the repayment, satisfaction or discharge of all obligations under any Credit Document.

SECTION 2.18 Payments Generally; Pro Rata Treatment; Sharing of Set-offs. (a) The Borrower shall make each payment required to be made by it hereunder (whether of principal, interest, fees, or of amounts payable under Section 2.15, 2.16 or 2.17, or otherwise) prior to 1:00 p.m., Local Time, on the date when due, in immediately available funds, without setoff or counterclaim. Any amounts received after such time on any date may, in the discretion of the Administrative Agent, be deemed to have been received on the next succeeding Business Day for purposes of calculating interest thereon. All such payments shall be made to the Administrative Agent at its offices at 901 Main Street, Dallas TX, 75202-3714 or at such other address that the Administrative Agent shall advise the Borrower in writing. If any payment hereunder shall be due on a day that is not a Business Day, the date for payment shall be extended to the next succeeding Business Day, and, in the case of any payment accruing interest, interest thereon shall be payable for the period of such extension. All payments hereunder shall be made in Dollars. Any payment required to be made by the Administrative Agent hereunder shall be deemed to have been made by the time required if the Administrative Agent shall at or before such time have taken the necessary steps to make such payment in accordance with the regulations or operating procedures of the clearing or settlement system used by the Administrative Agent to make such payment.

 

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(b) If at any time insufficient funds are received by and available to the Administrative Agent to pay fully all amounts of principal, interest and fees then due hereunder, such funds shall be applied (i) first, towards payment of interest and fees then due hereunder, ratably among the parties entitled thereto in accordance with the amounts of interest and fees then due to such parties, and (ii) second, towards payment of principal then due hereunder, ratably among the parties entitled thereto in accordance with the amounts of principal then due to such parties.

(c) If any Lender shall, by exercising any right of setoff or counterclaim or otherwise, obtain payment in respect of any principal of or interest on any of its Loans resulting in such Lender receiving payment of a greater proportion of the aggregate amount of its Loans and accrued interest thereon than the proportion received by any other Lender, then the Lender receiving such greater proportion shall purchase (for cash at face value) participations in the Loans of other Lenders without recourse or warranty from the other Lenders except as contemplated by Section 9.04 in respect of assignments to the extent necessary so that the benefit of all such payments shall be shared by the Lenders ratably in accordance with the aggregate amount of principal of and accrued interest on their respective Loans; provided that (i) if any such participations are purchased and all or any portion of the payment giving rise thereto is recovered, such participations shall be rescinded and the purchase price restored to the extent of such recovery, without interest, and (ii) the provisions of this paragraph shall not be construed to apply to any payment made by the Borrower pursuant to and in accordance with the express terms of this Agreement or any payment obtained by a Lender as consideration for the assignment of or sale of a participation in any of its Loans to any assignee or participant, other than to the Borrower or any Subsidiary or Affiliate thereof (as to which the provisions of this paragraph shall apply). The Borrower consents to the foregoing and agrees, to the extent it may effectively do so under applicable law, that any Lender acquiring a participation pursuant to the foregoing arrangements may exercise against the Borrower rights of set-off and counterclaim with respect to such participation as fully as if such Lender were a direct creditor of the Borrower in the amount of such participation.

(d) (i) Unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from the Borrower prior to the date on which any payment is due to the Administrative Agent for the account of the Lenders hereunder that the Borrower will not make such payment, the Administrative Agent may assume that the Borrower has made such payment on such date in accordance herewith and may, in reliance upon such assumption, distribute to the Lenders, the amount due.

(ii) With respect to any payment that the Administrative Agent makes for the account of the Lenders hereunder as to which the Administrative Agent determines (which determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error) that any of the following applies (such payment referred to as the “Rescindable Amount”) : (1) the Borrower has not in fact made such payment; (2) the Administrative Agent has made a payment in excess of the amount so paid by the Borrower (whether or not then owed); or (3) the Administrative agent has for any reason otherwise erroneously made such payment; then each of the Lenders, severally agrees to repay to the Administrative Agent forthwith on demand the Rescindable Amount so distributed to such Lender, in immediately available funds with interest thereon, for each day from and including the date such amount is distributed to it to but excluding the date of payment to the Administrative Agent, at the greater of the Federal Funds Effective Rate and a rate determined by the Administrative Agent in accordance with banking industry rules on interbank compensation.

 

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(e) If and for so long as any Lender shall fail to make any payment required to be made by it pursuant to Section 2.18(d) or 9.03(c), then the Administrative Agent may, in its discretion and notwithstanding any contrary provision hereof, (i) apply any amounts thereafter received by the Administrative Agent pursuant to this Agreement for the account of such Lender and for the benefit of the Administrative Agent to satisfy such Lender’s obligations under such Sections until all such unsatisfied obligations are fully paid, and (ii) following application of such amounts under the foregoing clause (i), hold any remaining such amounts in a segregated account as cash collateral for, and application to, any future funding obligations of such Lender under such Sections, in the case of each of (i) and (ii) above, in any order as determined by the Administrative Agent in its discretion.

SECTION 2.19 Mitigation Obligations; Replacement of Lenders. (a) If (i) any Lender requests compensation under Section 2.15 or (ii) the Borrower is required to pay any Indemnified Taxes or additional amounts to any Lender or any Governmental Authority for the account of any Lender pursuant to Section 2.17, then such Lender shall use reasonable efforts to designate a different lending office for funding or booking its Loans hereunder or to assign its rights and obligations hereunder to another of its offices, branches or affiliates, if, in the judgment of such Lender, such designation or assignment (i) would eliminate or reduce amounts payable pursuant to Section 2.15 or 2.17, as the case may be, in the future and (ii) would not subject such Lender to any unreimbursed cost or expense and would not otherwise be disadvantageous to such Lender. The Borrower hereby agrees to pay all reasonable costs and expenses incurred by any Lender in connection with any such designation or assignment.

(b) In addition to the Borrower’s rights under Section 9.02(c), if any Lender requests compensation under Section 2.15, or if the Borrower is required to pay any Indemnified Taxes or additional amounts to any Lender or any Governmental Authority for the account of any Lender pursuant to Section 2.17 or if any Lender becomes a Defaulting Lender, then the Borrower may, at its sole expense and effort, upon notice to such Lender and the Administrative Agent, require such Lender to assign and delegate, without recourse (in accordance with and subject to the restrictions contained in Section 9.04), all its interests, rights and obligations under this Agreement to an assignee that shall assume such obligations (which assignee may be another Lender, if a Lender accepts such assignment); provided that (i) the Borrower shall have received the prior written consent of the Administrative Agent, which consent shall not unreasonably be withheld, (ii) such Lender shall have received payment of an amount equal to the outstanding principal of its Loans and accrued interest thereon, accrued fees and all other amounts payable to it hereunder, from the assignee (to the extent of such outstanding principal and accrued interest and fees) or the Borrower (in the case of all other amounts) and (iii) in the case of any such assignment resulting from a claim for compensation under Section 2.15 or payments required to be made pursuant to Section 2.17, such assignment will result in a reduction in such compensation or payments. A Lender shall not be required to make any such assignment and delegation if, prior thereto, as a result of a waiver by such Lender or otherwise, the circumstances entitling the Borrower to require such assignment and delegation cease to apply.

 

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SECTION 2.20 Defaulting Lenders. Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, if any Lender becomes a Defaulting Lender, then the following provisions shall apply for so long as such Lender is a Defaulting Lender:

(a) [Reserved]; and

(b) the Commitment of such Defaulting Lender shall not be included in determining whether all Lenders or the Required Lenders have taken or may take any action hereunder (including any consent to any amendment, waiver or other modification pursuant to Section 9.02); provided that (i) a Defaulting Lender’s Commitment may not be increased or extended without its consent and (ii) the principal amount of, or interest or fees payable on, Loans of such Defaulting Lender may not be reduced or excused or the scheduled date of payment postponed as to such Defaulting Lender without such Defaulting Lender’s consent.

ARTICLE III

REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

The Borrower represents and warrants to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders that:

SECTION 3.01 Organization; Powers. Each of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries (i) is duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, (ii) has all requisite power and authority to carry on its business as now conducted and (iii) is qualified to do business in, and is in good standing in, every jurisdiction where such qualification is required, except for failures of Subsidiaries under clauses (i) and (ii) above, and failures of the Borrower or its Subsidiaries under clause (iii) above which, either individually or in the aggregate for all such failures under preceding clauses (i), (ii) and (iii), could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

SECTION 3.02 Authorization; Enforceability. The execution and delivery of, and the performance of its obligations under, each Credit Document and the borrowing of the Loans are within the Borrower’s corporate powers and have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate and, if required, stockholder action. Each Credit Document has been duly executed and delivered by the Borrower and each Credit Document constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Borrower, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and subject to general principles of equity, regardless of whether considered in a proceeding in equity or at law.

SECTION 3.03 Governmental Approvals; No Conflicts. The execution and delivery of, and the performance of its obligations under, each Credit Document and the borrowing of the Loans (a) do not require any consent or approval of, registration or filing with, or any other action by, any Governmental Authority, except such as have been obtained or made and are in full force and effect, (b) will not violate any applicable law or regulation or the charter, by-laws or other organizational documents of the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries or any order of any Governmental Authority, (c) will not violate or result in a default under any indenture, agreement or other instrument involving an amount in excess of $1,000,000 binding upon the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries or its assets, or give rise to a right thereunder to require any payment to be made by the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries, and (d) will not result in the creation or imposition of any Lien on any asset of the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries.

 

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SECTION 3.04 Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change. (a) The Borrower has heretofore furnished to the Lenders its consolidated balance sheet and statements of income, stockholders equity and cash flows as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018, reported on by KPMG LLP, independent public accountants. Such financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position and results of operations and cash flows of the Borrower and its consolidated Subsidiaries as of such dates and for such periods in accordance with GAAP, subject to year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes in the case of the statements referred to in clause (ii) above.

(b) Since December 31, 2020, there has been no material adverse change in the business, assets, operations or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole.

SECTION 3.05 Properties. (a) Each of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries has good title to, or valid leasehold interests in, all its real and personal property material to the business of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole, including all such properties reflected in the Borrower’s most recent consolidated financial statements provided to the Administrative Agent.

(b) Each of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries owns, is licensed or otherwise has the right to use, all material trademarks, tradenames, copyrights, patents and other intellectual property material to its business, and the use thereof by the Borrower and its Subsidiaries does not infringe upon the rights of any other Person, except for any such absence of ownership, license or other right to use or such infringements that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

SECTION 3.06 Litigation and Environmental Matters. (a) There are no actions, suits or proceedings by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority pending against or, to the knowledge of the Borrower, threatened against or affecting the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries (i) which could reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect or (ii) that would have a Material Adverse Effect on the validity or enforceability of any Credit Document or the Transactions or the rights or remedies of the Administrative Agent or the Lenders hereunder or thereunder.

(b) Except with respect to any other matters that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, neither the Borrower nor any of its Subsidiaries (i) has failed to comply with any Environmental Law or to obtain, maintain or comply with any permit, license or other approval required under any Environmental Law, (ii) has become subject to any Environmental Liability, (iii) has received, through an executive officer of the Borrower or any Subsidiary, notice of any claim with respect to any Environmental Liability or (iv) knows of any basis for any Environmental Liability other than, in each case, as set forth in the report on Form 10-K most recently filed prior to the date hereof by the Borrower with the Securities and Exchange Commission and any reports on Form 10-Q or 8-K filed by the Borrower with the Securities and Exchange Commission subsequent to such Form 10-K and prior to the date hereof.

 

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SECTION 3.07 Compliance with Laws and Agreements. Other than, in each case, as set forth in the report on Form 10-K most recently filed prior to the date hereof by the Borrower with the Securities and Exchange Commission and any reports on Form 10-Q or 8-K filed by the Borrower with the Securities and Exchange Commission subsequent to such Form 10-K and prior to the date hereof, each of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries is in compliance with (a) all laws, regulations and orders of any Governmental Authority applicable to it or its property and (b) all indentures, agreements and other instruments binding upon it or its property, except, in each case, where the failure to do so, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. No Default has occurred and is continuing.

SECTION 3.08 Investment Company Status. Neither the Borrower nor any of its Subsidiaries is an “investment company” required to be registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940.

SECTION 3.09 Taxes. Each of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries has filed or caused to be filed all United States Federal income tax and other material tax returns required to have been filed and has paid or caused to be paid all Taxes required to have been paid by it, except (a) Taxes that are being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and for which the Borrower or such Subsidiary, as applicable, has set aside on its books adequate reserves or (b) to the extent that the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

SECTION 3.10 ERISA. No liability to the PBGC has been, or is expected by the Borrower or any ERISA Affiliate to be, incurred with respect to any Plan by the Borrower, any Subsidiary or any ERISA Affiliate which is, or could reasonably be expected to be, materially adverse to the business, property or assets, condition (financial or otherwise) or operations of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole. Neither the Borrower, any Subsidiary nor any ERISA Affiliate has incurred, or presently expects to incur, any withdrawal liability under Title IV of ERISA with respect to any Multiemployer Plan which is reasonably expected to be materially adverse to the business, property or assets, condition (financial or otherwise) or operations of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole.

SECTION 3.11 Disclosure. The Borrower has disclosed to the Lenders all agreements, instruments and corporate or other restrictions to which it or any of its Subsidiaries is subject, and all other matters known to it, that, individually or in the aggregate, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. None of the reports, including, without limitation, all reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, financial statements, certificates or other written information furnished by or on behalf of the Borrower to the Administrative Agent or any Lender in connection with the negotiation of this Agreement or any other Credit Document or delivered hereunder or thereunder (as modified or supplemented by any other information so furnished) contains any material misstatement of fact or omits to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in each case in light of the circumstances under which they were made and taken as a whole, not misleading; provided that, with respect to any projections, estimates, forward looking statements and information of a general economic or industry public nature, the Borrower represents only that such information was prepared in good faith based upon assumptions believed to be reasonable at the time such information was delivered to the Administrative Agent or any Lender.

 

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SECTION 3.12 Regulation U. Margin stock (as defined in Regulation U of the Board) constitutes less than 25% of the value of those assets of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries which are subject to any limitation on sale, pledge, or other restriction hereunder. None of the making of any Loan or the use of the proceeds thereof or any other aspect of the Transactions will violate or be inconsistent with the provisions of Regulation T, Regulation U or Regulation X of the Board.

SECTION 3.13 Labor Relations. There are no strikes, lockouts or other material labor disputes or grievances against the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries, or, to the Borrower’s knowledge, threatened against or affecting the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries, and no significant unfair labor practice, charges or grievances are pending against the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries, or to the Borrower’s knowledge, threatened against the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries before any governmental authority, except, with respect to any of the foregoing, any such matters which could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

SECTION 3.14 Anti-Corruptions Laws and Sanctions. The Borrower has implemented and maintains in effect policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance by the Borrower, its Subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents with applicable Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions, and the Borrower, its Subsidiaries and, to the knowledge of the Borrower, their respective officers and employees, directors and agents, are in compliance with applicable Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions in all material respects. None of (a) the Borrower, any Subsidiary or any of their respective directors, officers or employees, or (b) to the knowledge of the Borrower, any agent of the Borrower or any Subsidiary that will act in any capacity in connection with or benefit from the credit facility established hereby, is a Sanctioned Person. The Transactions contemplated by this Agreement will not violate any Anti-Corruption Law or applicable Sanctions.

SECTION 3.15 Affected Financial Institution. The Borrower is not an Affected Financial Institution.

SECTION 3.16 Covered Entity. The Borrower is not a Covered Entity.

ARTICLE IV

CONDITIONS

SECTION 4.01 Effective Date. The obligations of the Lenders to make the Loans hereunder shall not become effective until the date on which each of the following conditions is satisfied or waived in accordance with Section 9.02:

(a) The Administrative Agent (or its counsel) shall have received from each party hereto and to the other Credit Documents either (i) a counterpart of this Agreement and each other Credit Document signed on behalf of such party or (ii) written evidence satisfactory to the Administrative Agent (which may include telecopy or email transmission of a signed signature page of this Agreement or such other Credit Document) that such party has signed a counterpart of this Agreement or such other Credit Document.

 

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(b) The Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall have received all fees and other amounts due and payable by the Borrower on or prior to the Effective Date, including, to the extent invoiced at least one day prior to the Effective Date, reimbursement or payment of all out-of-pocket expenses required to be reimbursed or paid by the Borrower hereunder (including the reasonable fees and reasonable out-of-pocket expenses of McGuireWoods LLP, counsel to the Administrative Agent) on or prior the Effective Date.

(c) [Reserved]

(d) [Reserved]

(e) All regulatory, legal and other third party approvals necessary in connection with the Transactions shall have been obtained.

(f) There shall not exist any action, investigation, litigation or proceeding, pending or threatened, in any court or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority that could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect on the Borrower or the Transactions.

(g) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate, dated the Effective Date and signed by a Financial Officer of the Borrower, confirming compliance with the conditions set forth in paragraphs (a) and (b) of Section 4.02.

(h) The Administrative Agent shall have received (x) an opinion letter from Hogan Lovells US LLP, counsel for the Borrower, dated as of the Effective Date and (y) an opinion letter from a senior counsel of the Borrower, dated as of the Effective Date, in each case, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent and its counsel. The Borrower hereby requests such counsel to deliver such opinion.

(i) The Administrative Agent shall have received (i) such documents and certificates as the Administrative Agent or its counsel may reasonably request relating to the organization, existence and good standing of the Borrower, the authorization of the Transactions and any other legal matters relating to the Borrower, this Agreement or the Transactions, all in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent and its counsel and (ii) such other documentation and information required by bank regulatory authorities under applicable “know your customer” and anti-money laundering rules and regulations, including without limitation the Act, to the extent reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent or any Lender.

 

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SECTION 4.02 Each Credit Event. The obligation of each Lender to make any Loan requested during the Availability Period is subject to the satisfaction of the following conditions:

(a) The representations and warranties of the Borrower set forth in the Credit Documents (except (other than on the Effective Date) the representations and warranties set forth in Section 3.04(b), Section 3.06(a)(i) and Section 3.06(b)) shall be true and correct in all material respects on and as of the date of such Borrowing (except any such representation or warranty that expressly relates to or is made expressly as of a specific earlier date, in which case such representation or warranty shall be true and correct in all material respects with respect to or as of such specific earlier date).

(b) At the time of and immediately after giving effect to such Borrowing, no Default shall have occurred and be continuing.

Each Borrowing shall be deemed to constitute a representation and warranty by the Borrower on the date thereof as to the matters specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this Section.

ARTICLE V

AFFIRMATIVE COVENANTS

Until the Commitments have expired or been terminated and the principal of and interest on each Loan and all fees payable hereunder shall have been paid in full, the Borrower covenants and agrees with the Lenders that:

SECTION 5.01 Financial Statements and Other Information. The Borrower will furnish to the Administrative Agent and each Lender:

(a) within 90 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Borrower, its audited consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, stockholders’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the previous fiscal year, all reported on by KPMG LLP or other independent public accountants of recognized national standing (without a “going concern” or like qualification or exception and without any qualification or exception as to the scope of such audit) to the effect that such consolidated financial statements present fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of the Borrower and its consolidated Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied;

(b) within 45 days after the end of each of the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year of the Borrower from and including the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2021, its consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, stockholders’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such fiscal quarter and the then elapsed portion of the fiscal year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the corresponding period or periods of (or, in the case of the balance sheet, as of the end of) the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of the Borrower and its consolidated Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied, subject to normal year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes;

 

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(c) concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under clause (a) or (b) above, a certificate of a Financial Officer of the Borrower (i) certifying as to whether a Default has occurred and, if a Default has occurred, specifying the details thereof and any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto and (ii) setting forth reasonably detailed calculations demonstrating compliance with Sections 6.06 and 6.07 (in the case of the certificate for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2019, prepared as if the Existing Credit Agreement had been in effect at such time);

(d) promptly after the sending or filing thereof, copies of all periodic and other reports, proxy statements, registration statements and prospectuses filed by the Borrower or any Subsidiary with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or any Governmental Authority succeeding to any or all of the functions of said Commission, or distributed by the Borrower to its shareholders generally, as the case may be, or proxy statements, registration statements and prospectuses filed by the Borrower or any Subsidiary with any national securities exchange;

(e) at least three (3) Business Days prior to the consummation of any Material Acquisition, a certificate of a Financial Officer of the Borrower in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent setting forth reasonably detailed calculations demonstrating pro-forma compliance with Section 6.06 immediately after giving effect to such Material Acquisition (based on pro-forma Net Borrowed Debt immediately after giving effect to such Material Acquisition and pro-forma Consolidated EBITDA as of the end of the most recent fiscal quarter for which financial statements have been delivered or are required to have been delivered pursuant to Section 5.01 for the four fiscal quarters then ended), which calculations may, as to the entity or business to be acquired, be based on information provided to the Borrower or its Subsidiaries and relied on in good faith; and

(f) promptly following any request therefor, such other information regarding the operations, business affairs and financial condition of the Borrower or any Subsidiary, or compliance with the terms of this Agreement, as the Administrative Agent or any Lender may reasonably request.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, (i) delivery within the 90-day period specified in clause (a) above of copies of the Annual Report on Form 10-K of the Borrower for each applicable annual period (including all financial statement exhibits and financial statements incorporated by reference therein) prepared in compliance with the requirements therefor and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of Section 5.01(a); provided, that the Borrower shall be deemed to have made such delivery of any Form 10-K if it shall have made such Form 10-K available on “EDGAR” within such 90-day period (such delivery being referred to as “Electronic Delivery”), (ii) delivery within the 45-day period specified in clause (b) above of copies of the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of the Borrower for each applicable quarterly period (including all financial statement exhibits and financial statements incorporated by reference therein) prepared in compliance with the requirements therefor and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of Section 5.01(b); provided, that the Borrower shall be deemed to have made such delivery of any Form 10-Q if it shall have made Electronic Delivery thereof

 

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within such 45-day period, (iii) the Borrower shall be deemed to have made delivery of any reports, statements and other materials specified in clause (d) above if it shall have made Electronic Delivery thereof promptly after the sending or filing thereof, and (iv) the Borrower shall be deemed to have made delivery of any of the items set forth in this Section 5.01 to each Lender upon delivery to the Administrative Agent for posting to “Intralinks” or any other electronic distribution site.

SECTION 5.02 Notices of Material Events. The Borrower will furnish to the Administrative Agent and each Lender written notice of the following as soon as possible and in any event no later than five days after obtaining knowledge thereof:

(a) the occurrence of any Default;

(b) the filing or commencement of any action, suit or proceeding by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority against or affecting the Borrower or any Subsidiary thereof that, if adversely determined, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect;

(c) the occurrence of any ERISA Event that, alone or together with any other ERISA Events that have occurred, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect; and

(d) any other development that results in, or would reasonably be expected to result in, a Material Adverse Effect.

Each notice delivered under this Section shall be accompanied by a statement of a Financial Officer or other executive officer of the Borrower setting forth the details of the event or development requiring such notice and any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the Borrower shall be deemed to have made delivery of any notice pursuant to this Section 5.02 to each Lender upon delivery to the Administrative Agent for posting to IntraLinks, Syndtrak, ClearPar, or a substantially similar electronic transmission system.

SECTION 5.03 Existence; Conduct of Business. The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Material Subsidiaries to, do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve, renew and keep in full force and effect its legal existence and the rights, licenses, permits, privileges and franchises material to the conduct of its business; provided that the foregoing shall not prohibit any merger, consolidation, liquidation or dissolution permitted under Section 6.03 or any winding up, liquidation or dissolution of any inactive Subsidiaries; provided, further, that neither the Borrower nor any of its Material Subsidiaries shall be required to preserve any right or franchise if the Board of Directors of the Borrower or such Material Subsidiary shall determine that the preservation thereof is no longer desirable in the conduct of the business of the Borrower or such Material Subsidiary, as the case may be, and that the loss thereof is not disadvantageous in any material respect to the Borrower, such Material Subsidiary or the Lenders.

 

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SECTION 5.04 Payment of Tax Obligations. The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Subsidiaries to, pay its Tax liabilities, that, if not paid, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect before the same shall become delinquent or in default, except where the validity or amount thereof is being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and either (a) the Borrower or such Subsidiary has set aside on its books adequate reserves with respect thereto in accordance with GAAP or (b) the failure to make payment pending such contest could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

SECTION 5.05 Maintenance of Properties; Insurance. The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Subsidiaries to, (a) keep and maintain all property material to the conduct of its business in good working order and condition, ordinary wear and tear excepted (provided that this clause (a) shall not prevent the Borrower or any Subsidiary from discontinuing the operation and the maintenance of any of its properties if such discontinuance is desirable in the conduct of its business and such discontinuance could not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected have a Material Adverse Effect), and (b) maintain, with responsible and reputable insurance companies, insurance in such amounts and against such risks as are customarily maintained by companies engaged in the same or similar businesses operating in the same or similar locations.

SECTION 5.06 Books and Records; Inspection Rights. The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Material Subsidiaries to, keep proper books of record and account in which full and correct entries are made of all financial transactions in relation to its business and activities in accordance with GAAP or the accounting standard applicable in the jurisdiction where such books and records are kept. The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Subsidiaries to, permit any representatives designated by the Administrative Agent or any Lender, upon reasonable prior notice and at the Administrative Agent’s or such Lender’s expense if no Default or Event of Default exists and at the Borrower’s expense if a Default or an Event of Default exists, to visit and inspect its properties, to examine and make extracts from its books and records, and to discuss its affairs, finances and condition with its officers and independent accountants, all at such reasonable times and as often as reasonably requested; provided that so long as no Default or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, no more than two (2) such visits or inspections shall be permitted in any calendar year pursuant to this Section; provided, further, that any Information (as defined in Section 9.12) provided to any Person in connection with any such visit or inspection shall be subject to the provisions of Section 9.12, such Person shall have been made aware of the provisions of Section 9.12.

SECTION 5.07 Compliance with Laws. The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Subsidiaries to, comply with all laws, rules, regulations and orders of any Governmental Authority applicable to it or its property, including, without limitation, all Environmental Laws, except where the failure to do so, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The Borrower will maintain in effect and enforce policies and procedures designed to ensure compliance by the Borrower, its Subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents with applicable Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions.

 

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SECTION 5.08 Use of Proceeds.

(a) The proceeds of the Loans will be used only for general corporate purposes. No part of the proceeds of any Loan will be used, whether directly or indirectly, for any purpose that entails a violation of any of the Regulations of the Board, including Regulations T, U and X.

(b) The Borrower will not directly or, to the Borrower’s knowledge, indirectly use the proceeds of the Loans (i) 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 applicable Anti-Corruption Laws, (ii) for the purpose of directly, or, to its knowledge, indirectly funding, financing or facilitating any activities, business or transaction of or with any Sanctioned Person, or in any Sanctioned Country, to the extent such activities, businesses or transaction would be prohibited by Sanctions if conducted by a corporation incorporated in the United States or in a European Union member state or (iii) in any manner that would result in the violation of any Sanctions applicable to any party hereto.

ARTICLE VI

NEGATIVE COVENANTS

Until the Commitments have expired or been terminated and the principal of and interest on each Loan and all fees payable hereunder shall have been paid in full, the Borrower covenants and agrees with the Lenders that:

SECTION 6.01 Subsidiary Indebtedness. The Borrower will not permit any Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or permit to exist any Indebtedness, except:

(a) Indebtedness under the Credit Documents;

(b) [reserved];

(c) Indebtedness of any Subsidiary to the Borrower or any other Subsidiary;

(d) Guarantees by any Subsidiary of Indebtedness of the Borrower or any other Subsidiary;

(e) Indebtedness of any Subsidiary incurred to finance the acquisition, construction or improvement of any fixed or capital assets, including Capital Lease Obligations and any Indebtedness assumed in connection with the acquisition of any such assets or secured by a Lien on any such assets prior to the acquisition thereof, and extensions, renewals and replacements of any such Indebtedness that do not increase the outstanding principal amount thereof; provided that such Indebtedness is incurred prior to or within 90 days after such acquisition or the completion of such construction or improvement;

(f) obligations under (i) Swap Agreements entered into to hedge or mitigate risks to which t any Subsidiary has actual exposure (other than those in respect of Equity Interests of the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries) or (ii) Swap Agreements entered into in order to effectively cap, collar or exchange interest rates (from fixed to floating rates, from one floating rate to another floating rate or otherwise) with respect to any interest-bearing liability or investment of any Subsidiary;

 

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(g) Indebtedness (if any) of any Subsidiary arising or deemed to arise out of any Permitted Receivable Sales Transaction;

(h) Indebtedness arising under notional pooling cash management arrangements to the extent not matched by cash deposits of any Subsidiary or in connection with commodities or securities accounts;

(i) Indebtedness of any Subsidiary which constitutes Receivables Transaction Attributed Indebtedness in an aggregate principal amount (when aggregated with the Receivables Transaction Attributed Indebtedness of the Borrower) not exceeding $250,000,000 at any time outstanding;

(j) Indebtedness of any Person which becomes a Subsidiary after the date hereof existing prior to the acquisition thereof or of its parent by the Borrower or any Subsidiary and extensions, renewals and replacements of any such Indebtedness that do not increase the outstanding principal amount thereof; provided that (i) such Indebtedness is not incurred in contemplation of or in connection with such acquisition or such Person becoming a Subsidiary, as the case may be and (ii) neither the Borrower nor any Subsidiary shall be liable for such Indebtedness; and

(k) other Indebtedness of any Subsidiary so long as, both before and after giving effect to the incurrence of such Indebtedness, the Borrower is in pro-forma compliance with Section 6.06 as of the date of such incurrence.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Borrower will not permit the aggregate principal amount of Borrowed Debt of the Borrower’s Subsidiaries outstanding at any time and incurred or permitted pursuant to clauses (e), (h), (i), (j) and (k) of this Section 6.01 to exceed an amount equal to 15% of the Consolidated Net Assets of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries (determined by reference to the most recent consolidated financial statements of the Borrower delivered pursuant to Section 5.01).

SECTION 6.02 Liens. The Borrower will not, and will not permit any Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or permit to exist any Lien on any property or asset now owned or hereafter acquired by it, or assign or sell any income or revenues (including accounts receivable) or rights in respect of any thereof, except:

(a) Permitted Encumbrances;

(b) any Lien on any property or asset of the Borrower or any Subsidiary existing on the date hereof and set forth in Schedule 6.02; provided that (i) such Lien shall not apply to any other property or asset of the Borrower or any Subsidiary and (ii) such Lien shall secure only those obligations which it secures on the date hereof and extensions, renewals and replacements thereof that do not increase the outstanding principal amount thereof;

 

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(c) any Lien existing on any property or asset prior to the acquisition thereof by the Borrower or any Subsidiary or existing on any property or asset of any Person that becomes a Subsidiary after the date hereof prior to the time such Person becomes a Subsidiary; provided that (i) such Lien is not created in contemplation of or in connection with such acquisition or such Person becoming a Subsidiary, as the case may be, (ii) such Lien shall not apply to any other property or assets of the Borrower or any Subsidiary and (iii) such Lien shall secure only those obligations which it secures on the date of such acquisition or the date such Person becomes a Subsidiary, as the case may be and extensions, renewals and replacements thereof that do not increase the outstanding principal amount thereof;

(d) Liens on fixed or capital assets acquired, constructed or improved by the Borrower or any Subsidiary; provided that (i) such Liens, in the case of Liens on assets of Subsidiaries, secure Indebtedness of Subsidiaries permitted by clause (d) of Section 6.01, (ii) such Liens and the Indebtedness secured thereby are incurred prior to or within 90 days after such acquisition or the completion of such construction or improvement, (iii) the Indebtedness secured thereby does not exceed 100% of the cost of acquiring, constructing or improving such fixed or capital assets and (iv) such Liens shall not apply to any other property or assets of the Borrower or any Subsidiary;

(e) Liens upon assets of an SPC granted in connection with a Permitted Securitization (including customary backup Liens granted by the transferor in accounts receivable and related rights or assets transferred to an SPC);

(f) Liens on the property or assets of any Subsidiary securing Indebtedness owing to the Borrower or any Wholly-Owned Subsidiary;

(g) customary Liens and setoff rights securing obligations in respect of notional pooling cash management arrangements; and commodities and securities accounts;

(h) customary Liens incurred in connection with any transfer of an interest in accounts receivable or related assets as part of a Permitted Receivable Sales Transaction;

(i) Liens arising from precautionary filings in respect of (i) operating leases and (ii) credit and cash management programs between third parties and customers of the Borrower or customers of any Subsidiary of the Borrower under which the Borrower or such Subsidiary does not have any Indebtedness;

(j) any interest or title of a lessor in the property (and the proceeds, accession or products thereof) subject to any operating lease, and Liens arising from Uniform Commercial Code financing statements (or equivalent filings, registrations or agreements in foreign jurisdictions) relating to true leases or leases permitted hereunder; and

(k) other Liens securing obligations at no time exceeding $100,000,000 in aggregate principal amount.

 

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SECTION 6.03 Fundamental Changes; Asset Sales. The Borrower will not, and will not permit any Subsidiary to, merge into or consolidate with any other Person, or permit any other Person to merge into or consolidate with it, or sell, transfer, lease or otherwise dispose of (in one transaction or in a series of transactions) all or substantially all of the consolidated assets of the Borrower and its consolidated subsidiaries, taken as a whole (in each case, whether now owned or hereafter acquired), or liquidate or dissolve, except that, if at the time thereof and immediately after giving effect thereto no Default shall have occurred and be continuing, (i) any Subsidiary may merge or consolidate with or into any other Subsidiary; (ii) any Subsidiary may merge into the Borrower and (iii) the Borrower and any Subsidiary may merge or consolidate with or into any other Person; provided that in each case of the foregoing, in the case of any such merger or consolidation of the Borrower with or into another Person (such that the Borrower is not the surviving corporation), the Person with or into which the Borrower is merged or consolidated shall (A) first or simultaneously with such merger or consolidation agree to be bound by the terms hereof and of the Credit Documents and assume the Borrower’s obligations hereunder and thereunder pursuant to an agreement or instrument satisfactory in form and substance to the Administrative Agent (and shall thereafter be the Borrower hereunder) and (B) to the extent requested by any Lender, have promptly provided to such Lender all documentation and other information that may be required by such Lender in order to enable compliance with applicable “know-your-customer” and anti-money laundering rules and regulations, including information required by the Act and (C) be a corporation organized under the laws of the United States of America or any State thereof.

SECTION 6.04 Restricted Payments. The Borrower will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, declare, pay or make, or agree to declare, pay or make, directly or indirectly, any Restricted Payment, except (a) the Borrower may declare and pay dividends with respect to its Equity Interests payable solely in additional shares of its common stock, (b) Subsidiaries may declare and make Restricted Payments (i) ratably with respect to their Equity Interests and (ii) to the Borrower and/or any Wholly-Owned Subsidiary or Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries, (c) the Borrower may make Restricted Payments pursuant to and in accordance with stock option plans or other benefit plans for management or employees of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries and (d) the Borrower may make other Restricted Payments so long as both immediately before and immediately after giving effect to such Restricted Payments (i) no Default exists and (ii) the Borrower shall be in pro forma compliance with Sections 6.06 and 6.07 as of the date of such Restricted Payment.

SECTION 6.05 Transactions with Affiliates. The Borrower will not, and will not permit any of its Subsidiaries to, sell, lease or otherwise transfer any property or assets to, or purchase, lease or otherwise acquire any property or assets from, or otherwise engage in any other transactions with, any of its Affiliates, except (a) in the ordinary course of business at prices and on terms and conditions not less favorable to the Borrower or such Subsidiary than could be obtained on an arm’s length basis from unrelated third parties, (b) transactions between or among the Borrower and its Subsidiaries not involving any other Affiliate, (c) any Restricted Payment permitted by Section 6.04 and (d) notional pooling cash management arrangements extended in the ordinary course of business.

SECTION 6.06 Maximum Leverage Ratio. The Borrower will not, as of any Measurement Date, permit the Leverage Ratio to exceed 3.50:1.00.

 

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SECTION 6.07 Minimum Interest Coverage Ratio. The Borrower will not permit the Interest Coverage Ratio as of the end of any fiscal quarter of the Borrower to be less than 3.50:1.00.

ARTICLE VII

EVENTS OF DEFAULT

If any of the following events (“Events of Default”) shall occur:

(a) the Borrower shall fail to pay any principal of any Loan when and as the same shall become due and payable, whether at the due date thereof or at a date fixed for prepayment thereof or otherwise;

(b) the Borrower shall fail to pay any interest on any Loan or any fee or any other amount (other than an amount referred to in clause (a) of this Article) payable under this Agreement, when and as the same shall become due and payable, and such failure shall continue unremedied for a period of five days;

(c) any representation or warranty made or deemed made by or on behalf of the Borrower or any Subsidiary in writing in connection with this Agreement or any Credit Document or any amendment or modification hereof or thereof or waiver hereunder or thereunder, or in any report, certificate, financial statement or other document furnished pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement or any amendment or modification hereof or waiver hereunder, shall prove to have been incorrect in any material respect when made or deemed made;

(d) the Borrower shall fail to observe or perform any covenant, condition or agreement contained in Section 5.02, 5.03 (with respect to the Borrower’s existence) or 5.08 or in Article VI;

(e) the Borrower shall fail to observe or perform any covenant, condition or agreement contained in this Agreement (other than those specified in clause (a), (b) or (d) of this Article), and such failure shall continue unremedied for a period of 30 days after notice thereof from the Administrative Agent to the Borrower (which notice will be given at the request of any Lender);

(f) the Borrower or any Subsidiary shall fail to make any payment (whether of principal or interest and regardless of amount) in respect of any Material Indebtedness, when and as the same shall become due and payable (subject to any applicable grace period);

(g) any event or condition occurs (other than the voluntary sale or transfer of the property or assets securing such Material Indebtedness) that results in any Material Indebtedness becoming due prior to its scheduled maturity or that enables or permits (with or without the giving of notice, the lapse of time or both) the holder or holders of any Material Indebtedness or any trustee or agent on its or their behalf to cause any Material Indebtedness to become due, or to require the prepayment, repurchase, redemption or defeasance thereof, prior to its scheduled maturity;

 

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(h) an involuntary proceeding shall be commenced or an involuntary petition shall be filed seeking (i) liquidation, reorganization or other relief in respect of the Borrower or any Material Subsidiary or its debts, or of a substantial part of its assets, under any Federal, state or foreign bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar law now or hereafter in effect or (ii) the appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian, sequestrator, conservator or similar official for the Borrower or any Material Subsidiary or for a substantial part of its assets, and, in any such case, such proceeding or petition shall continue undismissed for 60 days or an order or decree approving or ordering any of the foregoing shall be entered;

(i) the Borrower or any Material Subsidiary shall (i) voluntarily commence any proceeding or file any petition seeking liquidation, reorganization or other relief under any Federal, state or foreign bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar law now or hereafter in effect, (ii) consent to the institution of, or fail to contest in a timely and appropriate manner, any proceeding or petition described in clause (h) of this Article, (iii) apply for or consent to the appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian, sequestrator, conservator or similar official for the Borrower or any Material Subsidiary or for a substantial part of its assets, (iv) file an answer admitting the material allegations of a petition filed against it in any such proceeding, (v) make a general assignment for the benefit of creditors or (vi) take any action for the purpose of effecting any of the foregoing;

(j) the Borrower or any Material Subsidiary shall become unable, admit in writing its inability or fail generally to pay its debts as they become due;

(k) one or more judgments for the payment of money in an aggregate amount in excess of $50,000,000 shall be rendered against the Borrower, any Subsidiary or any combination thereof and the same shall remain undischarged for a period of 30 consecutive days during which execution shall not be effectively stayed, or any action shall be legally taken by a judgment creditor to attach or levy upon any assets of the Borrower or any Subsidiary to enforce any such judgment;

(l) an ERISA Event shall have occurred that, in the opinion of the Required Lenders, when taken together with all other ERISA Events that have occurred, could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect; or

(m) a Change in Control shall occur;

then, and in every such event (other than an event with respect to the Borrower described in clause (h) or (i) of this Article), and at any time thereafter during the continuance of such event, the Administrative Agent may, and at the request of the Required Lenders shall, by notice to the Borrower, take either or both of the following actions, at the same or different times (i) terminate the Commitments, and thereupon the Commitments shall terminate immediately, and (ii) declare the Loans then outstanding to be due and payable in whole (or in part, in which case any

 

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principal not so declared to be due and payable may thereafter be declared to be due and payable), and thereupon the principal of the Loans so declared to be due and payable, together with accrued interest thereon and all fees and other obligations of the Borrower accrued hereunder, shall become due and payable immediately, without presentment, demand, protest or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby waived by the Borrower; and in case of any event with respect to the Borrower described in clause (h) or (i) of this Article, the Commitments shall automatically terminate and the principal of the Loans then outstanding, together with accrued interest thereon and all fees and other obligations of the Borrower accrued hereunder, shall automatically become due and payable, without presentment, demand, protest or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby waived by the Borrower.

ARTICLE VIII

THE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT.

Each of the Lenders hereby irrevocably appoints the Administrative Agent as its agent and authorizes the Administrative Agent to take such actions on its behalf and to exercise such powers as are delegated to the Administrative Agent by the terms hereof, together with such actions and powers as are reasonably incidental thereto.

The bank serving as the Administrative Agent hereunder shall have the same rights and powers in its capacity as a Lender as any other Lender and may exercise the same as though it were not the Administrative Agent, and such bank and its Affiliates may accept deposits from, lend money to and generally engage in any kind of business with the Borrower or any Subsidiary or other Affiliate thereof as if it were not the Administrative Agent hereunder.

The Administrative Agent shall not have any duties or obligations except those expressly set forth herein. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, (a) the Administrative Agent shall not be subject to any fiduciary or other implied duties, regardless of whether a Default has occurred and is continuing, (b) the Administrative Agent shall not have any duty to take any discretionary action or exercise any discretionary powers, except discretionary rights and powers expressly contemplated hereby that the Administrative Agent is required to exercise in writing as directed by the Required Lenders (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section 9.02), and (c) except as expressly set forth herein, the Administrative Agent shall not have any duty to disclose, and shall not be liable for the failure to disclose, any information relating to the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries that is communicated to or obtained by the bank serving as Administrative Agent or any of its Affiliates in any capacity. The Administrative Agent shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it with the consent or at the request of the Required Lenders (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section 9.02) or in the absence of its own gross negligence or willful misconduct. The Administrative Agent shall be deemed not to have knowledge of any Default unless and until written notice thereof is given to the Administrative Agent by the Borrower or a Lender, and the Administrative Agent shall not be responsible for or have any duty to ascertain or inquire into (i) any statement, warranty or representation made in or in connection with this Agreement, (ii) the contents of any certificate, report or other document delivered hereunder or in connection herewith, (iii) the performance or observance of any of the covenants, agreements or other terms or conditions set forth herein, (iv) the validity, enforceability, effectiveness or genuineness of this Agreement or any other agreement, instrument or document, or (v) the satisfaction of any condition set forth in Article IV or elsewhere herein, other than to confirm receipt of items expressly required to be delivered to the Administrative Agent.

 

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The Administrative Agent, acting in good faith, shall be entitled to rely upon, and shall not incur any liability for relying upon, any notice, request, certificate, consent, statement, instrument, document or other writing believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or sent by the proper Person. The Administrative Agent, acting in good faith, also may rely upon any statement made to it orally or by telephone and believed by it to be made by the proper Person, and shall not incur any liability for relying thereon. The Administrative Agent may consult with legal counsel (who may be counsel for the Borrower), independent accountants and other experts selected by it, and shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it in accordance with the advice of any such counsel, accountants or experts.

The Administrative Agent may perform any and all its duties and exercise its rights and powers by or through any one or more sub-agents appointed by the Administrative Agent. The Administrative Agent and any such sub-agent may perform any and all its duties and exercise its rights and powers through their respective Related Parties. The exculpatory provisions of the preceding paragraphs shall apply to any such sub-agent and to the Related Parties of the Administrative Agent and any such sub-agent, and shall apply to their respective activities in connection with the syndication of the credit facilities provided for herein as well as activities as Administrative Agent.

Subject to the appointment and acceptance of a successor Administrative Agent as provided in this paragraph, the Administrative Agent may resign at any time by notifying the Lenders and the Borrower. Upon any such resignation, the Required Lenders shall have the right to appoint a successor agent, which successor agent shall, unless a Default shall have occurred and be continuing, be subject to the approval of the Borrower, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed. If no successor shall have been so appointed by the Required Lenders and shall have accepted such appointment within 30 days after the retiring Administrative Agent gives notice of its resignation, then the retiring Administrative Agent may, on behalf of the Lenders, appoint a successor Administrative Agent which shall be a bank with an office in New York, New York, or an Affiliate of any such bank. Upon the acceptance of its appointment as Administrative Agent hereunder by a successor, such successor shall succeed to and become vested with all the rights, powers, privileges and duties of the retiring Administrative Agent, and the retiring Administrative Agent shall be discharged from its duties and obligations hereunder. The fees payable by the Borrower to a successor Administrative Agent shall be the same as those payable to its predecessor unless otherwise agreed between the Borrower and such successor. After the Administrative Agent’s resignation hereunder, the provisions of this Article and Section 9.03 shall continue in effect for the benefit of such retiring Administrative Agent, its sub-agents and their respective Related Parties in respect of any actions taken or omitted to be taken by any of them while it was acting as Administrative Agent.

Each Lender acknowledges that it has, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it has deemed appropriate, made its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Agreement.

 

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Each Lender also acknowledges that it will, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it shall from time to time deem appropriate, continue to make its own decisions in taking or not taking action under or based upon this Agreement, any related agreement or any document furnished hereunder or thereunder.

Without limitation of any other provision in this Agreement, if at any time the Administrative Agent makes a payment hereunder in error to any Lender (the “Credit Party”), whether or not in respect of an obligation due and owing by the Borrower at such time, where such payment is a Rescindable Amount, then in any such event, each Credit Party receiving a Rescindable Amount severally agrees to repay to the Administrative Agent forthwith on demand the Rescindable Amount received by such Credit Party in immediately available funds in the currency so received, with interest thereon, for each day from and including the date such Rescindable Amount is received by it to but excluding the date of payment to the Administrative Agent, at the greater of the Federal Funds Effective Rate and a rate determined by the Administrative Agent in accordance with banking industry rules on interbank compensation. Each Credit Party irrevocably waives any and all defenses, including any “discharge for value” (under which a creditor might otherwise claim a right to retain funds mistakenly paid by a third party in respect of a debt owed by another) or similar defense to its obligation to return any Rescindable Amount. The Administrative Agent shall inform each Credit Party promptly upon determining that any payment made to such Credit Party comprised, in whole or in part, a Rescindable Amount.

ARTICLE IX

MISCELLANEOUS

SECTION 9.01 Notices. (a) Except in the case of notices and other communications expressly permitted to be given by telephone (and subject to paragraph (b) below), all notices and other communications provided for herein shall be in writing and shall be delivered by hand or overnight courier service, mailed by certified or registered mail or sent by telecopy, as follows:

(i) if to the Borrower, to it at Ingredion Incorporated, 5 Westbrook Corporate Center, Westchester, Illinois 60154, Attention of Kevin Wilson, Treasurer (Telecopy No. (708) 551-2630), with a copy to Ingredion Incorporated, 5 Westbrook Corporate Center, Westchester, Illinois 60154, Attention of the Senior Vice President, General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer;

(ii) if to the Administrative Agent, to Bank of America, N.A., 2380 Performance Drive, Richardson , TX 75082, Attention of Katlyn Tran (Telephone No. (469) 201-4056; Facsimile No. (214) 290-9714; e-mail: ***@***, and

(iii) if to any other Lender, to it at its address (or telecopy number) set forth in its Administrative Questionnaire.

 

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(b) Notices and other communications to the Lenders hereunder may be delivered or furnished by electronic communications pursuant to procedures approved by the Administrative Agent; provided that the foregoing shall not apply to notices pursuant to Article II unless otherwise agreed by the Administrative Agent and the applicable Lender. The Administrative Agent or the Borrower may, in its discretion, agree to accept notices and other communications to it hereunder by electronic communications pursuant to procedures approved by it; provided that approval of such procedures may be limited to particular notices or communications.

Unless the Administrative Agent otherwise prescribes, (i) notices and other communications sent to an e-mail address shall be deemed received upon the sender’s receipt of an acknowledgement from the intended recipient (such as by the “return receipt requested” function, as available, return e-mail or other written acknowledgement), and (ii) notices or communications posted to an Internet or intranet website shall be deemed received upon the deemed receipt by the intended recipient, at its e-mail address as described in the foregoing clause (i), of notification that such notice or communication is available and identifying the website address therefor; provided that, for both clauses (i) and (ii) above, if such notice, email or other communication is not sent during the normal business hours of the recipient, such notice or communication shall be deemed to have been sent at the opening of business on the next business day for the recipient.

(c) Any party hereto may change its address, electronic mail address or telecopy number for notices and other communications hereunder by notice to the other parties hereto.

SECTION 9.02 Waivers; Amendments. (a) No failure or delay by the Administrative Agent or any Lender in exercising any right or power hereunder or under any other Credit Document shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any such right or power, or any abandonment or discontinuance of steps to enforce such a right or power, preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right or power. The rights and remedies of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders hereunder and under any other Credit Document are cumulative and are not exclusive of any rights or remedies that they would otherwise have. No waiver of any provision of any Credit Document or consent to any departure by the Borrower therefrom shall in any event be effective unless the same shall be permitted by paragraph (b) of this Section, and then such waiver or consent shall be effective only in the specific instance and for the purpose for which given. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the making of a Loan shall not be construed as a waiver of any Default, regardless of whether the Administrative Agent or any Lender may have had notice or knowledge of such Default at the time.

(b) None of this Agreement, any other Credit Document or any provision hereof or thereof may be waived, amended or modified except pursuant to an agreement or agreements in writing entered into by the Borrower and the Required Lenders or by the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with the consent of the Required Lenders; provided that no such agreement shall (i) increase the Commitment of any Lender without the written consent of such Lender, (ii) reduce the principal amount of any Loan or reduce the rate of interest thereon, or reduce any fees payable hereunder, without the written consent of each Lender affected thereby,

 

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(iii) postpone the scheduled date of payment of the principal amount of any Loan, or any interest thereon, or any fees payable hereunder, or reduce the amount of, waive or excuse any such payment, without the written consent of each Lender affected thereby, (iv) change Section 2.18(b) in a manner that would alter the pro rata sharing of payments required thereby, without the written consent of each Lender, or (v) change any of the provisions of this Section or the definition of “Required Lenders” or any other provision hereof specifying the number or percentage of Lenders required to waive, amend or modify any rights hereunder or make any determination or grant any consent hereunder, without the written consent of each Lender.

(c) If, in connection with any proposed amendment, waiver or consent requiring the consent of “each Lender” or “each Lender directly affected thereby,” the consent of the Required Lenders is obtained, but the consent of other necessary Lenders is not obtained (any such Lender whose consent is necessary but not obtained being referred to herein as a “Non-Consenting Lender”), then the Borrower may elect to replace a Non-Consenting Lender as a Lender party to this Agreement, provided that, concurrently with such replacement: (i) another bank or other entity which is reasonably satisfactory to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent shall agree, as of such date, to purchase for cash at par the Loans and other obligations due to the Non-Consenting Lender pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption and to become a Lender for all purposes under this Agreement and to assume all obligations of the Non-Consenting Lender to be terminated as of such date and to comply with the requirements of clause (b) of Section 9.04, and (ii) the Borrower shall pay to such Non-Consenting Lender in same day funds on the day of such replacement (1) all interest, fees and other amounts then accrued but unpaid to such Non-Consenting Lender by the Borrower hereunder to and including the date of termination, including without limitation payments due to such Non-Consenting Lender under Sections 2.15 and 2.17, and (2) an amount, if any, equal to the payment which would have been due to such Non-Consenting Lender on the day of such replacement under Section 2.16 had the Loans of such Non-Consenting Lender been prepaid on such date rather than sold to the replacement Lender.

(d) No amendment or amendment and restatement of this Agreement which is in all other respects approved by the Lenders in accordance with this Section 9.02 shall require the consent or approval of any Lender (i) which immediately after giving effect to such amendment or amendment and restatement, shall have no Commitment or other obligation to maintain or extend credit under this Agreement (as so amended or amended and restated), and (ii) which, substantially contemporaneously with the effectiveness of such amendment or amendment and restatement, is paid in full all amounts owing to it hereunder (including, without limitation principal, interest and fees and amounts due pursuant to Sections 2.15, 2.16 and 2.17). From and after the effectiveness of any such amendment or amendment and restatement, any such Lender shall be deemed to no longer be a “Lender” hereunder or a party hereto; provided, that any such Lender shall retain the benefit of indemnification and other provisions hereof which, by the terms hereof would survive a termination of this Agreement.

(e) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, if the Administrative Agent and the Borrower acting together identify any ambiguity, omission, mistake, typographical error or other defect in any provision of this Agreement or any other Credit Document, then the Administrative Agent and the Borrower shall be permitted to amend, modify or supplement such provision to cure such ambiguity, omission, mistake, typographical error or other defect, and such amendment shall become effective without any further action or consent of any other party to this Agreement.

 

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SECTION 9.03 Expenses; Indemnity; Damage Waiver.

(a) The Borrower shall pay (i) all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Administrative Agent and its Affiliates, including the reasonable fees, charges and disbursements of outside counsel for the Administrative Agent, in connection with the preparation, execution, delivery and administration of this Agreement or any other Credit Documents or any amendments, modifications or waivers of the provisions hereof or thereof (whether or not the transactions contemplated hereby or thereby shall be consummated), and (ii) all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses incurred by any Lender, including the fees, charges and disbursements of any outside counsel for the Administrative Agent or any Lender in connection with the enforcement or protection of its rights in connection with this Agreement, including its rights under this Section, or in connection with the Loans made, including all such out-of-pocket expenses incurred during any workout, restructuring or negotiations in respect of such Loans.

(b) The Borrower shall indemnify the Administrative Agent and each Lender and each Related Party of any of the foregoing Persons (each such Person being called an “Indemnitee”) against, and hold each Indemnitee harmless from, any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities and related expenses, including the fees, charges and disbursements of any outside counsel for any Indemnitee, without duplication of amounts paid pursuant to Section 2.17, incurred by or asserted against any Indemnitee arising out of, in connection with, or as a result of (i) the execution or delivery of this Agreement or any agreement or instrument contemplated hereby, the performance by the parties hereto of their respective obligations hereunder or the consummation of the Transactions or any other transactions contemplated hereby, (ii) any Loan or the use of the proceeds therefrom, (iii) any actual or alleged presence or release of Hazardous Materials on or from any property owned or operated by the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries, or any Environmental Liability related in any way to the Borrower or any of its Subsidiaries, or (iv) any actual or prospective claim, litigation, investigation or proceeding relating to any of the foregoing, whether based on contract, tort or any other theory and regardless of whether any Indemnitee is a party thereto; provided that such indemnity shall not, as to any Indemnitee, be available to the extent that such losses, claims, damages, liabilities or related expenses are determined by a court of competent jurisdiction by final and non-appealable judgment to have resulted from the gross negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct of such Indemnitee (or any Related Party) or from a breach in bad faith of any obligation of such Indemnitee (or any Related Party) hereunder or under any other Credit Document. This Section 9.03(b) shall not apply with respect to Taxes other than any Taxes that represent losses, claims or damages arising from any non-Tax claim.

(c) To the extent that the Borrower fails to pay any amount required to be paid by it to the Administrative Agent under paragraph (a) or (b) of this Section, each Lender severally agrees to pay to the Administrative Agent such Lender’s Applicable Percentage (determined as of the time that the applicable unreimbursed expense or indemnity payment is sought) of such unpaid amount; provided that the unreimbursed expense or indemnified loss, claim, damage, liability or related expense, as the case may be, was incurred by or asserted against the Administrative Agent in its capacity as such.

 

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(d) To the extent permitted by applicable law, the Borrower shall not assert, and hereby waives, any claim against any Indemnitee, on any theory of liability, for special, indirect, consequential or punitive damages (as opposed to direct or actual damages) arising out of, in connection with, or as a result of, this Agreement or any agreement or instrument contemplated hereby, the Transactions, any Loan or the use of the proceeds thereof. No Lender shall, by virtue of this Agreement, have or be deemed to have a fiduciary relationship with, or owe any fiduciary duties to, the Borrower or any of its Affiliates.

(e) All amounts due under this Section shall be payable not later than ten (10) Business Days after written demand (accompanied by reasonably detailed invoices) therefor.

SECTION 9.04 Successors and Assigns. (a) The provisions of this Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns permitted hereby, except that (i) the Borrower may not assign or otherwise transfer any of its rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of each Lender (and any attempted assignment or transfer by the Borrower without such consent shall be null and void) and (ii) no Lender may assign or otherwise transfer its rights or obligations hereunder except in accordance with this Section. Nothing in this Agreement, expressed or implied, shall be construed to confer upon any Person (other than the parties hereto, their respective successors and assigns permitted hereby, Participants (to the extent provided in paragraph (c) of this Section) and, to the extent expressly contemplated hereby, the Related Parties of each of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders) any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or by reason of this Agreement.

(b) (i) Subject to the conditions set forth in paragraph (b)(ii) below, any Lender may assign to one or more assignees all or a portion of its rights and obligations under this Agreement (including all or a portion of its Commitment and the Loans at the time owing to it) with the prior written consent (such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed) of:

(A) the Borrower, provided that no consent of the Borrower shall be required for an assignment to a Lender, an Affiliate of a Lender, an Approved Fund or, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, any other assignee; and

(B) the Administrative Agent; provided that no consent of the Administrative Agent shall be required for an assignment of any Commitment to an assignee that is a Lender with a Commitment immediately prior to giving effect to such assignment.

(ii) Assignments shall be subject to the following additional conditions:

(A) except in the case of an assignment to a Lender, an Affiliate of a Lender or an Approved Fund or an assignment of the entire remaining amount of the assigning Lender’s Loans, the amount of the Loans of the assigning Lender subject to each such assignment (determined as of the date the Assignment and Assumption with respect to such assignment is delivered to the Administrative Agent) shall not be less than $5,000,000 unless each of the Borrower and the Administrative Agent otherwise consent, provided that no such consent of the Borrower shall be required if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing;

 

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(B) each partial assignment shall be made as an assignment of a proportionate part of all the assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement;

(C) the parties to each assignment shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent an Assignment and Assumption, together with a processing and recordation fee of $3,500;

(D) the assignee, if it shall not be a Lender, shall deliver to the Administrative Agent an Administrative Questionnaire in which the assignee designates one or more credit contacts to whom all syndicate-level information (which may contain material non-public information about the Borrower and its Affiliates and their related parties or their respective securities) will be made available and who may receive such information in accordance with the assignee’s compliance procedures and applicable laws, including Federal and state securities laws; and

(A) no such assignment shall be made to (1) a natural person, (2) a Defaulting Lender or its Lender Parent, (3) a holding company, investment vehicle or trust for, or owned and operated for the primary benefit of, a natural person or relative(s) thereof or (4) the Borrower or any of its Affiliates provided that, such holding company, investment vehicle or trust shall not constitute an Ineligible Institution if it (x) has not been established for the primary purpose of acquiring any Loans or Commitments, (y) is managed by a professional advisor, who is not such natural person or a relative thereof, having significant experience in the business of making or purchasing commercial loans, and (z) has assets greater than $25,000,000 and a significant part of its activities consist of making or purchasing commercial loans and similar extensions of credit in the ordinary course of its business.

For the purposes of this Section 9.04(b), the term “Approved Fund” has the following meaning:

Approved Fund” means any Person (other than a natural person) that is engaged in making, purchasing, holding or investing in bank loans and similar extensions of credit in the ordinary course of its business and that is administered or managed by (a) a Lender, (b) an Affiliate of a Lender or (c) an entity or an Affiliate of an entity that administers or manages a Lender.

(iii) Subject to acceptance and recording thereof pursuant to paragraph (b)(iv) of this Section, from and after the effective date specified in each Assignment and Assumption the assignee thereunder shall be a party hereto and, to the extent of the interest assigned by such Assignment and Assumption, have the rights and obligations of a Lender under this Agreement, and the assigning Lender thereunder shall, to the extent of the interest assigned by such Assignment and Assumption, be released from its

 

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obligations under this Agreement (and, in the case of an Assignment and Assumption covering all of the assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement, such Lender shall cease to be a party hereto but shall continue to be entitled to the benefits of Sections 2.15, 2.16, 2.17 and 9.03). Any assignment or transfer by a Lender of rights or obligations under this Agreement that does not comply with this Section 9.04 shall be treated for purposes of this Agreement as a sale by such Lender of a participation in such rights and obligations in accordance with paragraph (c) of this Section.

(iv) The Administrative Agent, acting for this purpose as an agent of the Borrower, shall maintain at one of its offices a copy of each Assignment and Assumption delivered to it and a register for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Lenders, and the Commitment of, and principal amount of (and stated interest on) the Loans owing to, each Lender pursuant to the terms hereof from time to time (the “Register”). The entries in the Register shall be conclusive, and the Borrower, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Register pursuant to the terms hereof as a Lender hereunder for all purposes of this Agreement, notwithstanding notice to the contrary. The Register shall be available for inspection by the Borrower and any Lender, at any reasonable time and from time to time upon reasonable prior notice.

(v) Upon its receipt of a duly completed Assignment and Assumption executed by an assigning Lender and an assignee, the assignee’s completed Administrative Questionnaire (unless the assignee shall already be a Lender hereunder), the processing and recordation fee referred to in paragraph (b) of this Section, any written consent to such assignment required by paragraph (b) of this Section and, if such assignee is a Foreign Lender, compliance by such Person with Section 2.17(e), the Administrative Agent shall accept such Assignment and Assumption and record the information contained therein in the Register; provided that if either the assigning Lender or the assignee shall have failed to make any payment required to be made by it pursuant to Section 2.18(d) or 9.03(c), the Administrative Agent shall have no obligation to accept such Assignment and Assumption and record the information therein in the Register unless and until such payment shall have been made in full, together with all accrued interest thereon. No assignment shall be effective for purposes of this Agreement unless it has been recorded in the Register as provided in this paragraph.

(c) (i) Any Lender may, without the consent of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, sell participations to one or more banks or other entities (a “Participant”) in all or a portion of such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement (including all or a portion of the Loans owing to it); provided that (A) such Lender’s obligations under this Agreement shall remain unchanged, (B) such Lender shall remain solely responsible to the other parties hereto for the performance of such obligations and (C) the Borrower, the Administrative Agent and the other Lenders shall continue to deal solely and directly with such Lender in connection with such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement. Any agreement or instrument pursuant to which a Lender sells such a participation shall provide that such Lender shall retain the sole right to enforce this Agreement and to approve any amendment, modification or waiver of any provision of this Agreement; provided that such agreement or instrument may provide that such Lender will not, without the consent of the Participant, agree to any amendment, modification or waiver described in the first proviso to Section 9.02(b) that affects such Participant. To the extent permitted by law, each Participant also shall be entitled to the benefits of Section 9.08 as though it were a Lender.

 

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(ii) A Participant shall not be entitled to receive any greater payment under Section 2.15 or 2.17 than the applicable Lender would have been entitled to receive with respect to the participation sold to such Participant, unless the sale of the participation to such Participant is made with the Borrower’s prior written consent. A Participant that would be a Foreign Lender if it were a Lender shall not be entitled to the benefits of Section 2.17 unless the Borrower is notified of the participation sold to such Participant and such Participant agrees, for the benefit of the Borrower, to comply with Section 2.17(e) as though it were a Lender. Each Lender that sells a participation shall, acting solely for this purpose as a non-fiduciary agent of the Borrower, maintain a register on which it enters the name and address of each Participant and the principal amounts of (and stated interest on) each Participant’s interest in the Loans or other obligations under the Credit Documents (the “Participant Register”); provided that no Lender shall have any obligation to disclose all or any portion of the Participant Register (including the identity of any Participant or any information relating to a Participant’s interest in any Commitment, Loans or its other obligations under any Credit Document) to any Person except to the extent that such disclosure is necessary to establish that such Commitment or Loan or other obligation is in registered form under Section 5f.103-1(c) of the United States Treasury Regulations. The entries in the Participant Register shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and such Lender shall treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Participant Register as the owner of such participation for all purposes of this Agreement notwithstanding any notice to the contrary. For the avoidance of doubt, the Administrative Agent (in its capacity as Administrative Agent) shall have no responsibility for maintaining a Participant Register.

(d) Any Lender may at any time pledge or assign a security interest in all or any portion of its rights under this Agreement to secure obligations of such Lender, including without limitation any pledge or assignment to secure obligations to a Federal Reserve Bank or any central bank having jurisdiction over such Lender or its parent, and this Section shall not apply to any such pledge or assignment of a security interest; provided that no such pledge or assignment of a security interest shall release a Lender from any of its obligations hereunder or substitute any such pledgee or assignee for such Lender as a party hereto.

SECTION 9.05 Survival. All covenants, agreements, representations and warranties made by the Borrower herein and in the certificates or other instruments delivered in connection with or pursuant to this Agreement shall be considered to have been relied upon by the other parties hereto and shall survive the execution and delivery of this Agreement and the making of any Loans, regardless of any investigation made by any such other party or on its behalf and notwithstanding that the Administrative Agent or any Lender may have had notice or knowledge of any Default or incorrect representation or warranty at the time any credit is extended hereunder, and shall continue in full force and effect as long as the principal of or any accrued interest on any Loan or any fee or any other amount payable under this Agreement is outstanding and unpaid and so long as the Commitments have not expired or terminated. The provisions of Sections 2.15, 2.16, 2.17 and 9.03 and Article VIII shall survive and remain in full force and effect regardless of the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, the repayment of the Loans, the expiration or termination of the Commitments or the termination of this Agreement or any provision hereof.

 

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SECTION 9.06 Counterparts; Integration; Effectiveness. This Agreement may be executed in counterparts (and by different parties hereto on different counterparts), each of which shall constitute an original, but all of which when taken together shall constitute a single contract. THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER CREDIT DOCUMENTS REPRESENT THE FINAL AGREEMENT AMONG THE PARTIES AND MAY NOT BE CONTRADICTED BY EVIDENCE OF PRIOR, CONTEMPORANEOUS, OR SUBSEQUENT ORAL AGREEMENTS OF THE PARTIES. THERE ARE NO UNWRITTEN ORAL AGREEMENTS AMONG THE PARTIES. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page of this Agreement by telecopy or by other electronic imaging (including in a pdf or similar file format) shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Agreement.

SECTION 9.07 Severability. Any provision of this Agreement held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any jurisdiction shall, as to such jurisdiction, be ineffective to the extent of such invalidity, illegality or unenforceability without affecting the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions hereof; and the invalidity of a particular provision in a particular jurisdiction shall not invalidate such provision in any other jurisdiction.

SECTION 9.08 Right of Setoff. If an Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, each Lender and each of its Affiliates is hereby authorized at any time and from time to time, to the fullest extent permitted by law, to setoff and apply any and all deposits (general or special, time or demand, provisional or final) at any time held and other obligations at any time owing by such Lender or Affiliate to or for the credit or the account of the Borrower against any of and all the obligations of the Borrower now or hereafter existing under this Agreement held by such Lender, irrespective of whether or not such Lender shall have made any demand under this Agreement and although such obligations may be unmatured. The rights of each Lender under this Section are in addition to other rights and remedies (including other rights of setoff) which such Lender may have.

SECTION 9.09 Governing Law; Jurisdiction; Consent to Service of Process. (a) This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with and governed by the law of the State of New York.

(b) The Borrower hereby irrevocably and unconditionally submits, for itself and its property, to the nonexclusive jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of the State of New York sitting in New York County and of the United States District Court of the Southern District of New York, and any appellate court from any thereof, in any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement, or for recognition or enforcement of any judgment, and each of the parties hereto hereby irrevocably and unconditionally agrees that all claims in respect of any such action or proceeding may be heard and determined in such New York State or, to the extent permitted by law, in such Federal court. Each of the parties hereto agrees that a final judgment in any such action or proceeding shall be conclusive and may be enforced in other jurisdictions by suit on the judgment or in any other manner provided by law. Nothing in this Agreement shall affect any right that the Administrative Agent any Lender may otherwise have to bring any action or proceeding relating to this Agreement against the Borrower or its properties in the courts of any jurisdiction.

 

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(c) The Borrower hereby irrevocably and unconditionally waives, to the fullest extent it may legally and effectively do so, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement in any court referred to in paragraph (b) of this Section. Each of the parties hereto hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the defense of an inconvenient forum to the maintenance of such action or proceeding in any such court.

(d) Each party to this Agreement irrevocably consents to service of process in the manner provided for notices in Section 9.01. Nothing in this Agreement will affect the right of any party to this Agreement to serve process in any other manner permitted by law.

SECTION 9.10 WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL. EACH PARTY HERETO HEREBY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ANY RIGHT IT MAY HAVE TO A TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT OR THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY (WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT OR ANY OTHER THEORY). EACH PARTY HERETO (A) CERTIFIES THAT NO REPRESENTATIVE, AGENT OR ATTORNEY OF ANY OTHER PARTY HAS REPRESENTED, EXPRESSLY OR OTHERWISE, THAT SUCH OTHER PARTY WOULD NOT, IN THE EVENT OF LITIGATION, SEEK TO ENFORCE THE FOREGOING WAIVER AND (B) ACKNOWLEDGES THAT IT AND THE OTHER PARTIES HERETO HAVE BEEN INDUCED TO ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT BY, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE MUTUAL WAIVERS AND CERTIFICATIONS IN THIS SECTION.

SECTION 9.11 Headings. Article and Section headings and the Table of Contents used herein are for convenience of reference only, are not part of this Agreement and shall not affect the construction of, or be taken into consideration in interpreting, this Agreement.

SECTION 9.12 Confidentiality. Each of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders agrees to maintain the confidentiality of the Information (as defined below), except that Information may be disclosed (a) to its and its Affiliates’ directors, officers, employees and agents, respectively, including accountants, legal counsel and other advisors for reasons reasonably related to this Agreement or such Lender’s internal procedures relating to credit facilities (it being understood that the Persons to whom such disclosure is made will be informed of the confidential nature of such Information and instructed to keep such Information confidential), (b) to the extent requested by any regulatory authority, (c) to the extent required by applicable laws or regulations or by any subpoena or similar legal process, (d) to any other party to this Agreement, (e) in connection with the exercise of any remedies hereunder or any suit, action or proceeding relating to this Agreement or the enforcement of rights hereunder, (f) subject to an agreement containing provisions substantially the same as those of this Section, to (i) any assignee of or Participant in, or any prospective assignee of or Participant in, any of its rights or obligations under this Agreement or (ii) any actual or prospective counterparty (or its advisors) to any swap or derivative transaction relating to the Borrower and its obligations, (g)

 

64


with the consent of the Borrower or (h) to the extent such Information (i) becomes publicly available other than as a result of a breach of this Section or (ii) becomes available to the Administrative Agent or any Lender on a non-confidential basis from a source other than the Borrower. For the purposes of this Section, “Information” means all information received from the Borrower relating to the Borrower or its business, other than any such information that is available to the Administrative Agent or any Lender on a non-confidential basis prior to disclosure by the Borrower. Any Person required to maintain the confidentiality of Information as provided in this Section shall be considered to have complied with its obligation to do so if such Person has exercised the same degree of care to maintain the confidentiality of such Information as such Person would accord to its own confidential information.

EACH LENDER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT INFORMATION AS DEFINED IN SECTION 9.12 FURNISHED TO IT PURSUANT TO THIS AGREEMENT MAY INCLUDE MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION CONCERNING THE BORROWER AND ITS RELATED PARTIES OR THEIR RESPECTIVE SECURITIES, AND CONFIRMS THAT IT HAS DEVELOPED COMPLIANCE PROCEDURES REGARDING THE USE OF MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION AND THAT IT WILL HANDLE SUCH MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION IN ACCORDANCE WITH THOSE PROCEDURES AND APPLICABLE LAW, INCLUDING FEDERAL AND STATE SECURITIES LAWS.

ALL INFORMATION, INCLUDING REQUESTS FOR WAIVERS AND AMENDMENTS, FURNISHED BY THE BORROWER OR THE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT PURSUANT TO, OR IN THE COURSE OF ADMINISTERING, THIS AGREEMENT WILL BE SYNDICATE-LEVEL INFORMATION, WHICH MAY CONTAIN MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE BORROWER AND ITS AFFILIATES AND THEIR RELATED PARTIES OR THEIR RESPECTIVE SECURITIES. ACCORDINGLY, EACH LENDER REPRESENTS TO THE BORROWER AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT THAT IT HAS IDENTIFIED IN ITS ADMINISTRATIVE QUESTIONNAIRE A CREDIT CONTACT WHO MAY RECEIVE INFORMATION THAT MAY CONTAIN MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS COMPLIANCE PROCEDURES AND APPLICABLE LAW.

SECTION 9.13 Interest Rate Limitation. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, if at any time the interest rate applicable to any Loan, together with all fees, charges and other amounts which are treated as interest on such Loan under applicable law (collectively the “Charges”), shall exceed the maximum lawful rate (the “Maximum Rate”) which may be contracted for, charged, taken, received or reserved by the Lender holding such Loan in accordance with applicable law, the rate of interest payable in respect of such Loan hereunder, together with all Charges payable in respect thereof, shall be limited to the Maximum Rate and, to the extent lawful, the interest and Charges that would have been payable in respect of such Loan but were not payable as a result of the operation of this Section shall be cumulated and the interest and Charges payable to such Lender in respect of other Loans or periods shall be increased (but not above the Maximum Rate therefor) until such cumulated amount, together with interest thereon at the Federal Funds Effective Rate to the date of repayment, shall have been received by such Lender.

 

65


SECTION 9.14 USA PATRIOT Act. Each Lender that is subject to the requirements of the USA Patriot Act (Title III of Pub. L. 107-56 (signed into law October 26, 2001)) (the “Act”) hereby notifies the Borrower that pursuant to the requirements of the Act, it is required to obtain, verify and record information that identifies the Borrower, which information includes the name and address of the Borrower and other information that will allow such Lender to identify the Borrower in accordance with the Act.

SECTION 9.15 Electronic Execution of Documents. The words “execute,” “execution,” “signed,” “signature,” and words of like import in or related to any document to be signed in connection with this Agreement and the Transactions contemplated hereby (including without limitation assignment and assumptions, amendments or other modifications, waivers and consents) shall be deemed to include electronic signatures, the electronic matching of assignment terms and contract formations on electronic platforms approved by the Administrative Agent, or the keeping of records in electronic form, each of which shall be of the same legal effect, validity or enforceability as a manually executed signature or the use of a paper-based recordkeeping system, as the case may be, to the extent and as provided for in any applicable law, including the Federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, the New York State Electronic Signatures and Records Act, or any other similar state laws based on the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act.

SECTION 9.16 Acknowledgement and Consent to Bail-In of Affected Financial Institutions. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Credit Document or in any other agreement, arrangement or understanding among any such parties, each party hereto acknowledges that any liability of any Affected Financial Institution arising under any Credit Document, to the extent such liability is unsecured, may be subject to the write-down and conversion powers of the applicable Resolution Authority and agrees and consents to, and acknowledges and agrees to be bound by:

(a) the application of any Write-Down and Conversion Powers by the applicable Resolution Authority to any such liabilities arising hereunder which may be payable to it by any party hereto that is an Affected Financial Institution; and

(b) the effects of any Bail-In Action on any such liability, including, if applicable:

(i) a reduction in full or in part or cancellation of any such liability;

(ii) a conversion of all, or a portion of, such liability into shares or other instruments of ownership in such Affected Financial Institution, its parent entity, or a bridge institution that may be issued to it or otherwise conferred on it, and that such shares or other instruments of ownership will be accepted by it in lieu of any rights with respect to any such liability under this Agreement or any other Credit Document; or

(iii) the variation of the terms of such liability in connection with the exercise of the write-down and conversion powers of the applicable Resolution Authority.

 

66


SECTION 9.17 Acknowledgement Regarding Any Supported QFCs. To the extent that the Credit Documents provide support, through a guarantee or otherwise, for any Swap Agreement or any other agreement or instrument that is a QFC (such support, “QFC Credit Support”, and each such QFC, a “Supported QFC”), the parties acknowledge and agree as follows with respect to the resolution power of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (together with the regulations promulgated thereunder, the “U.S. Special Resolution Regimes”) in respect of such Supported QFC and QFC Credit Support (with the provisions below applicable notwithstanding that the Credit Documents and any Supported QFC may in fact be stated to be governed by the laws of the State of New York and/or of the United States or any other state of the United States):

(a) In the event a Covered Entity that is party to a Supported QFC (each, a “Covered Party”) becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer of such Supported QFC and the benefit of such QFC Credit Support (and any interest and obligation in or under such Supported QFC and such QFC Credit Support, and any rights in property securing such Supported QFC or such QFC Credit Support) from such Covered Party will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if the Supported QFC and such QFC Credit Support (and any such interest, obligation and rights in property) were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States. In the event a Covered Party or a BHC Act Affiliate of a Covered Party becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under the Credit Documents that might otherwise apply to such Supported QFC or any QFC Credit Support that may be exercised against such Covered Party are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if the Supported QFC and the Credit Documents were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States. Without limitation of the foregoing, it is understood and agreed that rights and remedies of the parties with respect to a Defaulting Bank shall in no event affect the rights of any Covered Party with respect to a Supported QFC or any QFC Credit Support.

(b) As used in this Section 9.17, the following terms have the following meanings:

BHC Act Affiliate” of a party means an “affiliate” (as such term is defined under, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. 1841(k)) of such party.

Covered Entity” means any of the following: (i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b); (ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b); or (iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b).

Default Right” has the meaning specified in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable.

QFC” has the meaning assigned to the term “qualified financial contract” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. 5390(c)(8)(D).

 

67


SECTION 9.18 Certain ERISA Matters.

(a) Each Lender (x) represents and warrants, as of the date such Person became a Lender party hereto, to, and (y) covenants, from the date such Person became a Lender party hereto to the date such Person ceases being a Lender party hereto, for the benefit of, the Administrative Agent and its respective Affiliates, and not, for the avoidance of doubt, to or for the benefit of the Company, that at least one of the following is and will be true:

(i) such Lender is not using “plan assets” (within the meaning of 29 CFR § 2510.3-101, as modified by Section 3(42) of ERISA) of one or more Benefit Plans in connection with the Loans or the Commitments,

(ii) the transaction exemption set forth in one or more PTEs, such as PTE 84-14 (a class exemption for certain transactions determined by independent qualified professional asset managers), PTE 95-60 (a class exemption for certain transactions involving insurance company general accounts), PTE 90-1 (a class exemption for certain transactions involving insurance company pooled separate accounts), PTE 91-38 (a class exemption for certain transactions involving bank collective investment funds) or PTE 96-23 (a class exemption for certain transactions determined by in-house asset managers), is applicable with respect to such Lender’s entrance into, participation in, administration of and performance of the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement,

(iii) (A) such Lender is an investment fund managed by a “Qualified Professional Asset Manager” (within the meaning of Part VI of PTE 84-14), (B) such Qualified Professional Asset Manager made the investment decision on behalf of such Lender to enter into, participate in, administer and perform the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement, (C) the entrance into, participation in, administration of and performance of the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement satisfies the requirements of sub-sections (b) through (g) of Part I of PTE 84-14 and (D) to the best knowledge of such Lender, the requirements of subsection (a) of Part I of PTE 84-14 are satisfied with respect to such Lender’s entrance into, participation in, administration of and performance of the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement, or

(iv) such other representation, warranty and covenant as may be agreed in writing between the Administrative Agent, in its sole discretion, and such Lender.

(b) In addition, unless sub-clause (i) in the immediately preceding clause (a) is true with respect to a Lender or such Lender has not provided another representation, warranty and covenant as provided in sub-clause (iv) in the immediately preceding clause (a), such Lender further (x) represents and warrants, as of the date such Person became a Lender party hereto, to, and (y) covenants, from the date such Person became a Lender party hereto to the date such Person ceases being a Lender party hereto, for the benefit of, the Administrative Agent and its respective Affiliates, and not, for the avoidance of doubt, to or for the benefit of the Company, that:

 

68


(i) none of the Administrative Agent or any of its respective Affiliates is a fiduciary with respect to the assets of such Lender (including in connection with the reservation or exercise of any rights by the Administrative Agent under this Agreement, any Credit Document or any documents related to hereto or thereto),

(ii) the Person making the investment decision on behalf of such Lender with respect to the entrance into, participation in, administration of and performance of the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement is independent (within the meaning of 29 CFR § 2510.3-21) and is a bank, an insurance carrier, an investment adviser, a broker-dealer or other person that holds, or has under management or control, total assets of at least $50 million, in each case as described in 29 CFR § 2510.3-21(c)(1)(i)(A)-(E),

(iii) the Person making the investment decision on behalf of such Lender with respect to the entrance into, participation in, administration of and performance of the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement is capable of evaluating investment risks independently, both in general and with regard to particular transactions and investment strategies (including in respect of the obligations),

(iv) the Person making the investment decision on behalf of such Lender with respect to the entrance into, participation in, administration of and performance of the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement is a fiduciary under ERISA or the Code, or both, with respect to the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement and is responsible for exercising independent judgment in evaluating the transactions hereunder, and

(v) no fee or other compensation is being paid directly to the Administrative Agent or any its respective Affiliates for investment advice (as opposed to other services) in connection with the Loans, the Commitments or this Agreement.

(c) The Administrative Agent hereby informs the Lenders that such Person is not undertaking to provide impartial investment advice, or to give advice in a fiduciary capacity, in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby, and that such Person has a financial interest in the transactions contemplated hereby in that such Person or an Affiliate thereof (i) may receive interest or other payments with respect to the Loans, the Commitments and this Agreement, (ii) may recognize a gain if it extended the Loans or the Commitments for an amount less than the amount being paid for an interest in the Loans or the Commitments by such Lender or (iii) may receive fees or other payments in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby, the Credit Documents or otherwise, including structuring fees, commitment fees, arrangement fees, facility fees, upfront fees, underwriting fees, ticking fees, agency fees, administrative agent or collateral agent fees, utilization fees, minimum usage fees, letter of credit fees, fronting fees, deal-away or alternate transaction fees, amendment fees, processing fees, term out premiums, banker’s acceptance fees, breakage or other early termination fees or fees similar to the foregoing.

[signature pages follow]

 

69


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be duly executed by their respective authorized officers as of the day and year first above written.

 

INGREDION INCORPORATED
By:  

/s/ James Gray

Name:   James Gray
Title:   Chief Financial Officer
By:  

/s/ Kevin Wilson

Name:   Kevin Wilson
Title:   Vice President and Corporate Treasurer

 

Signature Page to Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement


Bank of America, N.A.,
as Administrative Agent
By:  

/s/ Nicholas Cheng

Name:   Nicholas Cheng
Title:   Director

 

Bank of America, N.A.,
as Initial Lender
By:  

/s/ Nicholas Cheng

Name:   Nicholas Cheng
Title:   Director

 

Signature Page to Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement


SCHEDULE 2.01

Commitments

 

Lender

   Commitment  

BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.

   $ 380,000,000.00  
  

 

 

 

Total:

   $ 380,000,000.00  
  

 

 

 


SCHEDULE 6.02

Existing Liens

None.


EXHIBIT A

ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

This Assignment and Assumption (this “Assignment and Assumption”) is dated as of the Effective Date set forth below and is entered into by and between [the][each]1 Assignor identified in item 1 below ([the][each, an] “Assignor”) and [the][each]2 Assignee identified in item 2 below ([the][each, an] “Assignee”). [It is understood and agreed that the rights and obligations of [the Assignors][the Assignees]3 hereunder are several and not joint.]4 Capitalized terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement identified below (as amended, the “Credit Agreement”), receipt of a copy of which is hereby acknowledged by the Assignee. The Standard Terms and Conditions set forth in Annex 1 attached hereto are hereby agreed to and incorporated herein by reference and made a part of this Assignment and Assumption as if set forth herein in full.

For an agreed consideration, [the][each] Assignor hereby irrevocably sells and assigns to [the Assignee][the respective Assignees], and [the][each] Assignee hereby irrevocably purchases and assumes from [the Assignor][the respective Assignors], subject to and in accordance with the Standard Terms and Conditions and the Credit Agreement, as of the Effective Date inserted by the Administrative Agent as contemplated below (i) all of [the Assignor’s][the respective Assignors’] rights and obligations in [its capacity as a Lender][their respective capacities as Lenders] under the Credit Agreement and any other documents or instruments delivered pursuant thereto in the amount[s] and equal to the percentage interest[s] identified below of all the outstanding rights and obligations under the respective facilities identified below and (ii) to the extent permitted to be assigned under applicable law, all claims, suits, causes of action and any other right of [the Assignor (in its capacity as a Lender)][the respective Assignors (in their respective capacities as Lenders)] against any Person, whether known or unknown, arising under or in connection with the Credit Agreement, any other documents or instruments delivered pursuant thereto or the loan transactions governed thereby or in any way based on or related to any of the foregoing, including, but not limited to, contract claims, tort claims, malpractice claims, statutory claims and all other claims at law or in equity related to the rights and obligations sold and assigned pursuant to clause (i) above (the rights and obligations sold and assigned by [the][any] Assignor to [the][any] Assignee pursuant to clauses (i) and (ii) above being referred to herein collectively as [the][an] “Assigned Interest”). Each such sale and assignment is without recourse to [the][any] Assignor and, except as expressly provided in this Assignment and Assumption, without representation or warranty by [the][any] Assignor.

 

1 

For bracketed language here and elsewhere in this form relating to the Assignor(s), if the assignment is from a single Assignor, choose the first bracketed language. If the assignment is from multiple Assignors, choose the second bracketed language.

2 

For bracketed language here and elsewhere in this form relating to the Assignee(s), if the assignment is to a single Assignee, choose the first bracketed language. If the assignment is to multiple Assignees, choose the second bracketed language.

3 

Select as appropriate.

4 

Include bracketed language if there are either multiple Assignors or multiple Assignees.

 

A -1

Form of Assignment and Assumption


1.   Assignor[s]:   

 

  
    

 

  
2.   Assignee[s]:   

 

  
    

 

  

[for each Assignee, indicate [Affiliate][Approved Fund] of [identify Lender]]

 

3.

Borrower: Ingredion Incorporated

 

4.

Administrative Agent: Bank of America, N.A., as the administrative agent under the Credit Agreement

 

5.

Credit Agreement: Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, dated as of March 16, 2021, among Ingredion Incorporated, Bank of America, N.A. as initial lender, the Lenders from time to time party thereto, and Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent.

 

6.

Assigned Interest[s]:

 

Assignor[s]5

   Assignee[s]6    Facility
Assigned
   Aggregate
Amount
of
Loans
for all
Lenders7
   Amount
of
Loans
Assigned
   Percentage
Assigned
of
Loans8
   CUSIP
Number
                           

 

  

 

   $    $      %   

 

                           

 

  

 

   $    $    %   

 

                           

 

  

 

   $    $    %   

 

[7. Trade Date: __________________]9

Effective Date: __________________, 20__ [TO BE INSERTED BY ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT AND WHICH SHALL BE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF RECORDATION OF TRANSFER IN THE REGISTER THEREFOR.]

 

5 

List each Assignor, as appropriate.

6 

List each Assignee and, if available, its market entity identifier, as appropriate.

7 

Amounts in this column and in the column immediately to the right to be adjusted by the counterparties to take into account any payments or prepayments made between the Trade Date and the Effective Date.

8 

Set forth, to at least 9 decimals, as a percentage of the Loans of all Lenders thereunder.

9 

To be completed if the Assignor and the Assignee intend that the minimum assignment amount is to be determined as of the Trade Date.

 

A -2

Form of Assignment and Assumption


The terms set forth in this Assignment and Assumption are hereby agreed to:

 

ASSIGNOR[S]10
[NAME OF ASSIGNOR]
By:  

 

[NAME OF ASSIGNOR]
By:  

 

  Title:
ASSIGNEE[S]11
[NAME OF ASSIGNEE]
By:  

 

  Title:
[NAME OF ASSIGNEE]
By:  

 

  Title:

 

 

10 

Add additional signature blocks as needed. Include both Fund/Pension Plan and manager making the trade (if applicable).

11 

Add additional signature blocks as needed. Include both Fund/Pension Plan and manager making the trade (if applicable).

 

A -3

Form of Assignment and Assumption


[Consented to and]12 Accepted:
BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., as
Administrative Agent
By:  

 

  Title:
[Consented to:]13
INGREDION INCORPORATED
By:  

 

  Title:

 

12 

To be added only if the consent of the Administrative Agent is required by the terms of the Credit Agreement.

13 

To be added only if the consent of the Borrower and/or other parties is required by the terms of the Credit Agreement.

 

A -4

Form of Assignment and Assumption


ANNEX 1 TO ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

[___________________]14

STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR

ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

1. Representations and Warranties.

1.1. Assignor. [The][Each] Assignor (a) represents and warrants that (i) it is the legal and beneficial owner of [the][[the relevant] Assigned Interest, (ii) [the][such] Assigned Interest is free and clear of any lien, encumbrance or other adverse claim, and (iii) it has full power and authority, and has taken all action necessary, to execute and deliver this Assignment and Assumption and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby; and (b) assumes no responsibility with respect to (i) any statements, warranties or representations made in or in connection with the Credit Agreement or any other Credit Document, (ii) the execution, legality, validity, enforceability, genuineness, sufficiency or value of the Credit Documents or any collateral thereunder, (iii) the financial condition of the Borrower, any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or any other Person obligated in respect of any Credit Document or (iv) the performance or observance by the Borrower, any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or any other Person of any of their respective obligations under any Credit Document.

1.2. Assignee. [The][Each] Assignee (a) represents and warrants that (i) it has full power and authority, and has taken all action necessary, to execute and deliver this Assignment and Assumption and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby and to become a Lender under the Credit Agreement, (ii) it meets all the requirements to be an assignee under Section 9.04(a) and (b) of the Credit Agreement (subject to such consents, if any, as may be required under Section 9.04 of the Credit Agreement), (iii) from and after the Effective Date, it shall be bound by the provisions of the Credit Agreement as a Lender thereunder and, to the extent of [the][the relevant] Assigned Interest, shall have the obligations of a Lender thereunder, (iv) it is sophisticated with respect to decisions to acquire assets of the type represented by [the][such] Assigned Interest and either it, or the Person exercising discretion in making its decision to acquire [the][such] Assigned Interest, is experienced in acquiring assets of such type, (v) it has received a copy of the Credit Agreement, and has received or has been accorded the opportunity to receive copies of the most recent financial statements delivered pursuant to Section 5.01 thereof, as applicable, and such other documents and information as it deems appropriate to make its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Assignment and Assumption and to purchase [the][such] Assigned Interest, (vi) it has, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it has deemed appropriate, made its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Assignment and Assumption and to purchase [the][such] Assigned Interest, and (vii) if it is a Foreign Lender, attached hereto is any documentation required to be delivered by it pursuant to the terms of the Credit Agreement, duly completed and executed by [the][such] Assignee; and (b) agrees that (i) it will, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent,

 

 

14 

Describe Credit Agreement at option of Administrative Agent.

 

A -5

Form of Assignment and Assumption


[the][any] Assignor or any other Lender, and based on such documents and information as it shall deem appropriate at the time, continue to make its own credit decisions in taking or not taking action under the Credit Documents, and (ii) it will perform in accordance with their terms all of the obligations which by the terms of the Credit Documents are required to be performed by it as a Lender.

2. Payments. From and after the Effective Date, the Administrative Agent shall make all payments in respect of [the][each] Assigned Interest (including payments of principal, interest, fees and other amounts) to [the][the relevant] Assignor for amounts which have accrued to but excluding the Effective Date and to [the][the relevant] Assignee for amounts which have accrued from and after the Effective Date. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Administrative Agent shall make all payments of interest, fees or other amounts paid or payable in kind from and after the Effective Date to [the][the relevant] Assignee.

3. General Provisions. This Assignment and Assumption shall be binding upon, and inure to the benefit of, the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns. This Assignment and Assumption may be executed in any number of counterparts, which together shall constitute one instrument. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page of this Assignment and Assumption by telecopy shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Assignment and Assumption. This Assignment and Assumption shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the law of the State of New York.

 

A -6

Form of Assignment and Assumption


EXHIBIT B

[Reserved]

 

B -1


EXHIBIT C-1

FORM OF

U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

(For Foreign Lenders That Are Not Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, dated as of March 16, 2021 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Credit Agreement”), among Ingredion Incorporated, Bank of America, N.A. as initial lender, the Lenders from time to time party thereto, and Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 2.17(f) of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record and beneficial owner of the Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)) in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) it is not a bank within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iii) it is not a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 871(h)(3)(B) of the Code and (iv) it is not a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished the Administrative Agent and the Borrower with a certificate of its non-U.S. Person status on IRS Form W-8BENE (or W-8BEN, as applicable). By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF LENDER]
By: _______________________

Name: ________________________

Title: ________________________

Date: ________ __, 20[    ]

 

C-1 - 1

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate


EXHIBIT C-2

FORM OF

U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

(For Foreign Participants That Are Not Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, dated as of March 16, 2021 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Credit Agreement”), among Ingredion Incorporated, Bank of America, N.A. as initial lender, the Lenders from time to time party thereto, and Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 2.17(f) of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record and beneficial owner of the participation in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) it is not a bank within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iii) it is not a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 871(h)(3)(B) of the Code, and (iv) it is not a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished its participating Lender with a certificate of its non-U.S. Person status on IRS Form W-8BENE (or W-8BEN, as applicable). By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform such Lender in writing, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished such Lender with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF PARTICIPANT]
By: _______________________

Name: ________________________

Title: ________________________

Date: ________ __, 20[    ]

 

C-2 - 1

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate


EXHIBIT C-3

FORM OF

U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

(For Foreign Participants That Are Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, dated as of March 16, 2021 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Credit Agreement”), among Ingredion Incorporated, Bank of America, N.A. as initial lender, the Lenders from time to time party thereto, and Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 2.17(f) of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record owner of the participation in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) its direct or indirect partners/members are the sole beneficial owners of such participation, (iii) with respect such participation, neither the undersigned nor any of its direct or indirect partners/members is a bank extending credit pursuant to a credit agreement entered into in the ordinary course of its trade or business within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iv) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 871(h)(3)(B) of the Code and (v) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished its participating Lender with IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by one of the following forms from each of its partners/members that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption: (i) an IRS Form W-8BENE (or W-8BEN, as applicable) or (ii) an IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by an IRS Form W-8BENE (or W-8BEN, as applicable) from each of such partner’s/member’s beneficial owners that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform such Lender and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished such Lender with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF PARTICIPANT]
By: _______________________

Name: ________________________

Title: ________________________

Date: ________ __, 20[    ]

 

C-3 - 1

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate


EXHIBIT C-4

FORM OF

U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

(For Foreign Lenders That Are Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Second Amended and Restated Term Loan Credit Agreement, dated as of March 16, 2021 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Credit Agreement”), among Ingredion Incorporated, Bank of America, N.A. as initial lender, the Lenders from time to time party thereto, and Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 2.17(f) of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record owner of the Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)) in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) its direct or indirect partners/members are the sole beneficial owners of such Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)), (iii) with respect to the extension of credit pursuant to this Credit Agreement or any other Credit Document, neither the undersigned nor any of its direct or indirect partners/members is a bank extending credit pursuant to a credit agreement entered into in the ordinary course of its trade or business within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iv) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 871(h)(3)(B) of the Code and (v) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished the Administrative Agent and the Borrower with IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by one of the following forms from each of its partners/members that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption: (i) an IRS Form W-8BENE (or W-8BEN, as applicable) or (ii) an IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by an IRS Form W-8BENE (or W-8BEN, as applicable) from each of such partner’s/member’s beneficial owners that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF LENDER]
By: _______________________

Name: ________________________

Title: ________________________

Date: ________ __, 20[    ]

 

C-4 - 1

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate