BANK OF THE OZARKS, INC. 6,600,000 Shares of Common Stock Underwriting Agreement

Exhibit 1.1

BANK OF THE OZARKS, INC.

6,600,000 Shares of Common Stock

Underwriting Agreement

May 24, 2017

X.X. Xxxxxx Securities LLC
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx

Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Bank of the Ozarks, Inc., an Arkansas corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to you (the “Underwriter”), an aggregate of 6,600,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Common Stock”), of the Company (the “Underwritten Shares”) and, at the option of the Underwriter, up to an additional 990,000 shares of Common Stock of the Company (the “Option Shares”).  The Underwritten Shares and the Option Shares are herein referred to as the “Shares”.  The shares of Common Stock of the Company to be outstanding after giving effect to the sale of the Shares are referred to herein as the “Stock”.  

On April 10, 2017, the Company, as part of an internal corporate reorganization, entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Plan of Merger”) with the Company’s wholly-owned bank subsidiary, Bank of the Ozarks (the “Bank”). Under the terms of the Plan of Merger, the Company will be merged with and into the Bank (the “Reorganization”) with the Bank continuing as the surviving entity.  At the effective time of the Reorganization, the outstanding shares of the Company’s Common Stock, including the Shares to be issued in connection with this offering, will automatically be converted into an equal number of shares of the Bank’s common stock, par value $0.01 per share.

The Company hereby confirms its agreement with the Underwriter concerning the purchase and sale of the Shares, as follows:

1. Registration Statement.  The Company has prepared and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (collectively, the “Securities Act”), a registration statement (File No. 333-203388), including a prospectus, relating to the Shares.  Such registration statement, as amended at the time it became effective, including the information, if any, deemed pursuant to Rule 430A, 430B or 430C under the Securities Act to be part of the registration statement at the time of its effectiveness (“Rule 430 Information”), is referred to herein as the “Registration Statement”; and as used herein, the term “Preliminary Prospectus” means each prospectus included in such registration statement (and any amendments thereto) before effectiveness, any prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(a) under the Securities Act and the prospectus included in the Registration Statement at the time of its effectiveness that omits Rule 430 Information, and the term “Prospectus” means the prospectus in the form first used (or made available upon request of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) in connection with confirmation of sales of the Shares.  If the Company has filed an abbreviated registration statement pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act (the “Rule 462 Registration Statement”), then any reference herein to the term “Registration Statement” shall be deemed to include such Rule 462 Registration Statement.  Any reference in this underwriting agreement (this “Agreement”) to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12 of

Form S-3 under the Securities Act, as of the effective date of the Registration Statement or the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be, and any reference to “amend”, “amendment” or “supplement” with respect to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any documents filed after such date under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (collectively, the “Exchange Act”) that are deemed to be incorporated by reference therein.

At or prior to the Applicable Time (as defined below), the Company had prepared the following information (collectively with the pricing information set forth on Annex A, the “Pricing Disclosure Package”):  a Preliminary Prospectus dated May 24, 2017 and each “free-writing prospectus” (as defined pursuant to Rule 405 under the Securities Act) listed on Annex A hereto.

“Applicable Time” means 6:30 P.M., New York City time, on May 24, 2017.

2. Purchase of the Shares.

(a) The Company agrees to issue and sell the Underwritten Shares to the Underwriter as provided in this Agreement, and the Underwriter, on the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements set forth herein and subject to the conditions set forth herein, agrees to purchase from the Company the Underwritten Shares set forth opposite the Underwriter’s name in Schedule 1 hereto at a price per share (the “Purchase Price”) of $45.45.

In addition, the Company agrees to issue and sell the Option Shares to the Underwriter as provided in this Agreement, and the Underwriter, on the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements set forth herein and subject to the conditions set forth herein, shall have the option to purchase from the Company the Option Shares at the Purchase Price less an amount per share equal to any dividends or distributions declared by the Company and payable on the Underwritten Shares but not payable on the Option Shares.  For the avoidance of doubt, the term “Option Shares” includes shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, of the Bank, if and to the extent that the Reorganization is consummated prior to the expiration of the option to purchase Option Shares or the delivery date or dates on which the Option Shares are to be delivered following exercise, as set forth in the following paragraph.

The Underwriter may exercise the option to purchase Option Shares at any time in whole, or from time to time in part, on or before the thirtieth day following the date of the Prospectus, by written notice from the Underwriter to the Company.  Such notice shall set forth the aggregate number of Option Shares as to which the option is being exercised and the date and time when the Option Shares are to be delivered and paid for, which may be the same date and time as the Closing Date (as hereinafter defined) but shall not be earlier than the Closing Date nor later than the tenth full business day (as hereinafter defined) after the date of such notice (unless such time and date are postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10 hereof).  Any such notice shall be given at least two business days prior to the date and time of delivery specified therein.  

(b) The Company understands that the Underwriter intends to make a public offering of the Shares as soon after the effectiveness of this Agreement as in the judgment of the Underwriter is advisable, and initially to offer the Shares on the terms set forth in the Pricing Disclosure Package.  The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriter may offer and sell Shares to or through any affiliate of the Underwriter.

(c) Payment for the Shares shall be made by wire transfer in immediately available funds to the account specified by the Company to the Underwriter in the case of the Underwritten Shares, at the offices of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Xxxxxxx & Xxxx LLP at 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on May 31,

2017, or at such other time or place on the same or such other date, not later than the fifth business day thereafter, as the Underwriter and the Company may agree upon in writing or, in the case of the Option Shares, on the date and at the time and place specified by the Underwriter in the written notice of the Underwriter’s election to purchase such Option Shares.  The time and date of such payment for the Underwritten Shares is referred to herein as the “Closing Date”, and the time and date for such payment for the Option Shares, if other than the Closing Date, is herein referred to as the “Additional Closing Date”.

Payment for the Shares to be purchased on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, shall be made against delivery to the Underwriter of the Shares to be purchased on such date with any transfer taxes payable in connection with the sale of such Shares duly paid by the Company.  Delivery of the Shares shall be made through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) unless the Underwriter shall otherwise instruct.

(d) The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriter is acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length contractual counterparty to the Company with respect to the offering of Shares contemplated hereby (including in connection with determining the terms of the offering) and not as a financial advisor or a fiduciary to, or an agent of, the Company or any other person.  Additionally, the Underwriter is not advising the Company or any other person as to any legal, tax, investment, accounting or regulatory matters in any jurisdiction.  The Company shall consult with its own advisors concerning such matters and shall be responsible for making its own independent investigation and appraisal of the transactions contemplated hereby, and the Underwriter shall have no responsibility or liability to the Company with respect thereto.  Any review by the Underwriter of the Company, the transactions contemplated hereby or other matters relating to such transactions will be performed solely for the benefit of the Underwriter and shall not be on behalf of the Company.

3. Representations and Warranties of the Company.  The Company represents and warrants to the Underwriter that:

(a) Preliminary Prospectus. No order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus has been issued by the Commission, and each Preliminary Prospectus included in the Pricing Disclosure Package, at the time of filing thereof, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act, and did not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that the Company makes no representation or warranty with respect to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by the Underwriter expressly for use in any Preliminary Prospectus, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof.

(b) Pricing Disclosure Package. The Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time did not, and as of the Closing Date and as of the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that the Company makes no representation or warranty with respect to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by the Underwriter expressly for use in such Pricing Disclosure Package, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof.

(c) Issuer Free Writing Prospectus. Each “written communication” (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) that constitutes an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy the Shares (each such communication by the Company or its agents and representatives (other than a communication referred to in clause (i) below) an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus”) other than (i) any document not constituting a prospectus pursuant to Section 2(a)(10)(a) of the Securities Act or Rule 134 under the Securities Act or (ii) the documents listed on Annex A hereto, each electronic road show and any other written communications approved in writing in advance by the Underwriter, as of its issue date and at all subsequent times through the completion of the offering of Securities under this Agreement or until any earlier date that the Company notified or notifies the Underwriter as described in the next sentence, did not, does not and will not include any information that conflicted, conflicts or will conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus. If at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conflicted or would conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus the Company has promptly notified or will promptly notify the Underwriter and has promptly amended or supplemented or will promptly amend or supplement such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict. The foregoing two sentences do not apply to any statements or omissions made in any such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by the Underwriter expressly for use in such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof.  The Company (including its agents and representatives, other than the Underwriter in its capacity as such) has not prepared, used, authorized, approved or referred to and will not, without promptly notifying the Underwriter as described above, prepare, use, authorize, approve or refer to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus other than as specified on Annex A hereto.

(d) Registration Statement and Prospectus. The Registration Statement is an “automatic shelf registration statement” as defined under Rule 405 of the Securities Act that has been filed with the Commission not earlier than three years prior to the date hereof; and no notice of objection of the Commission to the use of such registration statement or any post-effective amendment thereto pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the Securities Act has been received by the Company. No order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued by the Commission, and no proceeding for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act against the Company or related to the offering of the Shares has been initiated or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened by the Commission; as of the applicable effective date of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, the Registration Statement and any such post-effective amendment complied and will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act; and did not and will not, as of the applicable effective date, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading; and as of the date of the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, and as of the Closing Date and as of the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, the Prospectus will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that the Company makes no representation or warranty with respect to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information relating to the Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by the Underwriter expressly for use in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof.

(e) Incorporated Documents. The documents incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Pricing Disclosure Package, (i) at the time they were or hereafter are

filed with the Commission, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Exchange Act, and (ii) when read together with the other information in the Pricing Disclosure Package, at the Applicable Time, and with the other information in the Prospectus, at the date of the Prospectus and at the Closing Date, did not and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

(f) Financial Statements. The financial statements (including the related notes thereto) of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus comply in all material respects with the applicable requirements of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, and present fairly in all material respects the financial position of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries as of the dates indicated and the results of their operations and the changes in their cash flows for the periods specified; such financial statements have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in the United States applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods covered thereby except as otherwise noted therein.  The supporting schedules, if any, included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus present fairly in all material respects the information required to be stated therein; and the other financial information of the Company included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus has been derived from the accounting records of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries and presents fairly in all material respects the information shown thereby. The pro forma financial information and the related notes thereto included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus have been prepared in accordance with the applicable requirements of the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, as applicable, and the assumptions used in the preparation thereof are reasonable and the adjustments used therein are appropriate to give effect to the transactions and circumstances referred to therein.  

(g) No Material Adverse Change. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, (i)  there has been no material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs, management, results of operations or business prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, (ii) there have been no transactions entered into by the Company or any of its subsidiaries, other than those in the ordinary course of business, which are material with respect to the Company and its subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, and (iii) except for regular quarterly dividends on the Company’s common stock in amounts per share that are consistent with past practice, there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company on any class or series of its capital stock.

(h) Organization and Good Standing. The Company and each of its Significant Subsidiaries (as defined below) are incorporated and are validly existing under the laws of their respective jurisdictions of organization except that the Bank is validly chartered as an Arkansas state banking corporation. The Company and each of its Significant Subsidiaries are duly qualified to do business and are in good standing in each jurisdiction in which their respective ownership or lease of property or the conduct of their respective businesses requires such qualification, and have all power and authority necessary to own or hold their respective properties and to conduct the businesses in which they are engaged, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing or have such power or authority would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs, management, results of operations or business prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries consolidated as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, or on the performance by the Company of its obligations under this Agreement (a

“Material Adverse Effect”). The Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than the subsidiaries listed in Exhibit 21 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016, and as of the date hereof, the Company does not have any “significant subsidiaries” (as such term is defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X) (a “Significant Subsidiary”) other than the Bank.  

(i) Capitalization. The authorized and issued shares of capital stock of the Company as of March 31, 2017 are as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus in the column entitled “Actual” under the caption “Capitalization” (except for subsequent issuances, if any, pursuant to agreements or employee benefit plans referred to in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or pursuant to the exercise of convertible securities or options or the vesting of any equity awards referred to in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus); all the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued and are fully paid and non-assessable and are not subject to any preemptive or similar rights; the capital stock of the Company conforms in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, and all the outstanding shares of capital stock or other equity interests of each Significant Subsidiary owned, directly or indirectly, by the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned directly or indirectly by the Company free and clear of any lien, charge, encumbrance, security interest, restriction on voting or transfer or any other claims of any third party.  

(j) Stock Options.  With respect to the stock options (the “Stock Options”) granted pursuant to the stock-based compensation plans of the Company and its subsidiaries (the “Company Stock Plans”), (i) each Stock Option intended to qualify as an “incentive stock option” under Section 422 of the Code so qualifies, (ii) each grant of a Stock Option was duly authorized no later than the date on which the grant of such Stock Option was by its terms to be effective (the “Grant Date”) by all necessary corporate action, including, as applicable, approval by the board of directors of the Company (or a duly constituted and authorized committee thereof) and any required stockholder approval by the necessary number of votes or written consents, and the award agreement governing such grant (if any) was duly executed and delivered by each party thereto, (iii) each such grant was made in accordance with the terms of the Company Stock Plans, the Exchange Act and all other applicable laws and regulatory rules or requirements, including the rules of the Nasdaq Global Select Market, and (iv) each such grant was properly accounted for in accordance with GAAP in the financial statements (including the related notes) of the Company and disclosed in the Company's filings with the Commission in accordance with the Exchange Act and all other applicable laws. The Company has not knowingly granted, and there is no and has been no policy or practice of the Company of granting, Stock Options prior to, or otherwise coordinating the grant of Stock Options with, the release or other public announcement of material information regarding the Company or its subsidiaries or their results of operations or prospects.

(k) Due Authorization. The Company has full right, power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement and to perform its obligations hereunder; and all action required to be taken for the due and proper authorization, execution and delivery by it of this Agreement and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby has been duly and validly taken.

(l) Underwriting Agreement. This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.

(m) The Shares. The Shares have been duly authorized by the Company and, when duly executed, authenticated, issued and delivered as provided herein, will be duly and validly issued, will be fully paid and nonassessable and will conform to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement,

the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; and the issuance of the Shares is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights.  

(n) Descriptions of the Underwriting Agreement.  This Agreement conforms in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(o) No Violation or Default. Neither the Company nor any of its Significant Subsidiaries is (i) in violation of its charter or by-laws or similar organizational documents; (ii) in default, and no event has occurred that, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default, in the due performance or observance of any term, covenant or condition contained in any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries is subject; or (iii) in violation of any law or statute or any judgment, order, rule or regulation of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, except, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) above, for any such default or violation that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(p) No Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement, the issuance and sale of the Shares and the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement will not (i) conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries pursuant to, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject, (ii) result in any violation of the provisions of the charter or by-laws or similar organizational documents of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or (iii) result in the violation of any law or statute or any judgment, order, rule or regulation of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, except, in the case of clauses (i) and (iii) above, for any such conflict, breach, violation or default that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(q) No Consents Required. No consent, approval, authorization, order, registration or qualification of or with any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority is required for the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement, the issuance and sale of the Shares and the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, except for the registration of the Shares under the Securities Act and such consents, approvals, authorizations, orders and registrations or qualifications as may be required by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) and under applicable state securities laws in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Shares by the Underwriter.

(r) Legal Proceedings. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, there are no legal, governmental or regulatory investigations, actions, claims, suits, arbitrations or proceedings (“Actions”) pending to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or to which any property of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is the subject that, individually or in the aggregate, if determined adversely to the Company or any of its subsidiaries, could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; no such Actions are, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened or contemplated by any governmental or regulatory authority; and (i) there are no current or pending Actions that are required under the Securities Act to be described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not so described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and (ii) there are no contracts

or other documents that are required under the Securities Act to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement or described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not so filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement or described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(s) Independent Accountants. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and Xxxxx Xxxxxxx LLP, who have certified certain financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries, is each an independent registered public accounting firm with respect to the Company and its subsidiaries within the applicable rules and regulations adopted by the Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) and as required by the Securities Act.  

(t) Title to Real Property. The Company and its subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple title to, or have valid and marketable rights to lease or otherwise use, all items of real property that are material to the businesses of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, claims and defects and imperfections of title except those that (i) do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or (ii) could not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(u) Title to Intellectual Property. (i) The Company and its subsidiaries own or have the right to use all patents, patent applications, trademarks, service marks, trade names, trademark registrations, service xxxx registrations, domain names and other source indicators, copyrights and copyrightable works, know-how, trade secrets, systems, procedures, proprietary or confidential information, in each case, that are material to the respective businesses of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole (collectively, “Intellectual Property”) used in the conduct of their respective businesses as currently conducted; (ii) the conduct of their respective businesses will not conflict in any respect with any such rights of others, except where the failure to own, possess, employ, or acquire such Intellectual Property rights, singly or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and (iii) the Company and its subsidiaries have not received any written notice of any claim of infringement, misappropriation or conflict with any such rights of others in connection with its Intellectual Property, which could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect; and (iv) to the knowledge of the Company, the Intellectual Property of the Company and its subsidiaries is not being infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated by any person in a manner which could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(v) No Undisclosed Relationships. No relationship exists between the Company or any of its subsidiaries, on the one hand, and the affiliates, directors, or officers of the Company and its subsidiaries, on the other hand, that is required to be described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus or the documents incorporated therein by reference that is not so described therein.

(w) Investment Company Act. The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, will not be an “investment company” or an entity “controlled” by an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (collectively, the “Investment Company Act”).

(x) Taxes. The Company and its subsidiaries have paid all federal, state, local and foreign taxes and filed all tax returns required to be paid or filed through the date hereof, except with respect to any taxes that are currently being contested in good faith or as would not have, individually or in the

aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect; and except as otherwise disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, there is no tax deficiency that has been, or could reasonably be expected to be, asserted against the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their respective properties or assets, except for tax deficiencies that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(y) Licenses and Permits. The Company and its subsidiaries possess all licenses, certificates, permits and other authorizations issued by, and have made all declarations and filings with, the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign governmental or regulatory authorities that are necessary for the ownership or lease of their respective properties or the conduct of their respective businesses as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, except where the failure to possess or make the same would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; and except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has received notice of any revocation or modification of any such license, certificate, permit or authorization or has any reason to believe that any such license, certificate, permit or authorization will not be renewed in the ordinary course, except where the failure to renew would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(z) No Labor Disputes. No labor disturbance by or dispute with employees of the Company or any of its subsidiaries exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is contemplated or threatened, and the Company is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbance by, or dispute with, the employees of any of its or its subsidiaries’ principal suppliers, contractors or customers, in each case except as would not have a Material Adverse Effect.  Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is currently a party to any collective bargaining agreement.

(aa) Compliance with and Liability under Environmental Laws. The Company and its subsidiaries are in compliance with all applicable federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations, judgments, decrees, decisions and orders relating to the protection of human health and safety, the environment, natural resources, or hazardous or toxic substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants, (collectively, the “Environmental Laws”), except where such noncompliance would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.  There is no claim under any Environmental Law, including common law, pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened against the Company or any of its subsidiaries (an “Environmental Claim”), which would have a Material Adverse Effect, and, to the knowledge of the Company, under applicable law, there are no past or present actions, activities, circumstances, events or incidents, including without limitation, a Release of any Hazardous Material into the environment, that are reasonably likely to form the basis of any Environmental Claim against the Company or any subsidiary which would have a Material Adverse Effect.  As used herein, “Hazardous Materials” means any material, chemical, substance, waste, pollutant, contaminant, compound, mixture, or constituent thereof, in any form or amount, including petroleum (including crude oil or any fraction thereof) and petroleum products, natural gas liquids, asbestos and asbestos containing materials, naturally occurring radioactive materials, brine, and drilling mud, regulated or which can give rise to liability under any Environmental Law; and “Release” means any spilling, leaking, seepage, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, disposing, depositing, dispersing, or migrating in, into or through the environment, or in, into from or through any building or structure.

(bb) Compliance with ERISA. Each of the Company and its subsidiaries is in compliance in all material respects with all applicable provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, including the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (collectively, “ERISA”), except where such non-compliance would not result in a Material Adverse Effect. None of the Company, its subsidiaries or any ERISA Affiliate (as hereinafter defined) has incurred or reasonably expects to incur any unpaid liability to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (other than for the payment of premiums

in the ordinary course) or to any employee pension plan subject to Title IV of ERISA, and the present value of each such plans’ liabilities do not exceed its assets, except where such unpaid liability or underfunding would not result in a Material Adverse Effect. “ERISA Affiliate” means a corporation, trade or business that is, along with the Company or any Subsidiary, a member of a controlled group of corporations or a controlled group of trades or businesses, as described in Section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), or Section 4001 of ERISA.  Each “employee pension benefit plan” within the meaning of section 3(2) of ERISA for which the Company or any of the Company’s subsidiaries would have any liability (including as the result of any ERISA Affiliate) that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code has received a favorable determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service, or with respect to a prototype plan, can rely on an opinion letter from the Internal Revenue Service issued to the prototype plan sponsor, to the effect that such employee pension benefit plan is so qualified in all material respects and, to the Company’s knowledge, nothing has occurred, whether by action or by failure to act, which would cause the loss of such qualification.

(cc) Disclosure Controls. The Company maintains an effective system of “disclosure controls and procedures” (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) of the Exchange Act) that complies with the requirements of the Exchange Act and that has been designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules and forms, including controls and procedures designed to ensure that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. The Company has carried out evaluations of the effectiveness of its disclosure controls and procedures as required by Rule 13a-15 of the Exchange Act.

(dd) Accounting Controls. The Company maintains systems of “internal control over financial reporting” (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) of the Exchange Act) that comply with the requirements of the Exchange Act and have been designed by, or under the supervision of, its principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP, including, but not limited to, internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations; (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain asset accountability; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences and (v) interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Pricing Disclosure Package fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and is prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto. Based on the Company’s most recent evaluation of its internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Rule 13a-15(c) of the Exchange Act, except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there are no material weaknesses in the Company’s internal controls. The Company’s auditors and the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company have been advised of: (i) all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal controls over financial reporting which have adversely affected or are reasonably likely to adversely affect the Company’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and (ii) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Company’s internal controls over financial reporting.

(ee) Insurance. The Company and its Significant Subsidiaries have insurance covering their respective properties, operations, personnel and businesses, including business interruption insurance,

which insurance is in amounts and insures against such losses and risks as are adequate, in the reasonable belief of the Company, to protect the Company and its Significant Subsidiaries and their respective businesses; neither the Company nor any of its Significant Subsidiaries has received notice from any insurer or agent of such insurer that capital improvements or other material expenditures are required or necessary to be made in order to continue such insurance; and except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, the Company reasonably believes that it will be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or obtain similar coverage at reasonable cost from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business.

(ff) No Unlawful Payments. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer or employee of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any agent, affiliate or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries has (i) used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expense relating to political activity; (ii) made or taken an act in furtherance of an offer, promise or authorization of any direct or indirect unlawful payment or benefit to any foreign or domestic government official or employee, including of any government-owned or controlled entity or of a public international organization, or any person acting in an official capacity for or on behalf of any of the foregoing, or any political party or party official or candidate for political office; (iii) violated or is in violation of any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, or any applicable law or regulation implementing the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, or committed an offence under the Xxxxxxx Xxx 0000 of the United Kingdom or any other applicable anti-bribery or anti-corruption law; or (iv) made, offered, agreed, requested or taken an act in furtherance of any unlawful bribe or other unlawful benefit, including, without limitation, any rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful or improper payment or benefit.  The Company and its subsidiaries have instituted, maintain and enforce, and will continue to maintain and enforce policies and procedures designed to promote and ensure compliance with all applicable anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws.

(gg) Compliance with Anti-Money Laundering Laws. The operations of the Company and its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, the applicable money laundering statutes of all jurisdictions where the Company or any of its subsidiaries conducts business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Anti-Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Anti-Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.

(hh) Compliance with Sanctions Laws. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any directors, officers, or employees of the Company or any agent,  affiliate or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is currently the subject or the target of any sanctions administered or enforced by the U.S. government, (including, without limitation, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (“OFAC”) or the U.S. Department of State and including, without limitation, the designation as a “specially designated national” or “blocked person”), the United Nations Security Council (“UNSC”), the European Union, Her Majesty’s Treasury (“HMT”) or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”), nor is the Company or any of its subsidiaries located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject or target of Sanctions, including, without limitation, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, Syria and Crimea (each, a “Sanctioned Country”); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the offering of the Shares hereunder, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available

such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity (i) to fund or facilitate any activities of or business with any person that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is the subject or target of Sanctions, (ii) to fund or facilitate any activities of or business in any Sanctioned Country or (iii) in any other manner that will result in a violation by any person (including any person participating in the transaction, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise) of Sanctions.  For the past five years, the Company and its subsidiaries have not knowingly engaged in and are not now knowingly engaged in any dealings or transactions with any person that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject or the target of Sanctions or with any Sanctioned Country.

(ii) No Restrictions on Subsidiaries. Except as otherwise disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, and except as limited by applicable law or regulation, no Significant Subsidiary of the Company is currently prohibited, directly or indirectly, under any agreement or other instrument to which it is a party or is subject, from paying any dividends to the Company, from making any other distribution on such Significant Subsidiary’s capital stock, from repaying to the Company any loans or advances to such subsidiary from the Company or from transferring any of such Significant Subsidiary’s properties or assets to the Company or any other subsidiary of the Company.

(jj) No Broker’s Fees. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is a party to any contract, agreement or understanding with any person (other than this Agreement) that would give rise to a valid claim against the Company or any of its subsidiaries or the Underwriter for a brokerage commission, finder’s fee or like payment in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares.

(kk) No Registration Rights. No person has the right to require the Company or any of its subsidiaries to register any securities for sale under the Securities Act by reason of the filing of the Registration Statement with the Commission or the issuance and sale of the Shares.

(ll) No Stabilization. The Company has not taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that could reasonably be expected to cause or result in any stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Shares.

(mm) Margin Rules. Neither the issuance, sale and delivery of the Shares nor the application of the proceeds thereof by the Company as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus will violate Regulation T, U or X of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any other regulation of such Board of Governors..

(nn) Forward-Looking Statements. No forward-looking statement (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act) included or incorporated by reference in any of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus has been made or reaffirmed without a reasonable basis or has been disclosed other than in good faith.

(oo) Statistical and Market Data. The statistical and market-related data included in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources that the Company reasonably believes are reliable and accurate in all material respects.

(pp) Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act. There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or, to the knowledge of the Company, any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply in all material respects with any provision of the Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith, including Section 402 related to loans and Sections 302 and 906 related to certifications.

(qq) Status under the Securities Act. At the time of filing the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, at the earliest time thereafter that the Company or any offering participant made a bona fide offer (within the meaning of Rule 164(h)(2) under the Securities Act) of the Shares and at the date hereof, the Company was not and is not an “ineligible issuer,” and is a “well-known seasoned issuer,” in each case as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act.

(rr) Bank Regulatory Authorities. The Bank is a state-chartered bank organized under the laws of the State of Arkansas and authorized to engage in the business of banking. The Company is duly registered as a bank holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHC Act”), does not (directly or indirectly) own or control the stock or voting securities of any depository institution other than the Bank, and its direct and indirect activities and investments are authorized for a bank holding company and its subsidiaries pursuant to the BHC Act.  Each of the Company and its subsidiaries are, and during the past three years have been, and after giving effect to the Reorganization, each of the Bank and its subsidiaries would be, in material compliance with all laws, rules, regulations and regulatory directives applicable to them, including those administered by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve Board”), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”), the Arkansas State Bank Department, and any other federal or state bank regulatory authorities with jurisdiction over the Company or its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Bank Regulatory Authorities”), except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus.  The deposit accounts of the Bank are insured up to applicable limits by the FDIC, all premiums and assessments required to be paid in connection therewith have been paid when due, and no proceedings for the termination or revocation of such insurance are pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened. Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, since January 1, 2014, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is a party to any written agreement or memorandum of understanding with, or a party to any commitment letter or similar undertaking to, or is subject to any order or directive by, or is a recipient of any extraordinary supervisory letter from, or has adopted any board of director resolutions at the request of, any Bank Regulatory Authority which currently materially restricts the conduct of its business, its credit policies or its management, or relates to its capital adequacy, in each case that are applicable to the Company or its subsidiaries, and neither the Company nor its subsidiaries has reason to believe that any Bank Regulatory Authority or other Governmental Entity is considering issuing, initiating, ordering, requesting, recommending or otherwise proceeding with any such similar undertaking. There is no unresolved violation, apparent violation, criticism, matter requiring attention, or exception by any Bank Regulatory Authority with respect to any examination of the Company or its Significant Subsidiaries that (i) would reasonably be likely to have, either individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect or (ii) would reasonably be likely to prevent or materially delay the transactions contemplated by this Agreement. The Bank has received a rating of “satisfactory" under the Community Reinvestment Act (the “CRA”) and does not have any reason to believe that such rating may become less than “satisfactory." The Company and the Bank are each “well capitalized” as that term is defined, as applicable, at 12 CFR parts 225 and 325.

(ss) Agreement and Plan of Merger.  The Plan of Merger, dated April 10, 2017, between the Company and the Bank, relating to the Reorganization, constitutes a valid and binding obligation of each of the Company and the Bank, enforceable against each of them in accordance with its terms, except as limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, reorganization, moratorium or similar laws relating to or affecting enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by general equitable principles (whether considered in a proceeding at law or in equity).

(tt) Accuracy of Disclosure.  The statements set forth in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the captions “Description of Capital Stock” and “Description of Bank Capital Stock and Comparison of Shareholders’ Rights,” insofar as they purport to

constitute a summary of the terms of the common stock of the Company and the common stock of the Bank and the provisions of the laws and documents referred to therein, and under the caption “Summary−Recent Developments−Proposed Corporate Reorganization,” insofar as they purport to describe the Reorganization, are accurate, complete and fair in all material respects.

4. Further Agreements of the Company.  The Company covenants and agrees with the Underwriter that:

(a) Required Filings.  The Company will file the final Prospectus with the Commission within the time periods specified by Rule 424(b) and Rule 430A, 430B or 430C under the Securities Act, and will file any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to the extent required by Rule 433 under the Securities Act; and the Company will file promptly all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act subsequent to the date of the Prospectus and for so long as the delivery of a prospectus is required in connection with the offering or sale of the Shares; and the Company will furnish copies of the Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (to the extent not previously delivered) to the Underwriter in New York City prior to 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement in such quantities as the Underwriter may reasonably request.  The Company will pay the registration fee for this offering within the time period required by Rule 456(b)(1) under the Securities Act (without giving effect to the proviso therein) and in any event prior to the Closing Date.

(b) Delivery of Copies.  The Company will deliver, without charge, to the Underwriter, (i) two signed copies of the Registration Statement as originally filed and each amendment thereto, in each case including all exhibits and consents filed therewith and documents incorporated by reference therein; and (ii) during the Prospectus Delivery Period (as defined below), as many copies of the Prospectus (including all amendments and supplements thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus) as the Underwriter may reasonably request.  As used herein, the term “Prospectus Delivery Period” means such period of time after the first date of the public offering of the Shares as in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriter a prospectus relating to the Shares is required by law to be delivered (or required to be delivered but for Rule 172 under the Securities Act) in connection with sales of the Shares by the Underwriter or any dealer.

(c) Amendments or Supplements, Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses.  Before making, preparing, using, authorizing, approving, referring to or filing any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and before filing any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, whether before or after the time that the Registration Statement becomes effective, the Company will furnish to the Underwriter and counsel for the Underwriter a copy of the proposed Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, amendment or supplement for review and will not make, prepare, use, authorize, approve, refer to or file any such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which the Underwriter reasonably objects.

(d) Notice to the Underwriter.  The Company will advise the Underwriter promptly, and confirm such advice in writing, (i) when the Registration Statement has become effective; (ii) when any amendment to the Registration Statement has been filed or becomes effective; (iii) when any supplement to the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any amendment to the Prospectus has been filed or distributed; (iv) of any request by the Commission for any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus or the receipt of any comments from the Commission relating to the Registration Statement or any

other request by the Commission for any additional information; (v) of the issuance by the Commission or any other governmental or regulatory authority of any order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, any of the Pricing Disclosure Package, or the Prospectus or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act; (vi) of the occurrence of any event or development within the Prospectus Delivery Period as a result of which the Prospectus, any of the Pricing Disclosure Package, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package, or any such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading; (vii) of the receipt by the Company of any notice of objection of the Commission to the use of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the Securities Act; and (viii) of the receipt by the Company of any notice with respect to any suspension of the qualification of the Shares for offer and sale in any jurisdiction or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for such purpose; and the Company will use its reasonable best efforts to prevent the issuance of any such order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, any of the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or suspending any such qualification of the Shares and, if any such order is issued, will obtain as soon as possible the withdrawal thereof.

(e) Ongoing Compliance.  (1) If during the Prospectus Delivery Period (i) any event or development shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading or (ii) it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus to comply with law, the Company will immediately notify the Underwriter thereof and forthwith prepare and, subject to paragraph (c) above, file with the Commission and furnish to the Underwriter and to such dealers as the Underwriter may designate such amendments or supplements to the Prospectus (or any document to be filed with the Commission and incorporated by reference therein) as may be necessary so that the statements in the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented (or any document to be filed with the Commission and incorporated by reference therein) will not, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Prospectus will comply with law and (2) if at any time prior to the Closing Date (i) any event or development shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which the Pricing Disclosure Package as then amended or supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Pricing Disclosure Package is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading or (ii) it is necessary to amend or supplement the Pricing Disclosure Package to comply with law, the Company will immediately notify the Underwriter thereof and forthwith prepare and, subject to paragraph (c) above, file with the Commission (to the extent required) and furnish to the Underwriter and to such dealers as the Underwriter may designate such amendments or supplements to the Pricing Disclosure Package (or any document to be filed with the Commission and incorporated by reference therein) as may be necessary so that the statements in the Pricing Disclosure Package as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Pricing Disclosure Package is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Pricing Disclosure Package will comply with law.

(f) Blue Sky Compliance.  The Company will qualify the Shares for offer and sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as the Underwriter shall reasonably

request and will continue such qualifications in effect so long as required for distribution of the Shares; provided that the Company shall not be required to (i) qualify as a foreign corporation or other entity or as a dealer in securities in any such jurisdiction where it would not otherwise be required to so qualify, (ii) file any general consent to service of process in any such jurisdiction or (iii) subject itself to taxation in any such jurisdiction if it is not otherwise so subject.

(g) Earning Statement.  The Company will make generally available to its security holders and the Underwriter as soon as practicable an earning statement that satisfies the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and Rule 158 of the Commission promulgated thereunder covering a period of at least twelve months beginning with the first fiscal quarter of the Company occurring after the “effective date” (as defined in Rule 158) of the Registration Statement.

(h) Clear Market.  For a period of 90 days after the date of the Prospectus, the Company will not (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, or file with the Commission a registration statement under the Securities Act relating to, any shares of Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Stock, or publicly disclose the intention to make any offer, sale, pledge, disposition or filing, or (ii) enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Stock or any such other securities, whether any such transaction described in clause (i) or (ii) above is to be settled by delivery of Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the Underwriter, other than (i) the Shares to be sold hereunder, (ii) any shares of Stock of the Company issued upon the exercise of options granted under Company Stock Plans and (iii) any securities issued in connection with the Reorganization and any registration statement required to be filed in connection therewith.

(i) Use of Proceeds.  The Company will apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Shares as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the heading “Use of proceeds”.

(j) No Stabilization.  The Company will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that could reasonably be expected to cause or result in any stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Stock.

(k) Exchange Listing.  The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to list for quotation the Shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (the “Nasdaq Market”).

(l) Reports.  Until the one year anniversary of any Prospectus Delivery Period, the Company will furnish to the Underwriter, as soon as they are available, copies of all reports or other communications (financial or other) furnished to holders of the Shares, and copies of any reports and financial statements furnished to or filed with the Commission or any national securities exchange or automatic quotation system; provided the Company will be deemed to have furnished such reports and financial statements to the Underwriter to the extent they are filed or furnished on the Commission’s Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval system, or if after the Reorganization, during any such period, filed by the Bank with or furnished to the FDIC pursuant to the Bank’s obligation to file or furnish such reports under Section 12(i) of the Exchange Act.

(m) Record Retention.  The Company will, pursuant to reasonable procedures developed in good faith, retain copies of each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is not filed with the Commission in accordance with Rule 433 under the Securities Act.

5. Certain Agreements of the Underwriter.   The Underwriter hereby represents and agrees that:

(a) It has not and will not use, authorize use of, refer to or participate in the planning for use of, any “free writing prospectus”, as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act (which term includes use of any written information furnished to the Commission by the Company and not incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement and any press release issued by the Company) other than (i) a free writing prospectus that contains no “issuer information” (as defined in Rule 433(h)(2) under the Securities Act) that was not included (including through incorporation by reference) in the Preliminary Prospectus or a previously filed Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, (ii) any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus listed on Annex A or prepared pursuant to Section 3(c) or Section 4(c) above (including any electronic road show), or (iii) any free writing prospectus prepared by the Underwriter and approved by the Company in advance in writing (each such free writing prospectus referred to in clauses (i) or (iii), an “Underwriter Free Writing Prospectus”).  

(b) It has not and will not, without the prior written consent of the Company, use any free writing prospectus that contains the final terms of the Shares unless such terms have previously been included in a free writing prospectus filed with the Commission.

(c) It is not subject to any pending proceeding under Section 8A of the Securities Act with respect to the offering (and will promptly notify the Company if any such proceeding against it is initiated during the Prospectus Delivery Period).

6. Conditions of Underwriter’s Obligations.  The obligation of the Underwriter to purchase the Underwritten Shares on the Closing Date or the Option Shares on the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, as provided herein is subject to the performance by the Company of its covenants and other obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:

(a) Registration Compliance; No Stop Order.  No order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement shall be in effect, and no proceeding for such purpose, pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) or pursuant to Section 8A under the Securities Act shall be pending before or threatened by the Commission; the Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been timely filed with the Commission under the Securities Act (in the case of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, to the extent required by Rule 433 under the Securities Act) and in accordance with Section 4(a) hereof; and all requests by the Commission for additional information shall have been complied with to the reasonable satisfaction of the Underwriter.

(b) Representations and Warranties.  The representations and warranties of the Company contained herein shall be true and correct on the date hereof and on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be; and the statements of the Company and its officers made in any certificates delivered pursuant to this Agreement shall be true and correct on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be.

(c) No Downgrade.  Subsequent to the earlier of (A) the Applicable Time and (B) the execution and delivery of this Agreement, (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating accorded any debt securities or preferred stock issued, or guaranteed by, the Company or

any of its subsidiaries by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as such term is defined under Section 3(a)(62) under the Exchange Act and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, or has changed its outlook with respect to, its rating of any such debt securities or preferred stock issued or guaranteed by the Company or any of its subsidiaries (other than an announcement with positive implications of a possible upgrading).

(d) No Material Adverse Change.  No event or condition of a type described in Section 3(g) hereof shall have occurred or shall exist, which event or condition is not described in the Pricing Disclosure Package (excluding any amendment or supplement thereto) and the Prospectus (excluding any amendment or supplement thereto) and the effect of which in the judgment of the Underwriter makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering, sale or delivery of the Shares on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, on the terms and in the manner contemplated by this Agreement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(e) Officer’s Certificate.  The Underwriter shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, a certificate of the chief financial officer or chief accounting officer of the Company and one additional senior executive officer of the Company who is reasonably satisfactory to the Underwriter (i) confirming that such officers have carefully reviewed the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and, to the knowledge of such officers, the representations set forth in Sections 3(b) and 3(d) hereof are true and correct, (ii) confirming that the other representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct and that the Company has complied with all agreements and satisfied all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder at or prior to the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, and (iii) to the effect set forth in paragraphs (a), (c) and (d) above.

(f) Comfort Letters.  On the date of this Agreement and on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and Xxxxx Xxxxxxx LLP shall have furnished to the Underwriter, at the request of the Company, letters, dated the respective dates of delivery thereof and addressed to the Underwriter, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Underwriter, containing statements and information of the type customarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained or incorporated by reference in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; provided, that the letter delivered on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be,  shall use a “cut-off” date no more than three business days prior to such Closing Date or such Additional Closing Date, as the case may be.

(g) Opinion and 10b-5 Statement of Counsel for the Company.  Xxxxx Xxxx LLP, counsel for the Company, shall have furnished to the Underwriter, at the request of the Company, their written opinion and 10b-5 statement, dated the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, and addressed to the Underwriter, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Underwriter, to the effect set forth in Annex B hereto.

(h) Opinion and 10b-5 Statement of Counsel for the Underwriter.  The Underwriter shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, an opinion and 10b-5 statement, addressed to the Underwriter, of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Xxxxxxx & Xxxx LLP, counsel for the Underwriter, with respect to such matters as the

Underwriter may reasonably request, and such counsel shall have received such documents and information as they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.

(i) No Legal Impediment to Issuance.  No action shall have been taken and no statute, rule, regulation or order shall have been enacted, adopted or issued by any federal, state or foreign governmental or regulatory authority that would, as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, prevent the issuance or sale of the Shares; and no injunction or order of any federal, state or foreign court shall have been issued that would, as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, prevent the issuance or sale of the Shares.

(j) Good Standing.  The Underwriter shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, satisfactory evidence of the good standing of the Company and its Significant Subsidiaries in their respective jurisdictions of organization and their good standing in such other jurisdictions as the Underwriter may have reasonably requested on or prior to the date hereof, in each case in writing or any standard form of telecommunication from the appropriate governmental authorities of such jurisdictions.

(k) Exchange Listing.  The Shares to be delivered on the Closing Date or Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, shall have been approved for listing on the Nasdaq Market, subject to official notice of issuance.

(l) Lock-up Agreements.  The “lock-up” agreements, each substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto, between you and certain shareholders, officers and directors of the Company relating to sales and certain other dispositions of shares of Stock or certain other securities, delivered to you on or before the date hereof, shall be full force and effect on the Closing Date or Additional Closing Date, as the case may be.

(m) Additional Documents.  On or prior to the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, the Company shall have furnished to the Underwriter such further certificates and documents as the Underwriter may reasonably request.

All opinions, letters, certificates and evidence mentioned above or elsewhere in this Agreement shall be deemed to be in compliance with the provisions hereof only if they are in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriter.

7. Indemnification and Contribution.  

(a) Indemnification of the Underwriter.  The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Underwriter, its affiliates, directors and officers and each person, if any, who controls the Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, legal fees and other expenses incurred in connection with any suit, action or proceeding or any claim asserted, as such fees and expenses are incurred), joint or several, that arise out of, or are based upon, (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, not misleading, or (ii) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto), any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any “issuer information” filed or required to be filed pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any road show as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act (a “road show”) or any Pricing Disclosure Package (including any Pricing Disclosure Package that has

subsequently been amended), or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, in each case except insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with any information relating to the Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by the Underwriter expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriter consists of the information described as such in subsection (b) below.

(b) Indemnification of the Company.  The Underwriter agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its directors, its officers who signed the Registration Statement and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act to the same extent as the indemnity set forth in paragraph (a) above, but only with respect to any losses, claims, damages or liabilities that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with any information relating to the Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by the Underwriter expressly for use in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto), any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any road show or any Pricing Disclosure Package (including any Pricing Disclosure Package that has subsequently been amended), it being understood and agreed upon that the only such information furnished by the Underwriter consists of the following information in the Prospectus furnished on behalf of the Underwriter: the information in the second sentence of the fourth paragraph and in paragraphs eleven, twelve and fourteen under the caption "Underwriting.”

(c) Notice and Procedures.  If any suit, action, proceeding (including any governmental or regulatory investigation), claim or demand shall be brought or asserted against any person in respect of which indemnification may be sought pursuant to either paragraph (a) or (b) above, such person (the “Indemnified Person”) shall promptly notify the person against whom such indemnification may be sought (the “Indemnifying Person”) in writing; provided that the failure to notify the Indemnifying Person shall not relieve it from any liability that it may have under paragraph (a) or (b) above except to the extent that it has been materially prejudiced (through the forfeiture of substantive rights or defenses) by such failure; and provided, further, that the failure to notify the Indemnifying Person shall not relieve it from any liability that it may have to an Indemnified Person otherwise than under paragraph (a) or (b) above.  If any such proceeding shall be brought or asserted against an Indemnified Person and it shall have notified the Indemnifying Person thereof, the Indemnifying Person shall retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Indemnified Person (who shall not, without the consent of the Indemnified Person, be counsel to the Indemnifying Person) to represent the Indemnified Person and shall pay the fees and expenses of one such counsel for all Indemnified Persons related to such proceeding, as incurred.  In any such proceeding, any Indemnified Person shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such Indemnified Person unless (i) the Indemnifying Person and the Indemnified Person shall have mutually agreed to the contrary; (ii) the Indemnifying Person has failed within a reasonable time to retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Indemnified Person; (iii) the Indemnified Person shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to it that are different from or in addition to those available to the Indemnifying Person; or (iv) the named parties in any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the Indemnifying Person and the Indemnified Person and representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential conflicting interests between them.  It is understood and agreed that the Indemnifying Person shall not, in connection with any proceeding or related proceeding in the same jurisdiction, be liable for the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to any local counsel) for all Indemnified Persons, and that all such fees and expenses shall be paid or reimbursed as they are incurred.  Any such separate firm for the Underwriter, its affiliates, directors and officers and any control persons of the Underwriter shall be designated in writing by the Underwriter and any such separate firm for the

Company, its directors, its officers who signed the Registration Statement and any control persons of the Company shall be designated in writing by the Company.  The Indemnifying Person shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, but if settled with such consent or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff, the Indemnifying Person agrees to indemnify each Indemnified Person from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment.  Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an Indemnified Person shall have requested that an Indemnifying Person reimburse the Indemnified Person for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by this paragraph, the Indemnifying Person shall be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 60 days after receipt by the Indemnifying Person of such request and (ii) the Indemnifying Person shall not have reimbursed the Indemnified Person in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement.  No Indemnifying Person shall, without the written consent of the Indemnified Person, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which any Indemnified Person is or could have been a party and indemnification could have been sought hereunder by such Indemnified Person, unless such settlement (x) includes an unconditional release of such Indemnified Person, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to such Indemnified Person, from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding and (y) does not include any statement as to or any admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of any Indemnified Person.

(d) Contribution.  If the indemnification provided for in paragraphs (a) and (b) above is unavailable to an Indemnified Person or insufficient in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to therein, then each Indemnifying Person under such paragraph, in lieu of indemnifying such Indemnified Person thereunder, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such Indemnified Person as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriter on the other, from the offering of the Shares or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) but also the relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriter on the other, in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations.  The relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriter on the other, shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the net proceeds (before deducting expenses) received by the Company from the sale of the Shares and the difference between (x) the aggregate price to the public received by the Underwriter and (y) the aggregate price paid by the Underwriter to the Company for the Shares, bear to the aggregate price to the public received by the Underwriter.  The relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriter on the other, shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or by the Underwriter and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.

(e) Limitation on Liability.  The Company and the Underwriter agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to paragraph (d) above were determined by pro rata allocation or by any other method of allocation that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in paragraph (d) above.  The amount paid or payable by an Indemnified Person as a result of the losses, claims, damages and liabilities referred to in paragraph (d) above shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses incurred by such Indemnified Person in connection with any such action or claim.  Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (d) and (e), in no event shall the Underwriter be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriter with respect to the offering of the Shares exceeds the amount of any damages that the Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission.  No person guilty of

fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.  

(f) Non-Exclusive Remedies.  The remedies provided for in paragraphs (a) through (e) are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any Indemnified Person at law or in equity.

8. Effectiveness of Agreement.  This Agreement shall become effective as of the date first written above.

9. Termination.  This Agreement may be terminated in the absolute discretion of the Underwriter, by notice to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and on or prior to the Closing Date or, in the case of the Option Shares, prior to the Additional Closing Date: (i) trading generally shall have been suspended or materially limited on or by any of the New York Stock Exchange or The Nasdaq Stock Market; (ii) trading of any securities issued or guaranteed by the Company shall have been suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market; (iii) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities shall have been declared by federal or New York State authorities; or (iv) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis, either within or outside the United States, that, in the judgment of the Underwriter, is material and adverse and makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering, sale or delivery of the Shares on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, on the terms and in the manner contemplated by this Agreement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

10. Payment of Expenses.

(a) Whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, the Company will pay or cause to be paid all costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder, including without limitation, (i) the costs incident to the authorization, issuance, sale, preparation and delivery of the Shares and any taxes payable in that connection; (ii) the costs incident to the preparation, printing and filing under the Securities Act of the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (including all exhibits, amendments and supplements thereto) and the distribution thereof; (iii) the fees and expenses of the Company’s counsel and independent accountants; (iv) the fees and expenses incurred in connection with the registration or qualification and determination of eligibility for investment of the Shares under the laws of such jurisdictions as the Underwriter may designate and the preparation, printing and distribution of a Blue Sky Memorandum (including the related fees and expenses of counsel for the Underwriter, not to exceed $10,000); (v) the cost of preparing stock certificates; (vi) the costs and charges of any transfer agent and any registrar; (vii) all expenses and application fees incurred in connection with any filing with, and clearance of the offering by, FINRA; (viii) all expenses incurred by the Company in connection with any “road show” presentation to potential investors; and (ix) all expenses and application fees related to the listing of the Shares on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

(b) If (i) this Agreement is terminated pursuant to Section 9, (ii) the Company for any reason fails to tender the Shares for delivery to the Underwriter or (iii) the Underwriter declines to purchase the Shares for any reason permitted under this Agreement, the Company agrees to reimburse the Underwriter for all out-of-pocket costs and expenses (including the reasonable fees and expenses of its counsel) reasonably incurred by the Underwriter in connection with this Agreement and the offering contemplated hereby.

11. Persons Entitled to Benefit of Agreement.  This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective successors (including, for the avoidance of doubt, the Bank, if the Reorganization is consummated) and the officers and directors and any controlling persons referred to herein, and the affiliates of the Underwriter referred to in Section 7 hereof.  Nothing in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any other person any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision contained herein.  No purchaser of Shares from the Underwriter shall be deemed to be a successor merely by reason of such purchase.

12. Survival.  The respective indemnities, rights of contribution, representations, warranties and agreements of the Company and the Underwriter contained in this Agreement or made by or on behalf of the Company or the Underwriter pursuant to this Agreement or any certificate delivered pursuant hereto shall survive the delivery of and payment for the Shares and shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any termination of this Agreement or any investigation made by or on behalf of the Company or the Underwriter.

13. Certain Defined Terms.  For purposes of this Agreement, (a) except where otherwise expressly provided, the term “affiliate” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 under the Securities Act; (b) the term “business day” means any day other than a day on which banks are permitted or required to be closed in New York City; and (c) the term “subsidiary” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 under the Securities Act.

14. Compliance with USA Patriot Act. In accordance with the requirements of the USA Patriot Act (Title III of Pub. L. 107-56 (signed into law October 26, 2001)), the Underwriter is required to obtain, verify and record information that identifies their respective clients, including the Company, which information may include the name and address of their respective clients, as well as other information that will allow the Underwriter to properly identify their respective clients.

15. Miscellaneous.

(a) Notices.  All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given if mailed or transmitted and confirmed by any standard form of telecommunication.  Notices to the Underwriter shall be given to it at X.X. Xxxxxx Securities LLC, 000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000 (fax: (000) 000-0000); Attention Equity Syndicate Desk.  Notices to the Company shall be given to it at Bank of the Ozarks, Inc., 00000 Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx, Xxxxxx Xxxx, Xxxxxxxx  00000 (fax: (000) 000-0000); Attention: Xxxx XxXxxxxx, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer.

(b) Governing Law.  This Agreement and any claim, controversy or dispute arising under or related to this Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

(c) Waiver of Jury Trial.  Each of the parties hereto hereby waives any right to trial by jury in any suit or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement.

(d) Counterparts.  This Agreement may be signed in counterparts (which may include counterparts delivered by any standard form of telecommunication), each of which shall be an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.

(e) Amendments or Waivers.  No amendment or waiver of any provision of this Agreement, nor any consent or approval to any departure therefrom, shall in any event be effective unless the same shall be in writing and signed by the parties hereto.

(f) Headings.  The headings herein are included for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to affect the meaning or interpretation of, this Agreement.

If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding, please indicate your acceptance of this Agreement by signing in the space provided below.

Very truly yours,

BANK OF THE OZARKS, INC.

By: /s/ Xxxx XxXxxxxx Name: Xxxx XxXxxxxx
Title: CFO

Accepted: As of the date first written above

X.X. XXXXXX SECURITIES LLC

By: /s/ Xxxxxxxx X. Xxxx Authorized Signatory

Schedule 1

Underwriter	Number of Shares
X.X. Xxxxxx Securities LLC	6,600,000
Total	6,600,000

Annex A

a. Pricing Disclosure Package

None.

b.  Pricing Information Provided Orally by Underwriter

Price to Public:  Variable

Number of Underwritten Shares Offered: 6,600,000

Number of Option Shares Offered:  990,000

Exhibit A

FORM OF LOCK-UP AGREEMENT

May 24, 2017

X.X. XXXXXX SECURITIES LLC

000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000

Re: Bank of the Ozarks, Inc. --- Public Offering

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The undersigned understands that you, as the underwriter (the “Underwriter”) propose to enter into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Bank of the Ozarks, Inc., an Arkansas corporation (the “Company”) providing for the public offering (the “Public Offering”) by the Underwriter, of common stock of the Company (the “Securities”). Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in the Underwriting Agreement.

The undersigned understands that you, as the underwriter (the “Underwriter”) propose to enter into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Bank of the Ozarks, Inc., an Arkansas corporation (the “Company”) providing for the public offering (the “Public Offering”) by the Underwriter, of common stock of the Company (the “Securities”). Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in the Underwriting Agreement.

In consideration of the Underwriter’s agreement to purchase and make the Public Offering of the Securities, and for other good and valuable consideration receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, the undersigned hereby agrees that, without the prior written consent of the Underwriter, the undersigned will not, during the period beginning on the date of this letter agreement (this “Letter Agreement”) and ending 45 days after the date of the final prospectus relating to the Public Offering (the “Prospectus”) (such period, the “Restricted Period”), (1) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, of the Company (the “Common Stock”) or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock (including without limitation, Common Stock or such other securities which may be deemed to be beneficially owned by the undersigned in accordance with Rule 16a-1(a)(2) of the Securities and Exchange Commission, securities which may be issued upon exercise of a stock option or warrant and any common stock or other securities of Bank of the Ozarks (“Bank”) delivered in exchange for Common Stock in connection with the Reorganization), or publicly disclose the intention to make any offer, sale, pledge or disposition, (2) enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock or such other securities, whether any such transaction described in clause (1) or (2) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise or (3) make any demand for or exercise any right with respect to the registration of any shares of Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the undersigned may transfer the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock (A) as a bona fide gift or gifts, (B) to any partnership, corporation or limited liability company controlled by the undersigned or by a member of the immediate family of the undersigned, or (C) in connection with the payment of tax withholdings upon the vesting of restricted stock or restricted

stock unit awards; provided that in the case of any transfer or distribution pursuant to clause (A) or (B), each donee or distributee shall execute and deliver to the Underwriter a lock-up letter in the form of this paragraph; and provided, further, that in the case of any transfer or distribution pursuant to clause (A), (B), or (C), no filing by any party (donor, donee, transferor or transferee) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or other public announcement shall be required or shall be made voluntarily in connection with such transfer or distribution (other than a filing on a Form 5 made after the expiration of the Restricted Period referred to above).

Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in this Letter Agreement shall be deemed to limit, delay or prohibit (1) the consummation of the Reorganization or (2) the undersigned from transferring or surrendering its shares of Company Common Stock to the Bank’s transfer agent in exchange for shares of common stock of the Bank during the Restricted Period in connection with the Reorganization.

In furtherance of the foregoing, the Company, and any duly appointed transfer agent for the registration or transfer of the securities described herein, are hereby authorized to decline to make any transfer of securities if such transfer would constitute a violation or breach of this Letter Agreement.

The undersigned hereby represents and warrants that the undersigned has full power and authority to enter into this Letter Agreement. All authority herein conferred or agreed to be conferred and any obligations of the undersigned shall be binding upon the successors, assigns, heirs or personal representatives of the undersigned.

The undersigned understands that, if the Underwriting Agreement does not become effective by June 30, 2017, or if the Underwriting Agreement (other than the provisions thereof which survive termination) shall terminate or be terminated prior to payment for and delivery of the Common Stock to be sold thereunder, the undersigned shall be released from all obligations under this Letter Agreement.  The undersigned understands that the Underwriter is entering into the Underwriting Agreement and proceeding with the Public Offering in reliance upon this Letter Agreement.

This Letter Agreement and any claim, controversy or dispute arising under or related to this Letter Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

Very truly yours,

By:   Name:
Title: