Affiliates etc The Depositary reserves the right to utilize and retain a division or Affiliate(s) of the Depositary to direct, manage and/or execute any public and/or private sale of Shares, rights, securities, property or other entitlements hereunder and to engage in the conversion of Foreign Currency hereunder. It is anticipated that such division and/or Affiliate(s) will charge the Depositary a fee and/or commission in connection with each such transaction, and seek reimbursement of its costs and expenses related thereto. Such fees/commissions, costs and expenses, shall be deducted from amounts distributed hereunder and shall not be deemed to be fees of the Depositary under Article (9) of the Receipt or otherwise. Persons are advised that in converting foreign currency into U.S. dollars the Depositary may utilize Deutsche Bank AG or its affiliates (collectively, “DBAG”) to effect such conversion by seeking to enter into a foreign exchange (“FX”) transaction with DBAG. When converting currency, the Depositary is not acting as a fiduciary for the holders or beneficial owners of depositary receipts or any other person. Moreover, in executing FX transactions, DBAG will be acting in a principal capacity, and not as agent, fiduciary or broker, and may hold positions for its own account that are the same, similar, different or opposite to the positions of its customers, including the Depositary. When the Depositary seeks to execute an FX transaction to accomplish such conversion, customers should be aware that DBAG is a global dealer in FX for a full range of FX products and, as a result, the rate obtained in connection with any requested foreign currency conversion may be impacted by DBAG executing FX transactions for its own account or with another customer. In addition, in order to source liquidity for any FX transaction relating to any foreign currency conversion, DBAG may internally share economic terms relating to the relevant FX transaction with persons acting in a sales or trading capacity for DBAG or one of its agents. DBAG may charge fees and/or commissions to the Depositary or add a xxxx-up in connection with such conversions, which are reflected in the rate at which the foreign currency will be converted into U.S. dollars. The Depositary, its Affiliates and their agents, on their own behalf, may own and deal in any class of securities of the Company and its Affiliates and in ADSs.
Affiliates The Borrower will not, and will not permit any Subsidiary to, enter into any transaction (including, without limitation, the purchase or sale of any Property or service) with, or make any payment or transfer to, any Affiliate except in the ordinary course of business and pursuant to the reasonable requirements of the Borrower's or such Subsidiary's business and upon fair and reasonable terms no less favorable to the Borrower or such Subsidiary than the Borrower or such Subsidiary would obtain in a comparable arms-length transaction.
Successors and Assigns Participations (a) Whenever in this Agreement any of the parties hereto is referred to, such reference shall be deemed to include the successors and assigns of such party; and all covenants, promises and agreements by or on behalf of the Borrowers or the Lenders that are contained in this Agreement shall bind and inure to the benefit of their respective successors and assigns. Neither Borrower may assign or transfer any of its rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of all the Lenders.
(b) Each Lender may assign to one or more assignees all or a portion of its interests, rights and obligations under this Agreement (including, without limitation, all or a portion of its Rollover Term Loan or all or a portion of any of its Revolving Credit Commitment and the same portion of the related Revolving Credit Loans at the time owing to it and the related participations in Letters of Credit and the Note or Notes held by it); provided, however, that (i) except in the case of an assignment to a Lender or an affiliate of a Lender or for an assignment by a Lender to a Federal Reserve Bank, the Administrative Agent and NWS must give their prior written consent by countersigning the Assignment and Acceptance (which consents shall not be unreasonably withheld), (ii) each such assignment of a Revolving Credit Commitment or any Revolving Credit Exposure shall be of a constant, and not a varying, percentage of all the assigning Lender's rights and obligations under this Agreement in respect of its Revolving Credit Commitment, Revolving Credit Loans and participations in Letters of Credit to be assigned, (iii) in the case of a partial assignment, each such assignment shall be in an amount which is not less than $5,000,000 (unless NWS shall consent to a partial assignment of a lesser amount) and is an integral multiple of $1,000,000 (provided, however, that any assignment may in any event be equal to the entire amount of the Rollover Term Loan or the entire amount of the Revolving Credit Loans, participations in Letters of Credit and Revolving Credit Commitment of the assigning Lender), (iv) the parties to each such assignment 113 108 shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent, for its acceptance and recording in the Register, an Assignment and Acceptance, together with any Note subject to such assignment and a processing and recordation fee of $3,500 and (v) the assignee, if it shall not be a Lender, shall deliver to the Administrative Agent an Administrative Questionnaire. Upon such execution, delivery, acceptance and recording, from and after the effective date specified in each Assignment and Acceptance, which effective date shall be at least five Business Days after the execution thereof, (x) the assignee thereunder shall be a party hereto and, to the extent provided in such Assignment and Acceptance, have the rights and obligations of a Lender hereunder and (y) the assigning Lender thereunder shall, to the extent provided in such assignment, be released from its obligations under this Agreement (and, in the case of an Assignment and Acceptance covering all or the remaining portion of an assigning Lender's rights and obligations under this Agreement, such Lender shall cease to be a party hereto. Assignments in accordance with this paragraph are not required to be made pro rata as between the assigning Lender's Rollover Term Loan, on the one hand, and Revolving Credit Commitment and Revolving Credit Exposure, on the other.
(c) By executing and delivering an Assignment and Acceptance, the Lender assignor thereunder and the assignee thereunder confirm to and agree with each other and the other parties hereto as follows: (i) other than the representation and warranty that it is the legal and beneficial owner of the interest being assigned thereby free and clear of any adverse claim, such Lender assignor makes no representation or warranty and assumes no responsibility with respect to any statements, warranties or representations made in or in connection with this Agreement or the execution, legality, validity, enforceability, genuineness, sufficiency or value of this Agreement, any other Loan Document or any other instrument or document furnished pursuant hereto; (ii) such Lender assignor makes no representation or warranty and assumes no responsibility with respect to the financial condition of the Loan Parties or the performance or observance by the Loan Parties of any of their obligations under this Agreement or any other instrument or document furnished pursuant hereto; (iii) such assignee represents and warrants that it is legally authorized to enter into such Assignment and Acceptance; (iv) such assignee confirms that it has received a copy of this Agreement, together with copies of the most recent 114 109 financial statements referred to in Section 3.05 or delivered under Section 5.05 and such other documents and information as it has deemed appropriate to make its own credit analysis and decision to enter into such Assignment and Acceptance; (v) such assignee will, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent, such Lender 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 this Agreement; (vi) such assignee appoints and authorizes the Administrative Agent and the Collateral Agent, respectively, to take such action as agent on its behalf and to exercise such powers under this Agreement as are delegated to the Administrative Agent or the Collateral Agent by the terms hereof or any other Loan Document, together with such powers as are reasonably incidental thereto; and (vii) such assignee agrees that it will perform in accordance with their terms all of the obligations which by the terms of this Agreement are required to be performed by it as a Lender.
(d) The Administrative Agent shall maintain at one of its offices in The City of New York a copy of each Assignment and Acceptance delivered to it and a register for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Lenders and the Revolving Credit Commitments of, and principal amount of the Loans owing to, each Lender from time to time (the "Register"). The entries in the Register shall be conclusive, in the absence of manifest error, and the Borrowers, the Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders may treat each person whose name is recorded in the Register as a Lender hereunder for all purposes of this Agreement. The Register shall be available for inspection by the Borrowers, the Collateral Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender at any reasonable time and from time to time upon reasonable prior notice.
(e) Upon its receipt of an Assignment and Acceptance executed by an assigning Lender and an assignee together with any Note subject to such assignment, and the fee referred to in Section 9.03(b), the Administrative Agent shall, if such Assignment and Acceptance has been completed and is in the form of Exhibit B hereto and, if required, the Administrative Agent and NWS have consented to such assignment as contemplated by paragraph (b) above, (i) accept such Assignment and Acceptance, (ii) record the information contained therein in the Register, and 115 110
Successors and Assigns; Participations; New Lenders (a) This Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of Borrowers, Agent, each Lender, all future holders of the Obligations and their respective successors and assigns, except that no Borrower may assign or transfer any of its rights or obligations under this Agreement without the prior written consent of Agent and each Lender.
(b) Each Borrower acknowledges that in the regular course of commercial banking business one or more Lenders may at any time and from time to time sell participating interests in the Advances to other financial institutions (each such transferee or purchaser of a participating interest, a "Transferee"). Each Transferee may exercise all rights of payment (including without limitation rights of set-off) with respect to the portion of such Advances held by it or other Obligations payable hereunder as fully as if such Transferee were the direct holder thereof provided that Borrowers shall not be required to pay to any Transferee more than the amount which it would have been required to pay to Lender which granted an interest in its Advances or other Obligations payable hereunder to such Transferee had such Lender retained such interest in the Advances hereunder or other Obligations payable hereunder and in no event shall Borrowers be required to pay any such amount arising from the same circumstances and with respect to the same Advances or other Obligations payable hereunder to both such Lender and such Transferee. Each Borrower hereby grants to any Transferee a continuing security interest in any deposits, moneys or other property actually or constructively held by such Transferee as security for the Transferee's interest in the Advances.
(c) Any Lender may with the consent of Agent which shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed sell, assign or transfer all or any part of its rights under this Agreement and the Other Documents to one or more additional banks or financial institutions and one or more additional banks or financial institutions may commit to make Advances hereunder (each a "Purchasing Lender"), in minimum amounts of not less than $5,000,000, pursuant to a Commitment Transfer Supplement, executed by a Purchasing Lender, the transferor Lender, and Agent and delivered to Agent for recording. Upon such execution, delivery, acceptance and recording, from and after the transfer effective date determined pursuant to such Commitment Transfer Supplement, (i) Purchasing Lender thereunder shall be a party hereto and, to the extent provided in such Commitment Transfer Supplement, have the rights and obligations of a Lender thereunder with a Commitment Percentage as set forth therein, and (ii) the transferor Lender thereunder shall, to the extent provided in such Commitment Transfer Supplement, be released from its obligations under this Agreement, the Commitment Transfer Supplement creating a novation for that purpose. Such Commitment Transfer Supplement shall be deemed to amend this Agreement to the extent, and only to the extent, necessary to reflect the addition of such Purchasing Lender and the resulting adjustment of the Commitment Percentages arising from the purchase by such Purchasing Lender of all or a portion of the rights and obligations of such transferor Lender under this Agreement and the Other Documents. Borrowers hereby consent to the addition of such Purchasing Lender and the resulting adjustment of the Commitment Percentages arising from the purchase by such Purchasing Lender of all or a portion of the rights and obligations of such transferor Lender under this Agreement and the Other Documents. Borrowers shall execute and deliver such further documents and do such further acts and things in order to effectuate the foregoing.
(d) Agent shall maintain at its address a copy of each Commitment Transfer Supplement delivered to it and a register (the "Register") for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Advances owing to each Lender from time to time. The entries in the Register shall be conclusive, in the absence of manifest error, and Borrowers, Agent and Lenders may treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Register as the owner of the Advance recorded therein for the purposes of this Agreement. The Register shall be available for inspection by Borrowers or any Lender at any reasonable time and from time to time upon reasonable prior notice. Agent shall receive a fee in the amount of $3,500 payable by the applicable Purchasing Lender upon the effective date of each transfer or assignment to such Purchasing Lender.
(e) Each Borrower authorizes each Lender to disclose to any Transferee or Purchasing Lender and any prospective Transferee or Purchasing Lender any and all financial information in such Lender's possession concerning such Borrower which has been delivered to such Lender by or on behalf of such Borrower pursuant to this Agreement or in connection with such Lender's credit evaluation of such Borrower.
Successors and Assigns; Participations; Purchasing Lenders (a) This Amended Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the Company, the Lenders, the Agents, all future holders of the Loans, and their respective successors and assigns, except that the Company may not assign or transfer any of its rights or obligations under this Amended Agreement without the prior written consent of each Lender.
(b) Any Lender other than any Conduit Lender may, in the ordinary course of its business and in accordance with applicable law, at any time sell to one or more banks or other financial institutions or Lender Affiliates (“Participants”) participating interests in any Loan owing to such Lender, any participating interest of such Lender in the Letters of Credit, any Note held by such Lender, any Commitment of such Lender or any other interest of such Lender hereunder and under the other Credit Documents. In the event of any such sale by a Lender of participating interests to a Participant, such Lender’s obligations under this Amended Agreement to the other parties to this Amended Agreement shall remain unchanged, such Lender shall remain solely responsible for the performance thereof, such Lender shall remain the holder of any such Loan for all purposes under this Amended Agreement and the other Credit Documents, the Company and the Administrative Agent shall continue to deal solely and directly with such Lender in connection with such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Amended Agreement and the other Credit Documents; provided, however, that such Lender shall not, without the consent of the Participant, agree to any amendment, waiver or other modification described in Section 12.1(i) that affects such Participant. The Company agrees that if amounts outstanding under this Amended Agreement and the Loans are due and unpaid, or shall have been declared or shall have become due and payable upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, each Participant shall be deemed to have the right of setoff in respect of its participating interest in amounts owing under this Amended Agreement and any Loan to the same extent as if the amount of its participating interest were owing directly to it as a Lender under this Amended Agreement or any Loan; provided that such Participant shall only be entitled to such right of setoff if it shall have agreed in the agreement pursuant to which it shall have acquired its participating interest to share with the Lenders the proceeds thereof, as provided in Section 12.7. The Company also agrees that each Participant shall be entitled to the benefits of Sections 5.12, 5.19, 5.20, 5.21 and 5.23 with respect to its participation in the Letters of Credit and in the Commitments and the Loans outstanding from time to time; provided that (x) no Participant shall be entitled to receive any greater amount pursuant to such Sections than the transferor Lender would have been entitled to receive in respect of the amount of the participation transferred by such transferor Lender to such Participant had no such transfer occurred, (y) each Participant shall be subject to the provisions of paragraph (c) of Section 5.20 and (z) a Participant that would be a Foreign Lender if it were a Lender shall not be entitled to the benefits of Section 5.23 unless the Company is notified of the participation interest sold to such Participant and such Participant agrees, for the benefit of the Company, to comply with Section 5.23(e) and (h) as through it were a Lender.
(c) Any Lender other than any Conduit Lender may, in the ordinary course of its business and in accordance with applicable law, with the prior written consent of the Issuing Lender and the Swing Line Lender (in the case of the Revolving Credit Facility, at any time sell to any Lender or any Affiliate or Lender Affiliate thereof (including any Affiliate or Subsidiary of such transferor Lender) and, with the prior written consent of the Company (subject to the penultimate sentence of this clause (c)) and the Administrative Agent (which in each case shall not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned, or delayed), sell to one or more additional banks or financial institutions (an “Assignee”), all or any part of its rights and obligations under this Amended Agreement, the Notes and the other Credit Documents and, with respect to the Letters of Credit, such Lender’s L/C Participating Interest, pursuant to an Assignment and Acceptance executed by such Assignee, such assigning Lender (and by the Company, the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Lender and the Swing Line Lender, to the extent their consent is required), and delivered to the Administrative Agent for its acceptance and recording in the Register; provided that (A) each such sale pursuant to this Section 12.6(c) of a Lender’s rights and obligations (I) to a Person which is not then a Lender or an Affiliate or Lender Affiliate of a Lender shall be of the entire remaining amount of the Assigning Lenders rights and obligations or, if less than such entire remaining amount, of Commitments and/or Loans of $5,000,000 (or in the case of any Incremental Term Loan Commitments and Incremental Term Loans, $1,000,000) or more unless otherwise agreed by the Company and the Administrative Agent; and (II) to a Person which is then a Lender or an Affiliate or Lender Affiliate of a Lender may be in any amount and shall not require the consent of the Company or the Administrative Agent, and (B) each Assignee which is a Foreign Lender shall comply with the provisions of Section 5.23(e) and (h) hereof; and provided, further that the foregoing shall not prohibit a Lender from selling participating interests in accordance with Section 12.6(b) in all or any portion of its Commitments and/or Loans (without duplication). For purposes of clauses (A) and (B) of the first proviso contained in the preceding sentence, the amount described therein shall be aggregated in respect of each Lender and its Lender Affiliates, if any. Upon such execution, delivery, acceptance and recording, from and after the effective date determined pursuant to such Assignment and Acceptance, (x) the Assignee thereunder shall be a party hereto and, to the extent provided in such Assignment and Acceptance, have the rights and obligations of a Lender hereunder with the Commitments and Loans as set forth therein, and (y) the assigning Lender thereunder shall, to the extent of the interest transferred, as reflected in such Assignment and Acceptance, be released from its obligations under this Amended Agreement (and, in the case of an Assignment and Acceptance covering all or the remaining portion of an assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Amended Agreement, such assigning Lender shall cease to be a party hereto). Such Assignment and Acceptance shall be deemed to amend this Amended Agreement to the extent, and only to the extent, necessary to reflect the addition of such Assignee and the resulting adjustment of Commitment Percentages arising from the purchase by such Assignee of all or a portion of the rights and obligations of such assigning Lender under this Amended Agreement. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary (and to the extent permitted by law), after the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default any Lender may sell all or any part of its rights and obligations under this Amended Agreement without the consent of the Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any Conduit Lender may assign at any time to its designating Lender hereunder without the consent of the Company or the Administrative Agent any or all of the Loans it may have funded hereunder and pursuant to its designation agreement and without regard to the limitations set forth in the first sentence of this Section 12.6(c).
(d) The Administrative Agent acting on behalf of and as agent for the Company, shall maintain at the address of the Administrative Agent referred to in Section 12.2 a copy of each Assignment and Acceptance delivered to it and a register (the “Register”) for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Lenders and the Commitment of, the principal amount of any Swing Line Loans, Revolving Credit Loans and Incremental Term Loans, if any owing to, and if such Lender has any Revolving Credit Commitment, the L/C Participating Interests of, each Lender from time to time. The entries in the Register shall be conclusive, in the absence of manifest error, and the Company, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Register as the owner of the Loans or L/C Participating Interests recorded therein for all purposes of this Amended Agreement, notwithstanding any notice to the contrary. The Register shall be available for inspection by the Company or any Lender at any reasonable time and from time to time upon reasonable prior notice. No assignment shall be effective for purposes of this Amended Agreement unless it has been recorded in the Register as provided in this paragraph.
(e) Upon its receipt of an Assignment and Acceptance executed by an assigning Lender and an Assignee (and by the Company, the Issuing Lender, the Swing Line Lender and the Administrative Agent to the extent required hereby), together with payment to the Administrative Agent of a registration and processing fee of $3,500 (which fee the Company shall have no obligation to pay and which fee may be waived by the Administrative Agent in its discretion), the Administrative Agent shall (i) promptly accept such Assignment and Acceptance and (ii) on the effective date determined pursuant thereto, record the information contained therein in the Register and give notice of such acceptance and recordation to the Lenders and the Company.
(f) If, pursuant to this Section 12.6, any interest in this Amended Agreement or any Loan or Letter of Credit is transferred to any Transferee which would be a Foreign Lender upon the effectiveness of such transfer, the assigning Lender shall cause such Transferee, concurrently with the effectiveness of such transfer, (i) to represent to the assigning Lender (for the benefit of the assigning Lender, the Administrative Agent and the Company) that under applicable law and treaties no Taxes will be required to be withheld by the Administrative Agent, the Company or the assigning Lender with respect to any payments to be made to such Transferee in respect of the Loans or L/C Participating Interests, (ii) to furnish to the assigning Lender (and, in the case of any Assignee registered in the Register, the Administrative Agent and the Company) such Internal Revenue Service Forms required to be furnished pursuant to Section 5.23(e) and (h) and (iii) to agree (for the benefit of the assigning Lender, the Administrative Agent and the Company) to be bound by the provisions of Section 5.23(e) and (h).
(g) For avoidance of doubt, the parties to this Amended Agreement acknowledge that the provisions of this Section concerning assignments of Loans and Notes relate only to absolute assignments and that such provisions do not prohibit assignments creating security interests, including, without limitation, any pledge or assignment (i) by a Lender of any Loan or Note to any Federal Reserve Bank in accordance with applicable law and (ii) by a Lender or a Lender Affiliate which is a fund to its trustee in support of its obligations to its trustee; provided that any transfer of Loans or Notes upon, or in lieu of, enforcement of or the exercise of remedies under any such pledge shall be treated as an assignment thereof which shall not be made without compliance with the requirements of this Section 12.6.
(h) The Company, upon receipt of written notice from the relevant Lender, agrees to issue Notes to any Lender requiring Notes to facilitate transactions of the type described in paragraph (h) above.
(i) Each of the Company, each Lender and the Administrative Agent hereby confirms that it will not institute against a Conduit Lender or join any other Person in instituting against a Conduit Lender any bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, insolvency or liquidation proceeding under any state bankruptcy or similar law, for one year and one day after the payment in full of the latest maturing commercial paper note issued by such Conduit Lender; provided, however (i) that each Lender designating any Conduit Lender hereby agrees to indemnify, save and hold harmless each other party hereto for any loss, cost, damage or expense arising out of its inability to institute such a proceeding against such Conduit Lender during such period forbearance and (ii) the foregoing shall not prohibit or limit the ability of any such Person to file claims against a Conduit Lender in connection with any such proceeding.
Affiliates and Third Parties If the Asset Representations Reviewer processes the PII of the Issuer’s Affiliates or a third party when performing a Review, and if such Affiliate or third party is identified to the Asset Representations Reviewer, such Affiliate or third party is an intended third-party beneficiary of this Section 4.10, and this Agreement is intended to benefit the Affiliate or third party. The Affiliate or third party may enforce the PII related terms of this Section 4.10 against the Asset Representations Reviewer as if each were a signatory to this Agreement.
Delegation to Affiliates The Borrower and the Lenders agree that the Administrative Agent may delegate any of its duties under this Agreement to any of its Affiliates. Any such Affiliate (and such Affiliate’s directors, officers, agents and employees) which performs duties in connection with this Agreement shall be entitled to the same benefits of the indemnification, waiver and other protective provisions to which the Administrative Agent is entitled under Articles IX and X.
Subsidiaries and Affiliates of Borrower To the extent the context of any provisions of this Agreement makes it appropriate, including without limitation any representation, warranty or covenant, the word "Borrower" as used in this Agreement shall include all of Borrower's subsidiaries and affiliates. Notwithstanding the foregoing however, under no circumstances shall this Agreement be construed to require Lender to make any Loan or other financial accommodation to any of Borrower's subsidiaries or affiliates.
Successors and Assigns Participations Assignments (a) This Agreement shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of the Borrowers and the Lenders and their respective successors and assigns.
(b) The foregoing shall not authorize any assignment by any Borrower of its rights or duties hereunder, and, except as otherwise provided herein, no such assignment shall be made (or be effective) without the prior written approval of the Lenders.
(c) No Lenders may at any time assign or grant participations in such Lender’s rights and obligations hereunder and under the other Loan Documents except (i) by way of assignment to any Eligible Assignee in accordance with clause (d) of this Section, (ii) by way of a participation in accordance with the provisions of clause (e) of this Section or (iii) by way of a pledge or assignment of a security interest subject to the restrictions of clause (f) of this Section (and any other attempted assignment or transfer by any Lender shall be deemed to be null and void).
(d) Each assignment by a Lender of all or any portion of its rights and obligations hereunder and under the other Loan Documents, shall be subject to the following terms and conditions:
(i) each such assignment shall be made on a pro rata basis, and shall be in a minimum amount of the lesser of (x) Five Million Dollars ($5,000,000) or such lesser amount as the Agent shall agree and (y) the entire remaining amount of assigning Lender’s aggregate interest in the Revolving Credit (and participations in any outstanding Letters of Credit); provided however that, after giving effect to such assignment, in no event shall the entire remaining amount (if any) of assigning Lender’s aggregate interest in the Revolving Credit (and participations in any outstanding Letters of Credit) be less than $5,000,000; and
(ii) the parties to any assignment shall execute and deliver to Agent an Assignment Agreement substantially (as determined by Agent) in the form attached hereto as Exhibit H (with appropriate insertions acceptable to Agent), together with a processing and recordation fee in the amount, if any, required as set forth in the Assignment Agreement (provided however that such Lender need not deliver an Assignment Agreement in connection with assignments to such Lender’s Affiliates or to a Federal Reserve Bank). Until the Assignment Agreement becomes effective in accordance with its terms, and Agent has confirmed that the assignment satisfies the requirements of this Section 13.8, the Borrowers and the Agent shall be entitled to continue to deal solely and directly with the assigning Lender in connection with the interest so assigned. From and after the effective date of each Assignment Agreement that satisfies the requirements of this Section 13.8, the assignee thereunder shall be deemed to be a party to this Agreement, such assignee shall have the rights and obligations of a Lender under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents (including without limitation the right to receive fees payable hereunder in respect of the period following such assignment) and the assigning Lender shall relinquish its rights and be released from its obligations under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents. Upon request, Borrowers shall execute and deliver to the Agent, new Note(s) payable to the order of the assignee in an amount equal to the amount assigned to the assigning Lender pursuant to such Assignment Agreement, and with respect to the portion of the Indebtedness retained by the assigning Lender, to the extent applicable, new Note(s) payable to the order of the assigning Lender in an amount equal to the amount retained by such Lender hereunder. The Agent, the Lenders and each Borrower acknowledges and agrees that any such new Note(s) shall be given in renewal and replacement of the Notes issued to the assigning lender prior to such assignment and shall not effect or constitute a novation or discharge of the Indebtedness evidenced by such prior Note, and each such new Note may contain a provision confirming such agreement.
(e) The Borrowers and the Agent acknowledge that each of the Lenders may at any time and from time to time, subject to the terms and conditions hereof, grant participations in such Lender’s rights and obligations hereunder (on a pro rata basis only) and under the other Loan Documents to any Person (other than a natural person or to any Borrower or any of Borrower’s Affiliates or Subsidiaries); provided that any participation permitted hereunder shall comply with all applicable laws and shall be subject to a participation agreement that incorporates the following restrictions:
(i) such Lender shall remain the holder of its Notes hereunder (if such Notes are issued), notwithstanding any such participation;
(ii) a participant shall not reassign or transfer, or grant any sub-participations in its participation interest hereunder or any part thereof; and
(iii) such Lender shall retain the sole right and responsibility to enforce the obligations of the Credit Parties relating to the Notes and the other Loan Documents, including, without limitation, the right to proceed against any Guarantors, or cause the Agent to do so (subject to the terms and conditions hereof), and the right to approve any amendment, modification or waiver of any provision of this Agreement without the consent of the participant (unless such participant is an Affiliate of such Lender), except for those matters covered by Section 13.10(a) through (e) hereof (provided that a participant may exercise any of the approval rights granted above in this clause (iii) only on an indirect basis, acting through such Lender and the Credit Parties, Agent and the other Lenders may continue to deal directly with such Lender in connection with such Lender’s rights and duties hereunder). Notwithstanding the foregoing, however, in the case of any participation granted by any Lender hereunder, the participant shall not have any rights under this Agreement or any of the other Loan Documents against the Agent, any other Lender or any Credit Party; provided, however that the participant may have rights against such Lender in respect of such participation as may be set forth in the applicable participation agreement and all amounts payable by the Credit Parties hereunder shall be determined as if such Lender had not sold such participation. Each such participant shall be entitled to the benefits of Article 11 of this Agreement to the same extent as if it were a Lender and had acquired its interest by assignment pursuant to clause (d) of this Section, provided that no participant shall be entitled to receive any greater amount pursuant to such the provisions of Article 11 than the issuing Lender would have been entitled to receive in respect of the amount of the participation transferred by such issuing Lender to such participant had no such transfer occurred and each such participant shall also be entitled to the benefits of Section 9.6 hereof as though it were a Lender, provided that such participant agrees to be subject to Section 10.3 hereof as though it were a Lender.
(f) Any Lender may at any time pledge or assign a security interest in all or any portion of its rights under this Agreement (including its Notes, if any) to secure obligations of such Lender, including any pledge or assignment to secure obligations to a Federal Reserve Bank; provided that no such pledge or assignment shall release such Lender from any of its obligations hereunder or substitute any such pledge or assignee for such Lender as a party hereto.
(g) The Agent shall maintain at its principal office a copy of each Assignment Agreement delivered to it and a register (the “Register”) for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Lenders, the Percentages of such Lenders and the principal amount of each type of Advance owing to each such Lender from time to time. The entries in the Register shall be conclusive evidence, absent manifest error, and the Borrowers, the Agent, and the Lenders may treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Register as the owner of the Advances recorded therein for all purposes of this Agreement. The Register shall be available for inspection by the Borrowers or any Lender upon reasonable notice to the Agent and a copy of such information shall be provided to any such party on their prior written request. The Agent shall give prompt written notice to the Borrower Representative of the making of any entry in the Register or any change in such entry.
(h) Each Borrower authorizes each Lender to disclose to any prospective assignee or participant which has satisfied the requirements hereunder, any and all financial information in such Lender’s possession concerning the Credit Parties which has been delivered to such Lender pursuant to this Agreement, provided that each such prospective assignee or participant shall execute a confidentiality agreement consistent with the terms of Section 13.11 hereof or shall otherwise agree to be bound by the terms thereof.
(i) Nothing in this Agreement, the Notes or the other Loan Documents, expressed or implied, is intended to or shall confer on any Person other than the respective parties hereto and thereto and their successors and assignees and participants permitted hereunder and thereunder any benefit or any legal or equitable right, remedy or other claim under this Agreement, the Notes or the other Loan Documents.
Affiliations of Trustees or Officers, Etc The fact that:
(i) any of the Shareholders, Trustees or officers of the Trust or any Series thereof is a shareholder, director, officer, partner, trustee, employee, manager, adviser or distributor of or for any partnership, corporation, trust, association or other organization or of or for any parent or affiliate of any organization, with which a contract of the character described in this Article III or for services as Custodian, Transfer Agent or disbursing agent or for related services may have been or may hereafter be made, or that any such organization, or any parent or affiliate thereof, is a Shareholder of or has an interest in the Trust, or that
(ii) any partnership, corporation, trust, association or other organization with which a contract of the character described in Sections 1, 2, 3 or 4 of this Article III or for services as Custodian, Transfer Agent or disbursing agent or for related services may have been or may hereafter be made also has any one or more of such contracts with one or more other partnerships, corporations, trusts, associations or other organizations, or has other business or interests, shall not affect the validity of any such contract or disqualify any Shareholder, Trustee or officer of the Trust from voting upon or executing the same or create any liability or accountability to the Trust or its Shareholders.
