Forbearances During the period from the date of this Agreement to the Effective Time or earlier termination of this Agreement, except as set forth in the CBC Disclosure Schedule or the SCB Disclosure Schedule, as expressly contemplated or permitted by this Agreement or as required by Law, neither CBC nor SCB shall, and neither CBC nor SCB shall permit any of their respective Subsidiaries to, without the prior written consent of the other party to this Agreement (such consent not to be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed):
(a) other than (i) federal funds borrowings and Federal Home Loan Bank borrowings, in each case with a maturity not in excess of six (6) months, (ii) deposits, (iii) issuances of letters of credit, (iv) purchases of federal funds, (v) sales of certificates of deposit and (vi) entry into repurchase agreements, in each case in the ordinary course of business, incur any indebtedness for borrowed money (other than indebtedness of CBC or any of its wholly-owned Subsidiaries to CBC or any of its wholly-owned Subsidiaries, on the one hand, or of SCB or any of its wholly-owned Subsidiaries to SCB or any of its wholly-owned Subsidiaries, on the other hand), or assume, guarantee, endorse or otherwise as an accommodation become responsible for the obligations of any other individual, corporation or other entity;
(i) adjust, split, combine or reclassify any shares of capital stock;
(ii) make, declare, pay or set a record date for any dividend, or any other distribution on, or directly or indirectly redeem, purchase or otherwise acquire, any shares of its capital stock or other equity or voting securities or any securities or obligations convertible (whether currently convertible or convertible only after the passage of time or the occurrence of certain events) or exchangeable into or exercisable for any shares of its capital stock or other equity or voting securities, except, in each case, (A) dividends paid by any of the Subsidiaries of each of CBC and SCB to CBC or SCB or any of their wholly-owned Subsidiaries, respectively, and (B) the acceptance of shares of CBC Common Stock or SCB Common Stock, as the case may be, as payment for the exercise price of stock options or for withholding Taxes incurred in connection with the exercise of stock options or the vesting or settlement of equity compensation awards, in each case, in accordance with past practice and the terms of the applicable award agreements;
(iii) grant any stock options, stock appreciation rights, performance shares, restricted stock units, performance stock units, phantom stock units, restricted shares or other equity-based awards or interests, or grant any Person any right to acquire any shares of capital stock or other equity or voting securities of CBC or SCB or any of their respective Subsidiaries;
(iv) issue, sell, transfer, encumber or otherwise permit to become outstanding any shares of capital stock or voting securities or equity interests or securities convertible (whether currently convertible or convertible only after the passage of time of the occurrence of certain events) or exchangeable into, or exercisable for, any shares of its capital stock or other equity or voting securities, including any securities of CBC or SCB or their respective Subsidiaries, or any options, warrants, or other rights of any kind to acquire any shares of capital stock or other equity or voting securities, including any securities of CBC or SCB or their respective Subsidiaries, except pursuant to the exercise of stock options or the vesting or settlement of equity compensation awards outstanding as of the date hereof or granted after the date hereof to the extent authorized under this Agreement, in each case accordance with their terms;
(c) sell, transfer, mortgage, encumber or otherwise dispose of any of its material properties or assets to any individual, corporation or other entity other than a wholly-owned Subsidiary, or cancel, release or assign any indebtedness to any such Person or any claims held by any such Person, in each case other than in the ordinary course of business, or pursuant to contracts or agreements in force at the date of this Agreement;
(d) except for foreclosure or acquisitions of control in a fiduciary or similar capacity or in satisfaction of debts previously contracted in good faith in the ordinary course of business, make any material investment in or acquisition of (whether by purchase of stock or securities, contributions to capital, property transfers, merger or consolidation, or formation of a joint venture or otherwise) any other Person or the property or assets of any other Person, in each case, other than a wholly-owned Subsidiary of CBC or SCB, as applicable;
(e) in each case except for transactions in the ordinary course of business, terminate, materially amend, or waive any material provision of, any CBC Contract or SCB Contract, as the case may be, or make any change in any instrument or agreement governing the terms of any of its securities, other than normal renewals of contracts without material adverse changes of terms with respect to CBC or SCB, or enter into any contract that would constitute a CBC Contract or SCB Contract, if it were in effect on the date of this Agreement;
(f) except as required under applicable Law or the terms of any CBC Benefit Plan or SCB Benefit Plan existing as of the date hereof, as applicable, (i) enter into, establish, adopt, amend or terminate any CBC Benefit Plan or SCB Benefit Plan, or any arrangement that would be a CBC Benefit Plan or a SCB Benefit Plan if in effect on the date hereof, other than with respect to broad-based welfare benefit plans (other than severance) in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and as would not reasonably be expected to materially increase the cost of benefits under any such CBC Benefit Plan or SCB Benefit Plan, as the case may be, (ii) increase the compensation or benefits payable to any current or former employee, director or individual consultant, other than increases for current employees with an annual base salary below $150,000 in connection with a promotion (permitted hereunder) or change in responsibilities, in each case, in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and to a level consistent with similarly situated peer employees, (iii) accelerate the vesting of any equity-based awards or other compensation or benefits, (iv) enter into any new, or amend any existing, employment, severance, change in control, retention, collective bargaining agreement or similar agreement or arrangement; provided, however, that the parties may enter into offer letters with new hires in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice that do not provide for enhanced or change in control severance, (v) fund any rabbi trust or similar arrangement, or in any other way secure the payment of compensation or benefits under any CBC Benefit Plan or SCB Benefit Plan, as the case may be, or (vi) hire or promote any employee with an annual base salary equal to or in excess of $150,000, or significantly change the responsibilities assigned to any such employee;
(g) settle any material claim, suit, action or proceeding, except involving solely monetary remedies in an amount and for consideration not in excess of $25,000 individually or $50,000 in the aggregate and that would not impose any material restriction on, or create any adverse precedent that would be material to, the business of it or its Subsidiaries or the Surviving Corporation or its Subsidiaries;
(h) take any action or knowingly fail to take any action where such action or failure to act could reasonably be expected to prevent the Merger from qualifying as a “reorganization” within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Code;
(i) amend its articles of incorporation, its bylaws or comparable governing documents of its Significant Subsidiaries;
(j) materially restructure or materially change its investment securities, derivatives, wholesale funding of bank owned life insurance portfolio or its interest rate exposure, through purchases, sales or otherwise, or the manner in which the portfolio is classified or reported;
(k) implement or adopt any change in its accounting principles, practices or methods, other than as may be required by GAAP;
(l) enter into any new line of business or, other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, change in any material respect its lending, investment, underwriting, risk and asset liability management and other banking and operating, hedging, securitization and servicing policies (including any change in the maximum ratio or similar limits as a percentage of its capital exposure applicable with respect to its loan portfolio or any segment thereof), except as required by applicable Law, regulation or policies imposed by, or recommendation of, any Governmental Entity;
(m) merge or consolidate itself or any of its Significant Subsidiaries with any other Person, or restructure, reorganize or completely or partially liquidate or dissolve it or any of its Significant Subsidiaries;
(n) make, change or revoke any material Tax election, change an annual Tax accounting period, adopt or change any material Tax accounting method, file any material amended Tax Return, enter into any closing agreement with respect to a material amount of Taxes, or settle any material Tax claim, audit, assessment or dispute or surrender any material right to claim a refund of Taxes;
(o) other than in prior consultation with the other party to this Agreement, except for loans or extensions of credit approved and/or committed as of the date of this Agreement, (i) make any loan greater than $7,500,000, make any sponsored finance loan greater than $3,000,000, purchase a participation in any loan or pool of loans, or renew any loan greater than $7,500,000, or (ii) renew for more than 12 months any loans greater than $1,000,000 rated “special mention” or worse; or
(p) agree to take, make any commitment to take, or adopt any resolutions of its board of directors or similar governing body in support of, any of the actions prohibited by this Section 4.02.
