UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form
Current Report
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Form 8-K
Item 5.03 Amendments to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws; Change in Fiscal Year.
As a result of the approval by the shareholders of AmeriServ Financial, Inc. (the “Company”) of the proposal to amend the Company’s amended and restated articles of incorporation to eliminate the ability to exercise cumulative voting in director elections at the 2024 annual meeting of the Company’s shareholders, on September 19, 2024, the Company amended its bylaws (the “Bylaws”) as follows:
• | Section 1.10 was added to provide for proxy access, allowing eligible shareholders to include their own nominees for director in the Company's proxy materials along with the nominees of the Company’s board of directors. |
• | Section 2.19 was added to (a) provide that directors are elected under a plurality voting standard, pursuant to which nominees who receive the most votes (up to the number of directors to be elected in such election) are elected as directors, and (b) implement a majority voting standard for the election of directors in uncontested director elections. In contested elections, directors would continue to be elected by a plurality vote of shareholders. |
• | Section 2.20 was added to provide for specific mechanisms by which directors may submit their resignations to the Company. |
The foregoing summaries of the amendments to the Bylaws do not purport to be complete and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the Bylaws, a copy of which are attached as Exhibit 3.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and incorporated herein by reference.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits:
3.1Amended and Restated Bylaws of AmeriServ Financial, Inc., as adopted on September 19, 2024.
104Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document).
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
AMERISERV FINANCIAL, Inc. | ||
Date: September 23, 2024 | By | /s/Michael D. Lynch |
Michael D. Lynch | ||
EVP & CFO | ||
Exhibit 3.1
AMENDED AND RESTATED
BYLAWS OF AMERISERV FINANCIAL, INC.
Amended and restated effective as of September 19, 2024
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Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Section 1.10, the Corporation may omit from its proxy materials any information or Statement that it, in good faith, believes is untrue in any material respect (or omits a material fact necessary in order to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading) or would violate any applicable law, rule, regulation, or listing standard. Additionally, nothing in this Section 1.10 shall limit the Corporation’s ability to solicit against and include in its proxy statement its own statements relating to any Shareholder Nominee.
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In the event that the number of Shareholder Nominees submitted by Eligible Shareholders pursuant to this Section 1.10 exceeds the Permitted Number, each Eligible Shareholder shall select one Shareholder Nominee for inclusion in the Corporation’s proxy statement until the Permitted Number is reached, going in order of the amount (from greatest to least) of voting power of the Corporation’s capital stock entitled to vote on the election of directors as disclosed in the Notice. If the Permitted Number is not reached after each Eligible Shareholder has selected one Shareholder Nominee, this selection process shall continue as many times as necessary, following the same order each time, until the Permitted Number is reached.
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Whenever an Eligible Shareholder consists of a group of shareholders of record and/or beneficial owners, any and all requirements and obligations for an Eligible Shareholder set forth in this Section 1.10 must be satisfied by and as to each such shareholder or beneficial owner, except that shares may be aggregated to meet the Required Shares as provided in this Section 1.10(e). With respect to any one particular annual meeting, no shares may be attributed to more than one Eligible Shareholder, and no shareholder of record or beneficial owner, alone or together with any of its affiliates, may individually or as a member of a group qualify as or constitute more than one an Eligible Shareholder under this Section 1.10.
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An Eligible Shareholder and beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the Shareholder Nominee is proposed “owns” shares held in the name of a nominee or other intermediary so long as the Eligible Shareholder or beneficial owner, as applicable, retains the right to instruct how the shares are voted with respect to the election of directors and possesses the full economic interest in the shares. An Eligible Shareholder’s and beneficial owner’s ownership of shares shall be deemed to continue during any period in which the Eligible Shareholder or beneficial owner, as applicable, has delegated any voting power by means of a proxy, power of attorney, or other instrument or arrangement that is revocable at any time by the Eligible Shareholder or beneficial owner, as applicable. An Eligible Shareholder’s and beneficial owner’s ownership of shares shall be deemed to continue during any period in which the Eligible Shareholder or beneficial owner, as applicable, has loaned such shares, provided that the Eligible Shareholder or beneficial owner, as applicable, has the power to recall such loaned shares on three business days’ notice and recalls such loaned shares not more than three business days after being notified that any of its Shareholder Nominees will be included in the Corporation’s proxy statement. The terms “owned,” “owning,” and other variations of the word “own” shall have correlative meanings. For purposes of this Section 1.10, the term “affiliate” shall have the meaning ascribed thereto in the regulations promulgated under the Exchange Act.
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The failure by a director to observe and comply with the foregoing covenants and agreements shall subject the director to removal by a vote of a majority of the Board of Directors then in office or otherwise in accordance with law, unless such director has received a written opinion of the Corporation’s counsel that such director’s fiduciary duty requires such conduct.
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The officers designated in this Section 5.2 are fully empowered, subject to policies and established committee approvals:
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