NewAmsterdam Pharma Co N.V S-3, filed Feb 28, 2025
NewAmsterdam Pharma Co N.V. (NAMS)
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As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 28, 2025
Registration No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM S-3
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
| The Netherlands | Not Applicable | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) |
Gooimeer 2-35
1411 DC Naarden
The Netherlands
Tel: +31 (0) 35 206 2971
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of Registrant’s principal executive offices)
NewAmsterdam Pharma Corporation
20803 Biscayne Blvd, Suite #105
Aventura, FL 33180
Tel: +31 (0) 35 206 2971
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
Copies of all communications, including communications sent to agent for service, should be sent to:
Brian K. Rosenzweig
Kerry S. Burke
Covington & Burling LLP
The New York Times Building
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10018
Tel: (212) 841-1000
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: From time to time after the effective date of this registration statement.
If the only securities being registered on this Form are being offered pursuant to dividend or interest reinvestment plans, please check the following box. ☐
If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, other than securities offered only in connection with dividend or interest reinvestment plans, check the following box. ☒
If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐
If this Form is a registration statement pursuant to General Instruction I.D. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.D. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☒ | Accelerated filer | ☐ | |||
| Non-accelerated filer | ☐ | Smaller reporting company | ☐ | |||
| Emerging growth company | ☐ | |||||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of Securities Act. ☐
The registrant hereby amends this registration statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this registration statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the registration statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
This registration statement contains two prospectuses:
| • | a base prospectus, which covers the offering, issuance and sale, from time to time, of our ordinary shares, debt securities, warrants, subscription rights, purchase contracts and/or units, from time to time in one or more offerings, with an aggregate price of $500 million; and |
| • | a sales agreement prospectus, which covers the offering, issuance and sale of up to $250 million of our ordinary shares that may be issued and sold under an Amended and Restated Sales Agreement (the “Sales Agreement”), dated as of August 9, 2024, with TD Securities (USA) LLC (“TD Cowen”). |
The base prospectus immediately follows this explanatory note. The specific terms of any securities to be offered pursuant to the base prospectus will be specified in a prospectus supplement to the base prospectus. The sales agreement prospectus immediately follows the base prospectus.
The $250 million of ordinary shares that may be offered, issued and sold by us under the sales agreement prospectus is included in the $500 million of securities that may be offered, issued and sold by us under the base prospectus. Upon termination of the Sales Agreement, any portion of the $250 million included in the sales agreement prospectus that is not sold pursuant to the Sales Agreement will be available for sale in other offerings pursuant to the base prospectus and an accompanying prospectus supplement, and if no shares are sold under the Sales Agreement, the full $250 million of securities may be sold in other offerings pursuant to the base prospectus and an accompanying prospectus supplement.
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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities or accept an offer to buy these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting offers to buy these securities in any state where such offer or sale is not permitted.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED FEBRUARY 28, 2025
PROSPECTUS
$500,000,000
Ordinary Shares
Debt Securities
Warrants
Subscription Rights
Purchase Contracts
Units
We may offer and sell from time to time, in one or more offerings, up to an aggregate of $500 million of ordinary shares, debt securities, warrants, subscription rights, purchase contracts and/or units, either individually or in combination with the other securities (collectively, the “securities”). We may also offer securities as may be issuable upon conversion, redemption, repurchase, exchange or exercise of the securities, including any applicable anti-dilution provisions. We may offer and sell any of the securities described in this prospectus in different series, at times, in amounts, at prices and on terms to be determined at or prior to the time of each offering. This prospectus describes the general terms of these securities and the general manner in which these securities will be offered. We will provide the specific terms of these securities and the specific manner in which these securities will be offered in supplements to this prospectus. We may also authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to you in connection with these offerings. You should read this prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus, as well as any documents incorporated by reference, before you invest.
Our ordinary shares and certain warrants to purchase ordinary shares at an exercise price of $11.50 per ordinary share are traded on The Nasdaq Global Market under the symbols “NAMS” and “NAMSW,” respectively. On February 26, 2025, the last sale price of our ordinary shares as reported by The Nasdaq Global Market was $19.71 per share, and the closing price of the warrants was $8.88 per warrant. The applicable prospectus supplement will contain information, where applicable, as to other listings, if any, on The Nasdaq Global Market or other securities exchange of the securities covered by the applicable prospectus supplement. Prospective purchasers of the securities are urged to obtain current information as to the market prices of the securities, where applicable.
This prospectus may not be used to consummate a sale of securities unless it is accompanied by a prospectus supplement.
The securities may be sold directly by us to investors, through agents designated from time to time or to or through underwriters or dealers, on a continuous or delayed basis. For additional information on the methods of sale, you should refer to the section titled “Plan of Distribution” in this prospectus. If any agents or underwriters are involved in the sale of the securities with respect to which this prospectus is being delivered, the names of such agents or underwriters will be set forth in a prospectus supplement. The price to the public of such securities and the net proceeds we expect to receive from such sale will also be set forth in a prospectus supplement.
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. See the “Risk Factors” section beginning on page 3 of this prospectus and, if applicable, any risk factors described in any applicable prospectus supplement and in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) that are incorporated by reference in this prospectus.
Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
The date of this prospectus is , 2025.
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This prospectus is a part of a registration statement that we filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) using a “shelf” registration process under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Under this shelf registration process, we may, from time to time, sell up to an aggregate of $500 million of the securities described in this prospectus, either individually or in combination with the other securities. This prospectus provides you with a general description of the securities that may be offered by us. Each time we sell securities, we will provide you a prospectus supplement accompanied by this prospectus. The prospectus supplement will contain specific information about the nature of the persons offering securities and the terms the securities being offered at that time. We may also authorize one or more free writing prospectuses to be provided to you that may contain material information relating to these offerings. The prospectus supplement, together with any related free writing prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus may also add, update or change information contained in this prospectus.
Before buying any of the securities that we are offering, you should carefully read both this prospectus, together with the applicable prospectus supplement, any related free writing prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, as well as the additional information described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Incorporation by Reference.” These documents contain important information that you should consider when making your investment decision. We have filed or incorporated by reference exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. You should read the exhibits carefully for provisions that may be important to you.
To the extent there is a conflict between the information contained in this prospectus, on the one hand, and the information contained in any prospectus supplement, any free writing prospectus or in any document incorporated by reference in this prospectus, on the other hand, you should rely on the information in this prospectus, provided that if any statement in one of these documents is inconsistent with a statement in another document having a later date—for example, a prospectus supplement or a document incorporated by reference in this prospectus—the statement in the document having the later date modifies or supersedes the earlier statement.
The information contained in this prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement, any applicable free writing prospectus or any document incorporated by reference herein or therein is accurate only as of such documents’ respective dates, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus, the applicable prospectus supplement, any applicable free writing prospectus or the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus or the sale of any securities. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed materially since those dates.
Neither we nor any underwriters, dealers or agents have authorized anyone to provide you with information that is different from or in addition to that contained in this prospectus, any amendment or supplement to this prospectus, or any free writing prospectus we may authorize to be delivered or made available to you. Neither we nor any underwriters, dealers or agents take responsibility for, or provide assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give you. This prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities other than the securities described in this prospectus or an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy such securities in any circumstances in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful.
For investors outside the United States, neither we nor any underwriters, dealers or agents have taken any action that would permit the offering or possession or distribution of this prospectus in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, other than in the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about, and observe any restrictions relating to, the offering of the securities described herein and the distribution of this prospectus outside the United States.
Unless otherwise stated or the context otherwise indicates, references to the “Company,” “NewAmsterdam Pharma,” “we,” “our,” or “us” refer to NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. (f/k/a NewAmsterdam Pharma
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Company B.V.), together with its subsidiaries, including Frazier Lifesciences Acquisition Corporation, a Delaware corporation (previously a Cayman Islands exempted company) (“FLAC”) and NewAmsterdam Pharma Holding B.V., a private company with limited liability (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) incorporated under the laws of the Netherlands. NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. is a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) incorporated as a Dutch private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) on June 10, 2022 and converted into a Dutch public limited liability company on November 21, 2022.
The NewAmsterdam Pharma name, logos and other service marks of NewAmsterdam Pharma appearing in this prospectus are the property of NewAmsterdam Pharma Holding B.V. Solely for convenience, some of the service marks, logos and trade names referred to in this prospectus are presented without the ™ and SM symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that the Company will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, its rights or the rights of the applicable licensors to these service marks and trade names. This prospectus contains additional trademarks, service marks and trade names of others. All trademarks, service marks and trade names appearing in this prospectus are, to the Company’s knowledge, the property of their respective owners. We do not intend the Company’s use or display of other companies’ trademarks, service marks, copyrights or trade names to imply a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of the Company by, any other companies.
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This summary highlights selected information that is presented in more detail elsewhere, or incorporated by reference, in this prospectus. It does not contain all of the information that may be important to you and your investment decision. Before investing in our securities, you should carefully read this entire prospectus, including the matters set forth under the section of this prospectus captioned “Risk Factors” and the financial statements and related notes and other information that we incorporate by reference herein, including any current or periodic report we file with the SEC before deciding to invest in our securities.
Company Overview
We are a late-stage biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to improve patient care in populations with cardiometabolic diseases where currently approved therapies have not been adequate or well tolerated. We seek to fill a significant unmet need for a safe, well tolerated and convenient low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (“LDL-C”) lowering therapy. In multiple Phase 3 trials, we have investigated obicetrapib, an oral, low-dose, once-daily, highly selective cholesterol ester transfer protein (“CETP”) inhibitor, alone or as a fixed-dose combination with ezetimibe, as preferred LDL-C lowering therapies to be used as an adjunct to statin therapy for patients at risk of cardiovascular disease (“CVD”) with elevated LDL-C, for whom existing therapies are not sufficiently effective or well tolerated. We believe that CETP inhibition may also play a role in other indications by potentially mitigating the risk of developing diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Obicetrapib is a next-generation, oral, low-dose, highly selective CETP inhibitor that we are developing to potentially overcome the limitations of current LDL-C lowering treatments. In addition to LDL-C, obicetrapib has shown significant reductions in lipoprotein(a) (“Lp(a)”) and small LDL particles, all with safety comparable to placebo. We believe that obicetrapib has the potential to be a once-daily oral CETP inhibitor for lowering LDL-C, if approved. In each of our Phase 3 clinical trials, BROADWAY and BROOKLYN, evaluating obicetrapib as an adjunct to high-intensity statin therapy, obicetrapib met its primary and secondary endpoints, with statistically significant reductions in LDL-C observed. In our Phase 3 TANDEM clinical trial, evaluating obicetrapib in combination with ezetimibe as an adjunct to high-intensity stating therapy, obicetrapib in combination with ezetimibe met its primary and secondary endpoints, with statistically significant reductions in LDL-C observed. In five of our Phase 2 clinical trials, TULIP, ROSE, OCEAN, ROSE2 and our Japan Phase 2b clinical trial, evaluating obicetrapib as a monotherapy or a combination therapy with ezetimibe 10 mg, we observed statistically significant LDL-C lowering with side effects similar in frequency and severity to placebo including muscle-related side effects and drug-related treatment-emergent serious adverse events (“TESAEs”). We have observed obicetrapib to be well tolerated in an aggregate of over 3,500 patients with low or moderately elevated LDL-C levels (“dyslipidemia”) in our clinical trials to date. Furthermore, we believe that obicetrapib’s oral delivery, demonstrated activity at low doses, chemical properties and tolerability make it well-suited for combination approaches.
Lowering of LDL-C, has been associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (“MACE”) benefit in trials of LDL-C lowering drugs, including the REVEAL trial with the CETP inhibitor, anacetrapib. In our Phase 3 BROADWAY clinical trial, we observed a 21% reduction in the exploratory MACE endpoint (coronary heart disease death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke and coronary revascularization) and we are performing a Phase 3 cardiovascular outcomes trial, PREVAIL, to reconfirm this relationship.
Obicetrapib has shown to not only reduce LDL-C but also several additional biomarkers associated with MACE. To date, obicetrapib has shown reductions in non-HDL-C, apolipoprotein B (“ApoB”), and small dense lipoprotein particles. In our clinical trials, we have also observed reductions in Lp(a), which is believed to be an independent MACE risk factor, along with reductions in total lipoprotein (“LDL”) particles and more specifically small LDL particles, which are believed to be more atherogenic particles.
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CVD is a leading cause of death worldwide. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (“ASCVD”) is primarily caused by atherosclerosis, which involves the build-up of fatty material within the inner walls of the arteries. Atherosclerosis is the primary cause of heart attacks, strokes and peripheral vascular disease. One of the most important risk factors for ASCVD is hypercholesterolemia, which refers to elevated LDL-C levels within the body, commonly known as high cholesterol.
A significant proportion of patients with high cholesterol do not achieve acceptable LDL-C levels using statin therapy alone. We estimate that in the United States there are approximately 30 million patients that are not at their risk-based LDL-C goals despite treatment with lipid lowering therapy, including approximately 13 million with ASCVD. Existing non-statin treatment options have been largely unable to address the needs of patients with high cholesterol due to limited efficacy, an inconvenient injectable administration route and market access restrictions. It is estimated that over 75% of ASCVD and heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (“HeFH”) outpatients prefer oral drugs to injectable therapies.
Our goal is to develop and commercialize an LDL-C lowering monotherapy and a fixed-dose combination therapy, which offers the advantage of a single, low dose, once-daily oral pill, and fulfills the significant unmet need for an effective and convenient LDL-C lowering therapy. If we obtain marketing approval, we intend to commercialize obicetrapib for patients with ASCVD and/or HeFH and elevated levels of LDL-C despite being treated with currently available optimal lipid lowering therapy.
We have partnered with Menarini, providing them with the exclusive rights to commercialize obicetrapib 10 mg, either as a sole active ingredient product or in a fixed-dose combination with ezetimibe, in the majority of European countries, if approved. Subject to receipt of marketing approval, our current plan is to pursue development and commercialization of obicetrapib in the United States ourselves, and to consider additional partners for jurisdictions outside of the United States and the European Union, including in Japan and China. In addition to our partnership with Menarini, we may in the future utilize a variety of types of collaboration, license, monetization, distribution and other arrangements with other third parties relating to the development or commercialization, once approved, of obicetrapib or future product candidates or indications. We are also continually evaluating the potential acquisition or license of new product candidates.
Corporate Information
We were incorporated as a Dutch private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) on June 10, 2022. On November 21, 2022, our corporate form was converted to a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) and our name was changed to NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. Our ordinary shares, nominal value of €0.12 per share (the “Ordinary Shares”) and warrants to purchase Ordinary Shares (the “Public Warrants”) were registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and are listed on The Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”) under the symbols “NAMS” and “NAMSW,” respectively.
Our principal executive office is located at Gooimeer 2-35, 1411 DC Naarden, the Netherlands, and our telephone number is +31 (0) 35 206 2971.
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Investing in our securities involves risk. The prospectus supplement and any related free writing prospectus applicable to each offering of the securities will contain a discussion of the risks applicable to an investment in the securities. Before making a decision to invest in the securities, you should carefully consider the risks described under “Risk Factors” in the applicable prospectus supplement and in our then-most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC under the Exchange Act and any updates to those risk factors in subsequent reports we file with the SEC, incorporated by reference in this prospectus, together with all of the other information appearing or incorporated by reference in this prospectus and any applicable prospectus supplement, in light of your particular investment objectives and financial circumstances. Although we discuss key risks in our discussion of risk factors, new risks may emerge in the future, which may prove to be significant. We cannot predict future risks or estimate the extent to which they may affect our business, results of operations and prospects, financial condition and prospects. Past financial performance may not be a reliable indicator of future performance, and historical trends should not be used to anticipate results in future periods. If any of these risks actually occurs, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects or cash flow could be seriously harmed. This could cause the trading price of our securities to decline, resulting in a loss of all or part of your investment. Please also carefully read the section titled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in this prospectus.
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SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements provide the Company’s current expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking statements include statements about the Company’s expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, intentions, assumptions and other statements that are not historical facts. Words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “objective,” “ongoing,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will” and “would,” or similar words or phrases, or the negatives of those words or phrases, may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not necessarily mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Examples of forward-looking statements in this prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company’s disclosure concerning its operations, cash flows, financial position and dividend policy.
Forward-looking statements in this prospectus and in any document incorporated by reference in this prospectus may include, for example, statements about:
| • | the potential liquidity and trading of the Company’s public securities; |
| • | the Company’s ability to raise additional capital in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable to it; |
| • | the efficacy and safety of the Company’s product candidate, obicetrapib, as well as potential reimbursement and anticipated market size and market opportunity; |
| • | the Company’s dependence on the success of obicetrapib, including the obtaining of regulatory approval to market obicetrapib; |
| • | the timing, progress and results of clinical trials for obicetrapib, including statements regarding the timing of initiation and completion of studies or trials and related preparatory work and the period during which results of trials will become available and marketing submissions made; |
| • | the Company’s ability to attract and retain senior management and key scientific personnel; |
| • | the Company’s limited experience in marketing and distributing products; |
| • | managing the risks related to the Company’s international operations; |
| • | the Company’s ability to achieve the broad degree of physician adoption and use and market acceptance necessary for commercial success; |
| • | the Company’s estimates regarding expenses, future revenue, capital requirements and needs for additional financing; |
| • | developments regarding the Company’s competitors and the Company’s industry; |
| • | the impact of government laws and regulations; |
| • | the Company’s reliance on third parties for all aspects of the manufacturing of obicetrapib for clinical trials; and |
| • | the Company’s efforts to obtain, protect or enforce its patents and other intellectual property rights related to the Company’s product candidate. |
Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or implied by the forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements for many reasons, including the factors described in the section titled “Risk Factors” in this prospectus. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this prospectus. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly revise any forward-looking statement to reflect circumstances or events after the date of this prospectus or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as specifically required by law. You should, however, review the factors and risks that the Company describes in the reports it files from time to time with the SEC.
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In addition, statements that “we believe” and similar statements reflect the Company’s beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date of this prospectus. And while the Company believes that information provides a reasonable basis for these statements, that information may be limited or incomplete. The Company’s statements should not be read to indicate that it has conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain, and you are cautioned not to unduly rely on these statements.
Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements were reasonable at the time made, it cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. You should carefully consider the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section in connection with the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus and any subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements that may be issued by the Company or persons acting on its behalf.
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We intend to set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus our intended use for the net proceeds received from the sale of any securities sold pursuant to the prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus. As of the date of this prospectus, we have no specific plan for the use of the net proceeds from an offering or any significant portion thereof.
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DESCRIPTION OF SHARE CAPITAL AND ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION
This section of this prospectus includes a description setting forth certain material terms and provisions of ordinary shares and warrants to purchase ordinary shares of the Company that are registered under Section 12 of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. This description also includes a description of the material terms of the Company’s articles of association (the “Articles of Association”) and of applicable Dutch law, in each case as at the date of this prospectus. The following description is intended as a summary only and does not constitute legal advice regarding those matters and should not be regarded as such. The description is qualified in its entirety by reference to the complete text of the Articles of Association, which are attached as an English translation of the official Dutch text as Exhibit 3.1 to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. We urge you to read the full text of the Articles of Association.
General
We were incorporated pursuant to Dutch law on June 10, 2022. Our corporate affairs are governed by the Articles of Association, the board rules of the Company’s board of directors (the “Board of Directors”), our other internal rules and policies and by Dutch law. We are registered with the Dutch Trade Register under number 86649051. Our corporate seat is in Naarden, the Netherlands, and our office address is Gooimeer 2-35 1411 DC Naarden, the Netherlands.
We were incorporated as a Dutch private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) and on November 21, 2022, prior to the closing of the Business Combination, we became a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap).
Share Capital
Authorized Share Capital
We have an authorized share capital of €48,000,000, divided into 400,000,000 Ordinary Shares, each with a nominal value of €0.12. As of February 18, 2025, we had 109,817,812 Ordinary Shares outstanding.
Under Dutch law, our authorized share capital is the maximum capital that we may issue without amending the Articles of Association. An amendment of the Articles of Association would require a resolution of our general meeting of shareholders (a “General Meeting”) upon proposal by the Board of Directors.
The Articles of Association provide that, for as long as any Ordinary Shares are admitted to trading on Nasdaq or on any other regulated stock exchange operating in the United States, the laws of the State of New York will apply to the property law aspects of the Ordinary Shares reflected in the register administered by our transfer agent, subject to certain overriding exceptions under Dutch law.
Ordinary Shares
The following summarizes the main rights of holders of Ordinary Shares:
| • | each holder of Ordinary Shares is entitled to one vote per share on all matters to be voted on by shareholders generally, including the appointment of our directors; |
| • | there are no cumulative voting rights; |
| • | the holders of Ordinary Shares are entitled to dividends and other distributions as may be declared from time to time by us out of funds legally available for that purpose, if any; |
| • | upon our liquidation and dissolution, the holders of Ordinary Shares will be entitled to share ratably in the distribution of all of our assets remaining available for distribution after satisfaction of all of our liabilities; and |
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| • | the holders of Ordinary Shares have pre-emption rights in case of share issuances or the grant of rights to subscribe for shares, except if such rights are limited or excluded by the corporate body authorized to do so and except in such cases as provided by Dutch law and the Articles of Association. |
Warrants
In connection with the closing of the Business Combination, we entered into the Warrant Assignment, Assumption and Amendment Agreement, dated November 22, 2022, among us, Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company and FLAC (the “Warrant Assumption Agreement”) and pursuant thereto, each of the warrants to purchase one FLAC Class A ordinary share at an exercise price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment (the “FLAC Warrants”) was automatically converted into a warrant to purchase one Ordinary Share (each, a “Warrant”), with each such Warrant being subject to the same terms and conditions (including exercisability terms) as were applicable to the corresponding FLAC Warrant immediately prior to the closing of the Business Combination. As of December 31, 2024, we had 2,632,581 Warrants outstanding.
Each Warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one Ordinary Share at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below provided that we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available (or we permit holders to exercise their Warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the Warrant Assumption Agreement) and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws of the state of residence of the holder. Pursuant to the Warrant Assumption Agreement, a Warrant holder may exercise its Warrants only for a whole number of Ordinary Shares. This means only a whole Warrant may be exercised at a given time by a Warrant holder. No fractional Warrants will be issued and only whole Warrants will trade. The Warrants will expire five years after the day following the closing of the Business Combination, at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
On December 20, 2022, we filed a registration statement on Form F-1 (the “Resale Registration Statement”) covering the Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants. The Resale Registration Statement was initially declared effective on January 30, 2023 and was subsequently amended by post-effective amendment No. 1, post-effective amendment No. 2 and post-effective amendment No. 3. We are required to use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the effectiveness of the Resale Registration Statement and a current prospectus relating to those Ordinary Shares until the Warrants expire or are redeemed, as specified in the Warrant Assumption Agreement; provided that if the Ordinary Shares are at the time of any exercise of a Warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of the Warrants who exercise their Warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we do so, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement. During any period when we have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, Warrant holders may exercise Warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption, but we will use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.
Redemptions of Warrants for cash when the price per Ordinary Share equals or exceeds $18.00. We may call the Warrants for redemption (except as described herein with respect to the private placement warrants originally issued as part of units in a private placement to Frazier Lifesciences Sponsor LLC (the “Sponsor”) in connection with FLAC’s initial public offering (such warrants, the “Private Placement Warrants”)):
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at a price of $0.01 per Warrant; |
| • | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each Warrant holder; and |
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| • | if, and only if, the closing price of the Ordinary Shares equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which notice of the redemption is given to the Warrant holders (the “Reference Value”). |
We will not redeem the Warrants as described above unless a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants is then effective and a current prospectus relating to those shares is available throughout the 30-day redemption period. If and when the Warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the Warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the Warrants. So long as the Private Placement Warrants are held by the Sponsor or its designated transferee, they may not be redeemed by the Company pursuant to these provisions.
We have established the last of the redemption criterion discussed above to prevent a redemption call unless there is, at the time of the call a significant premium to the Warrant exercise price. If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and we issue a notice of redemption of the Warrants, each Warrant holder will be entitled to exercise his, her or its Warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. However, the price of the Ordinary Shares may fall below the $18.00 redemption trigger price (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) as well as the $11.50 (for whole Ordinary Shares) Warrant exercise price after the redemption notice is issued.
Redemption of Warrants for cash when the price per Ordinary Share equals or exceeds $10.00. We may redeem the outstanding Warrants:
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at $0.10 per Warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption; provided that during such 30-day period holders will be able to exercise their Warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of Ordinary Shares determined by reference to the table below, based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of the Ordinary Shares except as otherwise described below; provided, further, that if the Warrants are not exercised on a cashless basis or otherwise during such 30-day period, we will redeem such Warrants for $0.10 per share; |
| • | if, and only if, the Reference Value equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for share subdivisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading day before we send the notice of redemption to the Warrant holders; and |
| • | if the Reference Value is less than $18.00 per share (as adjusted for share subdivisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), the Private Placement Warrants must also be concurrently called for redemption on the same terms as the outstanding Public Warrants, as described above. |
The numbers in the table below represent the number of Ordinary Shares that a Warrant holder will receive upon a “cashless” exercise in connection with a redemption by us pursuant to this redemption feature, based on the “fair market value” of the Ordinary Shares on the corresponding redemption date (assuming holders elect to exercise their warrants and such Warrants are not redeemed for $0.10 per Warrant), determined based on volume-weighted average price of the Ordinary Shares as reported during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of Warrants, and the number of months that the corresponding redemption date precedes the expiration date of the Warrants, each as set forth in the table below. We will provide our Warrant holders with the final fair market value no later than one business day after the 10-trading day period described above ends. So long as the Private Placement Warrants are held by the Sponsor or its designated transferee and the Reference Value equals or exceeds $18.00 per share, they may not be redeemed by the Company pursuant to this section.
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The share prices set forth in the column headings of the table below will be adjusted as of any date on which the number of Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of a Warrant or the exercise price of the Warrant is adjusted as set forth under the heading “Anti-dilution Adjustments” below. If the number of Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of a Warrant is adjusted, the adjusted share prices in the column headings will equal the share prices immediately prior to such adjustment, multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a Warrant immediately prior to such adjustment and the denominator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a Warrant as so adjusted. In such an event, the number of Ordinary Shares in the table below shall be adjusted in the same manner and at the same time as the number of Ordinary Shares issuable upon exercise of a Warrant.
| Redemption Date (period to expiration of Warrants) |
Fair Market Value of Ordinary Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| <$10.00 | $11.00 | $12.00 | $13.00 | $14.00 | $15.00 | $16.00 | $17.00 | >$18.00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 60 months |
0.261 | 0.281 | 0.297 | 0.311 | 0.324 | 0.337 | 0.348 | 0.358 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 57 months |
0.257 | 0.277 | 0.294 | 0.310 | 0.324 | 0.337 | 0.348 | 0.358 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 54 months |
0.252 | 0.272 | 0.291 | 0.307 | 0.322 | 0.335 | 0.347 | 0.357 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 51 months |
0.246 | 0.268 | 0.287 | 0.304 | 0.320 | 0.333 | 0.346 | 0.357 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 48 months |
0.241 | 0.263 | 0.283 | 0.301 | 0.317 | 0.332 | 0.344 | 0.356 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 45 months |
0.235 | 0.258 | 0.279 | 0.298 | 0.315 | 0.330 | 0.343 | 0.356 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 42 months |
0.228 | 0.252 | 0.274 | 0.294 | 0.312 | 0.328 | 0.342 | 0.355 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 39 months |
0.221 | 0.246 | 0.269 | 0.290 | 0.309 | 0.325 | 0.340 | 0.354 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 36 months |
0.213 | 0.239 | 0.263 | 0.285 | 0.305 | 0.323 | 0.339 | 0.353 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 33 months |
0.205 | 0.232 | 0.257 | 0.280 | 0.301 | 0.320 | 0.337 | 0.352 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 30 months |
0.196 | 0.224 | 0.250 | 0.274 | 0.297 | 0.316 | 0.335 | 0.351 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 27 months |
0.185 | 0.214 | 0.242 | 0.268 | 0.291 | 0.313 | 0.332 | 0.350 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 24 months |
0.173 | 0.204 | 0.233 | 0.260 | 0.285 | 0.308 | 0.329 | 0.348 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 21 months |
0.161 | 0.193 | 0.223 | 0.252 | 0.279 | 0.304 | 0.326 | 0.347 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 18 months |
0.146 | 0.179 | 0.211 | 0.242 | 0.271 | 0.298 | 0.322 | 0.345 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 15 months |
0.130 | 0.164 | 0.197 | 0.230 | 0.262 | 0.291 | 0.317 | 0.342 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 12 months |
0.111 | 0.146 | 0.181 | 0.216 | 0.250 | 0.282 | 0.312 | 0.339 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9 months |
0.090 | 0.125 | 0.162 | 0.199 | 0.237 | 0.272 | 0.305 | 0.336 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 months |
0.065 | 0.099 | 0.137 | 0.178 | 0.219 | 0.259 | 0.296 | 0.331 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 months |
0.034 | 0.065 | 0.104 | 0.150 | 0.197 | 0.243 | 0.286 | 0.326 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 0 months |
— | — | 0.042 | 0.115 | 0.179 | 0.233 | 0.281 | 0.323 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The exact fair market value and redemption date may not be set forth in the table above, in which case, if the fair market value is between two values in the table or the redemption date is between two redemption dates in the table, the number of Ordinary Shares to be issued for each Warrant exercised will be determined by a straight-line interpolation between the number of Ordinary Shares set forth for the higher and lower fair market values and the earlier and later redemption dates, as applicable, based on a 365 or 366-day year, as applicable. For example, if the volume-weighted average price of the Ordinary Shares as reported during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $11.00 per share, and at such time there are 57 months until the expiration of the Warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their Warrants for 0.277 Ordinary Shares for each whole Warrant. For an example where the exact fair market value and redemption date are not as set forth in the table above, if the volume-weighted average price of the Ordinary Shares as reported during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the Warrants is $13.50 per share, and at such time there are 38 months until the expiration of the Warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their Warrants for 0.298 Ordinary Shares for each whole Warrant. In no event will the Warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 Ordinary Shares per Warrant (subject to adjustment).
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This redemption feature is structured to allow for all of the outstanding Warrants to be redeemed when the Ordinary Shares are trading at or above $10.00 per share, which may be at a time when the trading price of Ordinary Shares is below the exercise price of the Warrants. We have established this redemption feature to provide us with the flexibility to redeem the Warrants without the warrants having to reach the $18.00 per share threshold set forth above under “Redemptions of Warrants for cash when the price per Ordinary Share equals or exceeds $18.00.” Holders choosing to exercise their Warrants in connection with a redemption pursuant to this feature will, in effect, receive a number of Ordinary Shares for their Warrants based on an option pricing model with a fixed volatility input as of the date of the prospectus relating to FLAC’s initial public offering. This redemption right provides us with an additional mechanism by which to redeem all of the outstanding Public Warrants, and therefore have certainty as to our capital structure as the Warrants would no longer be outstanding and would have been exercised or redeemed. We will be required to pay the applicable redemption price to Warrant holders if we choose to exercise this redemption right and it will allow us to quickly proceed with a redemption of the Warrants if we determine it is in our best interest to do so. As such, we would redeem the Warrants in this manner when we believe it is in our best interest to update our capital structure to remove the Warrants and pay the redemption price to the Warrant holders. As stated above, we can redeem the Warrants when the Ordinary Shares are trading at a price starting at $10.00, which is below the exercise price of $11.50, because it will provide certainty with respect to our capital structure and cash position while providing Warrant holders with the opportunity to exercise their Warrants on a cashless basis for the applicable number of Ordinary Shares. If we choose to redeem the Warrants when the Ordinary Shares are trading at a price below the exercise price of the Warrants, this could result in the Warrant holders receiving fewer Ordinary Shares than they would have received if they had chosen to wait to exercise their Warrants for Ordinary Shares if and when such Ordinary Shares were trading at a price higher than the exercise price of $11.50.
If, at the time of redemption, the Warrants are exercisable for a security other than the Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Warrant Assumption Agreement, the Warrants may be exercised for such security. At such time as the Warrants become exercisable for a security other than the Ordinary Shares, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to register under the Securities Act the security issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants.
A holder of a Warrant may notify us in writing in the event it elects to be subject to a requirement that such holder will not have the right to exercise such Warrant, to the extent that after giving effect to such exercise, such person (together with such person’s affiliates), to the Warrant agent’s actual knowledge, would beneficially own in excess of 9.8% (as specified by the holder) of the Ordinary Shares issued and outstanding immediately after giving effect to such exercise.
Anti-dilution Adjustments. If the number of outstanding Ordinary Shares is increased by a capitalization or share dividend payable in Ordinary Shares, or by a sub-divisions of Ordinary Shares or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such capitalization or share dividend, sub-divisions or similar event, the number of Ordinary Shares issuable on exercise of each Warrant will be increased in proportion to such increase in the outstanding Ordinary Shares. A rights offering made to all or substantially all holders of Ordinary Shares entitling holders to purchase Ordinary Shares at a price less than the “historical fair market value” (as defined below) will be deemed a share dividend of a number of Ordinary Shares equal to the product of (i) the number of Ordinary Shares actually sold in such rights offering (or issuable under any other equity securities sold in such rights offering that are convertible into or exercisable for Ordinary Shares) and (ii) one minus the quotient of (x) the price per Ordinary Share paid in such rights offering and (y) the historical fair market value. For these purposes, (a) if the rights offering is for securities convertible into or exercisable for Ordinary Shares, in determining the price payable for Ordinary Shares, there will be taken into account any consideration received for such rights, as well as any additional amount payable upon exercise or conversion and (b) “historical fair market value” means the volume-weighted average price of Ordinary Shares as reported during the 10 trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the first date on which the Ordinary Shares trade on the applicable exchange or in the applicable market, regular way, without the right to receive such rights.
In addition, if we, at any time while the Warrants are outstanding and unexpired, pay a dividend or make a distribution in cash, securities or other assets to all or substantially all the holders of Ordinary Shares on account
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of such Ordinary Shares (or other securities into which the Warrants are convertible), other than (a) as described above or (b) any cash dividends or cash distributions which, when combined on a per share basis with all other cash dividends and cash distributions paid on the Ordinary Shares during the 365-day period ending on the date of declaration of such dividend or distribution, does not exceed $0.50 (as adjusted to appropriately reflect any other adjustments and excluding cash dividends or cash distributions that resulted in an adjustment to the exercise price or to the number of Ordinary Shares issuable on exercise of each Warrant but only with respect to the amount of the aggregate cash dividends or cash distributions equal to or less than $0.50 per share), then the exercise price of the Warrant will be decreased by the amount of cash and/or the fair market value of any securities or other assets paid on each Ordinary Share in respect of such event.
If the number of outstanding Ordinary Shares is decreased by a consolidation, combination, reverse share sub-division or reclassification of Ordinary Shares or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such consolidation, combination, reverse share sub-division, reclassification or similar event, the number of Ordinary Shares issuable on exercise of each warrant will be decreased in proportion to such decrease in outstanding Ordinary Shares.
Whenever the number of Ordinary Shares purchasable upon the exercise of the Warrants is adjusted, as described above, the Warrant exercise price will be adjusted by multiplying the Warrant exercise price immediately prior to such adjustment by a fraction (x) the numerator of which will be the number of Ordinary Shares purchasable upon the exercise of the Warrants immediately prior to such adjustment and (y) the denominator of which will be the number of Ordinary Shares so purchasable immediately thereafter.
In case of any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding Ordinary Shares (other than those described above or that solely affects the par value of such Ordinary Shares), or in the case of any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another corporation (other than a consolidation or merger in which we are the continuing corporation and that does not result in any reclassification or reorganization of our issued and outstanding Ordinary Shares), or in the case of any sale or conveyance to another corporation or entity of our assets or other property as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in connection with which we are dissolved, the holders of the Warrants will thereafter have the right to purchase and receive, upon the basis and upon the terms and conditions specified in the Warrants and in lieu of the Ordinary Shares immediately theretofore purchasable and receivable upon the exercise of the rights represented thereby, the kind and amount of Ordinary Shares or other securities or property (including cash) receivable upon such reclassification, reorganization, merger or consolidation, or upon a dissolution following any such sale or transfer, that the holder of the Warrants would have received if such holder had exercised their Warrants immediately prior to such event. If less than 70% of the consideration receivable by the holders of Ordinary Shares in such a transaction is payable in the form of Ordinary Shares in the successor entity that is listed for trading on a national securities exchange or is quoted in an established over-the-counter market, or is to be so listed for trading or quoted immediately following such event, and if the registered holder of the Warrant properly exercises the Warrant within 30 days following public disclosure of such transaction, the Warrant exercise price will be reduced as specified in the Warrant Assumption Agreement based on the Black-Scholes value (as defined in the Warrant Assumption Agreement) of the Warrant. The purpose of such exercise price reduction is to provide additional value to holders of the Warrants when an extraordinary transaction occurs during the exercise period of the Warrants pursuant to which the holders of the Warrants otherwise do not receive the full potential value of the Warrants.
The Warrants have been issued in registered form under a Warrant Assumption Agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The Warrant Assumption Agreement provides that the terms of the Warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision or correct any mistake, including to conform the provisions of the Warrant Assumption Agreement to the description of the terms of the Warrants and the Warrant Assumption Agreement set forth in Exhibit 4.1 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, but requires the approval by the holders of at least 65% of the then outstanding Public Warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders. You should review a copy of the Warrant
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Assumption Agreement for a complete description of the terms and conditions applicable to the Warrants. The Warrant holders do not have the rights or privileges of holders of Ordinary Shares and any voting rights until they exercise their Warrants and receive Ordinary Shares. After the issuance of Ordinary Shares upon exercise of the Warrants, each holder will be entitled to one vote for each Ordinary Share held of record on all matters to be voted on by shareholders.
No fractional Ordinary Shares will be issued upon exercise of the Warrants. If, upon exercise of the Warrants, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in an Ordinary Share, we will, upon exercise, round down to the nearest whole number the number of Ordinary Share to be issued to the Warrant holder.
We have agreed that, subject to applicable law, any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the Warrant Assumption Agreement will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction will be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. This provision applies to claims under the Securities Act but does not apply to claims under the Exchange Act or any claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum.
Shareholders’ Register
Pursuant to Dutch law and the Articles of Association, we must keep our shareholders’ register accurate and current. The Board of Directors keeps the shareholders’ register and records names and addresses of all holders of registered shares, showing the date on which the shares were acquired, the date of the acknowledgement by or notification of us as well as the amount paid on each share. The register also includes the names and addresses of those with a right of usufruct (vruchtgebruik) on registered shares belonging to another or a pledge (pandrecht) in respect of such shares. Any Ordinary Shares offered in an offering conducted under the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part will be held through the Depository Trust Company (“DTC”). Therefore, DTC or its nominee will be recorded in the shareholders’ register as the holder of those Ordinary Shares. The Ordinary Shares will be in registered form (op naam). We may issue share certificates (aandeelbewijzen) for registered shares in such form as may be approved by the Board of Directors.
Except as otherwise provided or allowed by Dutch law, the issue or transfer of an Ordinary Share shall require a deed to that effect and, in the case of a transfer and unless we are a party to the transaction, acknowledgement of the transfer by us. The Articles of Association provide that, for as long as any Ordinary Shares are admitted to trading on Nasdaq or on any other regulated stock exchange operating in the United States of America, the laws of the State of New York shall apply to the property law aspects of the Ordinary Shares (including the statutory provisions concerning the transfer and ownership of legal title to Ordinary Shares) reflected in the register administered by our transfer agent, subject to certain overriding exceptions under Dutch law.
Corporate Objectives
Pursuant to the Articles of Association, our main corporate objectives are:
| • | to develop, conduct research, produce, commercialize, market and sell medicines in general and innovative medicines for cardiovascular diseases in particular; |
| • | to incorporate, to participate in, to finance, to hold any other interest in and to conduct the management or supervision of other entities, companies, partnerships and businesses; |
| • | to provide administrative, technical, financial, economic or other services to other entities, companies, partnerships and businesses; |
| • | to acquire, to manage, to invest, to exploit, to encumber and to dispose of assets and liabilities; |
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| • | to furnish guarantees, to provide security, to warrant performance in any other way and to assume liability, whether jointly and severally or otherwise, in respect of obligations of group companies or other parties; and |
| • | to do anything which, in the widest sense, is connected with or may be conducive to the objects described above. |
Limitations on the Rights to Own Securities
Ordinary Shares may be issued to individuals, corporations, trusts, estates of deceased individuals, partnerships and unincorporated associations of persons. The Articles of Association contain no limitation on the rights to own Ordinary Shares and no limitation on the rights of non-residents of the Netherlands or foreign shareholders to hold or exercise voting rights.
Limitation on Liability and Indemnification Matters
Under Dutch law, our directors may be held liable for damages in the event of improper or negligent performance of their duties. They may be held liable for damages to the Company and to third parties for infringement of the Articles of Association or of certain provisions of Dutch law. In certain circumstances, they may also incur other specific civil, administrative and criminal liabilities. Subject to certain exceptions, the Articles of Association provide for indemnification of our current and former directors and other current and former officers and employees as designated by the Board of Directors. No indemnification under the Articles of Association will be given to an indemnified person:
| • | if a competent court or arbitral tribunal has established, without having (or no longer having) the possibility for appeal, that the acts or omissions of such indemnified person that led to the financial losses, damages, expenses, suit, claim, action or legal proceedings as described above are of an unlawful nature (including acts or omissions which are considered to constitute malice, gross negligence, intentional recklessness and/or serious culpability attributable to such indemnified person); |
| • | to the extent that his or her financial losses, damages and expenses are covered under insurance and the relevant insurer has settled, or has provided reimbursement for, these financial losses, damages and expenses (or has irrevocably undertaken to do so); |
| • | in relation to proceedings brought by such indemnified person against us, except for proceedings brought to enforce indemnification to which he or she is entitled pursuant to the Articles of Association, pursuant to an agreement between such indemnified person and us which has been approved by the Board of Directors, or pursuant to insurance taken out by us for the benefit of such indemnified person; and |
| • | for any financial losses, damages or expenses incurred in connection with a settlement of any proceedings effected without our prior consent. |
Under the Articles of Association, the Board of Directors may stipulate additional terms, conditions and restrictions in relation to the indemnification described above.
Federal Forum Provision
The Articles of Association provide that to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the sole and exclusive forum for any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act will be the U.S. federal district courts.
Shareholders’ Meeting
General Meetings must be held in the Netherlands in any of the locations specified in the Articles of Association. The annual General Meeting must be held within six months of the end of each financial year.
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Additional extraordinary General Meetings may also be held whenever considered appropriate by the Board of Directors, and shall be held within three months after the Board of Directors has considered it to be likely that our shareholders’ equity (eigen vermogen) has decreased to an amount equal to or lower than half of our paid-in and called up share capital, in order to discuss the measures to be taken if so required.
Pursuant to Dutch law, one or more shareholders or others with meeting rights under Dutch law who jointly represent at least one-tenth of our issued share capital may request that we convene a General Meeting, setting out in detail the matters to be discussed. If the Board of Directors has not taken the steps necessary to ensure that such meeting can be held within six weeks after the request, the proponent(s) may, on their application, be authorized by the competent Dutch court in preliminary relief proceedings to convene a General Meeting. The court shall disallow the application if it does not appear that the proponent(s) has/have previously requested the Board of Directors to convene a General Meeting and the Board of Directors has not taken the necessary steps so that the General Meeting could be held within six weeks after the request. The application shall also be disallowed if the proponent(s) has/have not demonstrated to have a reasonable interest in the convening of the General Meeting.
General Meetings must be convened by an announcement published in a Dutch daily newspaper with national distribution. The notice must state the agenda, the time and place of the meeting, the record date (if any), the procedure for participating in the General Meeting by proxy, as well as other information as required by Dutch law. The notice must be given at least 15 calendar days prior to the day of the meeting. The agenda for the annual General Meeting shall include, among other things, the adoption of our statutory annual accounts, appropriation of our profits and proposals relating to the composition of the Board of Directors, including the filling of any vacancies. In addition, the agenda shall include such items as have been included therein by the Board of Directors. The agenda shall also include such items requested by one or more shareholders or others with meeting rights under Dutch law representing at least 3% of our issued share capital. These requests must be made in writing or by electronic means and received by the Board of Directors at least 60 days before the day of the meeting. No resolutions shall be adopted on items other than those that have been included in the agenda.
In accordance with the Dutch Corporate Governance Code (the “DCGC”), shareholders who have the right to put an item on the agenda for the General Meeting or to request the convening of a General Meeting shall not exercise such rights until after they have consulted the Board of Directors. If exercising such rights may result in a change in our strategy (for example, through the dismissal of one or more of our directors), the Board of Directors must be given the opportunity to invoke a reasonable period of up to 180 days to respond to the shareholders’ intentions. If invoked, the Board of Directors must use such response period for further deliberation and constructive consultation, in any event with the shareholder(s) concerned and to explore alternatives. At the end of the response time, the Board of Directors shall report on this consultation and the exploration of alternatives to the General Meeting. The response period may be invoked only once for any given General Meeting and shall not apply (i) in respect of a matter for which either a response period or a statutory cooling-off period (as discussed below) has been previously invoked or (ii) in situations where a shareholder holds at least 75% of our issued share capital as a consequence of a successful public bid.
Moreover, under Dutch law, the Board of Directors can invoke a cooling-off period of up to 250 days when shareholders, using their right to have items added to the agenda for a General Meeting or their right to request a General Meeting, propose an agenda item for the General Meeting to dismiss, suspend or appoint one or more of our directors (or to amend any provision in the Articles of Association dealing with those matters) or when a public offer for the Company is made or announced without our support, provided, in each case, that the Board of Directors believes that such proposal or offer materially conflicts with the interests of the Company and its business. During a cooling-off period, the General Meeting cannot dismiss, suspend or appoint directors (or amend the provisions in the Articles of Association dealing with those matters) except at the proposal of the Board of Directors. During a cooling-off period, the Board of Directors must gather all relevant information necessary for a careful decision-making process and at least consult with shareholders representing 3% or more of our issued share capital at the time the cooling-off period was invoked, as well as with our Dutch works
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council (if we or, under certain circumstances, any of our subsidiaries would have one). Formal statements expressed by these stakeholders during such consultations must be published on our website to the extent these stakeholders have approved that publication. Ultimately one week following the last day of the cooling-off period, the Board of Directors must publish a report in respect of its policy and conduct of affairs during the cooling-off period on our website. This report must remain available for inspection by shareholders and others with meeting rights under Dutch law at our office and must be tabled for discussion at the next General Meeting. Shareholders representing at least 3% of our issued share capital may request the Enterprise Chamber of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal (the “Enterprise Chamber”) for early termination of the cooling-off period. The Enterprise Chamber must rule in favor of the request if the shareholders can demonstrate that:
| • | the Board of Directors, in light of the circumstances at hand when the cooling-off period was invoked, could not reasonably have concluded that the relevant proposal or hostile offer constituted a material conflict with the interests of the Company and its business; |
| • | the Board of Directors cannot reasonably believe that a continuation of the cooling-off period would contribute to careful policy-making; or |
| • | other defensive measures, having the same purpose, nature and scope as the cooling-off period, have been activated during the cooling-off period and have not since been terminated or suspended within a reasonable period at the relevant shareholders’ request (i.e., no “stacking” of defensive measures). |
The General Meeting is presided over by the chairperson of the Board of Directors. If no chairperson has been elected or if he or she is not present at the meeting, the General Meeting shall be presided over by the vice-chairperson of the Board of Directors. If no vice-chairperson has been elected or if he or she is not present at the meeting, the General Meeting shall be presided over by another person designated in accordance with the Articles of Association. Our directors may always attend a General Meeting. In these meetings, they have an advisory vote. The chairperson of the General Meeting may decide at his or her discretion to admit other persons to the meeting.
All shareholders and others with meeting rights under Dutch law are authorized to attend the General Meeting, to address the meeting and, insofar as they have such right, to vote pro rata to his or her shareholding. Shareholders may exercise these rights, if they are the holders of shares on the record date, if any, as required by Dutch law, which is currently the 28th day before the day of the General Meeting. Under the Articles of Association, shareholders and others with meeting rights under Dutch law must notify us in writing or by electronic means of their identity and intention to attend the General Meeting. This notice must be received by us ultimately on the seventh day prior to the General Meeting, unless indicated otherwise when such meeting is convened.
Each Ordinary Share confers the right on the holder to cast one vote at the General Meeting. Shareholders may vote by proxy. No votes may be cast at a General Meeting on Ordinary Shares held by us or our subsidiaries or on Ordinary Shares for which we or our subsidiaries hold depository receipts. Nonetheless, the holders of a right of usufruct (vruchtgebruik) and the holders of a right of pledge (pandrecht) in respect of Ordinary Shares held by us or our subsidiaries in our share capital are not excluded from the right to vote on such Ordinary Shares, if the right of usufruct (vruchtgebruik) or the right of pledge (pandrecht) was granted prior to the time such shares were acquired by us or any of our subsidiaries. Neither we nor any of our subsidiaries may cast votes in respect of an Ordinary Share on which we or such subsidiary holds a right of usufruct (vruchtgebruik) or a right of pledge (pandrecht). Ordinary Shares which are not entitled to voting rights pursuant to the preceding sentences will not be taken into account for the purpose of determining the number of shareholders that vote and that are present or represented, or the amount of the share capital that is provided or that is represented at a General Meeting.
Decisions of the General Meeting are taken by a simple majority of votes cast, except where Dutch law or the Articles of Association provide for a qualified majority or unanimity. Subject to any provision of mandatory
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Dutch law and any higher quorum requirement stipulated by the Articles of Association, if we would be subject to the requirement that the General Meeting can only pass resolutions if a certain part of our issued share capital is present or represented at such General Meeting under applicable securities laws or listing rules, then such resolutions shall be subject to such quorum as specified by such securities laws or listing rules pursuant to the Articles of Association. As of January 1, 2024, any General Meeting we hold will require a quorum of 33 1/3% of the outstanding Ordinary Shares.
Directors
Appointment of Our Directors
Our directors are appointed by the General Meeting upon binding nomination by the Board of Directors. However, the General Meeting may at all times overrule a binding nomination by a resolution adopted by at least a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, provided such majority represents more than half of our issued share capital. If the General Meeting overrules a binding nomination, the Board of Directors will make a new nomination.
We have adopted a diversity policy for the composition of the Board of Directors, as well as a profile for the composition of the Board of Directors, with the assistance of our nomination and corporate governance committee. The Board of Directors will make any nomination for the appointment of a director with due regard to the rules and principles set forth in such diversity policy and profile, as applicable. Our directors serve staggered terms as set out in the retirement schedule.
At a General Meeting, a resolution to appoint a director can only be passed in respect of candidates whose names are stated for that purpose in the agenda of that General Meeting or in the explanatory notes thereto.
Duties and Liabilities of Our Directors
Under Dutch law, the Board of Directors is charged with the management of the Company, which includes setting our policies and strategy, subject to the restrictions contained in the Articles of Association. Our executive director manages our day-to-day business and operations and implement our strategy. Our non-executive directors focus on the supervision on the policy and functioning of the performance of the duties of all of our directors and our general state of affairs. Our directors may divide their tasks among themselves in or pursuant to internal rules. Each of our directors has a statutory duty to act in the corporate interest of our company and its business. Under Dutch law, the corporate interest extends to the interests of all corporate stakeholders, such as shareholders, creditors, employees, customers and suppliers. The duty to act in our corporate interest also applies in the event of a proposed sale or break-up of the Company, provided that the circumstances generally dictate how such duty is to be applied and how the respective interests of various groups of stakeholders should be weighed.
The Board of Directors is entitled to represent us. The power to represent us also vests in our Chief Executive Officer, as well as in any two non-executive directors acting jointly.
Dividends and Other Distributions
Dividends
We have never paid or declared any cash dividends in the past, and we do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. We intend to retain all available funds and any future earnings for use in the operation of our business. Under Dutch law, we may only pay dividends and other distributions from our reserves to the extent our shareholders’ equity (eigen vermogen) exceeds the sum of our paid-in and called-up share capital plus the reserves we must maintain under Dutch law or the Articles of Association and (if it concerns a distribution of profits) after adoption of our statutory annual accounts by the General Meeting from which it appears that such dividend distribution is allowed.
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Under the Articles of Association, the Board of Directors may decide that all or part of the profits shown in our adopted statutory annual accounts will be added to our reserves. After reservation of any such profits, any remaining profits will be at the disposal of the General Meeting at the proposal of the Board of Directors for distribution on the Ordinary Shares, subject to applicable restrictions of Dutch law. The Board of Directors is permitted, subject to certain requirements and applicable restrictions of Dutch law, to declare interim dividends without the approval of the General Meeting. Dividends and other distributions will be made payable no later than a date determined by the Board of Directors. Claims to dividends and other distributions not made within five years from the date that such dividends or distributions became payable will lapse and any such amounts will be considered to have been forfeited to us (verjaring).
Exchange Controls
Under Dutch law, there are no exchange controls applicable to the transfer to persons outside of the Netherlands of dividends or other distributions with respect to, or of the proceeds from the sale of, shares of a Dutch company, subject to applicable restrictions under sanctions and measures, including those concerning export control, pursuant to European Union regulations, the Sanctions Act 1977 (Sanctiewet 1977) or other legislation, applicable anti-boycott regulations, applicable anti-money-laundering regulations and similar rules and provided that, under certain circumstances, payments of such dividends or other distributions must be reported to the Dutch Central Bank at their request for statistical purposes. There are no special restrictions in the Articles of Association or Dutch law that limit the right of shareholders who are not citizens or residents of the Netherlands to hold or vote shares.
Squeeze-Out Procedures
A shareholder who holds at least 95% of our issued share capital for his or her own account, alone or together with group companies, may initiate proceedings against our other shareholders jointly for the transfer of their Ordinary Shares to such shareholder. The proceedings are held before the Enterprise Chamber and can be instituted by means of a writ of summons served upon each of the other shareholders in accordance with the provisions of the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure (Wetboek van Burgerlijke Rechtsvordering). The Enterprise Chamber may grant the claim for squeeze-out in relation to the other shareholders and will determine the price to be paid for the Ordinary Shares, if necessary, after appointment of one or three experts who will offer an opinion to the Enterprise Chamber on the value to be paid for the Ordinary Shares of the other shareholders. Once the order to transfer becomes final before the Enterprise Chamber, the person acquiring the Ordinary Shares shall give written notice of the date and place of payment and the price to the holders of the Ordinary Shares to be acquired whose addresses are known to him. Unless the addresses of all of them are known to the acquiring person, such person is required to publish the same in a daily newspaper with a national circulation.
Dissolution and Liquidation
Under the Articles of Association, we may be dissolved by a resolution of the General Meeting, subject to a proposal of the Board of Directors. In the event of a dissolution, the liquidation shall be effected by the Board of Directors, unless the General Meeting decides otherwise. During liquidation, the provisions of the Articles of Association will remain in force as far as possible. To the extent that any assets remain after payment of all of our liabilities, any remaining assets shall be distributed to our shareholders in proportion to their number of Ordinary Shares.
Dutch Corporate Governance Code
We are subject to the DCGC. The DCGC contains principles and best practice provisions on corporate governance that regulate relations between the Board of Directors and the General Meeting and matters in respect of financial reporting, auditors, disclosure, compliance and enforcement standards. The DCGC is based on a “comply or explain” principle. Accordingly, companies must disclose in their statutory annual reports whether
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they comply with the provisions of the DCGC. If a company subject to the DCGC does not comply with those provisions, that company would be required to give the reasons for such non-compliance. We do not comply with all best practice provisions of the DCGC. The DCGC contains, among other best practice recommendations, certain independence recommendations for the Board of Directors and its committees. We do not comply with all such recommendations and we will disclose our deviations from the DCGC in our Dutch statutory annual reports.
Certain Major Transactions
The Articles of Association and Dutch law provide that resolutions of the Board of Directors concerning a material change to our identity or our character or our business are subject to the approval of the General Meeting. Such changes include:
| • | transferring the business or materially all of the business to a third party; |
| • | entering into or terminating a long-lasting alliance of our company or of a subsidiary either with another entity or company, or as a fully liable partner of a limited partnership or general partnership, if this alliance or termination is of significant importance for us; and |
| • | acquiring or disposing of an interest in the capital of a company by our company or by a subsidiary with a value of at least one-third of the value of the assets, according to the balance sheet with explanatory notes or, if we prepare a consolidated balance sheet, according to the consolidated balance sheet with explanatory notes in our most recently adopted annual accounts. |
Dutch Financial Reporting Supervision Act
On the basis of the Dutch Financial Reporting Supervision Act (Wet toezicht financiële verslaggeving) (the “FRSA”), the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (Stichting Autoriteit Financiële Markten) (“AFM”), supervises the application of financial reporting standards by Dutch companies whose securities are listed on a Dutch or foreign stock exchange.
Pursuant to the FRSA, the AFM has an independent right to (i) request an explanation from us regarding our application of the applicable financial reporting standards if, based on publicly known facts or circumstances, it has reason to doubt that our financial reporting meets such standards and (ii) recommend to us the making available of further explanations. If we do not comply with such a request or recommendation, the AFM may request that the Enterprise Chamber order us to (x) make available further explanations as recommended by the AFM, (y) provide an explanation of the way we have applied the applicable financial reporting standards to our financial reports or (z) prepare or restate our financial reports in accordance with the Enterprise Chamber’s orders.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
The transfer agent and registrar for the Ordinary Shares is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company.
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DESCRIPTION OF DEBT SECURITIES
The complete terms of the debt securities will be contained in the indenture and supplemental indenture applicable to the debt securities. These documents will be included or incorporated by reference into this prospectus or the applicable prospectus supplement. You should read the indenture and applicable supplemental indenture relating to any debt securities. You should also read the applicable prospectus supplement, which will contain additional information and which may update or change some of the information below.
We may issue, separately or together with, or upon conversion, exercise or exchange of other securities, debt securities, including debentures, notes, bonds and other evidence of indebtedness as set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. The debt securities may be either secured or unsecured and will be either senior debt securities or subordinated debt securities. The debt securities will be issued under one or more separate indentures between us and a trustee to be specified in an accompanying prospectus supplement. Senior debt securities will be issued under a senior indenture and subordinated debt securities will be issued under a subordinated indenture. We refer to the senior indenture and the subordinated indenture together as the indentures. This prospectus, together with the applicable prospectus supplement, will describe the terms of each series of debt securities that we may offer from time to time.
The following summary of the material provisions of the indentures and the debt securities does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and is qualified in its entirety by reference to, the provisions of the applicable indenture and certificates evidencing the applicable debt securities. The specific terms of the applicable indenture and debt securities will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement. If any particular terms of the applicable indenture or debt securities described in a prospectus supplement differ from any of the terms described below, then the terms described below will be deemed to have been superseded by those described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
Capitalized terms used but not defined in this section have the meanings given to those terms in the applicable prospectus supplement or, if not defined in the applicable prospectus supplement, in the applicable indenture.
General
Debt securities may be issued in separate series without limitation as to aggregate principal amount. We may specify a maximum aggregate principal amount for the debt securities of any series. We are not limited as to the amount of debt securities that we may issue under the indentures. Unless otherwise provided in a prospectus supplement, a series of debt securities may be reopened to issue additional debt securities of such series. The subordinated debt securities will be subordinated as described below under the heading “—Subordinated Debt.”
The prospectus supplement relating to a particular series of debt securities will set forth the material terms of the debt securities being offered, as established pursuant to a board resolution, in an officer’s certificate or in a supplemental indenture, including:
| • | the title of the debt securities and whether they are senior debt securities or subordinated debt securities; |
| • | the offering price (which may be expressed as a percentage of the aggregate principal amount) of the debt securities; |
| • | the aggregate principal amount of such series that may be authenticated and delivered under the indentures (except for securities authenticated and delivered upon registration of transfer of, or in exchange for, or in lieu of, other securities of the series pursuant to the indenture and except for any securities deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered); |
| • | any provisions relating to the purchase or redemption of all or any portion of a tranche or series of debt securities, including the period of notice required to redeem those debt securities; |
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| • | the terms and conditions, if any, pursuant to which the debt securities are secured; |
| • | any subordination provisions applicable to the subordinated debt securities if different from those described below under “—Subordinated Debt;” |
| • | any other terms or provisions relating to the payment of principal of, premium (if any) or interest thereon, including, but not limited to, whether such debt securities are issuable at a discount or premium, as amortizable debt securities and if payable in, convertible or exchangeable for commodities or other securities of ours; and |
| • | any other specific terms of such debt securities. |
If we denominate the purchase price of any of the debt securities in a foreign currency or currencies, or if the principal of or premium, if any, or interest on any series of debt securities is payable in a foreign currency or currencies, we will include in the applicable prospectus supplement information on the restrictions, elections, material United States federal and Dutch income tax considerations, specific terms and other information with respect to that issue of debt securities and the relevant foreign currency or currencies.
Unless otherwise specified in the prospectus supplement, the debt securities will be registered debt securities. Debt securities may be sold at a substantial discount below their stated principal amount, bearing no interest or interest at a rate which at the time of issuance is below market rates. The material United States federal and Dutch income tax considerations applicable to debt securities sold at a discount will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
Senior Debt
Except as otherwise provided in a prospectus supplement, senior debt securities will be unsecured and will rank equally with all other unsecured and unsubordinated debt of the Company, and will rank senior in right of payment to any subordinated debt.
Subordinated Debt
Except as otherwise provided in a prospectus supplement, subordinated debt securities will be unsecured and will be subordinated in right of payment to the prior payment in full of all of our senior indebtedness, as more fully described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a deposit is made in accordance with the terms of the indenture with respect to any debt securities (and provided all other conditions set out in the indenture shall have been satisfied with respect to such debt securities), then, when the 90th day after such deposit has ended, no money obligations so deposited, and no proceeds thereon, will be subject to any rights of holders of senior indebtedness, including any rights of subordination.
Under the subordinated debt indenture, “senior indebtedness” means, without duplication, the principal, premium, if any, unpaid interest (including interest accruing on or after the filing of any petition in bankruptcy or for reorganization, whether or not a claim for post-filing interest is allowed in such proceeding), fees, charges, expenses, reimbursement and indemnification obligations, and all other amounts payable under or in respect of the following indebtedness, whether any such indebtedness exists as of the date of the indenture or is created, incurred or assumed after such date:
| • | all obligations for borrowed money; |
| • | all obligations evidenced by debentures, debt securities or other similar instruments; |
| • | all obligations associated with derivative products, including but not limited to, securities contracts, foreign currency exchange contracts, swap agreements (including interest rate and foreign exchange rate swap agreements), cap agreements, floor agreements, collar agreements, interest rate agreements, foreign exchange rate agreements, options, commodity futures contracts, commodity option contracts and similar financial instruments; |
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| • | all obligations in respect of letters of credit or bankers acceptances or similar instruments (or reimbursement obligations with respect thereto); |
| • | all obligations to pay the deferred purchase price of property or services, except trade accounts payable arising in the ordinary course of business; |
| • | all indebtedness of others guaranteed by us or any of our subsidiaries or for which we or any of our subsidiaries is legally responsible or liable (whether by agreement to purchase indebtedness of, or to supply funds or to invest in, others); |
| • | indebtedness secured by any mortgage, pledge, lien, charge, encumbrance or any security interest existing on property owned by the Company but excluding any obligations of the Company which are required (as opposed to elected) to be treated as finance leases under generally accepted accounting principles; |
| • | purchase money and similar obligations; and |
| • | any renewals, extensions, refundings or replacements of any of the foregoing. |
Methods of Receiving Payments on the Debt Securities
Unless otherwise indicated in a prospectus supplement, the debt securities will be payable as to principal, redemption premium, if any, and interest at the office or agency of the paying agent (which may be us) or, at our option, payment of interest may be made by check mailed to the holders of the debt securities at their last addresses as they appear on the register of holders or wired if held in book-entry form.
Events of Default; Waiver
Unless we indicate otherwise in a prospectus supplement with respect to a particular series of debt securities, an “event of default,” when used in the indentures, means any of the following:
| • | our default in the payment of the principal (or premium, if any) on any of the debt securities of such series as and when due, either at maturity, upon redemption, by declaration or otherwise, or any payment required by any sinking or analogous fund with respect to any series of the debt securities; |
| • | our default in the payment of any installment of interest on the debt securities when due, and continuance of such default for a period of 90 days; |
| • | our failure to observe or perform any other covenant or agreement in the debt securities or the applicable indenture and the continuance of such default or breach for a period of 90 days after our receipt of written notice from the trustee or the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the debt securities then outstanding of that series specifying such failure and requiring it to be remedied; |
| • | a court having jurisdiction enters a decree or order for relief in respect of us in an involuntary case or proceeding under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law, or appointing a receiver, liquidator, assignee, custodian, trustee, sequestrator (or similar official) of us or for any substantial part of our property, or ordering the winding-up or liquidation of our affairs shall have been entered and remained unstayed and in effect for a period of 60 consecutive days; |
| • | we commence a voluntary case or proceeding under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law, or consent to the entry of a decree or order for relief in an involuntary case or proceeding under any such law, or the consent to the appointment of or taking possession by a receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, custodian, sequestrator (or other similar official) of us or of any substantial part of our property, or the making by us of a general assignment for the benefit of creditors; or |
| • | any other event of default provided with respect to a particular series of debt securities, as described in the prospectus supplement with respect to the offering of such series. |
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If an event of default occurs and continues as described in the first, second, third or sixth bullet above, either the trustee or the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the debt securities of that series then outstanding by written notice to us (with a copy to the trustee, if given by holders) may declare the principal amount of the debt securities of that series to be immediately due and immediately payable. If an event of default occurs and continues as described in the fourth or fifth bullet above, the principal amount of all of the debt securities issued under the indentures shall automatically be deemed immediately due and payable.
The indentures also provide that the holders of a majority in principal amount of the debt securities of each series outstanding at the time may, on behalf of the holders of all of the debt securities of that series, waive any past default with respect to the debt securities and its consequences, except a default in the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the debt securities or a bankruptcy or insolvency-related default, or with respect to any covenant or provision that cannot be modified or amended under the terms of the indenture without the holder of such outstanding debt security so affected.
The holders of a majority in principal amount of the debt securities of each series may direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the trustee or exercising any trust or power conferred on the trustee. However, the trustee may refuse to follow any direction that conflicts with law or the indentures or that the trustee determines in good faith may be unjustly prejudicial to the holders of the debt securities not consenting or that may involve the trustee in personal liability. In addition, the trustee may take any other action it deems proper that is not inconsistent with any such direction received from the holders of a majority in principal amount of the debt securities.
The trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by the indentures at the request, order or direction of any of the holders of any debt securities or related coupons pursuant to the provisions of the indentures, unless such holders shall have offered to the trustee security or indemnity reasonably satisfactory to it against the losses, costs, expenses and liabilities which might be incurred by it in compliance with such request, order or direction. Except to enforce the right to receive payment of principal, premium, if any, or interest, no holder of a debt security will have any right to institute any proceeding, judicial or otherwise, with respect to the indenture, or for the appointment of a receiver or trustee, or for any other remedy under the indenture unless:
| • | such holder has previously given the trustee written notice of a continuing event of default; |
| • | holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series have made a written request to the trustee to institute proceedings in respect of such event of default in its own name as trustee under the indenture; |
| • | such holders provide to the trustee reasonable indemnity acceptable to the trustee against the costs, expenses and liabilities to be incurred with such request; |
| • | the trustee has failed to institute a proceeding within 60 days after its receipt of the notice, request and offer of indemnity; and |
| • | the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding debt securities do not give the trustee a direction inconsistent with the request within such 60-day period. |
Each indenture requires the applicable trustee to notify the holders of a series regarding the existence of any default known to the trustee, unless the default has been cured or waived. In addition, except in the case of a default in payment of principal of or interest on any debt security or the payment of any sinking or purchase fund installment, the trustee may withhold notice of a default if and so long as the trustee in good faith determines that withholding the notice is in the interests of the holders of the debt securities. Furthermore, the trustee shall not provide notice of default to the holders of debt securities following our failure to duly observe or perform any of the covenants or agreements contained in the debt securities or indenture (other than certain payment obligations) unless at least 30 days after the occurrence thereof. For purposes of these requirements, a “default” means any event which is, or after notice or lapse of time or both would become, an event of default under the indentures with respect to the debt securities of such series.
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We are required to deliver to the trustee, within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year, commencing with the year during which the first series of debt securities is issued under an indenture, a written statement signed by certain officers regarding our performance under the indenture throughout the year and specifying any known default in the fulfilment of any of our obligations under the indenture, together with certain additional details regarding any such known default.
Merger, Consolidation, Sale, Lease or Conveyance
Unless otherwise indicated in a prospectus supplement with respect to a particular series of debt securities, we will not merge into or consolidate with any other corporation, or sell or convey all or substantially all of our assets to any person, firm, or corporation, unless:
| • | either we are the continuing corporation or the successor corporation is a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the Netherlands, the United States or a state thereof or the District of Columbia and expressly assumes the due and punctual payment of the principal, premium, if any, and interest on all the debt securities according to their tenor, and the due and punctual performance and observance of all of the covenants and conditions of the indenture to be performed by us by supplemental indenture, executed and delivered to the trustee by such successor corporation; |
| • | neither we nor such successor corporation, immediately after giving effect to such merger, consolidation, sale or conveyance, will be in default in the performance of any covenant or condition under the applicable indenture; and |
| • | we shall have delivered to the trustee an officer’s certificate and an opinion of counsel, each stating that the transaction complies with the terms of the applicable indenture and that all conditions precedent in such indenture provided for relating to such transaction have been complied with. |
In the case of any such consolidation or merger, sale or conveyance and upon any such assumption by the successor corporation, the successor corporation shall succeed to, and be substituted for, us under the applicable indenture with the same effect as if it had been an original party to such indenture.
Certain Covenants
The applicable prospectus supplement will describe any restrictive covenants applicable to any debt securities we offer for sale.
Modification of the Indenture
Unless we indicate otherwise in a prospectus supplement and except as set forth below, modification and amendment of an indenture, or entry into a supplemental indenture applicable to the debt securities, may be made only when authorized by the Board of Directors and with the consent of the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the debt securities outstanding affected by such supplemental indenture, voting together as a single class.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, no modification or amendment of an indenture as applicable to any series of debt securities may:
| • | extend the fixed maturity of any debt security, or reduce the principal amount thereof or premium, if any, or reduce the rate or extend the time of payment of interest thereon, without the consent of the holder of each debt security so affected; |
| • | reduce the percentage in principal amount of outstanding debt securities that is required for any supplemental indenture without the consent of the holders of all debt securities then outstanding; |
| • | modify the subordination provisions in a manner adverse to the holders of any debt security; or |
| • | modify any of the applicable provisions with respect to modification and waiver. |
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In addition, we and the trustee may modify or amend the indentures as applicable to the debt securities, with the consent of the Board of Directors but without the consent of any holder of the debt securities, for any of the following purposes:
| • | to evidence the succession of another corporation to the Company, or successive successions, and provide for the successor’s assumption of our covenants, agreements and obligations under the indentures and the debt securities issued thereunder; |
| • | to add further covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions as the Board of Directors considers to be for the protection of the holders of the debt securities, and to make the occurrence, or the occurrence and continuance, of a default in any of such additional covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions an event of default permitting the enforcement of all or any of the remedies provided under the applicable indenture, with such period of grace and subject to such conditions as such supplemental indenture may provide; |
| • | to add or change any of the provisions of the indenture to provide that bearer securities may be registrable as to principal, to change or eliminate any restrictions on the payment of principal of or any premium or interest on bearer securities, to permit bearer securities to be issued in exchange for registered securities, to permit bearer securities to be issued in exchange for bearer securities of other authorized denominations or to permit or facilitate the issuance of debt securities in uncertificated form; provided, that any such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the holders of the debt securities or any related coupons in any material respect; |
| • | to modify, eliminate or add provisions of the indenture to such extent as necessary in order to effect the qualification of the applicable indenture under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the “Trust Indenture Act”), or any similar federal statute thereafter enacted, and to add such other provisions as may be expressly permitted by the Trust Indenture Act, excluding Section 316(a)(2) thereof or any corresponding provision in any similar federal statute hereafter enacted; |
| • | to modify, eliminate or add to any provisions of the indenture; provided that any such change or elimination (i) becomes effective only when there are no outstanding debt securities and created prior to the execution of such supplemental indenture that is entitled to the benefit from such provision or (ii) does not apply to any outstanding debt security; |
| • | (i) to cure any ambiguity or to correct or supplement any provision in the indenture or any supplemental indenture which may be defective or inconsistent with any other provision, (ii) to convey, transfer, assign, mortgage or pledge any property to or with the trustee or (iii) to make such other provisions in regard to matters or questions arising under the indenture; provided, that no such provision shall adversely affect in any material respect the interests of the holders of the debt securities or any related coupons, including provisions necessary or desirable to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts; |
| • | to secure any series of debt securities; and |
| • | to evidence and provide for the acceptance and appointment by a successor trustee with respect to the debt securities of one or more series and to add or change any provisions of the indenture as necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts. |
The trustee shall not be obligated to enter into any amendment or supplemental indenture that adversely affects the trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under the applicable indenture or otherwise.
Subject to the requirements for the holders to waive a default related to bankruptcy events, defaults related to covenants or provisions that cannot be modified without the consent of each affected holder, and the rights of any holder of a debt security to receive payment of principal of, premium, if any, on and interest on such debt securities, holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the debt securities voting as a single class of such series or of all debt securities, as the case may be, then outstanding may waive all defaults with respect to
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that series or with respect to all securities treated as a single class and rescind and annul such declaration and its consequences, but no waiver or rescission and annulment will extend to or affect any subsequent default.
Outstanding Debt Securities; Determinations of Holders’ Actions
Debt securities outstanding at any time are the debt securities authenticated and delivered by the trustee except for those cancelled by the trustee or delivered to the trustee for cancellation; those debt securities, or portions thereof, for which we have deposited in trust with the trustee or any paying agent a sufficient amount of money for the payment or redemption thereof; those debt securities that have been defeased under the indenture; and those debt securities that have been exchanged for other debt securities issued under the indenture or that have been mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen and replaced by the trustee. A debt security does not cease to be outstanding because we or an affiliate of ours holds the debt security; provided, that in determining whether the holders of the requisite aggregate principal amount of debt securities have given or concurred in any request, demand, authorization, notice, direction, consent or waiver, debt securities owned by us, any other obligor of the debt securities or any other person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with us or any other obligor on the debt securities, will be disregarded and deemed not to be outstanding for the purpose of any such determination, except for determining whether the trustee shall be protected in relying on any such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver, only debt securities which the trustee knows are so owned will be so disregarded, and debt securities that have been pledged in good faith may also be regarded as outstanding under certain circumstances.
Satisfaction and Discharge
Each indenture may be discharged and cease to be of further effect as to the applicable debt securities, when:
| • | either: |
| • | all debt securities of any series that have been authenticated and all coupons, if any, appertaining thereto have been delivered to the trustee for cancellation, except (i) coupons on bearer securities that meet certain conditions, (ii) debt securities and coupons that have been destroyed, lost or stolen and that have been replaced or paid as provided in the indenture, (iii) coupons relating to debt securities called for redemption and maturing after the relevant redemption date, whose surrender has been waived, and (iv) debt securities and coupons for which payment has been deposited in trust or segregated and held in trust by us and thereafter repaid to us or discharged from such trust; or |
| • | all debt securities and certain coupons discussed above that have not been delivered to the trustee for cancellation (i) have become due and payable, (ii) are by their terms due and payable within one year or (iii) are to be called for redemption within one year under arrangements satisfactory to the trustee for the giving of notice of redemption, and in the case of clauses (i) and (iii) in the preceding bullet point, we have deposited or caused to be deposited with the trustee as trust funds the entire amount (other than moneys repaid by the trustee or any paying agent to us under the terms of the indenture) sufficient to pay at maturity or upon redemption all debt securities of such series and coupons not delivered to the trustee for cancellation, including principal (and premium, if any) and any interest due or to become due to such date of maturity or date of redemption; |
| • | we have paid or caused to be paid all other sums payable by us under the applicable indenture with respect to the debt securities; |
| • | upon demand of and at our cost and expense, the trustee has executed instruments reasonably requested by us acknowledging the satisfaction and discharge of the applicable indenture with respect to the debt securities; and |
| • | we have delivered to the trustee an officer’s certificate and an opinion of counsel stating that the conditions precedent to the satisfaction and discharge of the debt securities have been complied with. |
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Legal Defeasance and Covenant Defeasance
Legal Defeasance
Under the terms of the indentures and unless otherwise provided in a supplemental indenture, we will be deemed to have paid and will be discharged from any and all obligations in respect of the debt securities after we have made the deposit referred to below and the conditions precedent and subsequent set forth below are satisfied, and the provisions of the applicable indenture will cease to be applicable with respect to the debt securities (except for, among other matters, certain rights of the holders to receive payments of principal, premium and interest when due on such debt securities from the trust fund, and our obligations to register the transfer of or exchange of the debt securities, prepare temporary debt securities, replace stolen, lost or mutilated debt securities, maintain paying agents and hold funds for payment in trust, and rights, powers, trusts, duties and immunities with respect to the trustee) if:
| • | we have irrevocably deposited or caused to be deposited with the trustee, in trust, money in an amount and/or non-callable or non-redeemable government securities that will provide funds in amount sufficient, in the opinion of a nationally recognized public accounting firm expressed in a written certification delivered to the trustee, to pay the principal of, premium, if any, and accrued interest on the debt securities until maturity or redemption in accordance with the terms of the applicable indenture and any mandatory sinking fund payments or analogous payments applicable to such debt securities; |
| • | no default or event that after notice or lapse of time, or both, would become a default with respect to such debt securities, will have occurred and be continuing on the date of such deposit, or insofar as events of default due to certain events of bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization in respect of us are concerned, during the period ending on the 123rd day after the date of such deposit or, if longer, ending on the day following the expiration of the longest preference period applicable to the company with respect to such deposit; |
| • | such defeasance or covenant defeasance does not (i) cause the trustee for the debt securities to have a conflicting interest under the terms of the indenture or the Trust Indenture Act or (ii) result in the trust arising from such deposit to constitute, unless it is qualified, a regulated investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended; |
| • | such defeasance or covenant defeasance does not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under, the indenture or any other agreement or instrument to which we are a party or by which we are bound; |
| • | such defeasance or covenant defeasance does not cause any debt securities of such series then listed on any registered national securities exchange under the Exchange Act to be delisted; |
| • | we have delivered to the trustee an opinion of counsel stating that (i) we have received from, or there has been published by, the Internal Revenue Service a ruling or (ii) since the date of the indenture there has been a change in the applicable United States federal income tax law to the effect that, and based thereon, holders of the debt securities will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such defeasance and will be subject to United States federal income tax on the same amounts and in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such defeasance had not occurred; |
| • | such defeasance is effected in compliance with any terms, conditions or limitations which may be imposed on the Company in connection with a supplemental indenture or board resolutions establishing such series of debt securities; and |
| • | we shall have delivered to the trustee an officer’s certificate and an opinion of counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent and subsequent provided for in the indenture relating to the defeasance have been complied with. |
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Covenant Defeasance
Under the terms of the indentures and unless as otherwise provided in a supplemental indenture, we will not need to comply with certain restrictive covenants, and the provisions of the applicable indenture will cease to be applicable with respect to an event of default under the debt securities other than an event of default due to our failure to pay the principal of or interest on the debt securities when due, upon:
| • | the satisfaction of the conditions described above in “—Legal Defeasance and Covenant Defeasance—Legal Defeasance,” other than with respect to the sixth bullet point; and |
| • | our delivery to the trustee of an opinion of counsel to the effect that the holders of the debt securities will not recognize income, gain or loss for United States federal income tax purposes as a result of such covenant defeasance and will be subject to United States federal income tax on the same amount and in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such covenant defeasance had not occurred. |
If we exercise our option to omit compliance with certain provisions of the applicable indenture as described in the immediately preceding paragraph and the debt securities are declared due and payable because of the occurrence of an event of default that remains applicable, the amount of money and/or non-callable government securities on deposit with the trustee may not be sufficient to pay amounts due on the debt securities at the time of acceleration resulting from such event of default. In such event, we will remain liable for such payments.
Limitation on Individual Liability
No incorporator or past, present or future shareholder, officer or director of ours or any successor corporation, as such, will have any liability for any obligations, covenants or agreements of ours under the debt securities or the indentures or because of any indebtedness evidenced thereby. Each holder of a debt security, by accepting a debt security waives and releases such liability. The waiver and release are part of the consideration for the issuance of the debt securities. Such waiver may not be effective to waive liabilities under the federal securities laws.
Trustee
The accompanying prospectus supplement will specify the trustee for the particular series of debt securities to be issued under the indentures.
At all times, the trustee must be a corporation organized and doing business under the laws of the United States or any state or territory thereof or of the District of Columbia, with authority to exercise corporate trust powers, be subject to the supervision or examination by federal, state, territorial or District of Columbia authority, have at all times a combined capital and surplus of not less than $50,000,000 and not be the Company or any person directly or indirectly controlled or controlled by or under common control with the Company.
If the trustee acquires any conflicting interest, as defined in the Trust Indenture Act, with respect to the debt securities, within 90 days after the trustee has acquired a conflicting interest, which has not been cured or waived, the trustee would generally be required by the Trust Indenture Act to eliminate that conflicting interest or resign as trustee with respect to the debt securities issued under the applicable indenture. If the trustee resigns, we are required to appoint a successor trustee with respect to the affected securities promptly. The trustee and/or certain of its affiliates may provide banking, investment and other services to us.
Notices
Any notices required to be given to the holders of the debt securities will be given by mail to the addresses of the holders in the security register.
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Governing Law
The indentures and the debt securities are governed by, and will be construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York. The indentures will be subject to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act that are required to be part of the indentures and will, to the extent applicable, be governed by such provisions.
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We may issue warrants to purchase debt securities, Ordinary Shares or other securities. We may issue warrants independently or together with other securities. Warrants sold with other securities may be attached to or separate from the other securities. We may issue warrants under one or more warrant agreements between the Company and a warrant agent that we will name in the applicable prospectus supplement or free writing prospectus.
The prospectus supplement relating to any warrants we offer will include specific terms relating to the offering. These terms will include some or all of the following:
| • | the title of the warrants; |
| • | the aggregate number of warrants offered; |
| • | the designation, number and terms of the debt securities, Ordinary Shares or other securities purchasable upon exercise of the warrants and procedures by which those numbers may be adjusted; |
| • | the exercise price of the warrants and any provision for changes to or adjustments in the exercise price; |
| • | the dates or periods during which the warrants are exercisable; |
| • | the designation and terms of any securities with which the warrants are issued; |
| • | if the warrants are issued as a unit with another security, the date on and after which the warrants and the other security will be separately transferable; |
| • | if the exercise price is not payable in U.S. dollars, the foreign currency, currency unit or composite currency in which the exercise price is denominated; |
| • | any minimum or maximum amount of warrants that may be exercised at any one time; |
| • | any terms relating to the modification of the warrants; |
| • | any terms relating to the redemption of the warrants; |
| • | any terms, procedures and limitations relating to the transferability, exchange or exercise of the warrants; |
| • | the jurisdiction whose laws will govern the warrants; |
| • | any other specific terms of the warrants and |
| • | if appropriate, a discussion of material U.S. federal income tax and material Dutch tax considerations. |
The terms of any warrants to be issued and a description of the material provisions of any applicable warrant agreement will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement or related free writing prospectus.
Before exercising their warrants, holders of warrants will not have any of the rights of holders of the securities purchasable upon such exercise, including:
| • | in the case of warrants to purchase Ordinary Shares, the right to receive dividends, if any, or payments upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up or to exercise voting rights, if any; or |
| • | in the case of warrants to purchase debt securities, the right to receive payments of principal of, or premium, if any, or interest on, the debt securities purchasable upon exercise or to enforce covenants in the applicable indenture. |
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DESCRIPTION OF SUBSCRIPTION RIGHTS
We may issue subscription rights to purchase the securities. The subscription rights may be issued independently or together with any other securities, may be attached to, or separate from, such securities and may or may not be transferable by the shareholder receiving the subscription rights. In connection with any offering of subscription rights, we may enter into a standby arrangement with one or more underwriters or other purchasers pursuant to which the underwriters or other purchasers may be required to purchase any unsubscribed securities after such offering. The terms of any subscription rights being offered will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement.
The applicable prospectus supplement will set forth, to the extent required, the following terms of the subscription rights in respect of which the prospectus supplement is delivered:
| • | the exercise price and any provision for changes to or adjustments in the exercise price; |
| • | the aggregate number of rights to be issued; |
| • | the type and number of securities purchasable upon exercise of each right; |
| • | the procedures and limitations relating to the exercise of the rights; |
| • | the date upon which the exercise of rights will commence; |
| • | the record date, if any, to determine who is entitled to the rights; |
| • | the expiration date; |
| • | the extent to which the rights are transferable; |
| • | information regarding the trading of rights, including the stock exchanges, if any, on which the rights will be listed; |
| • | the extent to which the subscription rights may include an over-subscription privilege with respect to unsubscribed securities; |
| • | if appropriate, a discussion of material U.S. federal income tax and material Dutch tax considerations; |
| • | if applicable, the material terms of any standby underwriting or purchase arrangement entered into by us in connection with the offering of the rights; and |
| • | any other material terms of the rights. |
If fewer than all of the subscription rights issued in any rights offering are exercised, we may offer any unsubscribed securities directly to persons other than shareholders, to or through agents, underwriters or dealers or through a combination of such methods, including pursuant to standby arrangements, as described in the applicable prospectus supplement.
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DESCRIPTION OF PURCHASE CONTRACTS
We may issue purchase contracts for the purchase or sale of debt or equity securities issued by us or securities of third parties, a basket of such securities, an index or indices of such securities or any combination of the above as specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, currencies or commodities.
Each purchase contract will entitle the holder thereof to purchase or sell, and obligate us to sell or purchase, on specified dates, such securities, currencies or commodities at a specified purchase price, which may be based on a formula, all as set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. A purchase by us or any of our subsidiaries of Ordinary Shares pursuant to any such purchase contract shall be subject to certain restrictions under Dutch law that generally apply to a repurchase of shares. We may, however, satisfy our obligations, if any, with respect to any purchase contract by delivering the cash value of such purchase contract or the cash value of the property otherwise deliverable or, in the case of purchase contracts on underlying currencies, by delivering the underlying currencies, as set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. The applicable prospectus supplement will also specify the methods by which the holders may purchase or sell such securities, currencies or commodities and any acceleration, cancellation or termination provisions or other provisions relating to the settlement of a purchase contract.
The purchase contracts may require us to make periodic payments to the holders thereof or vice versa, which payments may be deferred to the extent set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement, and those payments may be unsecured or prefunded on some basis. The purchase contracts may require the holders thereof to secure their obligations in a specified manner to be described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Alternatively, purchase contracts may require holders to satisfy their obligations thereunder when the purchase contracts are issued. Our obligation to settle such pre-paid purchase contracts on the relevant settlement date may constitute indebtedness. Accordingly, pre-paid purchase contracts will be issued under an indenture.
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As specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we may issue units consisting of one or more Ordinary Shares, debt securities, warrants, subscription rights and purchase contracts or any combination of such securities. The applicable supplement will describe:
| • | the terms of the units and of the warrants, debt securities and/or Ordinary Shares comprising the units, including whether and under what circumstances the securities comprising the units may be traded separately; |
| • | a description of the terms of any unit agreement governing the units; |
| • | a description of the provisions for the payment, settlement, transfer or exchange of the units; and |
| • | if appropriate, a discussion of material U.S. federal income tax and material Dutch tax considerations. |
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Each debt security, warrant and unit will be represented either by a certificate issued in definitive form to a particular investor or by one or more global securities representing the entire issuance of securities. Certificated securities will be issued in definitive form and global securities will be issued in registered form. Definitive securities name you or your nominee as the owner of the security, and in order to transfer or exchange these securities or to receive payments other than interest or other interim payments, you or your nominee must physically deliver the securities to the trustee, registrar, paying agent or other agent, as applicable. Global securities name a depositary or its nominee as the owner of the debt securities, warrants or units represented by these global securities. The depositary maintains a computerized system that will reflect each investor’s beneficial ownership of the securities through an account maintained by the investor with its broker/dealer, bank, trust company or other representative, as we explain more fully below.
Registered Global Securities
We may issue registered debt securities, warrants and units in the form of one or more fully registered global securities that will be deposited with a depositary or its nominee identified in the applicable prospectus supplement and registered in the name of that depositary or nominee. In those cases, one or more registered global securities will be issued in a denomination or aggregate denominations equal to the portion of the aggregate principal or face amount of the securities to be represented by registered global securities. Unless and until it is exchanged in whole for securities in definitive registered form, a registered global security may not be transferred except as a whole by and among the depositary for the registered global security, the nominees of the depositary or any successors of the depositary or those nominees.
If not described below, any specific terms of the depositary arrangement with respect to any securities to be represented by a registered global security will be described in the prospectus supplement relating to those securities. We anticipate that the following provisions will apply to all depositary arrangements.
Ownership of beneficial interests in a registered global security will be limited to persons, called participants, that have accounts with the depositary or persons that may hold interests through participants. Upon the issuance of a registered global security, the depositary will credit, on its book-entry registration and transfer system, the participants’ accounts with the respective principal or face amounts of the securities beneficially owned by the participants. Any dealers, underwriters or agents participating in the distribution of the securities will designate the accounts to be credited. Ownership of beneficial interests in a registered global security will be shown on, and the transfer of ownership interests will be effected only through, records maintained by the depositary, with respect to interests of participants, and on the records of participants, with respect to interests of persons holding through participants. The laws of some states may require that some purchasers of securities take physical delivery of these securities in definitive form. These laws may impair your ability to own, transfer or pledge beneficial interests in registered global securities.
So long as the depositary, or its nominee, is the registered owner of a registered global security, that depositary or its nominee, as the case may be, will be considered the sole owner or holder of the securities represented by the registered global security for all purposes under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement. Except as described below, owners of beneficial interests in a registered global security will not be entitled to have the securities represented by the registered global security registered in their names, will not receive or be entitled to receive physical delivery of the securities in definitive form and will not be considered the owners or holders of the securities under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement. Accordingly, each person owning a beneficial interest in a registered global security must rely on the procedures of the depositary for that registered global security and, if that person is not a participant, on the procedures of the participant through which the person owns its interest, to exercise any rights of a holder under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement. We understand that under existing industry practices, if we request any action of holders or if an owner of a beneficial interest in a registered global security
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desires to give or take any action that a holder is entitled to give or take under the applicable indenture, warrant agreement or unit agreement, the depositary for the registered global security would authorize the participants holding the relevant beneficial interests to give or take that action, and the participants would authorize beneficial owners owning through them to give or take that action or would otherwise act upon the instructions of beneficial owners holding through them.
Principal, premium, if any, and interest payments on debt securities, and any payments to holders with respect to warrants or units, represented by a registered global security registered in the name of a depositary or its nominee will be made to the depositary or its nominee, as the case may be, as the registered owner of the registered global security. None of the Company, the trustees, the warrant agents, the unit agents or any other agent of the Company, agent of the trustees or agent of the warrant agents or unit agents will have any responsibility or liability for any aspect of the records relating to payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests in the registered global security or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to those beneficial ownership interests.
We expect that the depositary for any of the securities represented by a registered global security, upon receipt of any payment of principal, premium, interest or other distribution of underlying securities or other property to holders on that registered global security, will immediately credit participants’ accounts in amounts proportionate to their respective beneficial interests in that registered global security as shown on the records of the depositary. We also expect that payments by participants to owners of beneficial interests in a registered global security held through participants will be governed by standing customer instructions and customary practices, as is now the case with the securities held for the accounts of customers in bearer form or registered in “street name,” and will be the responsibility of those participants.
If the depositary for any of these securities represented by a registered global security is at any time unwilling or unable to continue as depositary or ceases to be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act, and a successor depositary registered as a clearing agency under the Exchange Act is not appointed by us within 90 days, we will issue securities in definitive form in exchange for the registered global security that had been held by the depositary. Any securities issued in definitive form in exchange for a registered global security will be registered in the name or names that the depositary gives to the relevant trustee, warrant agent, unit agent or other relevant agent of ours or theirs. It is expected that the depositary’s instructions will be based upon directions received by the depositary from participants with respect to ownership of beneficial interests in the registered global security that had been held by the depositary.
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We may sell the securities in one or more of the following ways (or in any combination) from time to time:
| • | through underwriters, acting as an underwriting syndicate represented by managing underwriters or by underwriters without a syndicate; |
| • | through dealers; |
| • | directly to one or more purchasers; |
| • | in “at the market offerings,” within the meaning of Rule 415(a)(4) of the Securities Act or into an existing trading market on an exchange or otherwise; |
| • | through agents; or |
| • | through any other method permitted by applicable law and described in the applicable prospectus supplement. |
The prospectus supplement will state the terms of the offering of the securities, including:
| • | the type and number or amount of securities being offered; |
| • | the name or names of any underwriters, dealers or agents; |
| • | the purchase price of such securities and the proceeds to be received by us, if any; |
| • | any underwriting discounts or agency fees and other items constituting underwriters’ or agents’ compensation; |
| • | any options under which underwriters may purchase additional securities from us; |
| • | the specific plan of distribution; |
| • | any public offering price; |
| • | any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers; and |
| • | any securities exchanges on which the securities may be listed. |
Any public offering price and any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers may be changed from time to time.
If underwriters are used in the sale, the securities will be acquired by the underwriters for their own account and may be resold from time to time in one or more transactions, including:
| • | negotiated transactions |
| • | at a fixed public offering price or prices, which may be changed; |
| • | at market prices prevailing at the time of sale; |
| • | at prices related to prevailing market prices; or |
| • | at negotiated prices. |
Unless otherwise stated in a prospectus supplement, the obligations of the underwriters to purchase any securities will be conditioned on customary closing conditions and the underwriters will be obligated to purchase all of such series of securities, if any are purchased.
The securities may be sold to or through agents from time to time. The prospectus supplement will name any agent involved in the offer or sale of the securities and any commissions paid to them. Generally, any agent will be acting on a commercially reasonable efforts basis for the period of its appointment.
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Sales to or through one or more underwriters or agents in at-the-market offerings, as such term is defined in Rule 415(a)(4) under the Securities Act, will be made pursuant to the terms of an agreement with the underwriters or agents. Such underwriters or agents may act on an agency basis or on a principal basis. During the term of any such agreement, Ordinary Shares may be sold on a daily basis on any stock exchange, market or trading facility on which the Ordinary Shares are traded, in privately negotiated transactions or otherwise as agreed with the underwriters or agents. The agreement will provide that any Ordinary Share sold will be sold at negotiated prices or at prices related to the then prevailing market prices for the Ordinary Shares. Therefore, exact figures regarding proceeds that will be raised or commissions to be paid cannot be determined at this time and will be described in a prospectus supplement. Subject to the terms of the relevant agreement, we may also agree to sell, and the relevant underwriters or agents may agree to solicit offers to purchase, blocks of the Ordinary Shares or other securities. The terms of each such agreement will be described in a prospectus supplement.
We may directly solicit offers to purchase securities. We may also authorize underwriters, dealers or agents to solicit offers by certain purchasers to purchase the securities at the public offering price set forth in the prospectus supplement pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a specified date in the future. The contracts will be subject only to those conditions set forth in the prospectus supplement, and the prospectus supplement will set forth any commissions paid for solicitation of these contracts. Dealers and agents participating in the distribution of the securities may be deemed to be underwriters, and compensation received by them on resale of the securities may be deemed to be underwriting discounts. If such dealers or agents were deemed to be underwriters, they may be subject to statutory liabilities under the Securities Act.
Underwriters and agents may be entitled under agreements entered into with us to indemnification by us against certain civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribution with respect to payments which the underwriters or agents may be required to make.
The prospectus supplement may also set forth whether or not underwriters may over-allot or effect transactions that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the market price of the securities at levels above those that might otherwise prevail in the open market, including, for example, by entering stabilizing bids, effecting syndicate covering transactions or imposing penalty bids.
Underwriters and agents may be customers of, engage in transactions with, or perform services for us and our affiliates in the ordinary course of business.
Each series of securities will be a new issue of securities and will have no established trading market, other than the Ordinary Shares, which are listed on Nasdaq. Any underwriters to whom securities are sold for public offering and sale may make a market in the securities, but such underwriters will not be obligated to do so and may discontinue any market making at any time without notice. The securities, other than the Ordinary Shares, may or may not be listed on a national securities exchange.
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The validity of the Ordinary Shares registered under the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part (including Ordinary Shares underlying other securities registered herein) and certain other matters of Dutch law will be passed upon for us by NautaDutilh N.V. Certain legal matters relating to U.S. law will be passed upon for us by Covington & Burling LLP, New York, New York.
The financial statements of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2024, incorporated by reference in this prospectus and the effectiveness of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.’s internal control over financial reporting, have been audited by Deloitte Accountants B.V., an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their reports. Such financial statements are incorporated by reference in reliance upon the reports of such firm given their authority as experts in accounting and auditing.
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ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL LIABILITIES
We are organized and existing under the laws of the Netherlands. As such, under Dutch private international law, the rights and obligations of our shareholders vis-à-vis the Company originating from Dutch corporate law and our Articles of Association, as well as the civil liability of our officers (functionarissen) (including our directors and executive officers) are governed in certain respects by the laws of the Netherlands.
We are not a resident of the United States and our officers may also not all be residents of the United States. As a result, depending on the subject matter of the action brought against us and/or our officers, United States courts may not have jurisdiction. If a Dutch court has jurisdiction with respect to such action, that court will apply Dutch procedural law and Dutch private international law to determine the law applicable to that action. Depending on the subject matter of the relevant action, a competent Dutch court may apply another law than the laws of the United States.
Also, service of process against non-residents of the United States can in principle (absent, for example, a valid choice of domicile) not be effected in the United States.
On the date of this prospectus, (x) there is no treaty in force between the United States and the Netherlands for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments, other than arbitration awards, in civil and commercial matters and (y) both the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements (2005) and the Hague Judgments Convention (2019) have entered into force for the Netherlands, but have not entered into force for the United States. Consequently, a judgment rendered by a court in the United States will not automatically be recognized and enforced by the competent Dutch courts. However, if a person has obtained a judgment rendered by a court in the United States that is enforceable under the laws of the United States and files a claim with the competent Dutch court, the Dutch court will in principle give binding effect to that United States judgment if (i) the jurisdiction of the United States court was based on a ground of jurisdiction that is generally acceptable according to international standards, (ii) the judgment by the United States court was rendered in legal proceedings that comply with the Dutch standards of proper administration of justice including sufficient safeguards (behoorlijke rechtspleging), (iii) binding effect of such United States judgment is not contrary to Dutch public order (openbare orde) and (iv) the judgment by the United States court is not incompatible with a decision rendered between the same parties by a Dutch court, or with a previous decision rendered between the same parties by a foreign court in a dispute that concerns the same subject and is based on the same cause, provided that the previous decision qualifies for recognition in the Netherlands. Even if such a United States judgment is given binding effect, a claim based thereon may, however, still be rejected if the United States judgment is not or no longer formally enforceable. Moreover, if the United States judgment is not final (for instance when appeal is possible or pending) a competent Dutch court may postpone recognition until the United States judgment will have become final, refuse recognition under the understanding that recognition can be asked again once the United States judgment will have become final, or impose as a condition for recognition that security is posted.
A competent Dutch court may deny the recognition and enforcement of punitive damages or other awards. Moreover, a competent Dutch court may reduce the amount of damages granted by a United States court and recognize damages only to the extent that they are necessary to compensate actual losses or damages. Finally, there may be specific other instances, including pursuant to anti-boycott rules and regulations, where Dutch law prohibits the recognition and enforcement of a United States judgment. Thus, United States investors may not be able, or experience difficulty, to enforce a judgment obtained in a United States court against us or our officers.
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We file certain periodic and current reports and other information with the SEC. Our SEC filings are available to the public over the internet at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Copies of certain information filed by us with the SEC are also available on our website at www.newamsterdampharma.com. Information contained on, or that can be accessible through, our website is not a part of this prospectus and the inclusion of our website address in this prospectus is an inactive textual reference only.
We have filed with the SEC a “shelf” registration statement (including amendments and exhibits to the registration statement) on Form S-3 under the Securities Act. This prospectus, which is part of the registration statement, does not contain all of the information set forth in the registration statement and the exhibits and schedules to the registration statement. We have omitted parts of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC. For more detail about us and the securities offered by this prospectus, you may examine the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and the exhibits filed with it at the website provided in the previous paragraph. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different from or in addition to that contained in this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement, any free writing prospectus or the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein. We are not making an offer of these securities in any state where the offer is not permitted.
The SEC allows us to incorporate by reference much of the information that we file with the SEC, which means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those publicly available documents. The information that we incorporate by reference in this prospectus is considered to be part of this prospectus. Because we are incorporating by reference future filings with the SEC, this prospectus is continually updated and those future filings may modify or supersede some of the information included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. This means that you must look at all of the SEC filings that we incorporate by reference to determine if any of the statements in this prospectus or in any document previously incorporated by reference have been modified or superseded. This prospectus incorporates by reference the documents listed below and all subsequent annual reports on Form 10-K that we file with the SEC and all subsequent filings on Forms 10-Q and 8-K filed by us with the SEC pursuant to the Exchange Act (excluding, in each case, any information or documents deemed to be furnished and not filed with the SEC), prior to the completion or termination of this offering, including all such reports and other documents filed with the SEC after the date of the initial filing of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and prior to the effectiveness of such registration statement, shall be incorporated by reference.
| • | our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2025; and |
| • | the description of the Ordinary Shares and Public Warrants contained in the registration statement on Form 8-A, filed with the SEC on November 22, 2022, as the description therein has been updated and superseded by the description of our Ordinary Shares and Public Warrants contained in Exhibit 4.4 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, and including any amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description. |
We will provide to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom a prospectus is delivered, without charge upon written or oral request, a copy of any or all of the documents that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus but not delivered with the prospectus, including exhibits that are specifically incorporated by reference into such documents. You may request a copy of such documents at no cost, by writing or telephoning us at the following address or telephone number:
Gooimeer 2-35
1411 DC Naarden
The Netherlands
Tel: +31 (0) 35 206 2971
Attn: Chief Accounting Officer
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$500,000,000
Ordinary Shares
Debt Securities
Warrants
Subscription Rights
Purchase Contracts
Units
PROSPECTUS
, 2025
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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities or accept an offer to buy these securities until the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities, and it is not soliciting offers to buy these securities in any state where such offer or sale is not permitted.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED FEBRUARY 28, 2025
PROSPECTUS
Up to $250,000,000
Ordinary Shares
We previously entered into an amended and restated sales agreement (the “Sales Agreement”) with TD Securities (USA) LLC (“TD Cowen”), dated August 9, 2024, relating to the sale of our ordinary shares, nominal value of €0.12 per share (the “Ordinary Shares”), offered by this prospectus. In accordance with the terms of the Sales Agreement, under this prospectus, we may offer and sell Ordinary Shares having an aggregate offering price of up to $250 million from time to time through TD Cowen acting as our agent.
The Ordinary Shares are listed on The Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol “NAMS.” On February 26, 2025, the last sale price of the Ordinary Shares as reported by The Nasdaq Global Market was $19.71 per share.
Sales of Ordinary Shares, if any, under this prospectus will be made in sales deemed to be “at the market offerings” as defined in Rule 415(a)(4) promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). TD Cowen is not required to sell any specific number or dollar amount of securities, but will act as our sales agent using commercially reasonable efforts consistent with its normal trading and sales practices, on mutually agreed terms between TD Cowen and us. There is no arrangement for funds to be received in any escrow, trust or similar arrangement.
TD Cowen will be entitled to compensation at a commission rate of up to 3.0% of the gross sales price of any Ordinary Shares sold under the Sales Agreement. In connection with the sale of Ordinary Shares on our behalf, TD Cowen will be deemed to be an “underwriter” within the meaning of the Securities Act, and the compensation of TD Cowen will be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts. We have also agreed to provide indemnification to TD Cowen against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. See “Plan of Distribution” beginning on page 25 for additional information regarding TD Cowen’s compensation.
Investing in the Ordinary Shares involves a high degree of risk. See the “Risk Factors” section beginning on page 6 of this prospectus and under similar headings in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) that are incorporated by reference in this prospectus.
Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
TD Cowen
The date of this prospectus is , 2025
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This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) using a “shelf” registration process under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Under this shelf registration process, we may use this prospectus to, from time to time, sell the Ordinary Shares having an aggregate gross sales price of up to $250 million.
Before buying any of the Ordinary Shares that we are offering, you should carefully read this prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein, as well as the additional information described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Incorporation by Reference.” These documents contain important information that you should consider when making your investment decision.
To the extent there is a conflict between the information contained in this prospectus, on the one hand, and the information contained in any document incorporated by reference in this prospectus, on the other hand, you should rely on the information in this prospectus, provided that if any statement in one of these documents is inconsistent with a statement in another document having a later date—for example, a prospectus supplement or a document incorporated by reference in this prospectus—the statement in the document having the later date modifies or supersedes the earlier statement.
The information contained in this prospectus or any document incorporated by reference herein is accurate only as of such documents’ respective dates, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus, any applicable free writing prospectus or the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus or the sale of any securities. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed materially since those dates.
Neither we nor TD Cowen have authorized anyone to provide you with information that is different from or in addition to that contained in this prospectus, any amendment or supplement to this prospectus, or any free writing prospectus we may authorize to be delivered or made available to you. Neither we nor TD Cowen take responsibility for, or provide assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give you. This prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities other than the securities described in this prospectus or an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy such securities in any circumstances in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful.
For investors outside the United States, neither we nor TD Cowen have taken any action that would permit the offering or possession or distribution of this prospectus in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, other than in the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about, and observe any restrictions relating to, the offering of the securities described herein and the distribution of this prospectus outside the United States.
Unless otherwise stated or the context otherwise indicates, references to the “Company,” “NewAmsterdam Pharma,” “we,” “our” or “us” refer to NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. (f/k/a NewAmsterdam Pharma Company B.V.), together with its subsidiaries, including Frazier Lifesciences Acquisition Corporation, a Delaware corporation (previously a Cayman Islands exempted company) (“FLAC”) and NewAmsterdam Pharma Holding B.V., a private company with limited liability (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) incorporated under the laws of the Netherlands. NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. is a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) incorporated as a Dutch private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) on June 10, 2022 and converted into a Dutch public limited liability company on November 21, 2022.
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SERVICE MARKS AND TRADE NAMES
The NewAmsterdam Pharma name, logos and other service marks of NewAmsterdam Pharma appearing in this prospectus are the property of NewAmsterdam Pharma Holding B.V. Solely for convenience, some of the service marks, logos and trade names referred to in this prospectus are presented without the ™ and SM symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that the Company will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, its rights or the rights of the applicable licensors to these service marks and trade names. This prospectus contains additional trademarks, service marks and trade names of others. All trademarks, service marks and trade names appearing in this prospectus are, to the Company’s knowledge, the property of their respective owners. We do not intend the Company’s use or display of other companies’ trademarks, service marks, copyrights or trade names to imply a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of the Company by, any other companies.
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This summary highlights selected information that is presented in more detail elsewhere, or incorporated by reference, in this prospectus. It does not contain all of the information that may be important to you and your investment decision. Before investing in the Ordinary Shares, you should carefully read this entire prospectus, including the matters set forth under the section of this prospectus captioned “Risk Factors” and the financial statements and related notes and other information that we incorporate by reference herein, including any current or periodic report we file with the SEC before deciding to invest in the Ordinary Shares.
Company Overview
We are a late-stage biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to improve patient care in populations with cardiometabolic diseases where currently approved therapies have not been adequate or well tolerated. We seek to fill a significant unmet need for a safe, well tolerated and convenient low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (“LDL-C”) lowering therapy. In multiple Phase 3 trials, we have investigated obicetrapib, an oral, low-dose, once-daily, highly selective cholesterol ester transfer protein (“CETP”) inhibitor, alone or as a fixed-dose combination with ezetimibe, as preferred LDL-C lowering therapies to be used as an adjunct to statin therapy for patients at risk of cardiovascular disease (“CVD”) with elevated LDL-C, for whom existing therapies are not sufficiently effective or well tolerated. We believe that CETP inhibition may also play a role in other indications by potentially mitigating the risk of developing diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Corporate Information
We were incorporated as a Dutch private limited liability company (besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid) on June 10, 2022. On November 21, 2022, our corporate form was converted to a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) and our name was changed to NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. The Ordinary Shares and warrants to purchase Ordinary Shares (the “Public Warrants”) were registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and are listed on The Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”) under the symbols “NAMS” and “NAMSW,” respectively.
Our principal executive office is located at Gooimeer 2-35, 1411 DC Naarden, the Netherlands, and our telephone number is +31 (0) 35 206 2971.
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| Ordinary Shares offered by us |
Ordinary Shares having an aggregate offering price of up to $250 million. |
| Ordinary Shares to be outstanding immediately after this offering |
Up to 120,748,256 Ordinary Shares, assuming the sale of up to 12,683,916 Ordinary Shares in this offering at a price of $19.71 per share, which was the closing price of the Ordinary Shares on Nasdaq on February 26, 2025. The actual number of Ordinary Shares issued in this offering will vary depending on how many Ordinary Shares we choose to sell and the prices at which such sales occur. |
| Plan of Distribution |
“At the market offering” that may be made from time to time through TD Cowen. See “Plan of Distribution” beginning on page 25 of this prospectus. |
| Use of Proceeds |
We currently intend to use the net proceeds from the sale of the Ordinary Shares offered hereby to fund the continued development of obicetrapib, and for working capital, capital expenditures and general corporate purposes. See “Use of Proceeds” on page 10 of this prospectus. |
| Risk Factors |
See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 6 and other information included and incorporated by reference in this prospectus for a discussion of factors that you should carefully consider before deciding to invest in the Ordinary Shares. |
| Nasdaq Global Market symbol |
“NAMS” |
The number of Ordinary Shares to be outstanding after this offering is based on 108,064,340 Ordinary Shares outstanding as of December 31, 2024 and excludes in each case as of December 31, 2024:
| • | 19,029,056 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options having a weighted-average exercise price of approximately $10.04 per share; |
| • | 2,632,581 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding warrants with a weighted-average exercise price of $11.50 per share; |
| • | 7,514,231 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding pre-funded warrants (“Pre-Funded Warrants”) with a weighted-average exercise price of $0.0001 per share, issued by the Company in connection with the underwritten public offerings completed on February 16, 2024 and December 13, 2024, respectively, in lieu of Ordinary Shares to certain investors, at the public offering price per share for the Ordinary Shares in each such offering less the $0.0001 per share exercise price for each Pre-Funded Warrant. |
| • | 315,414 Ordinary Shares reserved for issuance pursuant to future awards under the Company’s Long-Term Incentive Plan; |
| • | 51,219 Ordinary Shares reserved for issuance pursuant to future awards under the Company’s Supplementary Long-Term Incentive Plan; |
| • | 738,200 Ordinary Shares reserved for issuance pursuant to future awards under the Company’s Inducement Plan; and |
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| • | 1,886,137 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the achievement of a certain clinical development milestone pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement, dated as of July 25, 2022 (the “Business Combination Agreement”), by and among the Company, FLAC, NewAmsterdam Pharma, and NewAmsterdam Pharma Investment Corporation, a Cayman Islands exempted company and wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. |
In addition, unless we specifically state otherwise, all information in this prospectus assumes no exercise of outstanding options to purchase Ordinary Shares subsequent to December 31, 2024.
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Investing in the Ordinary Shares involves a high degree of risk. Before making a decision to invest in the Ordinary Shares, you should consider carefully the risks and uncertainties described under the heading “Risk Factors” contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus, including the risk factors listed below and the ones incorporated by reference herein from our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024 (“Annual Report”), filed with the SEC on February 26, 2025, as may be updated by our other filings we make with the SEC, including our subsequent annual reports. The risks described in these documents are not the only ones we face. There may be other unknown or unpredictable economic, business, competitive, regulatory or other factors that could harm our future results. Past financial performance may not be a reliable indicator of future performance, and historical trends should not be used to anticipate results or trends in future periods. If any of these risks actually occurs, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects or cash flow could be harmed. This could cause the trading price of the Ordinary Shares to decline, resulting in a loss of all or part of your investment. Please also read carefully the section below entitled “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
Risks Related to This Offering
You may experience immediate and substantial dilution in the book value of your investment.
If you purchase the Ordinary Shares in this offering, you will experience immediate dilution in an amount equal to the difference between the purchase price per share and our then-net tangible book value per Ordinary Share. Assuming that an aggregate of $250 million of the Ordinary Shares are sold at an assumed public offering price of $19.71 per share, which was the last reported sale price of the Ordinary Shares on Nasdaq on February 26, 2025, and after deducting commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us, you would experience immediate dilution of $11.44 per share, representing the difference between the assumed public offering price and our as adjusted net tangible book value as of December 31, 2024. See the section titled “Dilution” in this prospectus for more information.
The actual number of Ordinary Shares we will sell under the Sales Agreement and the resulting gross proceeds are uncertain.
Subject to certain limitations in the Sales Agreement and compliance with applicable law, we have the discretion to deliver a placement notice to TD Cowen at any time throughout the term of the Sales Agreement. The number of Ordinary Shares that are sold through TD Cowen after we deliver a placement notice will fluctuate based on the market price of the Ordinary Shares during the sales period and limits we set in the placement notice. Because the price per share sold will fluctuate based on the market price of the Ordinary Shares during the sales period, it is not possible to predict the number of Ordinary Shares that will be ultimately sold or the resulting gross proceeds.
The Ordinary Shares offered in this offering will be sold in “at the market offerings.” Investors who purchase the Ordinary Shares in this offering at different times will likely pay different prices.
Investors who purchase the Ordinary Shares in this offering at different times will likely pay different prices, and so may experience different outcomes in their investment results. We will have discretion, subject to market demand, to vary the timing, prices and numbers of Ordinary Shares sold, and subject to certain limitations in the Sales Agreement, there is no minimum or maximum sales price. Investors may experience a decline in the value of their Ordinary Shares and dilution as a result of sales made at prices lower than the prices they paid.
We have broad discretion in the use of the net proceeds from this offering, and we may not use them effectively.
We currently intend to use the net proceeds from this offering as described in the section titled “Use of Proceeds” in this prospectus. However, the Company’s board of directors (the “Board of Directors”) and
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management retain broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds from this offering and could spend the proceeds in ways that do not improve our results of operations or enhance the value of the Ordinary Shares. Our failure to apply these funds effectively could result in financial losses, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects.
You may experience future dilution as a result of future equity offerings.
In order to raise additional capital, we expect to offer additional securities in the future, including securities convertible into or exchangeable for Ordinary Shares. We cannot assure you that we will be able to sell the Ordinary Shares or other securities in any other offering at a price per share that is equal to or greater than the price per share paid by investors in this offering, and investors purchasing Ordinary Shares or other securities in the future could have rights superior to existing shareholders. The price per share at which we sell additional Ordinary Shares or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for the Ordinary Shares in future transactions may be higher or lower than the price per share in this offering.
Future sales or issuances of Ordinary Shares in the public markets, or the perception of such sales, could depress the trading price of the Ordinary Shares.
The sale of a substantial number of Ordinary Shares or other equity-related securities in the public markets, or the perception that such sales could occur, could depress the market price of the Ordinary Shares and impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities. We may sell large quantities of Ordinary Shares at any time pursuant to this prospectus or in one or more separate offerings. We cannot predict the effect that future sales of Ordinary Shares or other equity-related securities would have on the market price of the Ordinary Shares.
The price of the Ordinary Shares is and may continue to be volatile and you may not be able to resell our securities at or above the price you paid.
The market price for the Ordinary Shares is volatile and may fluctuate significantly in response to a number of factors, most of which we cannot control, such as fluctuations in financial results, our ability to advance the development of obicetrapib or changes in securities analysts’ recommendations. In addition, the Ordinary Shares have been and may continue to be affected by limited trading volume. Each of these factors, among others, could harm your investment in the Ordinary Shares and could result in you being unable to resell the shares that you purchased at a price equal to or above the price you paid.
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SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements provide the Company’s current expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking statements include statements about the Company’s expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, intentions, assumptions and other statements that are not historical facts. Words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “objective,” “ongoing,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will” and “would,” or similar words or phrases, or the negatives of those words or phrases, may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not necessarily mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Examples of forward-looking statements in this prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company’s disclosure concerning its operations, cash flows, financial position and dividend policy.
Forward-looking statements in this prospectus and in any document incorporated by reference in this prospectus may include, for example, statements about:
| • | the potential liquidity and trading of the Company’s public securities; |
| • | the Company’s ability to raise additional capital in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable to it; |
| • | the efficacy and safety of the Company’s product candidate, obicetrapib, as well as potential reimbursement and anticipated market size and market opportunity; |
| • | the Company’s dependence on the success of obicetrapib, including the obtaining of regulatory approval to market obicetrapib; |
| • | the timing, progress and results of clinical trials for obicetrapib, including statements regarding the timing of initiation and completion of studies or trials and related preparatory work and the period during which results of trials will become available and marketing submissions made; |
| • | the Company’s ability to attract and retain senior management and key scientific personnel; |
| • | the Company’s limited experience in marketing and distributing products; |
| • | managing the risks related to the Company’s international operations; |
| • | the Company’s ability to achieve the broad degree of physician adoption and use and market acceptance necessary for commercial success; |
| • | the Company’s estimates regarding expenses, future revenue, capital requirements and needs for additional financing; |
| • | developments regarding the Company’s competitors and the Company’s industry; |
| • | the impact of government laws and regulations; |
| • | the Company’s reliance on third parties for all aspects of the manufacturing of obicetrapib for clinical trials; and |
| • | the Company’s efforts to obtain, protect or enforce its patents and other intellectual property rights related to the Company’s product candidate. |
Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or implied by the forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements for many reasons, including the factors described in the section titled “Risk Factors” in this prospectus. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this prospectus. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly revise any forward-looking statement to reflect circumstances or events after the date of this prospectus or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as specifically required by law. You should, however, review the factors and risks that the Company describes in the reports it files from time to time with the SEC.
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In addition, statements that “we believe” and similar statements reflect the Company’s beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date of this prospectus. And while the Company believes that information provides a reasonable basis for these statements, that information may be limited or incomplete. The Company’s statements should not be read to indicate that it has conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain, and you are cautioned not to unduly rely on these statements.
Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements were reasonable at the time made, it cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. You should carefully consider the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section in connection with the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus and any subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements that may be issued by the Company or persons acting on its behalf.
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We may offer and sell Ordinary Shares having an aggregate offering price of up to $250 million from time to time through TD Cowen. Because there is no minimum offering amount required as a condition to close this offering, the actual total public offering amount, commissions and proceeds to us, if any, are not determinable at this time.
We currently intend to use the net proceeds from this offering, if any, together with our cash and cash equivalents, primarily to fund the continued development of obicetrapib, and for working capital, capital expenditures and general corporate purposes. We may also use a portion of the net proceeds to acquire or invest in new product candidates or a variety of types of collaboration, license, monetization, distribution and other arrangements with other third parties relating to the development or commercialization, once approved, of obicetrapib or future product candidates or indications; however, we have no current plans, commitments or obligations to do so. Our expected use of the net proceeds from this offering represents our current intentions based on our present plans and business condition, which could change as our plans and business conditions evolve. The amounts and timing of our actual use of the net proceeds from this offering will vary depending on numerous factors, including our ability or desire to sell Ordinary Shares under the Sales Agreement. As a result, we cannot predict with certainty all of the particular uses for any net proceeds to be received or the amounts that we will actually spend on the uses set forth above. The Board of Directors and our management retain broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds from this offering.
Pending these uses, we intend to invest the net proceeds in short- and intermediate-term interest-bearing financial instruments.
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If you invest in the Ordinary Shares offered hereby, your ownership interest will be diluted immediately to the extent of the difference between the price you pay in this offering and the net tangible book value per Ordinary Share after this offering.
Net tangible book value per Ordinary Share represents the amount of our total assets less our total liabilities, excluding intangible assets, divided by the number of the Ordinary Shares outstanding as of December 31, 2024. As of December 31, 2024, we had a historical net tangible book value of $756.5 million, corresponding to a net tangible book value per Ordinary Share of $7.00.
After giving effect to the assumed sale by us of $250 million of Ordinary Shares at an assumed public offering price of $19.71 per share, which was the last reported sale price of the Ordinary Shares on Nasdaq on February 26, 2025, and after deducting estimated commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us, our as adjusted net tangible book value as of December 31, 2024 would have been $998.9 million, corresponding to an as adjusted net tangible book value per Ordinary Share of $8.27. This represents an immediate increase in as adjusted net tangible book value of $1.27 per Ordinary Share to existing shareholders and immediate dilution of $11.44 per Ordinary Share to new investors purchasing Ordinary Shares in this offering. Dilution per Ordinary Share to new investors is determined by subtracting our as adjusted net tangible book value per Ordinary Share from the assumed public offering price per Ordinary Share paid by new investors.
The following table illustrates this dilution on a per Ordinary Share basis. The as adjusted information is illustrative only and will change based on the actual price to the public, the actual number of Ordinary Shares sold and other terms of the offering determined at the time Ordinary Shares are sold pursuant to this prospectus. The Ordinary Shares sold in this offering, if any, will be sold from time to time at various prices.
| Assumed public offering price per Ordinary Share |
$ | 19.71 | ||||||
| Historical net tangible book value per Ordinary Share as of December 31, 2024 |
$ | 7.00 | ||||||
| Increase in net tangible book value per Ordinary Share attributable to this offering |
$ | 1.27 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| As adjusted net tangible book value per Ordinary Share after giving effect to this offering |
$ | 8.27 | ||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| Dilution per Ordinary Share to new investors participating in this offering |
$ | 11.44 | ||||||
|
|
|
The Ordinary Shares sold in this offering, if any, will be sold from time to time at various prices. Assuming all of the Ordinary Shares in an aggregate amount of $250 million are sold in this offering at the assumed public offering price of $19.71 per share, a $1.00 increase in such offering price would increase our as adjusted net tangible book value per share after this offering to $8.31 per share and dilution to new investors to $12.40 per share, after deducting commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. A $1.00 decrease in the assumed public offering price of $19.71 per share would decrease our as adjusted net tangible book value per share after this offering to $8.23 per share and dilution to new investors to $10.48 per share, after deducting commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. The information discussed above is illustrative only and will adjust based on the actual public offering price, the actual number of shares that we offer in this offering, and other terms of this offering determined at the time of each offer and sale.
The above discussion and table are based on 108,064,340 Ordinary Shares outstanding as of December 31, 2024 and excludes in each case as of December 31, 2024:
| • | 19,029,056 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options having a weighted-average exercise price of approximately $10.04 per share; |
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| • | 2,632,581 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding warrants with a weighted-average exercise price of $11.50 per share; |
| • | 7,514,231 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding Pre-Funded Warrants with a weighted-average exercise price of $0.0001 per share; |
| • | 315,414 Ordinary Shares reserved for issuance pursuant to future awards under the Company’s Long-Term Incentive Plan; |
| • | 51,219 Ordinary Shares reserved for issuance pursuant to future awards under the Company’s Supplementary Long-Term Incentive Plan; |
| • | 738,200 Ordinary Shares reserved for issuance pursuant to future awards under the Company’s Inducement Plan; and |
| • | 1,886,137 Ordinary Shares issuable upon the achievement of a certain clinical development milestone pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement. |
In addition, unless we specifically state otherwise, all information in this prospectus assumes no exercise of outstanding options to purchase Ordinary Shares subsequent to December 31, 2024.
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UNITED STATES FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
The following is a description of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations to the U.S. Holders (as defined below) of owning and disposing of the Ordinary Shares. It is not a comprehensive description of all tax considerations that may be relevant to a particular person’s decision to acquire Ordinary Shares. This discussion applies only to a U.S. Holder that is an initial purchaser of the Ordinary Shares offered pursuant to this prospectus and that holds the Ordinary Shares as a capital asset for tax purposes (generally, property held for investment) within the meaning of Section 1221 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). In addition, this discussion does not describe all of the tax consequences that may be relevant in light of a U.S. Holder’s particular circumstances, including state and local tax consequences, estate tax consequences, alternative minimum tax consequences, the potential application of the Medicare contribution tax on net investment income, application of the special tax accounting rules under Section 451(b) of the Code and tax consequences applicable to U.S. Holders subject to special rules, such as:
| • | banks, other financial institutions or insurance companies; |
| • | mutual funds and pension plans; |
| • | U.S. expatriates and certain former citizens or long-term residents of the United States; |
| • | dealers or traders in securities who use a mark-to-market method of tax accounting; |
| • | persons holding Ordinary Shares as part of a hedging transaction, “straddle,” “hedge,” “conversion,” “synthetic security,” “constructive ownership transaction,” “constructive sale” or other integrated transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes; |
| • | U.S. Holders whose “functional currency” for U.S. federal income tax purposes is not the U.S. dollar; |
| • | brokers, dealers or traders in securities, commodities or currencies; |
| • | tax-exempt organizations, qualified retirement plans, individual retirement accounts or other tax deferred accounts; |
| • | S corporations, partnerships, or other entities or arrangements classified as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes; |
| • | regulated investment companies or real estate investment trusts; |
| • | persons who acquired the Ordinary Shares pursuant to the exercise of any employee option or otherwise as compensation; |
| • | corporations that accumulate earnings to avoid U.S. federal income tax; |
| • | persons holding the Ordinary Shares in connection with a trade or business or permanent establishment outside the United States; and |
| • | persons who own (directly or through attribution) 10% or more (by vote or value) of our outstanding Ordinary Shares. |
If an entity that is classified as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes holds the Ordinary Shares, the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a partner will generally depend on the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. Partnerships holding the Ordinary Shares and partners in such partnerships are encouraged to consult their tax advisors as to the particular U.S. federal income tax consequences of holding and disposing of the Ordinary Shares.
The discussion is based on the Code administrative pronouncements, judicial decisions, final, temporary and proposed U.S. Department of the Treasury (the “Treasury Department”) regulations promulgated thereunder (the “Treasury Regulations”), administrative pronouncements and rulings of the Internal Revenue Service, judicial decisions and the income treaty between the Netherlands and the United States (the “Treaty”), all as of the date hereof, changes to any of which may affect the tax consequences described herein—possibly with retroactive effect.
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A “U.S. Holder” is a holder who, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, is a beneficial owner of the Ordinary Shares and is:
(A) An individual who is a citizen or individual resident of the United States;
(B) a corporation, or other entity taxable as a corporation, created or organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state therein or the District of Columbia;
(C) an estate, the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source; or
(D) a trust if (1) a U.S. court is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more U.S. persons have authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust or (2) the trust has a valid election in effect to be treated as a U.S. person under applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations.
PERSONS CONSIDERING AN INVESTMENT IN THE ORDINARY SHARES SHOULD CONSULT THEIR OWN TAX ADVISORS AS TO THE PARTICULAR TAX CONSEQUENCES APPLICABLE TO THEM RELATING TO THE ACQUISITION, OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF THE ORDINARY SHARES, INCLUDING THE APPLICABILITY OF U.S. FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL TAX LAWS.
Consequences of Ownership and Disposition of the Ordinary Shares to U.S. Holders—Application of Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules to U.S. Holders of Ordinary Shares
Based on current estimates of the composition of the income and assets of the Company and its subsidiaries for the taxable year ended December 31, 2024, we believe that the Company was not a passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes for the 2024 taxable year. However, the determination of whether or not we are a PFIC is a fact-intensive determination made annually after the end of the taxable year and the applicable law is subject to varying interpretations. For instance, the value of our assets may be determined in large part by reference to the market price of our Ordinary Shares, which is likely to continue to fluctuate. Accordingly, we cannot provide any assurance regarding, and our U.S. counsel expresses no opinion with respect to, our PFIC status for any taxable year. Furthermore, there can be no assurance that the IRS will agree with our conclusion or that the IRS will not successfully challenge our position. We have not yet determined whether we expect to be a PFIC for any future taxable years. A non-U.S. corporation will be classified as a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes if either (i) at least 75% of its gross income in a taxable year, including its pro rata share of the gross income of any corporation in which it is considered to own at least 25% of the shares by value, is passive income or (ii) at least 50% of its assets in a taxable year (ordinarily determined based on fair market value and averaged quarterly over the year), including its pro rata share of the assets of any corporation in which it is considered to own at least 25% of the shares by value, are held for the production of, or produce, passive income. Passive income generally includes dividends, interest, rents and royalties (other than rents or royalties derived in the active conduct of a trade or business) and gains from the disposition of passive assets. A separate determination must be made after the close of each taxable year as to whether a foreign corporation was a PFIC for that year. Once a foreign corporation is treated as a PFIC it is, with respect to a shareholder during the time it qualifies as a PFIC, and subject to certain exceptions, always treated as a PFIC with respect to such shareholder, regardless of whether it satisfied either of the qualification tests in subsequent years.
There are three separate taxation regimes that could apply to a U.S. Holder of Ordinary Shares under the PFIC rules, which are (i) the excess distribution regime (which is the default regime), (ii) the QEF regime, and (iii) the mark-to-market regime (each discussed below). A U.S. Holder who holds (actually or constructively) shares in a foreign corporation during any year in which such corporation qualifies as a PFIC is subject to U.S. federal income taxation under one of these three regimes. If we were classified as a PFIC in any taxable year, the effect of the PFIC rules on a U.S. Holder would depend upon which of these regimes applies to such U.S. Holder. Moreover, dividends paid by a PFIC (or an entity that was a PFIC in the immediately preceding taxable year) are not eligible for the lower rates of taxation applicable to qualified dividend income (“QDI”) under any of the foregoing regimes.
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Excess Distribution Regime
A U.S. Holder that does not make a QEF election or a mark-to-market election, both as described below, will be subject to the default “excess distribution regime” under the PFIC rules with respect to (i) any gain realized on a sale or other disposition (including a pledge) of Ordinary Shares, and (ii) any “excess distribution” received on the U.S. Holder’s Ordinary Shares (generally, any distributions in excess of 125% of the average of the annual distributions on Ordinary Shares during the preceding three years or the U.S. Holder’s holding period, whichever is shorter).
Generally, under this excess distribution regime: the gain or excess distribution will be allocated ratably over the period during which the U.S. Holder held the Ordinary Shares; the amount allocated to the current taxable year, will be treated as ordinary income; and the amount allocated to prior taxable years will be subject to the highest tax rate in effect for that taxable year and the interest charge generally applicable to underpayments of tax will be imposed on the resulting tax attributable to each such year.
The tax liability for amounts allocated to years prior to the year of disposition or excess distribution will be payable generally without regard to offsets from deductions, losses and expenses. In addition, gains (but not losses) a U.S. Holder realizes on the sale of Ordinary Shares cannot be treated as capital gains, even if the U.S. Holder holds the shares as capital assets. Further, no portion of any distribution will be treated as QDI.
QEF Regime
A QEF election is effective for the taxable year for which the election is made and all subsequent taxable years and may not be revoked without the consent of the IRS. If a U.S. Holder makes a timely QEF election with respect to its direct or indirect interest in a PFIC, the U.S. Holder will be required to include in income each year a portion of the ordinary earnings and net capital gains of the PFIC as QEF income inclusions, even if amount is not distributed to the U.S. Holder. Thus, the U.S. Holder may be required to report taxable income as a result of QEF income inclusions without corresponding receipts of cash. U.S. Holders of Ordinary Shares should not expect that they will receive cash distributions from the Company sufficient to cover their respective U.S. tax liability with respect to such QEF income inclusions.
The timely QEF election also allows the electing U.S. Holder to: (i) generally treat any gain recognized on the disposition of its shares of the PFIC as a capital gain; (ii) treat its share of the PFIC’s net capital gain, if any, as long-term capital gain instead of ordinary income; and (iii) either avoid interest charges resulting from PFIC status altogether, or make an annual election, subject to certain limitations, to defer payment of current taxes on its share of PFIC’s annual realized net capital gain and ordinary earnings subject, however, to an interest charge on the deferred tax computed by using the statutory rate of interest applicable to an extension of time for payment of tax. In addition, net losses (if any) of a PFIC will not pass through to an electing U.S. Holder and may not be carried back or forward in computing such PFIC’s ordinary earnings and net capital gain in other taxable years.
Consequently, a U.S. Holder may over time be taxed on amounts that as an economic matter exceed the Company’s net profits, if any.
A U.S. Holder’s tax basis in Ordinary Shares will be increased to reflect QEF income inclusions and will be decreased to reflect distributions of amounts previously included in income as QEF income inclusions. No portion of the QEF income inclusions attributable to ordinary income will be treated as QDI. Amounts included as QEF income inclusions with respect to direct and indirect investments generally will not be taxed again when distributed. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors as to the manner in which QEF income inclusions affect their allocable share of the Company’s income and their basis in their Ordinary Shares.
The Company intends to determine its PFIC status at the end of each taxable year and intends to satisfy any applicable record keeping and reporting requirements that apply to a QEF, including providing to U.S. Holders,
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for each taxable year that it determines it is or, in its reasonable determination, may be a PFIC, a PFIC Annual Information Statement containing information necessary for U.S. Holders to make a QEF election with respect to the Company. The Company will provide such information electronically.
Notwithstanding such QEF election, the adverse tax consequences relating to PFIC shares, adjusted to take into account the current income inclusions resulting from the QEF election, will continue to apply with respect to such newly acquired Ordinary Shares, unless the U.S. Holder makes a purging election under the PFIC rules. Under one type of purging election, the U.S. Holder will be deemed to have sold such shares at their fair market value and any gain recognized on such deemed sale will be treated as an excess distribution, as described above.
Mark-to-Market Regime
Alternatively, a U.S. Holder may make an election to mark marketable shares in a PFIC to market on an annual basis. A PFIC’s ordinary shares generally are marketable if: (i) they are “regularly traded” on a national securities exchange that is registered with the SEC or on the national market system established under Section 11A of the Exchange Act; or (ii) they are “regularly traded” on any exchange or market that the Treasury Department determines to have rules sufficient to ensure that the market price accurately represents the fair market value of the shares.
For these purposes, the Ordinary Shares will be considered regularly traded during any calendar year during which they are traded, other than in de minimis quantities, on at least 15 days during each calendar quarter, on a qualified exchange. Any trades that have as their principal purpose meeting this requirement will be disregarded. The Ordinary Shares are listed on Nasdaq, which is a qualified exchange for these purposes. Consequently, if the Ordinary Shares remain listed on Nasdaq and are regularly traded, and you are a U.S. Holder of such shares, we expect the mark-to-market election would be available to you if we are a classified as a PFIC. Each U.S. Holder should consult its tax advisor as to the whether a mark-to-market election is available or advisable with respect to the Ordinary Shares.
A U.S. Holder that makes a mark-to-market election must include in ordinary income for each year an amount equal to the excess, if any, of the fair market value of the Ordinary Shares at the close of the taxable year over the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the Ordinary Shares. An electing holder may also claim an ordinary loss deduction for the excess, if any, of the U.S. Holder’s adjusted basis in the Ordinary Shares over the fair market value of the Ordinary Shares at the close of the taxable year, but this deduction is allowable only to the extent of any net mark-to-market gains for prior years. Gains from an actual sale or other disposition of the Ordinary Shares will be treated as ordinary income, and any losses incurred on a sale or other disposition of the Ordinary Shares will be treated as an ordinary loss to the extent of any net mark-to-market gains for prior years. Once made, the election cannot be revoked without the consent of the IRS, unless the securities cease to be marketable.
However, a mark-to-market election generally cannot be made for equity interests in any lower-tier PFICs that we own, unless shares of such lower-tier PFIC are themselves “marketable.” As a result, even if a U.S. Holder validly makes a mark-to-market election with respect to the Ordinary Shares, the U.S. Holder may continue to be subject to the PFIC rules (described above) with respect to its indirect interest in any of our investments that are treated as an equity interest in a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors to determine whether any of these elections would be available and if so, what the consequences of the alternative treatments would be in their particular circumstances.
Unless otherwise provided by the IRS, each U.S. shareholder of a PFIC is required to file an annual report on IRS Form 8621. A U.S. Holder’s failure to file the annual report will cause the statute of limitations for such U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax return to remain open with regard to the items required to be included in such report until three years after the U.S. Holder files the annual report, and, unless such failure is due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect, the statute of limitations for the U.S. Holder’s entire U.S. federal income tax return will remain open during such period. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the requirements of filing such information returns under these rules.
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WE STRONGLY URGE YOU TO CONSULT YOUR TAX ADVISOR REGARDING OUR STATUS AS A PFIC, AND, IF WE WERE A PFIC, THE IMPACT OF OUR PFIC STATUS ON YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE ORDINARY SHARES AS WELL AS THE APPLICATION OF THE PFIC RULES TO YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE ORDINARY SHARES, ANY ELECTIONS AVAILABLE WITH RESPECT TO THE ORDINARY SHARES AND THE IRS INFORMATION REPORTING OBLIGATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF THE ORDINARY SHARES.
U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences of Ownership and Disposition of Ordinary Shares to U.S. Holders if the Company is not a PFIC Distributions on Ordinary Shares
The treatment of U.S. Holders of Ordinary Shares will be materially different from that described above if the Company is not treated as a PFIC for the taxable year. We do not expect to make any distribution with respect to our shares in the foreseeable future. However, if we make any such distribution, and if the Company is not treated as a PFIC for the taxable year, the gross amount of any distribution on Ordinary Shares generally will be taxable to a U.S. Holder as ordinary dividend income on the date such distribution is actually or constructively received, to the extent that the distribution is paid out of the Company’s current or accumulated earnings and profits (as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles). Because the Company does not maintain, nor is it required to maintain, calculations of its earnings and profits under U.S. federal income tax principles, it is currently expected that any distributions generally will be reported to U.S. Holders as dividends. Any such dividends generally will not be eligible for the dividends received deduction allowed to corporations in respect of dividends received from other U.S. corporations.
With respect to non-corporate U.S. Holders, dividends will be taxed at the preferential long-term capital gains rate (see “—Sale or Other Taxable Disposition of Ordinary Shares” below), provided the applicable holding period is met, if Ordinary Shares are either readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States (which includes Nasdaq) or the Company is eligible for benefits under a comprehensive United States income tax treaty that includes an exchange of information program and which the United States Treasury Department has determined is satisfactory for these purposes (which includes the Treaty), and certain other requirements are met. There can be no assurance that Ordinary Shares will be considered readily tradable on an established securities market in all future years. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the potential availability of the lower rate for any dividends paid with respect to Ordinary Shares.
A U.S. Holder must include any Dutch tax withheld from the dividend payment in the gross amount of the dividend even if the holder does not in fact receive it. The dividend is taxable to the holder when the holder receives the dividend, actually or constructively. The amount of the dividend distribution includible in a U.S. Holder’s income will be the U.S. dollar value of the Euro payments made, determined at the spot Euro/U.S. dollar rate on the date the dividend distribution is includible in income, regardless of whether the payment is in fact converted into U.S. dollars. Generally, any gain or loss resulting from currency exchange fluctuations during the period from the date the dividend payment is included in income to the date the payment is converted into U.S. dollars will be treated as ordinary income or loss and will not be eligible for the special tax rate applicable to qualified dividend income. Such gain or loss generally will be income or loss from sources within the United States for foreign tax credit limitation purposes.
The amount of the dividend will be treated as foreign-source dividend income to U.S. Holders and will not be eligible for the dividends-received deduction generally available to U.S. corporates under the Code. Dividends that the Company distributes generally should constitute “passive category income,” or, in the case of certain U.S. Holders, “general category income” for foreign tax credit limitation purposes. The rules relating to the determination of the foreign tax credit limitation are complex, and U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisor to determine whether and to what extent they will be entitled to a credit for Dutch withholding taxes imposed in respect of any dividend the Company distributes.
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Sale or Other Taxable Disposition of Ordinary Shares
If the Company is not treated as a PFIC for the taxable year, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize gain or loss on any sale, exchange, redemption (subject to the discussion below) or other taxable disposition of Ordinary Shares in an amount equal to the difference between (i) the amount realized on the disposition and (ii) such U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the Ordinary Shares. Any gain or loss recognized by a U.S. Holder on a taxable disposition of Ordinary Shares generally will be capital gain or loss and will be long-term capital gain or loss if the holder’s holding period in such shares exceeds one year at the time of the disposition. Preferential tax rates may apply to long-term capital gains of non-corporate U.S. Holders (including individuals). The deductibility of capital losses is subject to limitations.
If the consideration received by a U.S. Holder is in the form of currency other than U.S. dollars, the amount realized will be the U.S. dollar value of the payment received determined by reference to the spot rate of exchange on the date of the sale or other disposition. However, if the securities disposed of in the transaction are treated as traded on an “established securities market” and you are either a cash basis taxpayer or an accrual basis taxpayer that has made a special election (which must be applied consistently from year to year and cannot be changed without the consent of the IRS), you will determine the U.S. dollar value of the amount realized in a non-U.S. dollar currency by translating the amount received at the spot rate of exchange on the settlement date of the sale. If you are an accrual basis taxpayer that is not eligible to or does not elect to determine the amount realized using the spot rate on the settlement date, you will recognize foreign currency gain or loss to the extent of any difference between the U.S. dollar amount realized on the date of sale or disposition and the U.S. dollar value of the currency received at the spot rate on the settlement date. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the tax consequences if foreign taxes are imposed on a taxable disposition of ordinary shares and their ability to credit such foreign tax against their U.S. federal income tax liability.
WE STRONGLY URGE YOU TO CONSULT YOUR TAX ADVISOR REGARDING OUR STATUS AS A PFIC, AND, IF WE WERE A PFIC, THE IMPACT OF OUR PFIC STATUS ON YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE ORDINARY SHARES AS WELL AS THE APPLICATION OF THE PFIC RULES TO YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE ORDINARY SHARES, ANY ELECTIONS AVAILABLE WITH RESPECT TO THE ORDINARY SHARES AND THE IRS INFORMATION REPORTING OBLIGATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF THE ORDINARY SHARES.
Information Reporting and Backup Withholding
Payments of dividends and sales proceeds that are made within the United States or through certain U.S.-related financial intermediaries generally are subject to information reporting, and may be subject to backup withholding, unless (i) the U.S. Holder is a corporation or other exempt recipient or (ii) in the case of backup withholding, the U.S. Holder provides a correct taxpayer identification number and certifies that it is not subject to backup withholding on a duly executed IRS Form W-9 or otherwise establishes an exemption.
Backup withholding is not an additional tax. The amount of any backup withholding from a payment to a U.S. Holder may be allowed as a credit against the U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability and may entitle the U.S. Holder to a refund, provided that the required information is timely furnished to the IRS.
Information with Respect to Foreign Financial Assets
Certain U.S. Holders who are individuals (and, under regulations, certain entities) may be required to report information relating to the Ordinary Shares, subject to certain exceptions (including an exception for securities held in accounts maintained by certain U.S. financial institutions), by filing IRS Form 8938 (Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets) with their federal income tax return. A U.S. Holder will not be required to file IRS Form 8938 if the holder timely files IRS Form 8621. Such U.S. Holders who fail to timely furnish the required information may be subject to a penalty. Additionally, if a U.S. Holder does not file the required
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information, the statute of limitations with respect to tax returns of the U.S. Holder to which the information relates may not close until three years after such information is filed. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding their reporting obligations with respect to their ownership and disposition of the securities.
U.S. Treasury Regulations meant to require the reporting of certain tax shelter transactions could be interpreted to cover transactions generally not regarded as tax shelters, including certain foreign currency transactions. Under the applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations, certain transactions are required to be reported to the IRS including, in certain circumstances, a sale, exchange, retirement or other taxable disposition of foreign currency, to the extent that such sale, exchange, retirement or other taxable disposition results in a tax loss in excess of a threshold amount. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors to determine the tax return obligations, if any, with respect to our securities, and the receipt of Euro in respect thereof, including any requirement to file IRS Form 8886 (Reportable Transaction Disclosure Statement).
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MATERIAL DUTCH TAX CONSIDERATIONS
Taxation in the Netherlands
This section only outlines material Dutch tax consequences of the acquisition, holding and disposal of the Ordinary Shares. This section does not purport to describe all possible tax considerations or consequences that may be relevant to a holder or prospective holder of Ordinary Shares and does not purport to deal with the tax consequences applicable to all categories of investors, some of which (such as trusts or similar arrangements) may be subject to special rules. In view of its general nature, this section should be treated with corresponding caution.
This section is based on the tax laws of the Netherlands, published regulations thereunder and published authoritative case law, all as in effect on the date hereof, including, for the avoidance of doubt, the tax rates, tax brackets and deemed returns applicable on the date hereof, and all of which are subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect. Any such change may invalidate the contents of this section, which will not be updated to reflect such change. Where this section refers to “the Netherlands” or “Dutch” it refers only to the part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in Europe.
This section is intended as general information only and is not Dutch tax advice or a complete description of all Dutch tax consequences relating to the acquisition, holding and disposal of the Ordinary Shares. Holders or prospective holders of Ordinary Shares should consult their own tax advisor regarding the Dutch tax consequences relating to the acquisition, holding and disposal of Ordinary Shares.
Please note that this section does not describe the Dutch tax consequences for:
i. a holder of Ordinary Shares if such holder has a substantial interest (aanmerkelijk belang) or deemed substantial interest (fictief aanmerkelijk belang) in us under the Dutch Income Tax Act 2001 (Wet inkomstenbelasting 2001). Generally, a holder is considered to hold a substantial interest in us, if such holder alone or, in the case of an individual, together with such holder’s partner for Dutch income tax purposes, or any relatives by blood or marriage in the direct line (including foster children), directly or indirectly, holds (i) an interest of 5% or more of the total issued and outstanding capital of the Company or of 5% or more of the issued and outstanding capital of a certain class of shares; or (ii) rights to acquire, directly or indirectly, such interest; or (iii) certain profit sharing rights that relate to 5% or more of the Company’s annual profits or to 5% or more of the Company’s liquidation proceeds. A deemed substantial interest may arise if a substantial interest (or part thereof) in has been disposed of, or is deemed to have been disposed of, on a non-recognition basis;
ii. a holder of Ordinary Shares if the Ordinary Shares held by such holder qualify or qualified as a participation (deelneming) for purposes of the Dutch Corporate Income Tax Act 1969 (Wet op de vennootschapsbelasting 1969). Generally, a holder’s shareholding of, or right to acquire, 5% or more in the Company’s nominal paid-up share capital qualifies as a participation. A holder may also have a participation if (a) such holder does not have a shareholding of 5% or more but a related entity (statutorily defined term) has a participation or (b) the Company is a related entity (statutorily defined term);
iii. a holder of Ordinary Shares which is or who is entitled or required to apply the dividend withholding tax exemption (inhoudingsvrijstelling) with respect to any income (opbrengst) derived from the Ordinary Shares (as defined in Article 4 of the Dutch Dividend Withholding Tax Act 1965 (Wet op de dividendbelasting)). Generally, a holder of Ordinary Shares may be entitled or required to apply, subject to certain other requirements, the dividend withholding tax exemption if it is an entity and holds an interest of 5% or more in the Company’s nominal paid-up share capital;
iv. pension funds, investment institutions (fiscale beleggingsinstellingen) and tax exempt investment institutions (vrijgestelde beleggingsinstellingen) (each as defined in the Dutch Corporate Income Tax Act 1969) and other entities that are, in whole or in part, not subject to or exempt from Dutch corporate income tax, entities
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that have a function comparable to an investment institution or a tax exempt investment institution, as well as entities that are exempt from corporate income tax in their country of residence, such country of residence being another state of the European Union, Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland or any other state with which the Netherlands has agreed to exchange information in line with international standards;
v. a holder of Ordinary Shares if such holder is an individual for whom the Ordinary Shares or any benefit derived from the Ordinary Shares is a remuneration or deemed to be a remuneration for (employment) activities performed by such holder or certain individuals related to such holder (as defined in the Dutch Income Tax Act 2001);
vi. a holder of options for Ordinary Shares; and
vii. a holder of (i) Pre-Funded Warrants or other warrants, (ii) awards under the Company’s Rollover Option Plan and (iii) options or any other awards granted under the Company’s Long-Term Incentive Plan or under the Company’s Supplementary Long-Term Incentive Plan.
Withholding Tax on Dividends
Regular Dutch Dividend Withholding Tax
Dividends distributed by the Company are generally subject to Dutch dividend withholding tax at a rate of 15%. Generally, the Company is responsible for the withholding of such dividend withholding tax at source; the Dutch dividend withholding tax is for the account of the holder of Ordinary Shares.
The expression “dividends distributed” includes, but is not limited to:
i. distributions in cash or in kind, deemed and constructive distributions and repayments of paid-in capital not recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes;
ii. liquidation proceeds, proceeds from the redemption of Ordinary Shares, or proceeds from the repurchase of Ordinary Shares (other than as temporary portfolio investment; tijdelijke belegging) by the Company or one of our subsidiaries or other affiliated entities, in each case to the extent such proceeds exceed the average paid-in capital of those Ordinary Shares as recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes;
iii. an amount equal to the nominal value of the Ordinary Shares issued or an increase of the nominal value of the Ordinary Shares, to the extent that no related contribution, recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes, has been made or will be made; and
iv. partial repayment of the paid-in capital recognized for Dutch dividend withholding tax purposes, if and to the extent that the Company has “net profits” (zuivere winst), unless:
| • | our general meeting of shareholders has resolved in advance to make such repayment; and |
| • | the nominal value of the Ordinary Shares concerned has been reduced by an equal amount by way of an amendment to our articles of association. The term “net profits” includes anticipated profits that have yet to be realized. |
Corporate legal entities that are resident or deemed to be resident of the Netherlands for Dutch corporate income tax purposes (“Dutch Resident Entities”) generally are entitled to an exemption from, or a credit for, any Dutch dividend withholding tax against their Dutch corporate income tax liability. The credit in any given year is, however, limited to the amount of Dutch corporate income tax payable in respect of the relevant year with an indefinite carry forward of any excess amount. Individuals who are resident or deemed to be resident of the Netherlands for Dutch personal income tax purposes (“Dutch Resident Individuals”) generally are entitled to a credit for any Dutch dividend withholding tax against their Dutch personal income tax liability and to a refund of any residual Dutch dividend withholding tax. The above generally also applies to holders of Ordinary Shares that
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are neither resident nor deemed to be resident of the Netherlands (“Non-Resident Holders”) if the Ordinary Shares are attributable to a Dutch permanent establishment of such Non-Resident Holder.
A holder of Ordinary Shares resident of a country other than the Netherlands may, depending on such holder’s specific circumstances, be entitled to exemptions from, reduction of, or full or partial refund of, Dutch dividend withholding tax under Dutch domestic tax law, EU law, or treaties for the avoidance of double taxation in effect between the Netherlands and such other country.
Dividend stripping
According to Dutch domestic anti-dividend stripping rules, no credit against Dutch tax, exemption from, reduction, or refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax will be granted if the recipient of the dividends paid by the Company is not considered the beneficial owner (uiteindelijk gerechtigde; as described in the Dutch Dividend Withholding Tax Act 1965) of those dividends. This legislation generally targets situations in which a shareholder retains its economic interest in shares but reduces the withholding tax costs on dividends by a transaction with another party. It is not required for these rules to apply that the recipient of the dividends is aware that a dividend stripping transaction took place. The Dutch State Secretary of Finance takes the position that the definition of beneficial ownership introduced by this legislation will also be applied in the context of a double taxation convention. The burden of proof with respect to beneficial ownership of dividends distributed by the Company rests on the Dutch tax authorities. If, however, a shareholder would receive dividends, including dividends on the Ordinary Shares, in a calendar year in respect of which an aggregate amount of €1,000 in Dutch dividend withholding tax would otherwise be due based on the rate of 15%, the burden of proof with respect to beneficial ownership of such dividends lies with the shareholder for the purposes of the regular Dutch dividend withholding tax. Furthermore, for shares traded on a regulated market, including the Ordinary Shares, it has been codified that the record date is used when determining the person who is entitled to the dividend.
Conditional Withholding Tax on Dividends
In addition to the regular Dutch dividend withholding tax as described above, a Dutch conditional withholding tax will be imposed on dividends distributed by the Company to a Related Entity (as defined below), if such Related Entity:
| (i) | is considered to be resident (gevestigd) in a jurisdiction that is listed in the yearly updated Dutch Regulation on low-taxing states and non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes (Regeling laagbelastende staten en niet-coöperatieve rechtsgebieden voor belastingdoeleinden) (a “Listed Jurisdiction”); or |
| (ii) | has a permanent establishment located in a Listed Jurisdiction to which the Ordinary Shares are attributable; or |
| (iii) | holds the Ordinary Shares with the main purpose or one of the main purposes of avoiding taxation for another person or entity and there is an artificial arrangement or transaction or a series of artificial arrangements or transactions; or |
| (iv) | is not considered to be the beneficial owner of the Ordinary Shares in its jurisdiction of residence because such jurisdiction treats another entity as the beneficial owner of the Ordinary Shares (a hybrid mismatch); or |
| (v) | is not resident in any jurisdiction (also a hybrid mismatch); or |
| (vi) | is a reverse hybrid (within the meaning of Article 2(12) of the Dutch Corporate Income Tax Act 1969), if and to the extent (x) there is a participant in the reverse hybrid holding a Qualifying Interest to the reverse hybrid, (y) the jurisdiction of residence of such participant treats the reverse hybrid as transparent for tax purposes and (z) such participant would have been subject to the Dutch conditional withholding tax in respect of dividends distributed by the Company without the interposition of the reverse hybrid, |
all within the meaning of the Dutch Withholding Tax Act 2021 (Wet bronbelasting 2021).
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For purposes of this section:
| • | “Related Entity” means an entity (i) that has a Qualifying Interest in the Company or (ii) in which a third party has a Qualifying Interest if such third party also has a Qualifying Interest in the Company. |
| • | “Qualifying Interest” means a direct or indirectly held interest – either by an entity individually or, if an entity is part of a Qualifying Unity, jointly, that enables such entity or such Qualifying Unity to exercise a definitive influence over another entity’s decisions and allows it to determine that other entity’s activities (within the meaning of the case law of the European Court of Justice in case law on the right of freedom of establishment (vrijheid van vestiging)). |
| • | “Qualifying Unity” means entities acting together with the main purpose or one of the main purposes of avoiding Dutch conditional withholding tax at the level of any of those entities (kwalificerende eenheid). |
The Dutch conditional withholding tax on dividends will be imposed at the highest Dutch corporate income tax rate in effect at the time of the distribution (2025: 25.8%). The Dutch conditional withholding tax on dividends will be reduced, but not below zero, by any regular Dutch dividend withholding tax withheld in respect of the same dividend distribution. As such, based on the currently applicable rates, the overall effective tax rate of withholding the regular Dutch dividend withholding tax (as described above) and the Dutch conditional withholding tax on dividends will not exceed the highest corporate income tax rate in effect at the time of the distribution (2025: 25.8%).
Taxes on income and capital gains
Dutch Resident Entities
Generally, if the holder of Ordinary Shares is a Dutch Resident Entity, any income derived or deemed to be derived from the Ordinary Shares or any capital gains realized on the disposal or deemed disposal of the Ordinary Shares is subject to Dutch corporate income tax at a rate of 19% with respect to taxable profits up to €200,000 and 25.8% with respect to taxable profits in excess of that amount (rates and brackets for 2025).
Dutch Resident Individuals
If the holder of Ordinary Shares is a Dutch Resident Individual, any income derived or deemed to be derived from the Ordinary Shares or any capital gains realized on the disposal or deemed disposal of the Ordinary Shares is subject to Dutch personal income tax at progressive rates (with a maximum of 49.5% in 2025), if:
i. the Ordinary Shares are attributable to an enterprise from which the holder of Ordinary Shares derives a share of the profit, whether as an entrepreneur (ondernemer) or as a person who has a co-entitlement to the net worth (medegerechtigd tot het vermogen) of such enterprise without being a shareholder (as defined in the Dutch Income Tax Act 2001); or
ii. the holder of Ordinary Shares is considered to perform activities with respect to the Ordinary Shares that go beyond ordinary asset management (normaal, actief vermogensbeheer) or otherwise derives benefits from the Ordinary Shares that are taxable as benefits from miscellaneous activities (resultaat uit overige werkzaamheden).
Taxation of savings and investments
If the above-mentioned conditions (i) and (ii) do not apply to the Dutch Resident Individual, the Ordinary Shares will be subject to an annual Dutch income tax under the regime for savings and investments (inkomen uit sparen en beleggen). Taxation only occurs insofar the Dutch Resident Individual’s net investment assets for the year exceed a statutory threshold (heffingvrij vermogen). The net investment assets for the year are the fair market value of the investment assets less the fair market value of the liabilities on January 1 of the relevant calendar year (reference date; peildatum). Actual income or capital gains realized in respect of the Ordinary Shares are as such not subject to Dutch income tax.
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The Dutch Resident Individual’s investment assets and liabilities taxed under this regime, including the Ordinary Shares, are allocated over the following three categories: (a) bank savings (banktegoeden), (b) other investments (overige bezittingen), including the Ordinary Shares, and (c) liabilities (schulden). The taxable benefit for the year (voordeel uit sparen en beleggen) is equal to the product of (x) the total deemed return divided by the sum of bank savings, other investments and liabilities and (y) the sum of bank savings, other investments and liabilities minus the statutory threshold, and is taxed at a flat rate of 36% (rate for 2025).
The deemed return applicable to other investments, including the Ordinary Shares, is set at 5.88% for the calendar year 2025. Transactions in the three-month period before and after January 1 of the relevant calendar year implemented to arbitrate between the deemed return percentages applicable to bank savings, other investments and liabilities will for purpose of determining the applicable deemed return percentage be ignored if the holder of Ordinary Shares cannot sufficiently demonstrate that such transactions are implemented for other than tax reasons.
On June 6 and 14, 2024, the Dutch Supreme Court (Hoge Raad) ruled that the current Dutch income tax regime for savings and investments in certain specific circumstances contravenes with Section 1 of the First Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights in combination with Section 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the “Rulings”). This is, in short, the case when the deemed return on the investment assets exceeds the actual return realized in respect thereof (calculated in line with the rules set out in the Rulings and successfully demonstrated by the taxpayer).
Holders of Ordinary Shares are advised to consult their own tax advisor to ensure that the tax in respect of the Ordinary Shares is levied in accordance with the applicable Dutch tax rules at the relevant time.
Non-residents of the Netherlands
A holder of Ordinary Shares that is neither a Dutch Resident Entity nor a Dutch Resident Individual will not be subject to Dutch income tax in respect of income derived or deemed to be derived from the Ordinary Shares or in respect of capital gains realized on the disposal or deemed disposal, as applicable of the Ordinary Shares, provided that:
i. such holder does not have an interest in an enterprise or deemed enterprise (as defined in the Dutch Income Tax Act 2001 and the Dutch Corporate Income Tax Act 1969, as applicable) which, in whole or in part, is either effectively managed in the Netherlands or carried on through a permanent establishment, a deemed permanent establishment or a permanent representative in the Netherlands and to which enterprise or part of an enterprise the Ordinary Shares are attributable; and
ii. in the event the holder is an individual, such holder does not carry out any activities in the Netherlands with respect to the Ordinary Shares that go beyond ordinary asset management and does not otherwise derive benefits from the Ordinary Shares that are taxable as benefits from miscellaneous activities in the Netherlands.
Gift and inheritance taxes
Residents of the Netherlands
Gift or inheritance taxes will arise in the Netherlands with respect to a transfer of Ordinary Shares by way of a gift by, or on the death of, a holder of Ordinary Shares who is resident or deemed resident of the Netherlands at the time of the gift or such holder’s death.
Non-residents of the Netherlands
No gift or inheritance taxes will arise in the Netherlands with respect to a transfer of Ordinary Shares by way of a gift by, or on the death of, a holder of Ordinary Shares who is neither resident nor deemed to be resident of the Netherlands, unless:
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i. in the case of a gift of an Ordinary Share by an individual who at the date of the gift was neither resident nor deemed to be resident of the Netherlands, such individual dies within 180 days after the date of the gift, while being resident or deemed to be resident of the Netherlands; or
ii. in the case of a gift of an Ordinary Share is made under a condition precedent, the holder of Ordinary Shares, as applicable is resident or is deemed to be resident of the Netherlands at the time the condition is fulfilled; or
iii. the transfer is otherwise construed as a gift or inheritance made by, or on behalf of, a person who, at the time of the gift or death, is or is deemed to be resident of the Netherlands.
For purposes of Dutch gift and inheritance taxes, amongst others, a person that holds the Dutch nationality will be deemed to be resident of the Netherlands if such person has been a resident of the Netherlands at any time during the ten years preceding the date of the gift or such person’s death. Additionally, for purposes of Dutch gift tax, amongst others, a person not holding the Dutch nationality will be deemed to be resident of the Netherlands if such person has been a resident of the Netherlands at any time during the twelve months preceding the date of the gift. Applicable tax treaties may override deemed residency.
Value added tax (VAT)
No Dutch VAT will be payable by a holder of Ordinary Shares in respect of any payment in consideration for the acquisition, holding or disposal, as applicable of the Ordinary Shares.
Real Property Transfer Tax
Under circumstances, the Ordinary Shares could, for the purposes of Dutch real property transfer tax (overdrachtsbelasting), be treated as real property (fictieve onroerende zaken) located in the Netherlands, in which case this tax could be payable upon acquisition of Ordinary Shares.
The Ordinary Shares will generally not be treated as real property if at the time of, or at any time during the year preceding, the acquisition of the Ordinary Shares:
i. our assets do not and did not include real property situated in the Netherlands; or
ii. our assets only include and included real property, situated either in or outside the Netherlands, that we do not and did not hold, and currently do not intend to hold, predominantly as a financial investment.
Real property as referred to under (i) and (ii) above includes legal ownership and more limited legal rights over the property (rights in rem) (zakelijke rechten) as well as contractual rights that give us economic exposure to the value of such real property, and certain participations or interests in entities that are treated as real property.
Our assets do not include and have not included real property situated in the Netherlands as described above. Consequently, no Dutch real property transfer tax becomes payable upon an acquisition of Ordinary Shares.
Stamp Duties
No Dutch documentation taxes (commonly referred to as stamp duties) will be payable by a holder of Ordinary Shares in respect of any payment in consideration for the acquisition, holding or disposal or exercise, as applicable of the Ordinary Shares.
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We have previously entered into the Sales Agreement, under which we may issue and sell from time to time our Ordinary Shares through or to TD Cowen as our sales agent. Pursuant to this prospectus, we may issue and sell up to $250 million of our Ordinary Shares. Sales of our Ordinary Shares, if any, will be made at market prices by any method that is deemed to be an “at the market offering” as defined in Rule 415(a)(4) under the Securities Act, including sales made directly on Nasdaq or any other trading market for our Ordinary Shares. Sales pursuant to the Sales Agreement may be made through an affiliate of TD Cowen.
TD Cowen will offer our Ordinary Shares subject to the terms and conditions of the Sales Agreement on a daily basis or as otherwise agreed upon by us and TD Cowen. We will designate the maximum amount of Ordinary Shares to be sold through TD Cowen on a daily basis or otherwise determine such maximum amount together with TD Cowen. Subject to the terms and conditions of the Sales Agreement, TD Cowen will use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell on our behalf all of the Ordinary Shares requested to be sold by us. We may instruct TD Cowen not to sell Ordinary Shares if the sales cannot be effected at or above the price designated by us in any such instruction. TD Cowen or we may suspend the offering of our Ordinary Shares being made through TD Cowen under the Sales Agreement upon proper notice to the other party. TD Cowen and we each have the right, by giving written notice as specified in the Sales Agreement, to terminate the Sales Agreement in each party’s sole discretion at any time.
The aggregate compensation payable to TD Cowen as sales agent is up to 3.0% of the gross proceeds of the Ordinary Shares sold through it pursuant to the Sales Agreement. We have also agreed to reimburse TD Cowen up to an aggregate of $150,000 of any actual outside legal expenses incurred by TD Cowen in connection with this offering and certain ongoing expenses. In accordance with FINRA Rule 5110, TD Cowen’s reimbursed fees and expenses are deemed underwriting compensation for this offering. We estimate that the total expenses of the offering payable by us, excluding commissions payable to TD Cowen under the Sales Agreement, will be approximately $152,050.
The remaining sales proceeds, after deducting any expenses payable by us and any transaction fees imposed by any governmental, regulatory or self-regulatory organization in connection with the sales, will equal our net proceeds for the sale of such Ordinary Shares.
TD Cowen will provide written confirmation to us following the close of trading on Nasdaq on each day in which Ordinary Shares are sold through it as sales agent under the Sales Agreement. Each confirmation will include the number of Ordinary Shares sold through it as sales agent on that day, the volume weighted average price of the Ordinary Shares sold, the percentage of the daily trading volume and the net proceeds to us.
We will report at least quarterly the number of Ordinary Shares sold through TD Cowen under the Sales Agreement, the net proceeds to us and the compensation paid by us to TD Cowen in connection with the sales of Ordinary Shares.
Settlement for sales of Ordinary Shares will occur, unless the parties agree otherwise, on the first business day that is also a trading day following the date on which any sales were made in return for, and subject to, payment of the net proceeds to us. There is no arrangement for funds to be received in an escrow, trust or similar arrangement.
In connection with the sales of our Ordinary Shares on our behalf, TD Cowen will be deemed to be an “underwriter” within the meaning of the Securities Act, and the compensation paid to TD Cowen will be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts. We have agreed in the Sales Agreement to provide indemnification and contribution to TD Cowen against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. As sales agent, TD Cowen will not engage in any transactions that stabilizes our Ordinary Shares.
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Our Ordinary Shares are listed on Nasdaq and trades under the symbol “NAMS.” The transfer agent of our Ordinary Shares is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company.
TD Cowen and/or its affiliates have provided, and may in the future provide, various investment banking and other financial services for us for which services they have received and may in the future receive customary fees.
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ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL LIABILITIES
We are organized and existing under the laws of the Netherlands. As such, under Dutch private international law, the rights and obligations of our shareholders vis-à-vis the Company originating from Dutch corporate law and our Articles of Association, as well as the civil liability of our officers (functionarissen) (including our directors and executive officers) are governed in certain respects by the laws of the Netherlands.
We are not a resident of the United States and our officers may also not all be residents of the United States. As a result, depending on the subject matter of the action brought against us and/or our officers, United States courts may not have jurisdiction. If a Dutch court has jurisdiction with respect to such action, that court will apply Dutch procedural law and Dutch private international law to determine the law applicable to that action. Depending on the subject matter of the relevant action, a competent Dutch court may apply another law than the laws of the United States.
Also, service of process against non-residents of the United States can in principle (absent, for example, a valid choice of domicile) not be effected in the United States.
On the date of this prospectus, (i) there is no treaty in force between the United States and the Netherlands for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments, other than arbitration awards, in civil and commercial matters and (ii) both the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements (2005) and the Hague Judgments Convention (2019) have entered into force for the Netherlands, but have not entered into force for the United States. Consequently, a judgment rendered by a court in the United States will not automatically be recognized and enforced by the competent Dutch courts. However, if a person has obtained a judgment rendered by a court in the United States that is enforceable under the laws of the United States and files a claim with the competent Dutch court, the Dutch court will in principle give binding effect to that United States judgment if (i) the jurisdiction of the United States court was based on a ground of jurisdiction that is generally acceptable according to international standards, (ii) the judgment by the United States court was rendered in legal proceedings that comply with the Dutch standards of proper administration of justice including sufficient safeguards (behoorlijke rechtspleging), (iii) binding effect of such United States judgment is not contrary to Dutch public order (openbare orde) and (iv) the judgment by the United States court is not incompatible with a decision rendered between the same parties by a Dutch court, or with a previous decision rendered between the same parties by a foreign court in a dispute that concerns the same subject and is based on the same cause, provided that the previous decision qualifies for recognition in the Netherlands. Even if such a United States judgment is given binding effect, a claim based thereon may, however, still be rejected if the United States judgment is not or no longer formally enforceable. Moreover, if the United States judgment is not final (for instance when appeal is possible or pending) a competent Dutch court may postpone recognition until the United States judgment will have become final, refuse recognition under the understanding that recognition can be asked again once the United States judgment will have become final, or impose as a condition for recognition that security is posted.
A competent Dutch court may deny the recognition and enforcement of punitive damages or other awards. Moreover, a competent Dutch court may reduce the amount of damages granted by a United States court and recognize damages only to the extent that they are necessary to compensate actual losses or damages. Finally, there may be specific other instances, including pursuant to anti-boycott rules and regulations, where Dutch law prohibits the recognition and enforcement of a United States judgment. Thus, United States investors may not be able, or experience difficulty, to enforce a judgment obtained in a United States court against us or our officers.
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NautaDutilh N.V., Dutch counsel to the Company, has provided a legal opinion for the Company regarding (i) valid issue, (ii) paying up and (ii) non-assessability of the Ordinary Shares offered by this prospectus, based on the assumptions and subject to the qualifications and limitations set out therein. Certain legal matters in connection with this offering relating to U.S. law will be passed upon for us by Covington & Burling LLP, New York, New York. TD Securities (USA) LLC is being represented by Cooley LLP, New York, New York, with respect to U.S. federal law and De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek N.V. with respect to matters of Dutch law.
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The financial statements of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2024, incorporated by reference in this prospectus and the effectiveness of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.’s internal control over financial reporting, have been audited by Deloitte Accountants B.V., an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their reports. Such financial statements are incorporated by reference in reliance upon the reports of such firm given their authority as experts in accounting and auditing.
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We file certain periodic and current reports and other information with the SEC. Our SEC filings are available to the public over the internet at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Copies of certain information filed by us with the SEC are also available on our website at www.newamsterdampharma.com. Information contained on, or that can be accessible through, our website is not a part of this prospectus and the inclusion of our website address in this prospectus is an inactive textual reference only.
We have filed with the SEC a “shelf” registration statement (including amendments and exhibits to the registration statement) on Form S-3 under the Securities Act. This prospectus, which is part of the registration statement, does not contain all of the information set forth in the registration statement and the exhibits and schedules to the registration statement. We have omitted parts of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC. For more detail about us and the securities offered by this prospectus, you may examine the registration statement and the exhibits filed with it at the website provided in the previous paragraph. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with information different from or in addition to that contained in this prospectus, any applicable prospectus supplement, any free writing prospectus or the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein. We are not making an offer of these securities in any state where the offer is not permitted.
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The SEC allows us to incorporate by reference much of the information that we file with the SEC, which means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those publicly available documents. The information that we incorporate by reference in this prospectus is considered to be part of this prospectus. Because we are incorporating by reference future filings with the SEC, this prospectus is continually updated and those future filings may modify or supersede some of the information included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. This means that you must look at all of the SEC filings that we incorporate by reference to determine if any of the statements in this prospectus or in any document previously incorporated by reference have been modified or superseded. This prospectus incorporates by reference the documents listed below and all subsequent annual reports on Form 10-K that we file with the SEC and all subsequent filings on Forms 10-Q and 8-K filed by us with the SEC pursuant to the Exchange Act (excluding, in each case, any information or documents deemed to be furnished and not filed with the SEC), prior to the completion or termination of this offering, including all such reports and other documents filed with the SEC after the date of the initial filing of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and prior to the effectiveness of such registration statement, shall be incorporated by reference.
| • | our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2025; and |
| • | the description of the Ordinary Shares and Public Warrants contained in the registration statement on Form 8-A, filed with the SEC on November 22, 2022, as the description therein has been updated and superseded by the description of our Ordinary Shares and Public Warrants contained in Exhibit 4.4 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, and including any amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description. |
We will provide to each person, including any beneficial owner, to whom a prospectus is delivered, without charge upon written or oral request, a copy of any or all of the documents that are incorporated by reference into this prospectus but not delivered with the prospectus, including exhibits that are specifically incorporated by reference into such documents. You may request a copy of such documents at no cost, by writing or telephoning us at the following address or telephone number:
Gooimeer 2-35
1411 DC Naarden The Netherlands
Tel: +31 (0) 35 206 2971
Attn: Chief Accounting Officer
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Up to $250,000,000
Ordinary Shares
PROSPECTUS
TD Cowen
, 2025
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PART II
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
Item 14. Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution
The following table sets forth the expenses (other than underwriting discounts and commissions or agency fees and other items constituting underwriters’ or agents’ compensation, if any) expected to be incurred by us in connection with a possible offering of securities registered under the Registration Statement.
| Expenses | Amount | |||
| SEC registration fee |
$ | 76,550 | ||
| FINRA filing fee |
$ | 75,500 | ||
| Printing and engraving expenses |
(1) | |||
| Legal fees and expenses |
(1) | |||
| Accounting fees and expenses |
(1) | |||
| Miscellaneous costs |
(1) | |||
| Total |
$ | (1) | ||
| (1) | These fees and expenses depend on the securities offered and the number of issuances, and accordingly cannot be estimated at this time and will be reflected in the applicable prospectus supplement. |
Item 15. Indemnification of Directors and Officers
The Registrant is a public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap).
Under Dutch law, our directors may be held liable for damages in the event of improper or negligent performance of their duties. They may be held liable for damages to the Company and to third parties for infringement of the Articles of Association or of certain provisions of Dutch law. In certain circumstances, they may also incur other specific civil, administrative and criminal liabilities. Subject to certain exceptions, the Articles of Association provide for indemnification of our current and former directors and other current and former officers and employees as designated by the Board of Directors. No indemnification under the Articles of Association will be given to an indemnified person:
| • | if a competent court or arbitral tribunal has established, without having (or no longer having) the possibility for appeal, that the acts or omissions of such indemnified person that led to the financial losses, damages, expenses, suit, claim, action or legal proceedings as described above are of an unlawful nature (including acts or omissions which are considered to constitute malice, gross negligence, intentional recklessness and/or serious culpability attributable to such indemnified person); |
| • | to the extent that his or her financial losses, damages and expenses are covered under insurance and the relevant insurer has settled, or has provided reimbursement for, these financial losses, damages and expenses (or has irrevocably undertaken to do so); |
| • | in relation to proceedings brought by such indemnified person against us, except for proceedings brought to enforce indemnification to which he or she is entitled pursuant to the Articles of Association, pursuant to an agreement between such indemnified person and us which has been approved by the Board of Directors or pursuant to insurance taken out by us for the benefit of such indemnified person; and |
| • | for any financial losses, damages or expenses incurred in connection with a settlement of any proceedings effected without our prior consent. |
Under the Articles of Association, the Board of Directors may stipulate additional terms, conditions and restrictions in relation to the indemnification described above.
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We have also entered into indemnification agreements with each of our directors and executive officers providing for procedures for indemnification and advancements by us of certain expenses and costs relating to claims, suits or proceedings arising from his or her service to us or, at our request, service to other entities, as officers or directors to the maximum extent permitted by Dutch law and subject to the exceptions provided in such agreements.
Item 16. Exhibits
The following documents are filed as part of this registration statement on Form S-3:
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| 24 | Power of Attorney (included on the signature page hereto). | |
| 25.1** | Form T-1 Statement of Eligibility of Trustee under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, for the Senior Indenture. | |
| 25.2** | Form T-1 Statement of Eligibility of Trustee under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, for the Subordinated Indenture. | |
| 107 | Calculation of Filing Fee Table. | |
| * | To be filed, if necessary, by amendment or as an exhibit to a report filed under the Exchange Act and incorporated herein by reference. |
| ** | To be filed, if applicable, in accordance with the requirements of Section 305(b)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 and Rule 5b-3 thereunder. |
Item 17. Undertakings
(a) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:
(i) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;
(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the Commission, pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and
(iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement;
provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i), (a)(1)(ii) and (a)(1)(iii) of this section do not apply if the registration statement is on Form S-3 or Form F-3 and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement, or is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) that is part of the registration statement.
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.
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(4) That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act to any purchaser:
(i) Each prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and
(ii) Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii), or (x) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which that prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date.
(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability of the Registrant under the Securities Act to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities, the undersigned Registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned Registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned Registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser:
(i) Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned Registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424;
(ii) Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned Registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned Registrant;
(iii) The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned Registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned Registrant; and
(iv) Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned Registrant to the purchaser.
(b) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
(c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred
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or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
(d) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes to file an application for the purpose of determining the eligibility of the trustee to act under subsection (a) of Section 310 of the Trust Indenture Act (“Act”) in accordance with the rules and regulations prescribed by the Commission under Section 305(b)(2) of the Act.
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Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-3 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the city of Naarden, the Netherlands, on the 28th day of February, 2025.
| NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. | ||||
| By: | /s/ Michael Davidson | |||
| Name: | Dr. Michael Davidson | |||
| Title: | Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director | |||
Power of Attorney
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below hereby constitutes and appoints Michael Davidson and Ian Somaiya, each acting alone, as his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for such person and in his or her name, place and stead in any and all capacities, in connection with this registration statement, including to sign in the name and on behalf of the undersigned, this registration statement and any and all amendments thereto, including post-effective amendments and registrations filed pursuant to Rule 462 under the Securities Act of 1933, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto such attorneys-in-fact and agents, each acting alone, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorney-in-fact and agent, or her substitute, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated:
| Name | Title | Date | ||
| /s/ Michael Davidson Dr. Michael Davidson |
Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director (Principal Executive Officer) |
February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ Ian Somaiya Ian Somaiya |
Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial Officer) |
February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ Louise Kooij Louise Kooij |
Chief Accounting Officer (Principal Accounting Officer) |
February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ William Lewis William Lewis |
Chairperson and Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ John Kastelein Dr. John Kastelein |
Chief Scientific Officer and Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
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| Name | Title | Date | ||
| /s/ Wouter Joustra Wouter Joustra |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ Nicholas Downing Dr. Nicholas Downing |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ James N. Topper Dr. James N. Topper |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ Louis Lange Dr. Louis Lange |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ John W. Smither John W. Smither |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ Janneke van der Kamp Janneke van der Kamp |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
| /s/ Mark C. McKenna Mark C. McKenna |
Non-Executive Director | February 28, 2025 | ||
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AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE
Pursuant to the requirement of the Securities Act, the undersigned, the duly undersigned representative in the United States of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., has signed this registration statement in the United States, on the 28th day of February, 2025.
| NewAmsterdam Pharma Corporation | ||
| By: | /s/ Michael Davidson | |
| Name: Dr. Michael Davidson | ||
| Title: Chief Executive Officer | ||
II-8
Exhibit 4.1
NEWAMSTERDAM PHARMA COMPANY N.V.
AS ISSUER,
AND
[_________________________],
AS TRUSTEE,
SENIOR INDENTURE
DATED AS OF [________________, _______]
SENIOR DEBT SECURITIES
CROSS-REFERENCE TABLE
Reconciliation and tie between the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the “Trust Indenture Act”), and the Indenture dated as of [__________], [_____].
| SECTION OF Trust Indenture Act | SECTION OF INDENTURE | |
| 310(a)(1) and (2) | 7.09 | |
| 310(a)(3) and (4) | Not applicable | |
| 310(a)(5) | 7.09 | |
| 310(b) | 7.08 and 7.10 | |
| 310(c) | Not applicable | |
| 311(a) and (b) | 7.13 | |
| 311(c) | Not applicable | |
| 312(a) | 5.01 and 5.02(a) | |
| 312(b) and (c) | 5.02(b) | |
| 313(a) | 5.04(a) | |
| 313(b) | 5.04(b) | |
| 313(c) | 5.04(b) | |
| 313(d) | 5.04(c) | |
| 314(a) | 5.03 | |
| 314(b) | Not applicable | |
| 314(c)(1) and (2) | 14.04(i) | |
| 314(c)(3) | Not applicable | |
| 314(d) | Not applicable | |
| 314(e) | 15.05 | |
| 314(f) | Not applicable | |
| 315(a), (c) and (d) | 7.01 | |
| 315(b) | 7.14 | |
| 315(e) | 6.14 | |
| 316(a)(1) | 6.12 | |
| 316(a)(2) | Omitted | |
| 316(a) last sentence | 8.04 | |
| 316(b) | 6.08 | |
| 316(c) | 8.06 | |
| 317(a) | 6.03 and 6.04 | |
| 317(b) | 4.03(a) | |
| 318(a) | 15.07 |
Note: This reconciliation and tie shall not, for any purpose, be deemed to be a part of the Indenture.
Attention should also be directed to Section 318(c) of the Trust Indenture Act, which provides that the provisions of Sections 310 to and including Section 317 of the Trust Indenture Act are a part of and govern every qualified indenture, whether or not physically contained therein.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| ARTICLE 1 DEFINITIONS |
1 | |||
| SECTION 1.01. Definitions |
1 | |||
| ARTICLE 2 ISSUE, EXECUTION, REGISTRATION AND EXCHANGE OF SECURITIES |
5 | |||
| SECTION 2.01. Amount Unlimited; Issuable in Series |
5 | |||
| SECTION 2.02. Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication |
5 | |||
| SECTION 2.03. Form of Securities Generally; Establishment of Terms of Series |
6 | |||
| SECTION 2.04. Securities in Global Form |
8 | |||
| SECTION 2.05. Denominations; Record Date; Payment of Interest |
9 | |||
| SECTION 2.06. Execution, Authentication, Delivery and Dating of Securities |
9 | |||
| SECTION 2.07. Exchange and Registration of Transfer of Securities |
11 | |||
| SECTION 2.08. Temporary Securities |
13 | |||
| SECTION 2.09. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Securities and Coupons |
13 | |||
| SECTION 2.10. Cancellation |
14 | |||
| SECTION 2.11. Book Entry Only System |
15 | |||
| ARTICLE 3 REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES |
15 | |||
| SECTION 3.01. Redemption of Securities, Applicability of Section |
15 | |||
| SECTION 3.02. Notice of Redemption, Selection of Securities |
15 | |||
| SECTION 3.03. Payment of Securities Called for Redemption |
16 | |||
| SECTION 3.04. Redemption Suspended During Event of Default |
17 | |||
| ARTICLE 4 PARTICULAR COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY |
17 | |||
| SECTION 4.01. Payment of Principal, Premium and Interest |
17 | |||
| SECTION 4.02. Offices for Notices and Payments, etc. |
17 | |||
| SECTION 4.03. Provisions as to Paying Agent |
18 | |||
| SECTION 4.04. Statement as to Compliance |
19 | |||
| SECTION 4.05. Corporate Existence |
19 | |||
| SECTION 4.06. Ownership of Material Subsidiary Stock |
19 | |||
| SECTION 4.07. Waiver of Covenants |
19 | |||
| ARTICLE 5 SECURITYHOLDER LISTS AND REPORTS BY THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.01. Securityholder Lists |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.02. Preservation and Disclosure of Lists |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.03. Reports by the Company |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.04. Reports by the Trustee |
20 | |||
| ARTICLE 6 REMEDIES |
21 | |||
| SECTION 6.01. Events of Default; Acceleration of Maturity |
21 | |||
| SECTION 6.02. Rescission and Annulment |
22 | |||
| SECTION 6.03. Collection of Indebtedness and Suits for Enforcement by Trustee |
22 | |||
| SECTION 6.04. Trustee May File Proofs of Claim |
23 | |||
| SECTION 6.05. Trustee May Enforce Claims Without Possession of Securities or Coupons |
23 | |||
| SECTION 6.06. Application of Money Collected |
24 | |||
| SECTION 6.07. Limitation on Suits |
24 | |||
| SECTION 6.08. Unconditional Right of Securityholders to Receive Principal and Interest |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.09. Restoration of Rights and Remedies |
25 | |||
i
| SECTION 6.10. Rights and Remedies Cumulative |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.11. Delay or Omission Not Waiver |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.12. Control by Securityholders |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.13. Waiver of Past Defaults |
26 | |||
| SECTION 6.14. Undertaking for Costs |
26 | |||
| SECTION 6.15. Waiver of Stay or Extension Laws |
26 | |||
| ARTICLE 7 CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE |
26 | |||
| SECTION 7.01. Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee |
26 | |||
| SECTION 7.02. Reliance on Documents, Opinions, etc. |
27 | |||
| SECTION 7.03. No Responsibility for Recitals, etc. |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.04. Ownership of Securities |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.05. Moneys to be Held in Trust |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.06. Compensation and Expenses of Trustee |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.07. Officer’s Certificate as Evidence |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.08. Disqualifications; Conflicting Interest of Trustee |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.09. Eligibility of Trustee |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.10. Resignation or Removal of Trustee |
30 | |||
| SECTION 7.11. Acceptance by Successor Trustee |
30 | |||
| SECTION 7.12. Successor by Merger, etc |
31 | |||
| SECTION 7.13. Limitations on Rights of Trustee as Creditor |
31 | |||
| SECTION 7.14. Notice of Default |
31 | |||
| SECTION 7.15. Appointment of Authenticating Agent |
32 | |||
| ARTICLE 8 CONCERNING THE SECURITYHOLDERS |
33 | |||
| SECTION 8.01. Action by Securityholders |
33 | |||
| SECTION 8.02. Proof of Execution by Securityholders |
33 | |||
| SECTION 8.03. Who Are Deemed Absolute Owners |
34 | |||
| SECTION 8.04. Company-Owned Securities Disregarded |
34 | |||
| SECTION 8.05. Revocation of Consents; Future Securityholders Bound |
34 | |||
| SECTION 8.06. Record Date |
35 | |||
| ARTICLE 9 SECURITYHOLDERS’ MEETINGS |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.01. Purposes of Meeting |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.02. Call of Meetings by Trustee |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.03. Call of Meetings by Company or Securityholders |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.04. Qualifications for Voting |
36 | |||
| SECTION 9.05. Regulations |
36 | |||
| SECTION 9.06. Voting |
36 | |||
| ARTICLE 10 SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES |
37 | |||
| SECTION 10.01. Supplemental Indentures without Consent of Securityholders |
37 | |||
| SECTION 10.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Holders |
38 | |||
| SECTION 10.03. Compliance with Trust Indenture Act; Effect of Supplemental Indentures |
38 | |||
| SECTION 10.04. Notation on Securities |
39 | |||
| ARTICLE 11 CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE OR CONVEYANCE |
39 | |||
| SECTION 11.01. Company May Consolidate, etc., on Certain Terms |
39 | |||
| SECTION 11.02. Successor Corporation Substituted |
39 | |||
| SECTION 11.03. Opinion of Counsel and Officer’s Certificate to Trustee |
39 | |||
ii
| ARTICLE 12 SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; UNCLAIMED MONEYS |
40 | |||
| SECTION 12.01. Discharge of Indenture |
40 | |||
| SECTION 12.02. Deposited Moneys to be Held in Trust by Trustee |
40 | |||
| SECTION 12.03. Paying Agent to Repay Moneys Held |
40 | |||
| SECTION 12.04. Return of Unclaimed Moneys |
40 | |||
| ARTICLE 13 IMMUNITY OF INCORPORATORS, STOCKHOLDERS, OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS |
41 | |||
| SECTION 13.01. Indenture and Securities Solely Corporate Obligations |
41 | |||
| ARTICLE 14 DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.01. Applicability of Article |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.02. Defeasance and Discharge |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.03. Covenant Defeasance |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.04. Conditions to Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance |
42 | |||
| SECTION 14.05. Deposited Money and U.S. Government Obligations to be Held in Trust; Other Miscellaneous Provisions |
43 | |||
| ARTICLE 15 MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.01. Benefits of Indenture Restricted to Parties and Securityholders |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.02. Provisions Binding on Company’s Successors |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.03. Addresses for Notices, etc., to Company and Trustee |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.04. Notice to Holders of Securities; Waiver |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.05. Evidence of Compliance with Conditions Precedent |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.06. Legal Holidays |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.07. Trust Indenture Act to Control |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.08. Execution in Counterparts |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.09. Governing Law; Waiver of Jury Trial |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.10. Severability |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.11. Interpretations |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.12. U.S.A. Patriot Act |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.13. 15.13. Force Majeure |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.14. Jurisdiction |
46 | |||
| ARTICLE 16 RANKING OF SECURITIES |
47 | |||
| SECTION 16.01. Ranking |
47 | |||
iii
THIS INDENTURE, dated as of [_____________,______], between NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., a public limited company (naamloze vennootschap) incorporated under the laws of the Netherlands (the “Company”), and [________________], as trustee (the “Trustee,” which term shall include any successor trustee appointed pursuant to Article 7 of this Indenture).
WHEREAS, the Company deems it necessary to issue from time to time for its lawful purposes securities (the “Securities”) evidencing its indebtedness and has duly authorized the execution and delivery of this Indenture to provide for the issuance of the Securities in one or more series, unlimited as to principal amount, to bear such rates of interest, to mature at such time or times, and to have such other provisions as shall be fixed as hereinafter provided; and
WHEREAS, the Company represents that all acts and things necessary to constitute these presents a valid indenture and agreement according to its terms have been done and performed, and the execution of this Indenture has in all respects been duly authorized, and the Company, in the exercise of legal right and power in it vested, is executing this Indenture;
NOW, THEREFORE:
In order to declare the terms and conditions upon which the Securities are authenticated, issued and received, and in consideration of the premises, of the purchase and acceptance of the Securities by the holders thereof and of the sum of One Dollar to it duly paid by the Trustee at the execution of these presents, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, the Company covenants and agrees with the Trustee, for the equal and proportionate benefit of the respective holders from time to time of the Securities, as follows:
ARTICLE 1
DEFINITIONS
SECTION 1.01. Definitions.
The terms defined in this Section (except as herein otherwise expressly provided or unless the context otherwise requires) for all purposes of this Indenture and of any supplemental indenture shall have the respective meanings specified in this Section. All other terms used in this Indenture that are defined in the Trust Indenture Act or that are by reference therein defined in the Securities Act shall have the meanings (except as herein otherwise expressly provided or unless the context otherwise requires) assigned to such terms in the Trust Indenture Act or in the Securities Act, as applicable, in each case as in force at the date of this Indenture as originally executed. All accounting terms used herein and not expressly defined shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles, and the term “generally accepted accounting principles” means such accounting principles as are generally accepted at the time of any computation. The words “herein,” “hereof” and “hereunder” and other words of similar import refer to this Indenture as a whole and not to any particular Article, Section or other subdivision. The terms defined in this Article have the meanings assigned to them in this Article and include the plural as well as the singular.
“Additional Amounts” shall mean any additional amounts to be paid by the Company in respect of Securities of a series, as may be specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b) hereof and in such Security and under the circumstances specified therein, in respect of specified taxes, assessments or other governmental charges imposed on certain Holders.
“Authorized Newspaper” shall mean a newspaper (which, in the case of the United Kingdom, will, if practicable, be the Financial Times (London Edition), in the case of Luxembourg, will, if practicable, be the Luxemburger Wort) and, in the case of the Netherlands, will, if practicable be, [_____]) of general circulation in the place of publication, published in an official language of the country of publication and customarily published at least once a day for at least five days in each calendar week. Whenever successive weekly publications in an Authorized Newspaper are authorized or required hereunder, they may be made (unless otherwise provided herein) on the same or different days of the week and in the same or different Authorized Newspapers.
1
“Authorized Officer” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 3.02 hereof.
“Bearer Security” shall mean any Security established pursuant to Section 2.01 and Section 2.03 hereof which is payable to the bearer (including, without limitation, any Security in temporary or permanent global bearer form) and title to which passes by delivery only, but does not include any coupons.
“Board of Directors” or “Board” shall mean the Board of Directors of the Company or any duly authorized committee of such Board.
“Board Resolution” shall mean a resolution certified by an Officer of the Company to have been duly adopted by the Board of Directors or by a committee acting under authority of or appointment by the Board of Directors and to be in full force and effect on the date of such certification, and delivered to the Trustee.
“Business Day” shall mean, unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b), a day other than a Saturday, a Sunday and, with respect to any Place of Payment or any other particular location referred to in this Indenture or in the Securities, a day that in the city (or in any one of the cities, if more than one) in which amounts are payable, as specified in the form of such Security, a day on which banking institutions are authorized or required by law or regulation to be closed.
“Capital Stock” shall mean, (i) as to shares of a particular corporation, outstanding shares of stock of any class, whether now or hereafter authorized, irrespective of whether such class shall be limited to a fixed sum or percentage in respect of the rights of the holders thereof to participate in dividends and in the distribution of assets upon the voluntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of such corporation, (ii) in the case of an association or business entity, any and all shares, interests, participations, rights or other equivalents (however designated) of corporate stock, (iii) in the case of a partnership or limited liability company, partnership or membership interests (whether general or limited) and (iv) any other interest or participation that confers on a Person the right to receive a share of the profits and losses of, or distribution of assets of, the issuing Person.
“Commission” shall mean the Securities and Exchange Commission or any successor agency.
“Company” shall mean the person named as the “Company” in the first paragraph of this instrument until a successor corporation shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter “Company” shall mean such successor corporation.
“Company Request” and “Company Order” mean, respectively, a written request or order signed in the name of the Company by an Authorized Officer, and delivered to the Trustee.
“Corporate Trust Office” shall mean the designated office of the Trustee at which, at any particular time, its corporate trust business relating to this Indenture shall be administered, which office at the date hereof is located at [_________________], or such other address as the Trustee may designate from time to time by notice to the Company, or the principal corporate trust office of any successor Trustee (or such other address as such successor Trustee may designate from time to time by notice to the Company).
“Coupon” shall mean any interest coupon appertaining to a Bearer Security.
“Default” or “default” shall have the meaning specified in Article 6.
“Dollar” or “$” shall mean a dollar or other equivalent unit in such coin or currency of the United States of America as at the time shall be legal tender for the payment of public and private debts.
“Event of Default” shall have the meaning specified in Article 6.
“Exchange Act” shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
“Exchange Date” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.08.
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“Global Security” shall mean a Security or Securities, as the case may be, in the form established pursuant to Section 2.04 evidencing all or part of a Series of Securities, issued to the Depositary for such Series or its nominee, and registered in the name of such Depositary or nominee.
“Holder,” “holder of Securities,” “securityholder” or other similar term shall mean (a) in the case of any Registered Security, the person in whose name such Security is registered in the Security Register kept by the Company for that purpose, in accordance with the terms hereof, and (b) in the case of any Bearer Security, the bearer thereof, and as used with respect to any coupon appertaining to any Bearer Security, the term “holder” shall mean the bearer thereof.
“Indebtedness” means, without duplication, the principal, premium, if any, unpaid interest (including interest accruing on or after the filing of any petition in bankruptcy or for reorganization relating to the Company whether or not a claim for post-filing interest is allowed in such proceeding), fees, charges, expenses, reimbursement and indemnification obligations, and all other amounts payable under or in respect of the following indebtedness of the Company, whether any such indebtedness exists as of the date of the Indenture or is created, incurred or assumed after such date: (i) all obligations for borrowed money, (ii) all obligations evidenced by debentures, Securities or other similar instruments, (iii) all obligations associated with derivative products, including but not limited to, securities contracts, foreign currency exchange contracts, swap agreements (including interest rate and foreign exchange rate swap agreements), cap agreements, floor agreements, collar agreements, interest rate agreements, foreign exchange rate agreements, options, commodity futures contracts, commodity option contracts and similar financial instruments, (iv) all obligations in respect of letters of credit or bankers acceptances or similar instruments (or reimbursement obligations with respect thereto), (v) all obligations to pay the deferred purchase price of property or services, except trade accounts payable arising in the ordinary course of business, (vi) all Indebtedness of others guaranteed by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or for which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is legally responsible or liable (whether by agreement to purchase indebtedness of, or to supply funds or to invest in, others), (vii) indebtedness secured by any mortgage, pledge, lien, charge, encumbrance or any security interest existing on property owned by the Company but excluding any obligations of the Company which are required (as opposed to elected) to be treated as finance leases under generally accepted accounting principles, (viii) purchase money and similar obligations, and (ix) any renewals, extensions, refundings or replacements of any of the foregoing.
“Indenture” shall mean this instrument as originally executed and delivered or as it may from time to time be supplemented or amended by one or more supplemental indentures entered into pursuant to the applicable provisions hereof, including, without limitation, the forms and terms of particular series of Securities established as contemplated by Article 2.
“Officer” shall mean, with respect to any Person, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Financial Officer, any Vice President of such Person, or such other officer of the Company as may be specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b).
“Officer’s Certificate” shall mean a certificate signed by an Authorized Officer of the Company and delivered to the Trustee.
“Opinion of Counsel” shall mean an opinion in writing signed by legal counsel, who may be an employee of or counsel to the Company and who shall be reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, or who may be other counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee.
“Original Issue Discount Securities” shall mean any Securities that are initially sold at a discount from the principal amount thereof and that provide upon an Event of Default for declaration of an amount less than the principal amount thereof to be due and payable upon acceleration thereof.
“Outstanding” or “outstanding,” when used with reference to Securities, shall, subject to the provisions of Section 8.01 and Section 8.04, mean, as of any particular time, all Securities authenticated and delivered by the Trustee under this Indenture, except:
(a) Securities theretofore cancelled by the Trustee or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation;
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(b) Securities, or portions thereof, for the payment or redemption of which moneys in the necessary amount shall have been deposited in trust with the Trustee or with any paying agent (other than the Company) or shall have been set aside and segregated and held in trust by the Company (if the Company shall act as its own paying agent) for the holders of such Securities and any coupons appertaining thereto; provided, that if such Securities, or portions thereof, are to be redeemed prior to the maturity thereof, notice of such redemption shall have been given as provided in Article 3, or provision satisfactory to the Trustee shall have been made for giving such notice;
(c) Securities that have been defeased pursuant to Section 14.02 hereof; and
(d) Securities that have been paid, mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen and replaced pursuant to Section 2.09, or Securities in exchange for, in lieu of and in substitution for which other Securities shall have been authenticated and delivered pursuant to the terms of Section 2.07, unless proof satisfactory to the Trustee is presented that any such Securities are held by bona fide holders in due course.
“Periodic Offering” shall mean an offering of Securities of a series, from time to time, the specific terms of which (including, without limitation, the rate or rates of interest or formula for determining the rate or rates of interest thereon, if any, the maturity date or dates thereof and the redemption provisions, if any, with respect thereto) are to be determined by the Company upon the issuance of such Securities.
“Person” or “person” shall mean any individual, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, association, joint stock company, trust, unincorporated organization or government or any agency or political subdivision thereof.
“Place of Payment,” when used with respect to the Securities of any series, means the place or places where, subject to the provisions of Section 4.02, the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on the Securities of that series are payable as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b).
“Possessions,” when used with respect to the United States, shall include Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, Wake Island and Northern Mariana Islands.
“Record date” as used with respect to any interest payment date shall have the meaning specified in Section 2.05.
“Registered Security” shall mean any Security established pursuant to Section 2.01 and Section 2.03(b) that is registered on the Security Register of the Company.
“Responsible Officer,” when used with respect to the Trustee, shall mean any officer within the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee (or any successor group of the Trustee), including any Vice President, Assistant Vice President, Assistant Secretary or any other officer of the Trustee customarily performing functions similar to those performed by any of the above designated officers and also shall mean, with respect to a particular corporate trust matter, any other officer to whom such matter is referred because of such officer’s knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject.
“Securities” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble of this Indenture.
“Securities Act” shall mean the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
“Security Register” and “Security Registrar” shall have the respective meanings set forth in Section 2.07(a) hereof.
“Subsidiary” shall mean, in respect of any Person, any corporation, association, partnership, limited liability company or other business entity of which more than 50% of the total voting power of shares of Capital Stock or other interests (including partnership interests) entitled (without regard to the occurrence of any contingency) to vote in the election of directors, managers or trustees thereof is at the time owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by (a) such Person, (b) such Person and one or more Subsidiaries of such Person or (c) one or more Subsidiaries of such Person.
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“Trust Indenture Act,” except as otherwise provided in this Indenture, shall mean the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, as in force at the date of this Indenture as originally executed.
“Trustee” shall mean the person identified as “Trustee” in the first paragraph hereof until the acceptance of appointment of a successor trustee pursuant to the provisions of Article 7, and thereafter shall mean such successor trustee.
“United States Alien” shall mean any person who, for United States federal income tax purposes, is a foreign corporation, a non-resident alien individual, a non-resident alien fiduciary of a foreign estate or trust, or a foreign partnership to the extent that one or more of its members is, for United States federal income tax purposes, a foreign corporation, a non-resident alien individual or a non-resident alien fiduciary of a foreign estate or trust.
“U.S. Depositary” shall mean, with respect to the Securities of any series issuable or issued in whole or in part in the form of one or more permanent global Securities, the person designated as U.S. Depositary by the Company pursuant to Section 2.03(b), which must be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act, until a successor U.S. Depositary shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter “U.S. Depositary” shall mean or include each person who is then a U.S. Depositary hereunder, and if at any time there is more than one such person, “U.S. Depositary” as used with respect to the Securities of any series shall mean the U.S. Depositary with respect to the Securities of such series.
“Vice President” when used with respect to the Company or the Trustee shall mean any vice president, whether or not designated by a number or word or words added before or after the title “vice president,” including any Executive Vice President or Senior Vice President.
“Voting Stock” means outstanding shares of Capital Stock having voting power for the election of directors, whether at all times or only so long as no senior class of stock has such voting power because of default in dividends or other default.
ARTICLE 2
ISSUE, EXECUTION, REGISTRATION AND EXCHANGE OF SECURITIES
SECTION 2.01. Amount Unlimited; Issuable in Series.
Upon the execution of this Indenture, or from time to time thereafter, Securities up to the aggregate principal amount and containing terms and conditions from time to time authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, or in a supplemental indenture, as set forth in Section 2.03, may be executed by the Company and delivered to the Trustee for authentication, and the Trustee shall thereupon authenticate and make available for delivery the Securities to or upon Company Order, without any further action by the Company but subject to the provisions of Section 2.03, or in a supplemental indenture, as set forth in Section 2.03.
The Securities may be issued in one or more series. The aggregate principal amount of Securities of all series that may be authenticated, delivered and outstanding under this Indenture is not limited hereunder. The Securities of a particular series may be issued up to the aggregate principal amount of Securities for such series from time to time authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution.
SECTION 2.02. Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication.
The Trustee’s certificate of authentication shall be in substantially the following form:
[Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication]
This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
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Dated: [ ]
| as Trustee |
|
|
| By: |
| Authorized Signatory |
SECTION 2.03. Form of Securities Generally; Establishment of Terms of Series.
(a) The Registered Securities, if any, of each series, the Bearer Securities, if any, of each series and related coupons, if any, the temporary global Securities of each series, if any, and the permanent global Securities of each series, if any, shall be in the forms established from time to time in or pursuant to one or more Board Resolutions (and, to the extent established pursuant to rather than set forth in one or more Board Resolutions, in an Officer’s Certificate (to which shall be attached true and correct copies of the relevant Board Resolution(s)) detailing such establishment) or established in a supplemental indenture.
The Securities may be issued in typewritten, printed or engraved form with such letters, numbers or other marks of identification or designation (including “CUSIP” numbers, if then generally in use) and such legends or endorsements printed, lithographed or engraved thereon as the Company may deem appropriate and as are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Indenture, or as may be required to comply with any law or with any rule or regulation made pursuant thereto or with any rule or regulation of any stock exchange on which the Securities may be listed, or to conform to usage. Unless otherwise specified as contemplated hereinafter, Securities in bearer form shall have interest coupons attached.
(b) At or prior to the initial issuance of Securities of any series, the particular terms of Securities of such series shall be established in or pursuant to one or more Board Resolutions (and to the extent established pursuant to rather than set forth in one or more Board Resolutions, in an Officer’s Certificate (to which shall be attached true and correct copies of the relevant Board Resolution(s)) detailing such establishment) or established in a supplemental indenture, including the following:
(1) the designation of the particular series (which shall distinguish such series from all other series);
(2) the price or prices (which may be expressed as a percentage of the aggregate principal amount of the Securities being issued) at which the Securities of the series will be issued;
(3) the aggregate principal amount of such series that may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture (except for Securities authenticated and delivered upon registration of transfer of, or in exchange for, or in lieu of, other Securities of the series pursuant to this Indenture and except for any Securities which, pursuant to Section 2.06, are deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered hereunder);
(4) whether Securities of the series are to be issuable as Registered Securities, Bearer Securities (with or without coupons) or both, whether any Securities of the series are to be issuable initially in temporary global form with or without coupons and, if so, the name of the U.S. Depositary with respect to any such temporary global Security, and whether any Securities of the series are to be issuable in permanent global form with or without coupons and, if so, whether beneficial owners of interests in any such permanent Global Security may exchange such interests for Securities of such series and of like tenor of any authorized form and denomination and the circumstances under which any such exchanges may occur, if other than in the manner provided in Section 2.07 and the name of the U.S. Depositary with respect to any such permanent Global Security;
(5) the date as of which any Bearer Securities of such series and any temporary Security in global form representing Outstanding Securities of such series shall be dated, if other than the date of original issuance of the first Securities of the series to be issued;
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(6) the person to whom any interest on any Registered Security of the series shall be payable, if other than the person in whose name that Security (or one or more predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the regular record date for such interest, the manner in which, or the person to whom, any interest on any Bearer Security of the series shall be payable, if otherwise than upon presentation and surrender of the coupons appertaining thereto as they severally mature, the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a temporary global Security on an interest payment date will be paid if other than in the manner provided in Section 2.05 and the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a permanent global Security on an interest payment date will be paid;
(7) the date or dates on which the principal of the Securities of such series is payable;
(8) the rate or rates, and if applicable the method used to determine the rate, at which the Securities of such series shall bear interest, if any, the date or dates from which such interest shall accrue, the date or dates on which such interest shall be payable and the record date or dates for the interest payable on any Registered Securities on any interest payment date;
(9) the place or places at which, subject to the provisions of Section 4.02, the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on Securities of such series shall be payable, any Registered Securities of the series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, Securities of the series may be surrendered for exchange and notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of the series and this Indenture may be served;
(10) the obligation, if any, of the Company to redeem or purchase Securities of such series, at the option of the Company or at the option of a holder thereof, pursuant to any sinking fund or other redemption provisions and the period or periods within which, the price or prices at which and the terms and conditions upon which Securities of the series may be so redeemed or purchased, in whole or in part;
(11) if other than minimum denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof, the denominations in which any Registered Securities of such series shall be issuable, and the denomination or denominations in which any Bearer Securities of the series shall be issuable, if other than the minimum denomination of $5,000;
(12) if other than the principal amount thereof, the portion of the principal amount of Securities of such series which shall be payable upon declaration of acceleration of the maturity thereof;
(13) the currency, currencies or currency units in which payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on any Securities of the series shall be payable if other than the currency of the United States of America and the manner of determining the equivalent thereof in the currency of the United States of America for purposes of the definition of “Outstanding” in Section 1.01;
(14) if the principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of the series is to be payable, at the election of the Company or a holder thereof, in one or more currencies or currency units, other than that or those in which the Securities are stated to be payable, the currency or currencies in which payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on Securities of such series as to which such election is made shall be payable, and the periods within which and the terms and conditions upon which such election is to be made;
(15) if the amount of payments of principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of the series may be determined with reference to an index, the manner in which such amounts shall be determined;
(16) whether the Securities will be issued in book-entry only form;
(17) any interest rate calculation agents, exchange rate calculation agents or other agents with respect to Securities of such series;
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(18) if either or both of Section 14.02 and Section 14.03 do not apply to the Securities of the series;
(19) whether and under what circumstances the Company will pay Additional Amounts in respect of any series of Securities and whether the Company has the option to redeem such Securities rather than pay such Additional Amounts;
(20) any provisions relating to the extension of maturity of, or the renewal of, Securities of such series, or the conversion of Securities of such series into other securities of the Company;
(21) any provisions relating to the purchase or redemption of all or any portion of a tranche or series of Securities, including the period of notice required to redeem those Securities;
(22) the terms and conditions, if any, pursuant to which the Securities of the series are secured;
(23) the subordination terms of the Securities of the series; and
(24) any other terms of the Securities or provisions relating to the payment of principal of, premium (if any) or interest thereon, including, but not limited to, whether such Securities are issuable at a discount or premium, as amortizable Securities, and if payable in, convertible or exchangeable for commodities or for the securities of the Company.
All Securities of any one series need not be issued at the same time and may be issued from time to time, consistent with the terms of this Indenture, if so provided by or pursuant to the Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate referred to above or as set forth in a supplemental indenture, and, unless otherwise provided, the authorized principal amount of any series may be increased to provide for issuances of additional Securities of such series. If so provided by or pursuant to the Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture referred to above, the terms of such Securities to be issued from time to time may be determined as set forth in such Board Resolution, Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture, as the case may be. All Securities of any one series shall be substantially identical except as to denomination, interest rate, maturity and other similar terms and except as may be provided otherwise by or pursuant to such Board Resolution, Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture.
SECTION 2.04. Securities in Global Form.
If Securities of a series are issuable in global form, as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), then, notwithstanding clause (11) of Section 2.03(b) and the provisions of Section 2.05, any such Security in global form shall represent such of the Securities of such series Outstanding as shall be specified therein, and any such Security in global form may provide that it shall represent the aggregate amount of Securities Outstanding from time to time endorsed thereon and that the aggregate amount of Securities Outstanding represented thereby may from time to time be reduced to reflect any exchanges of beneficial interests in such Security in global form for Securities of such series as contemplated herein. Any endorsement of a Security in global form to reflect the amount, or any decrease in the amount, of Securities Outstanding represented thereby shall be made by the Trustee or the Security Registrar in such manner and upon instructions given by such person or persons as shall be specified in such Security in global form or in the Company Order to be delivered to the Trustee pursuant to Section 2.06 or Section 2.08. Subject to the provisions of Section 2.06 and, if applicable, Section 2.08, the Trustee or the Security Registrar shall deliver and redeliver any Security in permanent global form in the manner and upon instructions given by the person or persons specified in such Security in global form or in the applicable Company Order. If a Company Order pursuant to Section 2.06 or Section 2.08 has been, or simultaneously is, delivered, any instructions by the Company with respect to endorsement or delivery or redelivery of a Security in global form shall be in writing but need not be represented by a Company Order and need not be accompanied by an Opinion of Counsel.
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The provisions of the last sentence of Section 2.06 shall apply to any Security represented by a Security in global form if such Security was never issued and sold by the Company and the Company delivers to the Trustee or the Security Registrar the Security in global form together with written instructions (which need not be represented by a Company Order and need not be accompanied by an Opinion of Counsel) with regard to the reduction in the principal amount of Securities represented thereby, together with the written statement contemplated by the last sentence of Section 2.06.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2.05, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), payment of principal of and any premium and interest on any Security in permanent global form shall be made to the persons or persons specified therein.
SECTION 2.05. Denominations; Record Date; Payment of Interest.
(a) Unless otherwise provided as contemplated by Section 2.03(b) with respect to any series of Securities, any Registered Securities of a series shall be issuable without coupons in minimum denominations of $1,000 and any Bearer Securities of a series shall be issuable, with interest coupons attached, in the minimum denomination of $5,000.
(b) The term “record date” as used with respect to an interest payment date for any series of a Registered Security shall mean such day or days as shall be specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b); provided, that in the absence of any such provisions with respect to any series, such term shall mean (1) the last day of the calendar month next preceding such interest payment date if such interest payment date is the 15th day of a calendar month; or (2) the 15th day of a calendar month next preceding such interest payment date if such interest payment date is the first day of the calendar month.
Unless otherwise provided as contemplated by Section 2.03 with respect to any series of Securities, the person in whose name any Registered Security is registered at the close of business on the record date with respect to an interest payment date shall be entitled to receive the interest payable on such interest payment date notwithstanding the cancellation of such Security upon any registration of transfer or exchange thereof subsequent to such record date prior to such interest payment date; provided, that if and to the extent the Company shall default in the payment of the interest due on such interest payment date, such defaulted interest shall be paid to the persons in whose names the Securities are registered on a subsequent record date established by notice given to the extent and in the manner set forth in Section 15.04 by or on behalf of the Company to the holders of Securities of the series in default not less than 15 days preceding such subsequent record date, such record date to be not less than five days preceding the date of payment of such defaulted interest, or in any other lawful manner acceptable to the Trustee.
(c) Unless otherwise specified by Board Resolution or Company Order for a particular series of Securities, the principal of, redemption premium, if any, on and interest, if any, on the Securities of any series shall be payable at the office or agency of the Company maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 in a Place of Payment for such series, in the coin or currency of the United States of America that at the time is legal tender for public and private debt; provided, that, at the option of the Company, payment of interest with respect to a Registered Security may be paid by check mailed to the holders of the Registered Securities entitled thereto at their last addresses as they appear on the Security Register or wired if held in book-entry form at the U.S. Depositary.
SECTION 2.06. Execution, Authentication, Delivery and Dating of Securities.
The Securities shall be signed on behalf of the Company by an Authorized Officer. Such signatures may be the manual or facsimile signatures of such then-current officers.
Coupons shall bear the facsimile signature of an Officer of the Company. Any Security or coupon may be signed on behalf of the Company by such persons as, at the actual date of the execution of such Security, shall be the proper officers of the Company, although at the date of the execution of this Indenture any such person was not such Officer. Securities and coupons bearing the manual or facsimile signatures of individuals who were, at the actual date of the execution of such Security or coupon, the proper Officers of the Company shall bind the Company, notwithstanding that such individuals or any of them have ceased to hold such offices prior to the authentication and delivery of such Securities, or the delivery of such coupons, as the case may be, or did not hold such offices at the date of such Securities.
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Upon the execution and delivery of this Indenture, the Company shall deliver to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate as to the incumbency and specimen signatures of Officers authorized to execute and deliver the Securities and coupons and give instructions under this Section and, as long as Securities are Outstanding under this Indenture, shall deliver a similar Officer’s Certificate each year on the anniversary of the date of the first such Officer’s Certificate. The Trustee may conclusively rely on the documents delivered pursuant to this Section (unless revoked by superseding comparable documents) and Section 2.03 hereof as to the authorization of the Board of Directors of any Securities delivered hereunder, and the form and terms thereof, and as to the authority of the instructing Officers referred to in this Section so to act.
The Trustee shall at any time, and from time to time, authenticate Securities for original issue in an unlimited aggregate principal amount upon receipt by the Trustee of a Company Order; provided, that with respect to Securities of a series subject to a Periodic Offering, (a) such Company Order may be delivered to the Trustee prior to the delivery to the Trustee of such Securities for authentication and delivery, (b) the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver Securities of such series for original issue from time to time, in an aggregate principal amount not exceeding the aggregate principal amount, if any, established for such series, pursuant to a Company Order or pursuant to such procedures acceptable to the Trustee as may be specified from time to time by a Company Order, (c) the maturity date or dates, original issue date or dates, interest rate or rates and any other terms of Securities of such series shall be determined by Company Order or pursuant to such procedures, and (d) if provided for in such procedures, such Company Order may authorize authentication and delivery pursuant to oral or electronic instructions from the Company or its duly authorized agent or agents, which oral instructions shall be promptly confirmed in writing. Except as permitted by Section 2.09, the Trustee shall not authenticate and deliver any Bearer Security unless all appurtenant coupons for interest then matured have been detached and cancelled.
Prior to the issuance of a Security of any new series and any related coupons, and the authentication thereof by the Trustee, the Trustee shall have received and (subject to Section 7.02) shall be fully protected in relying on:
(a) The Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture establishing the terms and the form of the Securities of that series pursuant to Section 2.01 and Section 2.03;
(b) An Officer’s Certificate stating that all conditions precedent provided for in this Indenture relating to the authentication and delivery of Securities in such form have been complied with; and
(c) An Opinion of Counsel stating that the form and terms of such Securities and coupons, if any, have been established in conformity with the provisions of this Indenture; provided, that with respect to Securities of a series subject to a Periodic Offering, the Trustee shall be entitled to receive such Opinion of Counsel only once at or prior to the time of the first authentication of Securities of such series.
With respect to Securities of a series offered in a Periodic Offering, the Trustee may rely, as to the authorization by the Company of any of such Securities, the form and terms thereof, any coupons and the legality, validity, binding effect and enforceability thereof, upon the Opinion of Counsel and other documents delivered pursuant to this Section in connection with the first authentication of Securities of such series unless and until such Opinion of Counsel or other documents have been superseded or revoked. In connection with the authentication and delivery of Securities of a series subject to a Periodic Offering, the Trustee shall be entitled to assume that the Company’s instructions to authenticate and deliver such Securities do not violate any rules, regulations or orders of any governmental agency or commission having jurisdiction over the Company.
Each Registered Security shall be dated the date of its authentication except as otherwise provided by Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture; and each Bearer Security shall be dated as of the date of original issuance of the first Security of such series to be issued unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 2.03 hereof.
The aggregate principal amount of Securities of any series outstanding at any time may not exceed any limit upon the maximum principal amount for such series set forth in or pursuant to the Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture delivered pursuant to Section 2.03, except as provided in Section 2.08.
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No Security or coupon shall be entitled to any benefit under this Indenture or be valid or obligatory for any purpose unless there appears on such Security, or the Security to which such coupon appertains, a certificate of authentication substantially in the form provided for herein executed by the Trustee by manual signature, and such certificate upon any Security shall be conclusive evidence, and the only evidence, that such Security has been duly authenticated and delivered hereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any Security shall have been authenticated and delivered hereunder but never issued and sold by the Company, and the Company shall deliver such Security to the Trustee for cancellation as provided in Section 2.10 together with a written statement stating that such Security has never been issued and sold by the Company, for all purposes of this Indenture such Security shall be deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered hereunder and shall never be entitled to the benefits of this Indenture.
SECTION 2.07. Exchange and Registration of Transfer of Securities.
(a) The Company shall keep, at an office or agency to be designated and maintained by the Company in accordance with Section 4.02 (as such, a “Security Registrar”), registry books (the “Security Register”) in which, subject to such reasonable regulations as it may prescribe, the Company shall register Registered Securities and shall register the transfer of Registered Securities of each such series as provided in this Article 2. Such Security Register shall be in written form or in any other form capable of being converted into written form within a reasonable time. At all reasonable times such Security Register shall be open for inspection by the Trustee. Upon due presentment for registration of transfer of any Registered Security of a particular series at such office or agency maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 for such purpose in a Place of Payment, the Company shall execute and register and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in the name of the transferee or transferees a new Registered Security or Registered Securities of such series of any authorized denominations and for an equal aggregate principal amount and tenor.
(b) At the option of the holder, Registered Securities of any series may be exchanged for other Registered Securities of the same series of any authorized denominations and of an equal aggregate principal amount and tenor. Registered Securities to be exchanged shall be surrendered at any such office or agency maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 for such purpose in a Place of Payment, and the Company shall execute and register and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor the Security or Securities that the securityholder making the exchange shall be entitled to receive. Registered Securities, including Registered Securities received in exchange for Bearer Securities, may not be exchanged for Bearer Securities, unless the Company otherwise expressly provides for the issuance, upon such terms and conditions as may be provided with respect to such series, by the Company of Registered Securities of a series that may be exchanged, at the option of the securityholder upon such conditions and limitations as may be specified by the Company, for Bearer Securities of such series.
At the option of the holder, Bearer Securities of any series may be exchanged for Registered Securities of the same series of any authorized denominations and of a like aggregate principal amount and tenor, upon surrender of the Bearer Securities to be exchanged at any such office or agency, with all unmatured coupons (except as provided below) and with all matured coupons in default appertaining thereto. If the holder of a Bearer Security is unable to produce any such unmatured coupon or coupons or matured coupon or coupons in default, such exchange may be effected if the Bearer Securities are accompanied by payment in funds acceptable to the Company in an amount equal to the face amount of such missing coupon or coupons, or the surrender of such missing coupon or coupons may be waived by the Company and the Trustee if there is furnished to them such security or indemnity as they may require to save each of them and any paying agent harmless. If thereafter the holder of such Securities shall surrender to any paying agent any such missing coupon in respect of which such a payment shall have been made, such holder shall be entitled to receive the amount of such payment; provided, that, except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02, interest represented by coupons shall be payable only upon presentation and surrender of those coupons at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in case a Bearer Security of any series is surrendered at any such office or agency in exchange for a Registered Security of the same series and like tenor after the close of business at such office or agency on (i) any record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the relevant interest payment date, or (ii) any special record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the related proposed date for payment of defaulted interest as set forth in Section 2.05, such Bearer Security shall be surrendered without the coupon relating to such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, and interest or defaulted interest, as the case may be, will not be payable on such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, in respect of the Registered Security issued in exchange for such Bearer Security, but will be payable only to the holder of such coupon when due in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture.
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Whenever any Securities are so surrendered for exchange, the Company shall execute and register, and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, the Securities which the holder making the exchange is entitled to receive.
(c) All Securities issued upon any registration of transfer or exchange of Securities shall be the valid obligations of the Company, evidencing the same debt, and entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture, as the Securities surrendered upon such registration of transfer or exchange.
All Registered Securities presented for registration of transfer or for exchange, redemption or payment, as the case may be, shall (if so required by the Company or the Trustee) be duly endorsed by, or be accompanied by a written instrument or instruments of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee or the Security Registrar duly executed by, the holder thereof or his or her attorney duly authorized in writing.
No service charge shall be made by the holder for any exchange or registration of transfer of Securities, but the Company may require payment by the holder of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in connection therewith, other than exchanges pursuant to the terms of this Indenture not involving any transfer.
The Company shall not be required (1) to exchange or register the transfer of Securities of any series to be redeemed for a period of 15 days next preceding any selection of such Securities to be redeemed, (2) to exchange or register the transfer of any Registered Security so selected, called or being called for redemption, except in the case of any such series to be redeemed in part the portion thereof not to be so redeemed, or (3) to exchange any Bearer Security so selected for redemption except that such a Bearer Security may be exchanged for a Registered Security of that series and of like tenor, provided that such Registered Security shall be simultaneously surrendered for redemption.
(d) Notwithstanding the foregoing, except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), any permanent Global Security shall be exchangeable pursuant to this Section only as provided in this paragraph. If the beneficial owners of interests in a permanent Global Security are entitled to exchange such interests for Securities of such series and of like tenor and principal amount of another authorized form and denomination, as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), then without unnecessary delay but in any event not later than the earliest date on which such interests may be so exchanged, the Company shall deliver to the Trustee or the Security Registrar definitive Securities of that series in aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of such permanent Global Security executed by the Company. On or after the earliest date on which such interests may be so exchanged, in accordance with instructions given by the Company to the Trustee or the Security Registrar and the U.S. Depositary (which instructions shall be in writing), such permanent Global Security shall be surrendered from time to time by the U.S. Depositary, or such other depositary or U.S. Depositary, as the case may be, as shall be specified in the Company Order with respect thereto to the Trustee, as the Company’s agent for such purpose, or to the Security Registrar, to be exchanged, in whole or in part, for definitive Securities of the same series without charge and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in accordance with such instructions, in exchange for each portion of such permanent Global Security, a like aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series of authorized denominations and of like tenor as the portion of such permanent Global Security to be exchanged which (unless the Securities of the series are not issuable both as Bearer Securities and as Registered Securities, in which case the definitive Securities exchanged for the permanent Global Security shall be issuable only in the form in which the Securities are issuable, as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b)), shall be in the form of Bearer Securities or Registered Securities, or any combination thereof, as shall be specified by the beneficial owner thereof; provided, that no such exchanges may occur for a period of 15 days next preceding any selection of Securities of that series and of like tenor for redemption; and provided further, that no Bearer Security delivered in exchange for a portion of a permanent Global Security shall be mailed or otherwise delivered to any location in the United States or its Possessions. Promptly following any such exchange in part, such permanent Global Security should be returned by the Trustee or the Security Registrar to the U.S. Depositary, or such other depositary or U.S. Depositary referred to above in accordance with the instructions of the Company referred to above. If a Registered Security is issued in exchange for any portion of a permanent Global Security after the close
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of business at the office or agency where such exchange occurs on (i) any record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the relevant interest payment date, or (ii) any special record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the related proposed date for payment of defaulted interest as provided in Section 2.05, interest or defaulted interest, as the case may be, will not be payable on such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, in respect of such Registered Security, but will be payable on such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, only to the person to whom interest in respect of such portion of such permanent Global Security is payable in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture.
SECTION 2.08. Temporary Securities.
Pending the preparation of definitive Securities of any series, the Company may execute and the Trustee shall, upon Company Order, authenticate and make available for delivery, temporary Securities of such series (typewritten, printed, lithographed or otherwise produced). Such temporary Securities, in any authorized denominations, shall be substantially in the form of the definitive Securities in lieu of which they are issued, in registered form or, if authorized, in bearer form with one or more or without coupons, in the form approved from time to time by or pursuant to a Board Resolution but with such omissions, insertions, substitutions and other variations as may be appropriate for temporary Securities, all as may be determined by the Company, but not inconsistent with the terms of this Indenture or any provision of applicable law. In the case of any series issuable as Bearer Securities, such temporary Securities shall be delivered only in compliance with the conditions set forth in Section 2.06 and may be in global form.
Except in the case of temporary Securities in global form (which shall be exchanged as hereinafter provided), if temporary Securities of any series are issued, the Company will cause definitive Securities of that series to be prepared without unreasonable delay. After the preparation of definitive Securities of such series, the temporary Securities of such series shall be exchangeable for definitive Securities of such series upon surrender of the temporary Securities of such series at the office or agency of the Company maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 in a Place of Payment for such series for the purpose of exchanges of Securities of such series, without charge to the holder. Upon surrender for cancellation of any one or more temporary Securities of any series (accompanied by any unmatured coupons appertaining thereto), the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor a like aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series and of like tenor of authorized denominations; provided, that, except as otherwise expressly provided by the Company as contemplated in Section 2.07(b), no definitive Bearer Security shall be delivered in exchange for a temporary Registered Security; and provided further, however, that a definitive Bearer Security shall be delivered in exchange for a temporary Bearer Security only in compliance with the conditions set forth in Section 2.06.
Without unnecessary delay but in any event not later than the date specified in, or determined pursuant to the terms of, any such temporary Global Security of a series (the “Exchange Date”), the Company shall deliver to the Trustee definitive Securities of that series, in aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of such temporary Global Security, executed by the Company. On or after the Exchange Date such temporary Global Security shall be presented and surrendered by the U.S. Depositary to the Trustee, as the Company’s agent for such purpose, or to the Security Registrar, to be exchanged, in whole or from time to time in part, for definitive Securities of such series without charge, and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, in exchange for each portion of such temporary Global Security, a like aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series of authorized denominations and of like tenor as the portion of such temporary Global Security to be exchanged.
Every temporary Security shall be executed by the Company and shall be authenticated by the Trustee upon the same conditions and in substantially the same manner, and with like effect, as the definitive Securities.
SECTION 2.09. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Securities and Coupons.
If any mutilated Security or a Security with a mutilated coupon appertaining thereto is surrendered to the Trustee, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor a new Security of the same series and of like tenor and principal amount and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding, with coupons corresponding to the coupons, if any, appertaining to the surrendered Security.
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If there shall be delivered to the Company and the Trustee (i) evidence to their satisfaction of the destruction, loss or theft of any Security or coupon and (ii) such security or indemnity as may be required by them to save each of them and any agent of either of them harmless, then, in the absence of notice to the Company or the Trustee that such Security or coupon has been acquired by a bona fide purchaser, the Company shall, subject to the following paragraph, execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, in lieu of any such destroyed, lost or stolen Security or in exchange for the Security to which a destroyed, lost or stolen coupon appertains (with all appurtenant coupons not destroyed, lost or stolen), a new Security of the same series and of like tenor and principal amount and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding, with coupons corresponding to the coupons, if any, appertaining to such destroyed, lost or stolen Security or to the Security to which such destroyed, lost or stolen coupon appertains.
In case any such mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Security or coupon has become or is about to become due and payable, the Company in its discretion may, instead of issuing a new Security, pay such Security or coupon; provided, however, that principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on Bearer Securities shall, except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02, be payable only at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions.
Upon the issuance of any new Security under this Section, the Company may require payment by the holder of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation thereto and any other expenses (including the fees and expenses of the Trustee) connected therewith.
Every new Security of any series, with any coupons appertaining thereto, issued pursuant to this Section in lieu of any destroyed, lost or stolen Security or in exchange for a Security to which a destroyed, lost or stolen coupon appertains, shall constitute an original additional contractual obligation of the Company, whether or not the destroyed, lost or stolen Security and any coupons appertaining thereto, or the destroyed, lost or stolen coupon shall be at any time enforceable by anyone, and any such new Security and coupons, if any, shall be entitled to all the benefits of this Indenture equally and proportionately with any and all other Securities of that series and their coupons, if any, duly issued hereunder.
The provisions of this Section are exclusive and shall preclude (to the extent lawful) all other rights and remedies with respect to the replacement or payment of mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Securities or coupons.
SECTION 2.10. Cancellation.
All Securities surrendered for payment, redemption, exchange or registration of transfer or for credit against any sinking fund payment, as the case may be, and any coupons surrendered for payment, shall, if surrendered to the Company or any agent of the Company or of the Trustee, be delivered to the Trustee. All Registered Securities and matured coupons so delivered shall be promptly cancelled by the Trustee. All Bearer Securities and unmatured coupons so delivered shall be held by the Trustee, and upon instruction by a Company Order, shall be cancelled or held for reissuance. All Bearer Securities and unmatured coupons held by the Trustee pending such cancellation or reissuance shall be deemed to be delivered for cancellation for all purposes of this Indenture and the Securities. The Company may deliver to the Trustee for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated and delivered hereunder which the Company may have acquired in any manner whatsoever, and may deliver to the Trustee (or to any other person for delivery to the Trustee) for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated hereunder which the Company has not issued and sold, and all Securities so delivered shall be promptly cancelled by the Trustee. No Securities shall be authenticated in lieu of or in exchange for any Securities cancelled as provided in this Section except as expressly provided by this Indenture. Any cancelled Securities and coupons held by the Trustee shall be delivered to the Company or disposed of (including by destruction of such Securities in accordance with the Trustee’s customary procedures) as directed by the Company. Upon written request in the form of a Company Order, the Company may direct the Trustee to deliver a certificate of such disposal or destruction to the Company.
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SECTION 2.11. Book Entry Only System.
If specified by the Company pursuant to Section 2.03(b) with respect to Securities represented by a Security in global form, a series of Securities may be issued initially in book-entry only form and, if issued in such form, shall be represented by one or more Securities in global form registered in the name of the U.S. Depositary or other depositary designated with respect thereto. So long as such system of registration is in effect, (a) Securities of such series so issued in book-entry only form will not be issuable in the form of or exchangeable for Securities in certificated or definitive registered form, (b) the records of the U.S. Depositary or such other depositary will be determinative for all purposes and (c) neither the Company, the Trustee nor any paying agent, Security Registrar or transfer agent for such Securities will have any responsibility or liability for (i) any aspect of the records relating to or payments made on account of owners of beneficial interests in the Securities of such series, (ii) maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial interests, (iii) receipt of notices, voting and requesting or directing the Trustee to take, or not to take, or consenting to, certain actions hereunder, or (iv) the records and procedures of the U.S. Depositary or such other depositary, as the case may be.
ARTICLE 3
REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES
SECTION 3.01. Redemption of Securities, Applicability of Section.
Redemption of Securities of any series as permitted or required by the terms thereof shall be made in accordance with the terms of such Securities as specified pursuant to Section 2.03 hereof and this Article; provided, however, that if any provision of any series of Securities shall conflict with any provision of this Section, the provision of such series of Securities shall govern.
SECTION 3.02. Notice of Redemption, Selection of Securities.
In case the Company shall desire to exercise the right to redeem all or, as the case may be, any part of a series of Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, it shall fix a date for redemption. Notice of redemption of Securities to be redeemed at the election of the Company shall be given by the Company, or, at the Company’s request, by the Trustee in the name and at the expense of the Company. The Company or the Trustee, as the case may be, shall give notice of such redemption, in the manner and to the extent set forth in Section 15.04, on that date prior to the date fixed for a redemption to the holders of such Securities so to be redeemed, as a whole or in part, (a) as set forth in a Board Resolution, as described in Section 2.03, or (b) as determined by the Chief Executive Officer or the Chief Financial Officer of the Company (each, an “Authorized Officer”) and evidenced by the preparation of an offering document or an Officer’s Certificate specifying the period of notice of such redemption. If the Board Resolutions or an Authorized Officer do not specify a period of notice of such redemption, the Company or the Trustee, as the case may be, shall give notice of such redemption, in the manner and to the extent set forth in Section 15.04, at least 10 Business Days and not more than 60 calendar days prior to the date fixed for a redemption to the holders of such Securities so to be redeemed as a whole or in part. Notice given in such manner shall be conclusively presumed to have been duly given, whether or not the holder receives such notice. In any case, failure to give such notice or any defect in the notice to the holder of any such Security designated for redemption as a whole or in part shall not affect the validity of the proceedings for the redemption of any other such Security. If the Company requests the Trustee to give any notice of redemption, it shall make such request at least 10 days prior to the designated date for delivering such notice, unless a shorter period is satisfactory to the Trustee.
Each such notice of redemption shall specify the date fixed for redemption, the redemption price at which such Securities are to be redeemed, the CUSIP numbers of such Securities, the Place of Payment where such Securities, together, in the case of Bearer Securities, with all coupons appertaining thereto, if any, maturing after the date of redemption, are to be surrendered for payment of the redemption prices, that payment will be made upon presentation and surrender of such Securities, that interest accrued to the date fixed for redemption will be paid as specified in the notice, and that on and after the date interest thereon or on the portions thereof to be redeemed will cease to accrue. If less than all of a series is to be redeemed, the notice of redemption shall specify the numbers of the Securities to be redeemed. In case any Security is to be redeemed in part only, the notice of redemption shall state the portion of the principal amount thereof to be redeemed and shall state that, upon surrender of such Security, a new Security or Securities of the same series in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion thereof will be issued.
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On or before the redemption date specified in the notice of redemption given as provided in this Section, the Company will deposit in trust with the Trustee or with one or more paying agents an amount of money sufficient to redeem on the redemption date all the Securities or portions of Securities so called for redemption at the appropriate redemption price, together with accrued interest, if any, to the date fixed for redemption. If less than all of a series of Securities is to be redeemed, the Company will give the Trustee adequate written notice at least 45 days in advance (unless a shorter notice shall be satisfactory to the Trustee) as to the aggregate principal amount of Securities to be redeemed.
If less than all the Securities of a series are to be redeemed, the Trustee shall select, pro rata, by lot or in such other manner is it shall deem appropriate and fair, not more than 60 days prior to the date of redemption, the numbers of such Securities Outstanding not previously called for redemption, to be redeemed in whole or in part. The portion of principal of Securities so selected for partial redemption shall be equal to the minimum authorized denomination for Securities of that series or any integral multiple thereof. The Trustee shall promptly notify the Company of the Securities to be redeemed. If, however, less than all the Securities of a series having differing issue dates, interest rates and stated maturities are to be redeemed, the Company in its sole discretion shall select the particular Securities of such series to be redeemed and shall notify the Trustee in writing at least 45 days prior to the relevant redemption date.
SECTION 3.03. Payment of Securities Called for Redemption.
If notice of redemption has been given as above provided, the Securities or portions of Securities with respect to which such notice has been given shall become due and payable on the date and at the place stated in such notice at the applicable redemption price, together with any interest accrued to the date fixed for redemption, and on and after that date (unless the Company shall default in the payment of such Securities at the redemption price, together with interest accrued to that date) interest on such Securities or portions of Securities so called for redemption shall cease to accrue and the coupons, if any, for such interest appertaining to any Bearer Securities so to be redeemed, except to the extent provided below, shall be void. On presentation and surrender of such Securities subject to redemption at the Place of Payment and in the manner specified in such notice, together with all coupons, if any, appertaining thereto and maturing after the date specified in such notice for redemption, such Securities or the specified portions thereof shall be paid and redeemed by the Company at the applicable redemption price, together with interest accrued thereon to the date fixed for redemption; provided, that installments of interest on Bearer Securities whose stated maturity date is on or prior to the date of redemption shall be payable only at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions (except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02) and, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03, only upon presentation and surrender of coupons for such interest; and provided further, that unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03, installments of interest on Registered Securities whose stated maturity date is on or prior to the date of redemption shall be payable to the holders of such Registered Securities, or one or more predecessor Securities, registered as such at the close of business on the relevant record dates according to their terms and the provisions of Section 2.05.
At the option of the Company, payment with respect to Registered Securities may be made by check to the holders of such Securities or other persons entitled thereto against presentation and surrender of such Securities.
If any Bearer Security surrendered for redemption shall not be accompanied by all appurtenant coupons maturing after the date of redemption, such Security may be paid after deducting from the redemption price an amount equal to the face amount of all such missing coupons, or the surrender of such missing coupon or coupons may be waived by the Company and the Trustee if there is furnished to them such security or indemnity as they may require to save each of them and any paying agent harmless. If thereafter the holder of such Security shall surrender to the Trustee or any paying agent any such missing coupon in respect of which a deduction shall have been made from the redemption price, such holder shall be entitled to receive the amount so deducted; provided, that interest represented by coupons shall be payable only at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions (except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02) and, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03, only upon presentation and surrender of those coupons.
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Any Security (including any coupons appertaining thereto) that is to be redeemed only in part shall be surrendered at a Place of Payment therefor (with, if the Company or the Trustee so requires, due endorsement by, or a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee duly executed by, the holder thereof or such holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing), and upon such presentation, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery to the holder thereof, at the expense of the Company, a new Security or Securities of the same series, of authorized denominations, in aggregate principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion of the principal of the Security so presented. If a temporary Global Security or permanent Global Security is so surrendered, such new Security so issued shall be a new temporary global Security or permanent Global Security, respectively.
SECTION 3.04. Redemption Suspended During Event of Default.
The Trustee shall not redeem any Securities (unless all Securities then outstanding are to be redeemed) or commence the giving of any notice of redemption of Securities during the continuance of any Event of Default of which a Responsible Officer of the Trustee has actual knowledge or notice, except that where the giving of notice of redemption of any Securities shall theretofore have been made, the Trustee shall redeem such Securities, provided funds are deposited with it for such purpose. Except as aforesaid, any moneys theretofore or thereafter received by the Trustee shall, during the continuance of such Event of Default, be held in trust for the benefit of the securityholders and applied in the manner set forth in Section 6.06; provided, that in case such Event of Default shall have been waived as provided herein or otherwise cured, such moneys shall thereafter be held and applied in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
ARTICLE 4
PARTICULAR COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY
SECTION 4.01. Payment of Principal, Premium and Interest.
The Company will duly and punctually pay or cause to be paid the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on each of the Securities of a series at the place, at the respective times and in the manner provided in the terms of the Securities, any coupons appertaining thereto and this Indenture. Unless otherwise specified in and contemplated by Section 2.03(b) with respect to any series of Securities, any interest due on and any Additional Amounts payable in respect of Bearer Securities on or before maturity shall be payable only upon presentation and surrender of the several coupons for such interest installments as are evidenced thereby as they severally mature.
SECTION 4.02. Offices for Notices and Payments, etc.
If Securities of a series are issuable only as Registered Securities, the Company will maintain in each Place of Payment for such series an office or agency where Securities of that series may be presented or surrendered for payment, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer or exchange and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served. If Securities of a series are issuable as Bearer Securities, the Company will maintain (a) in the contiguous United States, an office or agency where any Registered Securities of that series may be presented or surrendered for payment, where any Registered Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for exchange, where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served and where Bearer Securities of that series and related coupons may be presented or surrendered for payment in the circumstances described below (and not otherwise), (b) subject to any laws or regulations applicable thereto, in a Place of Payment for that series which is located outside the United States and its Possessions, an office or agency where Securities of that series and related coupons may be presented and surrendered for payment; provided, that if the Securities of that series are listed on any stock exchange located outside the United States and its Possessions and such stock exchange shall so require, the Company will maintain a paying agent for the Securities of that series in any required city located outside the United States and its Possessions, as the case may be, so long as the Securities of that series are listed on such exchange, and (c) subject to any laws or regulations applicable thereto, in a Place of Payment for that series which is located outside the United States and its Possessions, an office or agency where any Registered Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for exchange and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served.
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The Company will give to the Trustee notice of the location of each such office or agency and of any change in the location thereof. In case the Company shall fail to maintain any such office or agency as required, or shall fail to give such notice of the location or of any change in the location thereof, presentations and surrenders of Securities of that series may be made and notices and demands may be served at the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee, except that Bearer Securities of that series and the related coupons may be presented and surrendered for payment at any paying agent for such series located outside the United States and its Possessions.
No payment of principal, premium or interest on Bearer Securities shall be made at any office or agency of the Company in the United States or its Possessions or by check mailed to any address in the United States or its Possessions or by transfer to any account maintained with a financial institution located in the United States or its Possessions; provided, that, if the Securities of a series are denominated and payable in Dollars, payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and any interest on any Bearer Security shall be made at the office of the Company’s paying agent in the contiguous United States, if (but only if) payment in Dollars of the full amount of such principal, premium, interest or Additional Amounts, as the case may be, at all offices or agencies outside the United States and its Possessions maintained for the purpose by the Company in accordance with this Indenture is illegal or effectively precluded by exchange controls or other similar restrictions.
The Company may also from time to time designate one or more other offices or agencies where the Securities of one or more series may be presented or surrendered for any or all such purposes and may from time to time rescind such designations; provided, that no such designation or rescission shall in any manner relieve the Company of its obligation to maintain an office or agency in accordance with the requirements set forth above for Securities of any series for such purposes. The Company will give prompt written notice to the Trustee and the holders of any such designation or rescission and of any change in the location of any such other office or agency.
The Company hereby initially designates the Corporate Trust Office as the office of the Company in the contiguous United States where Registered Securities may be presented for payment, for registration of transfer and for exchange as in this Indenture provided and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities or of this Indenture may be served; provided that the Corporate Trust Office shall not be an office or agency of the Company for the service of legal process against the Company.
SECTION 4.03. Provisions as to Paying Agent.
(a) Whenever the Company shall appoint a paying agent other than the Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series, it will cause such paying agent to execute and deliver to the Trustee an instrument in which such agent shall agree with the Trustee, subject to the provisions of this Section:
(1) that it will hold sums held by it as such agent for the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of such series (whether such sums have been paid to it by the Company or by any other obligor on the Securities of such series) in trust for the benefit of the persons entitled thereto until such sums shall be paid to such persons or otherwise disposed of as herein provided and will notify the Trustee of the receipt of sums to be so held;
(2) that it will give the Trustee notice of any failure by the Company (or by any other obligor on the Securities of such series) to make any payment of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of such series when the same shall be due and payable; and
(3) that at any time when any such failure has occurred and is continuing, it will, upon the written request of the Trustee, forthwith pay to the Trustee all sums so held in trust by such paying agent.
(b) If the Company shall act as its own paying agent, it will, on or before each due date of the principal of (and premium, if any) or any interest on the Securities of any series, set aside, segregate and hold in trust for the benefit of the persons entitled thereto a sum sufficient to pay such principal (and premium, if any) or any interest so becoming due until such sums shall be paid to such persons or otherwise disposed of as herein provided. The Company will promptly notify the Trustee of any failure to take such action.
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(c) Whenever the Company shall have one or more paying agents with respect to a series of Securities, it will, on or prior to each due date of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on, any Securities, deposit with a paying agent a sum sufficient to pay the principal (and premium, if any) or any interest so becoming due, such sum to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled to such principal, premium or interest, and (unless such paying agent is the Trustee) the Company will promptly notify the Trustee of its action or failure so to act.
(d) Anything in this Section to the contrary notwithstanding, the Company may, at any time, for the purpose of obtaining the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture with respect to one or more or all series of Securities hereunder, or for any other reason, pay or cause to be paid to the Trustee all sums held in trust for such series by it or any paying agent hereunder as required by this Section, such sums to be held by the Trustee upon the trusts herein contained, and upon such payment by any paying agent to the Trustee, such paying agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such money.
(e) Anything in this Section to the contrary notwithstanding, the agreement to hold sums in trust as provided in this Section is subject to the provisions of Section 12.03 and Section 12.04.
SECTION 4.04. Statement as to Compliance.
The Company will deliver to the Trustee, within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Company, commencing with the fiscal year ending in the year during which the first series of Securities is issued hereunder (but in no event more than one year from the issuance of the first series hereunder), a written statement signed by the Chief Executive Officer or other principal executive officer and by the Chief Financial Officer or other principal financial officer or principal accounting officer of the Company, stating, as to each signer thereof, that:
(a) a review of the activities of the Company during such year and of performance under this Indenture has been made under his or her supervision; and
(b) to the best of his or her knowledge, based on such review, the Company has fulfilled all its obligations under this Indenture throughout such year, or, if there has been a default in the fulfillment of any such obligation, specifying each such default known to him or her and the nature and status thereof.
SECTION 4.05. Corporate Existence.
Subject to the provisions of Article 11, the Company will do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve and keep in full force and effect its corporate existence, rights (charter and statutory) and franchises and the corporate existence and rights (charter and statutory) and franchises of its Subsidiaries; provided, that the Company shall not be required to, or to cause any Subsidiary to, preserve any right or franchise or to keep in full force and effect the corporate existence of any Subsidiary if the Company shall determine that the keeping in existence or preservation thereof is no longer desirable in or consistent with the conduct of the business of the Company.
SECTION 4.06. [RESERVED]
SECTION 4.07. Waiver of Covenants.
The Company may omit in any particular instance to comply with any covenant or condition set forth herein if before or after the time for such compliance the holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of all series affected thereby then Outstanding shall either waive such compliance in such instance or generally waive compliance with such covenant or condition, but no such waiver shall extend to or affect such covenant or condition except to the extent so expressly waived, and, until such waiver shall become effective, the obligations of the Company and the duties of the Trustee in respect of any such covenant or condition shall remain in full force and effect.
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ARTICLE 5
SECURITYHOLDER LISTS AND REPORTS BY THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE
SECTION 5.01. Securityholder Lists.
The Company covenants and agrees that it will furnish or cause to be furnished to the Trustee as the Trustee may request in writing, a list, in such form and as of such date as the Trustee may reasonably require, of all information in the possession or control of the Company as to the names and addresses of the holders of Registered Securities of a particular series specified by the Trustee; provided, that if and so long as the Trustee shall be the Security Registrar with respect to such series, such list shall not be required to be furnished.
SECTION 5.02. Preservation and Disclosure of Lists.
(a) The Trustee shall preserve, in as current a form as is reasonably practicable, all information as to the names and addresses of the holders of each series of Securities contained in the most recent list furnished to it as provided in Section 5.01 or received by the Trustee in its capacity as Security Registrar. The Trustee may destroy any list furnished to it as provided in Section 5.01 upon receipt of a new list so furnished.
(b) Securityholders may communicate as provided in Section 312(b) of the Trust Indenture Act with other securityholders with respect to their rights under this Indenture or under the Securities. The Company, the Trustee, the Security Registrar and anyone else shall have the protection of Section 312(c) of the Trust Indenture Act with respect to the sending of any material pursuant to a request made pursuant to Section 312(b) of the Trust Indenture Act.
SECTION 5.03. Reports by the Company.
The Company covenants so long as Securities are Outstanding:
(a) to file with the Trustee, within 15 days after the Company is required to file the same with the Commission, copies of the annual reports and of the information, documents and other reports (or copies of such portions of any of the foregoing as the Commission may from time to time by rules and regulations prescribe) that the Company may be required to file with the Commission pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act; or, if the Company is not required to file information, documents or reports pursuant to either of such sections, then to file with the Trustee and the Commission, in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed from time to time by the Commission, such of the supplementary and periodic information, documents and reports that may be required pursuant to Section 13 of the Exchange Act in respect of a security listed and registered on a national securities exchange as may be prescribed from time to time in such rules and regulations;
(b) to file with the Trustee and the Commission, in accordance with the rules and regulations prescribed from time to time by the Commission, such additional information, documents and reports with respect to compliance by the Company with the conditions and covenants provided for in this Indenture as may be required from time to time by such rules and regulations; and
(c) to transmit by mail to all the holders of Registered Securities of each series, as the names and addresses of such holders appear on the registry books, within 30 days after the filing thereof with the Trustee, such summaries of any information, documents and reports required to be filed by the Company with respect to each such series pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of this Section as may be required by rules and regulations prescribed from time to time by the Commission.
SECTION 5.04. Reports by the Trustee.
(a) On or about [________________, _______], so long as any Securities are outstanding hereunder and if there has been any change in the following, the Trustee shall transmit by mail, first class postage prepared, to the securityholders, as their names appear upon the Security Register, a brief report dated as of the preceding [________________, _______], if and to the extent required under Section 313(a) of the Trust Indenture Act, detailing certain events that occurred within the previous 12 months.
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(b) The Trustee shall comply with Sections 313(b) and 313(c) of the Trust Indenture Act.
(c) A copy of each such report shall, at the time of such transmission to securityholders, be filed by the Trustee with the Company, with each stock exchange upon which any Securities are listed (if so listed) and also with the Commission. The Company agrees to notify the Trustee when any Securities become listed on any stock exchange.
ARTICLE 6
REMEDIES
SECTION 6.01. Events of Default; Acceleration of Maturity.
In case one or more of the following Events of Default with respect to a particular series shall have occurred and be continuing:
(a) default in (i) the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) any of the Securities of such series as and when the same shall become due and payable either at maturity, upon redemption, by declaration or otherwise or (ii) any payment required by any sinking or analogous fund established with respect to that series;
(b) default in the payment of any installment of interest upon any of the Securities of such series as and when the same shall become due and payable, and continuance of such default for a period of 90 days;
(c) failure on the part of the Company duly to observe or perform any other of the covenants or agreements on the part of the Company contained in the Securities or in this Indenture for a period of 90 days after the date on which written notice of such failure, requiring the Company to remedy the same, shall have been given to the Company by the Trustee, or to the Company and the Trustee by the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of that series at the time Outstanding;
(d) a court having jurisdiction in the premises shall enter a decree or order for relief in respect of the Company in an involuntary case or proceeding under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, or appointing a receiver, liquidator, assignee, custodian, trustee, sequestrator (or similar official) of the Company or for any substantial part of the Company’s property, or ordering the winding-up or liquidation of its affairs and such decree or order shall remain unstayed and in effect for a period of 60 consecutive days;
(e) the Company shall commence a voluntary case or proceeding under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, or shall consent to the entry of a decree or order for relief in an involuntary case under any such law, or shall consent to the appointment of or taking possession by a receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, custodian, sequestrator (or similar official) of the Company or for any substantial part of the Company’s property, or shall make any general assignment for the benefit of creditors; or
(f) any other Event of Default provided with respect to Securities of that series;
then, if an Event of Default described in clause (a), (b), (c) or (f) shall have occurred and be continuing, and in each and every such case, unless the principal amount of all the Securities of such series shall have already become due and payable, either the Trustee or the holders of not less than 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of that series then Outstanding hereunder, by notice in writing to the Company (and to the Trustee if given by securityholders) may declare the principal amount of all the Securities (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, such lesser amount as may be specified in the terms of such Securities) of that series to be due and payable immediately, and upon any such declaration the same shall become and shall be immediately due and payable, anything in this Indenture or in the Securities of such series contained to the contrary notwithstanding; or, if an Event of Default described in clause (d) or (e) shall have occurred and be continuing, and in each and every such case, unless the principal of all the Securities of such series shall have already become due and payable, the principal amount of all the Securities (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, such lesser amount as may be specified in the terms of such Securities) shall be automatically deemed immediately due and payable.
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SECTION 6.02. Rescission and Annulment.
The provisions in Section 6.01 are subject to the condition that if, at any time after the principal of the Securities of any one or more of all series, as the case may be, shall have been so declared due and payable, and before any judgment or decree for the payment of the moneys due shall have been obtained or entered as hereinafter provided, the Company shall pay or shall deposit with the Trustee a sum sufficient to pay all matured installments of interest upon all the Securities of such series or of all the Securities, as the case may be, and the principal of (and premium, if any, on) all Securities of such series or of all the Securities, as the case may be (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, such lesser amount as may be specified in the terms of such Securities), which shall have become due otherwise than by acceleration (with interest upon such principal and premium, if any) and, to the extent that payment of such interest is enforceable under applicable law, on overdue installments of interest, at the same rate as the rate of interest specified in the Securities of such series or all Securities, as the case may be (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, at the rate specified in the terms of such Securities for interest on overdue principal thereof upon maturity, redemption or acceleration of such series, as the case may be), to the date of such payment or deposit, and such amount as shall be sufficient to cover reasonable compensation to the Trustee, its agents, attorneys and counsel, and all other expenses and liabilities incurred, and all advances made, by the Trustee except as a result of its negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct, and any and all defaults under the Indenture, other than the non-payment of the principal of Securities that has become due by acceleration, shall have been remedied; then and in every such case the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of such series (or of all the Securities, as the case may be) then Outstanding, by written notice to the Company and to the Trustee, may waive all defaults with respect to that series or with respect to all Securities, as the case may be in such case, treated as a single class and rescind and annul such declaration and its consequences; but no such waiver or rescission and annulment shall extend to or shall affect any subsequent default or shall impair any right consequent thereon.
In case the Trustee shall have proceeded to enforce any right under this Indenture and such proceedings shall have been discontinued or abandoned because of such rescission and annulment or for any other reason or shall have been determined adversely to the Trustee, then and in every such case the Company, the Trustee and the securityholders, as the case may be, shall be restored respectively to their former positions and rights hereunder, and all rights, remedies and powers of the Company, the Trustee and the securityholders, as the case may be, shall continue as though no such proceedings had been taken.
SECTION 6.03. Collection of Indebtedness and Suits for Enforcement by Trustee.
The Company covenants that if:
(a) default is made in the payment of any installment of interest on any Security when such interest becomes due and payable and such default continues for a period of 90 days,
(b) default is made in the payment of the principal or premium, if any, of any Security at the maturity thereof, including any maturity occurring by reason of a call for redemption or otherwise, or
(c) default is made in the deposit of any sinking fund payment when and as due by the terms of a Security,
the Company will, upon demand of the Trustee, pay to it, for the benefit of the holders of such Securities and any coupons appertaining thereto, the whole amount that shall have become due and payable on such Securities and coupons for principal or premium, if any, and interest, with interest upon the overdue principal and, to the extent that payment of such interest shall be legally enforceable, upon overdue installments of interest, at the rate borne by such Securities; and, in addition thereto, such further amount as shall be sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of collection, including the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel.
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If the Company fails to pay such amounts forthwith upon such demand, the Trustee, in its own name and as trustee of an express trust, may institute a judicial proceeding for the collection of the sums so due and unpaid, and may prosecute such proceedings to judgment or final decree, and may enforce the same against the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities and collect the moneys adjudged or decreed to be payable in the manner provided by law out of the property of the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities, wherever situated.
If an Event of Default occurs and is continuing, the Trustee may in its discretion proceed to protect and enforce its rights and the rights of the securityholders by such appropriate judicial proceedings as the Trustee shall deem most effectual to protect and enforce any such rights, whether for the specific enforcement of any covenant or agreement in this Indenture or in aid of the exercise of any power granted herein, or to enforce any other proper remedy.
SECTION 6.04. Trustee May File Proofs of Claim.
In the case of the pendency of a receivership, insolvency, liquidation, bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, adjustment, composition or other judicial proceeding relative to the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities or the property of the Company or such other obligor or their creditors, the Trustee (irrespective of whether the principal of the Securities shall then be due and payable as therein expressed or by declaration or otherwise and irrespective of whether the Trustee shall have made any demand on the Company for the payment of overdue principal or interest) shall be entitled and empowered, by intervention in such proceeding or otherwise:
(a) to file and prove a claim for the whole amount of principal and premium, if any, and any interest owing and unpaid in respect of the Securities and to file such other papers or documents as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Trustee (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel) and of the holders of Securities and coupons allowed in such judicial proceeding; and
(b) to collect and receive any moneys or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims and to distribute the same;
and any receiver, assignee, trustee, liquidator or sequestrator (or other similar official) in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each holder of Securities and coupons to make such payments to the Trustee, and in the event that the Trustee shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the holders of Securities and coupons, to pay to the Trustee any amount due to it for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Trustee under Section 7.06. To the extent that such payment of reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements, advances and other amounts out of the estate in any such proceedings shall be denied for any reason, payment of the same shall be secured by a lien on, and shall be paid out of, any and all distributions, dividends, moneys, securities and other property which the holders of the Securities and coupons may be entitled to receive in such proceedings, whether in liquidation or under any plan or reorganization or arrangements or otherwise.
Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to authorize the Trustee to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of the holder of a Security or a coupon any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Securities or coupons or the rights of any holder thereof, or to authorize the Trustee to vote in respect of the claim of any holder of a Security or a coupon in any such proceeding.
SECTION 6.05. Trustee May Enforce Claims Without Possession of Securities or Coupons.
All rights of action and claims under this Indenture or the Securities or coupons may be prosecuted and enforced by the Trustee without the possession of any of the Securities or coupons or the production thereof in any proceeding relating thereto, and any such proceeding instituted by the Trustee shall be brought in its own name as trustee of an express trust, and any recovery of judgment shall, after provision for the payment of the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, be for the ratable benefit of the Securities and coupons in respect of which such judgment has been recovered.
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SECTION 6.06. Application of Money Collected.
Any money collected by the Trustee pursuant to this Article shall be applied in the following order, at the date or dates fixed by the Trustee and, in case of the distribution of such money on account of principal or premium, if any, or any interest, upon presentation of the Securities or coupons, or both, as the case may be, and the notation thereon of the payment if only partially paid and upon surrender thereof if fully paid:
FIRST: To the payment of all amounts due the Trustee under Section 7.06;
SECOND: To the payment of all senior Indebtedness of the Company if and to the extent required by Article 16;
THIRD: To the payment of the amounts then due and unpaid upon the Securities for principal of and premium, if any, and any interest on the Securities and coupons, in respect of which or for the benefit of which such money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the amounts due and payable on such Securities and coupons, for principal and any interest, respectively; and
FOURTH: To the Company or its successors or assigns, or to whomsoever may be lawfully entitled to receive the same.
SECTION 6.07. Limitation on Suits.
No Holder of any Security of any series or any related coupons shall have any right to institute any proceeding, judicial or otherwise, with respect to this Indenture, or for the appointment of a receiver or trustee, or for any other remedy hereunder, unless:
(1) such Holder has previously given written notice to the Trustee of a continuing Event of Default;
(2) the Holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series shall have made written request to the Trustee to institute proceedings in respect of such Event of Default in its own name as Trustee hereunder;
(3) such Holder or Holders have offered to the Trustee reasonable indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities to be incurred in compliance with such request;
(4) the Trustee for 60 days after its receipt of such notice, request and offer of indemnity has failed to institute any such proceedings; and
(5) no direction inconsistent with such written request has been given to the Trustee during such 60-day period by the Holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Outstanding Securities;
it being understood and intended that no one or more such holders of Securities shall have any right in any manner whatever by virtue of, or by availing of, any provision of this Indenture to affect, disturb or prejudice the rights of any other of such holders of Securities or to obtain or to seek to obtain priority or preference over any other of such holders or to enforce any right under this Indenture, except in the manner herein provided and for the equal and ratable benefit of all such holders of Securities.
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SECTION 6.08. Unconditional Right of Securityholders to Receive Principal and Interest.
Notwithstanding any other provision in this Indenture, the Holder of any Security or coupon shall have the right, which is absolute and unconditional, to receive payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and (subject to Section 2.05 and Section 3.02) any interest on such Security or payment of such coupon on the respective stated maturities expressed in such Security or coupon (or, in the case of redemption, on the redemption date) and to institute suit for the enforcement of any such payment, and such right shall not be impaired without the consent of such holder.
SECTION 6.09. Restoration of Rights and Remedies.
If the Trustee or any Holder of a Security or coupon has instituted any proceeding to enforce any right or remedy under this Indenture and such proceeding has been discontinued or abandoned for any reason, or has been determined adversely to the Trustee or to such holder, then and in every such case the Company, the Trustee and the holders of Securities and coupons shall, subject to any determination in such proceeding, be restored severally and respectively to their former positions hereunder, and thereafter all rights and remedies of the Trustee and the Holders shall continue as though no such proceeding has been instituted.
SECTION 6.10. Rights and Remedies Cumulative.
Except as provided in Section 2.09, no right or remedy herein conferred upon or reserved to the Trustee or to the holders of Securities or coupons is intended to be exclusive of any other right or remedy, and every right and remedy shall, to the extent permitted by law, be cumulative and in addition to every other right and remedy given hereunder or now or hereafter existing at law or in equity or otherwise. The assertion or employment of any right or remedy hereunder or otherwise, shall not prevent the concurrent assertion or employment of any other appropriate right or remedy.
SECTION 6.11. Delay or Omission Not Waiver.
No delay or omission of the Trustee or of any Holder of any Security or coupon to exercise any right or remedy accruing upon any Default shall impair any such right or remedy or constitute a waiver of any such Default or any acquiescence therein. Every right and remedy given by this Article or by law to the Trustee or to the holders of Securities or coupons may be exercised from time to time, and as often as may be deemed expedient, by the Trustee or by the holders of Securities or coupons, as the case may be.
SECTION 6.12. Control by Securityholders.
The Holders of a majority in principal amount of Outstanding Securities of each series shall have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee or exercising any trust or power conferred on the Trustee, provided that:
(1) such direction shall not be in conflict with any statute, rule of law or with this Indenture;
(2) the Trustee may take any other action deemed proper by the Trustee which is not inconsistent with such direction; and
(3) the Trustee need not take any action which it in good faith determines might involve it in personal liability or be unjustly prejudicial to the securityholders not consenting.
Upon receipt by the Trustee of any such direction with respect to Securities of a series all or part of which is represented by a temporary Global Security or a permanent Global Security, the Trustee shall establish a record date for determining holders of Outstanding Securities of such series entitled to join in such direction, which record date shall be at the close of business on the day the Trustee receives such direction. The holders on such record date, or their duly designated proxies, and only such persons, shall be entitled to join in such direction, whether or not such holders remain holders after such record date; provided that, unless such majority in principal amount shall have been obtained prior to the day which is 90 days after such record date, such direction shall automatically and without further action by any holder be cancelled and of no further effect. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a holder, or a proxy of a holder, from giving, after expiration of such 90-day period, a new direction identical to a direction which has been cancelled pursuant to the proviso to the preceding sentence, in which event a new record date shall be established pursuant to the provisions of this Section 6.12.
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SECTION 6.13. Waiver of Past Defaults.
The Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of each series at the time Outstanding may, on behalf of the Holders of all the Securities of that series and any coupons appertaining thereto, waive any past default hereunder and its consequences, except a default:
(1) in the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, or any interest on any Security;
(2) described in clauses (d) or (e) of Section 6.01; or
(3) in respect of a covenant or provision hereof that pursuant to Article 10 cannot be modified or amended without the consent of the Holder of each Outstanding Security affected.
Upon any such waiver, such default shall cease to exist, and any Default or Event of Default arising therefrom shall be deemed to have been cured, for every purpose of this Indenture, but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other default or impair any right consequent thereon.
SECTION 6.14. Undertaking for Costs.
All parties to this Indenture agree, and each Holder of any Security or coupon by his or her acceptance thereof shall be deemed to have agreed, that any court may in its discretion require, in any suit for the enforcement of any right or remedy under this Indenture, or in any suit against the Trustee for any action taken, suffered or omitted by it as Trustee, the filing by any party litigant in such suit of an undertaking to pay the costs of such suit, and that such court may in its discretion assess reasonable costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, against any party litigant in such suit, having due regard to the merits and good faith of the claims or defenses made by such party litigant; but the provisions of this Section shall not apply to any suit instituted by the Trustee, to any suit instituted by any Holder, or group of Holders, holding in the aggregate more than 10% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of any series, or to any suit instituted by any holder of any Securities or coupons for the enforcement of the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, or any interest on any Security or the payment of any coupon on or after the respective stated maturities expressed in such Security or coupon (or, in the case of redemption, on or after the redemption date, except, in the case of a partial redemption, with respect to the portion not so redeemed).
SECTION 6.15. Waiver of Stay or Extension Laws.
The Company covenants (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) that it will not at any time insist upon, or plead, or in any manner whatsoever claim or take the benefit or advantage of, any stay or extension laws wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, which may affect the covenants or the performance of this Indenture; and the Company (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) hereby expressly waives all benefits or advantage of any such law, and covenants that it will not hinder, delay or impede the execution of any power herein granted to the Trustee, but will suffer and permit the execution of every such power as though no such law had been enacted.
ARTICLE 7
CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE
SECTION 7.01. Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee.
(a) The Trustee, prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default of a particular series and after the curing of all Events of Default of such series which may have occurred, undertakes to perform such duties and only such duties with respect to such series as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee. In the absence of bad faith on the part of the Trustee, the Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon any certificates or opinions furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture; but in the case of any such certificates or opinions which by any provision hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not they conform to the requirements of this Indenture.
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(b) In case an Event of Default with respect to a particular series has occurred (which has not been cured), the Trustee shall exercise with respect to such series such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture, and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent man would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of his own affairs.
(c) No provisions of this Indenture shall be construed to relieve the Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct, except that:
(1) prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to a particular series and after the curing of all Events of Default with respect to such series which may have occurred, the duties and obligations of the Trustee with respect to such series shall be determined solely by the express provisions of this Indenture, and the Trustee shall not be liable except for the performance of such duties and obligations as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee;
(2) the Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer or Responsible Officers, unless it shall be proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts; and
(3) the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith in accordance with the direction of the holders of Securities pursuant to Section 6.12 relating to the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Trustee, under this Indenture.
(d) No provision of this Indenture shall be construed as requiring the Trustee to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise to incur any personal financial liability in the performance of any of its duties hereunder, or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers, if it shall have reasonable grounds for believing that repayment of such funds or adequate indemnity against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it.
SECTION 7.02. Reliance on Documents, Opinions, etc.
Subject to the provisions of Section 7.01:
(a) the Trustee may rely and shall be protected in acting or refraining from acting upon any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, coupon or other paper or document believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper party or parties;
(b) any request, direction, order or demand of the Company mentioned herein shall be sufficiently evidenced by a Company Request or Company Order (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed); and any Board Resolution may be evidenced to the Trustee by a copy thereof certified by an Officer of the Company; and whenever in the administration of this Indenture the Trustee shall deem it desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking, suffering or omitting any action hereunder, the Trustee (unless other evidence be herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of bad faith on its part, rely upon an Officer’s Certificate;
(c) the Trustee may consult with counsel and the written advice of such counsel and any Opinion of Counsel shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by it hereunder in good faith and in reliance thereon;
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(d) the Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Indenture at the request, order or direction of any of the holders of any Securities or any related coupons pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture, unless such holders shall have offered to the Trustee security or indemnity reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee against the losses, costs, expenses and liabilities which might be incurred therein or thereby;
(e) the Trustee shall not be bound to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, coupon or other paper or documents, but the Trustee, in its discretion, may make such further inquiry or investigation into such facts or matters as it may see fit, and, if the Trustee shall determine to make such further inquiry or investigation, it shall be entitled to examine the books, records and premises of the Company, personally or by agent or attorney;
(f) the Trustee may execute any of the trusts or powers hereunder or perform any duties hereunder either directly or by or through agents or attorneys and the Trustee shall not be responsible for any misconduct or negligence on the part of any agent or attorney appointed with due care by it hereunder;
(g) the Trustee shall not be liable for any action taken, suffered or omitted to be taken by it in good faith and believed by it to be authorized or within the discretion or rights or powers conferred upon it by this Indenture;
(h) in no event shall the Trustee be liable to any person for special, punitive, indirect, consequential or incidental loss or damage of any kind whatsoever (including but not limited to lost profits), even if the Trustee has been advised of the likelihood of such loss or damage and regardless of the form of action; and
(i) the Trustee shall not be required to give any bond or surety in respect of the execution of the trusts and powers or otherwise in respect of the Indenture.
SECTION 7.03. No Responsibility for Recitals, etc.
The recitals contained herein and in the Securities, other than the Trustee’s certificate of authentication, and in any coupons shall be taken as the statements of the Company, and the Trustee assumes no responsibility for the correctness of the same. The Trustee makes no representations as to the validity or sufficiency of this Indenture or of the Securities or coupons, provided that the Trustee shall not be relieved of its duty to authenticate Securities only as authorized by this Indenture. The Trustee shall not be accountable for the use or application by the Company of Securities or the proceeds thereof.
SECTION 7.04. Ownership of Securities.
The Trustee, any authenticating agent, any paying agent, any Security Registrar or any other agent of the Company or of the Trustee, in its individual or any other capacity, may become the owner or pledgee of Securities and coupons with the same rights it would have if it were not Trustee, authenticating agent, paying agent, Security Registrar or such other agent of the Company or of the Trustee.
SECTION 7.05. Moneys to be Held in Trust.
Subject to the provisions of Section 12.04 hereof, all moneys received by the Trustee or any paying agent shall, until used or applied as herein provided, be held in trust for the purposes for which they were received, but need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law. Neither the Trustee nor any paying agent shall be under any liability for interest on any moneys received by it hereunder except such as it may agree in writing with the Company to pay thereon.
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SECTION 7.06. Compensation and Expenses of Trustee.
The Company covenants and agrees to pay to the Trustee from time to time, and the Trustee shall be entitled to, such compensation for all services rendered by it hereunder as the Company and the Trustee shall from time to time agree in writing (which to the extent permitted by law shall not be limited by any provision of law in regard to the compensation of a trustee of an express trust), and, except as otherwise expressly provided, the Company will pay or reimburse the Trustee forthwith upon its request for all reasonable expenses, disbursements and advances incurred or made by the Trustee in accordance with any of the provisions of this Indenture (including the reasonable compensation and the expenses and disbursements of its counsel and of all persons not regularly in its employ) except any such expense, disbursement or advance as may arise from its negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct. If any property other than cash shall at any time be subject to the lien of this Indenture, the Trustee, if and to the extent authorized by a receivership or bankruptcy court of competent jurisdiction or by the supplemental instrument subjecting such property to such lien, shall be entitled to make and to be reimbursed for, advances for the purpose of preserving such property or of discharging tax liens or other prior liens or encumbrances thereon. The Company also covenants to indemnify the Trustee for, and to hold it harmless against, any and all loss, damage, claims, liability or expense, including taxes (other than taxes based upon, measured or determined by, the income of the Trustee) incurred without negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee, arising out of or in connection with the acceptance or administration of this trust, including the costs and expenses of defending itself against any claim of liability and enforcing the provisions of this Section 7.06. The obligations of the Company under this Section shall constitute additional indebtedness hereunder. Such additional indebtedness shall be secured by a lien prior to that of the Securities upon all property and funds held or collected by the Trustee as such, except funds held in trust for the benefit of the holders of particular Securities.
To secure the Company’s obligations under this Section, the Trustee shall have a senior claim to which the Securities are hereby made subordinate on all money or property held or collected by the Trustee, except that held in trust to pay principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on particular Securities.
When the Trustee incurs expenses or renders services after an Event of Default, the expenses and the compensation for the services are intended to constitute expenses of administration under any bankruptcy law.
The Company’s obligations under this Section 7.06 shall survive satisfaction and discharge of the Indenture, payment of the Securities and any resignation or removal of the Trustee hereunder.
SECTION 7.07. Officer’s Certificate as Evidence.
Subject to the provisions of Section 7.01, whenever in the administration of the provisions of this Indenture the Trustee shall deem it necessary or desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking or suffering any action to be taken hereunder, such matter (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee, be deemed to be conclusively proved and established by an Officer’s Certificate delivered to the Trustee, and such certificate, in the absence of negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee, shall be full warrant to the Trustee for any action taken, suffered or omitted by it under the provisions of this Indenture upon the faith thereof.
SECTION 7.08. Disqualifications; Conflicting Interest of Trustee.
If the Trustee has or shall acquire any “conflicting interest” within the meaning of the Trust Indenture Act, the Trustee and the Company shall in all respects comply with the provisions of Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act.
SECTION 7.09. Eligibility of Trustee.
There shall at all times be a Trustee hereunder which shall be a corporation organized and doing business under the laws of the United States or of any State or Territory thereof or of the District of Columbia, which (a) is authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers, (b) is subject to supervision or examination by federal, state, territorial or District of Columbia authority, (c) shall have at all times a combined capital and surplus of not less than $50,000,000 and (d) shall not be the Company or any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Company. If such corporation publishes reports of condition at least
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annually, pursuant to law, or to the requirements of the aforesaid supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section, the combined capital and surplus of such corporation at any time shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. In case at any time the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the Trustee shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in Section 7.10.
SECTION 7.10. Resignation or Removal of Trustee.
(a) The Trustee, or any trustee or trustees hereafter appointed, may at any time resign with respect to one or more or all series by giving written notice of resignation to the Company. Upon receiving such notice of resignation, the Company shall promptly appoint a successor trustee with respect to the applicable series by written instrument, in duplicate, executed by order of the Board of Directors, one copy of which instrument shall be delivered to the resigning Trustee and one copy to the successor trustee. If no successor trustee shall have been so appointed and have accepted appointment within 30 days after the mailing of such notice of resignation, the resigning Trustee may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor trustee. Such court may thereupon, after such notice, if any, as it may deem proper and prescribe, appoint a successor trustee.
(b) In case at any time any of the following shall occur:
(1) the Trustee shall fail to comply with the provisions of Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act, as specified in Section 7.08 with respect to any series of Securities after written request therefor by the Company or by any securityholder who has been a bona fide holder of a Security or Securities of such series for at least six months,
(2) the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of Section 7.09 with respect to any series of Securities and shall fail to resign after written request therefor by the Company or by any such securityholder, or
(3) the Trustee shall become incapable of acting with respect to any series of Securities, or shall be adjudged a bankrupt or insolvent, or a receiver of the Trustee or of its property shall be appointed, or any public officer shall take charge or control of the Trustee or of its property or affairs for the purpose of rehabilitation, conservation or liquidation, then, in any such case, the Company may remove the Trustee with respect to the applicable series of Securities and appoint a successor trustee with respect to such series by written instrument, in duplicate, executed by order of the Board of Directors, one copy of which instrument shall be delivered to the Trustee so removed and one copy to the successor trustee, or, subject to the provisions of Section 6.14, any securityholder of such series who has been a bona fide holder of a Security or Securities of the applicable series for at least six months may, on behalf of himself or herself and all others similarly situated, petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the removal of the Trustee and the appointment of a successor trustee with respect to such series. Such court may thereupon, after such notice, if any, as it may deem proper and prescribe, remove the Trustee and appoint a successor trustee.
(c) The holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of all series (voting as one class) at the time Outstanding may at any time remove the Trustee with respect to Securities of all series and appoint a successor trustee with respect to the Securities of all series.
(d) Any resignation or removal of the Trustee and any appointment of a successor trustee pursuant to any of the provisions of this Section shall become effective upon the appointment of a successor trustee and the acceptance of appointment by the successor trustee as provided in Section 7.11.
SECTION 7.11. Acceptance by Successor Trustee.
Any successor trustee appointed as provided in Section 7.10 shall execute, acknowledge and deliver to the Company and to its predecessor trustee an instrument accepting such appointment hereunder, and thereupon the resignation or removal of the predecessor trustee with respect to all or any applicable series shall become effective and such successor trustee, without any further act, deed or conveyance, shall become vested with all the rights,
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powers, duties and obligations with respect to such series of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as trustee herein; but, nevertheless, on the written request of the Company or of the successor trustee, the predecessor trustee shall, upon payment of any amounts then due it pursuant to the provisions of Section 7.06, execute and deliver an instrument transferring to such successor trustee all the rights and powers of the predecessor trustee. Upon request of any such successor trustee, the Company shall execute any and all instruments in writing in order more fully and certainly to vest in and confirm to such successor trustee all such rights and powers. Any trustee, including the initial Trustee, ceasing to act shall, nevertheless, retain a lien upon all property or funds held or collected by such trustee to secure any amounts then due it pursuant to the provisions of Section 7.06.
In case of the appointment hereunder of a successor trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more (but not all) series, the Company, the predecessor Trustee and each successor trustee with respect to the Securities of any applicable series shall execute and deliver a supplemental indenture which shall contain such provisions as shall be deemed necessary or desirable to confirm that all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the predecessor Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series as to which the predecessor Trustee is not retiring shall continue to be vested in the predecessor Trustee, and shall add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one trustee, it being understood that nothing herein or in such supplemental indenture shall constitute such trustees co-trustees of the same trust and that each such trustee shall be trustee of a trust or trusts hereunder separate and apart from any trust or trusts hereunder administered by any other such trustee.
No successor trustee shall accept appointment as provided in this Section unless at the time of such acceptance such successor trustee shall be qualified and eligible under the provisions of this Article 7.
Upon acceptance of appointment by a successor trustee as provided in this Section, the Company shall mail notice of the succession of such trustee hereunder to all holders of Securities of any applicable series as the names and addresses of such holders shall appear on the registry books. If the Company fails to mail such notice in the prescribed manner within 10 days after the acceptance of appointment by the successor trustee, the successor trustee shall cause such notice to be so mailed at the expense of the Company.
SECTION 7.12. Successor by Merger, etc.
Any corporation into which the Trustee may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which the Trustee shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to all or substantially all of the corporate trust business of the Trustee, shall be the successor of the Trustee hereunder; provided such corporation shall be qualified and eligible under the provisions of this Article 7, without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of any of the parties hereto, anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding. In case any Securities shall have been authenticated, but not delivered, by the Trustee then in office, any successor by merger, conversion or consolidation to such authenticating Trustee may adopt such authentication and deliver the Securities so authenticated with the same effect as if such successor Trustee had itself authenticated such Securities.
SECTION 7.13. Limitations on Rights of Trustee as Creditor.
The Trustee shall comply with Section 311(a) of the Trust Indenture Act, excluding any creditor relationship described in Section 311(b) of the Trust Indenture Act. A Trustee who has resigned or been removed shall be subject to Section 311(a) of the Trust Indenture Act to the extent included therein.
SECTION 7.14. Notice of Default.
Within 90 days after the occurrence of any default on a series of Securities hereunder, the Trustee shall transmit to all securityholders of that series, in the manner and to the extent provided in Section 15.04, notice of such default hereunder known to the Trustee, unless such default shall have been cured or waived; provided, that except in the case of a default in the payment of the principal of or interest on any Security or on the payment of any sinking or purchase fund installment, the Trustee shall be protected in withholding such notice if and so long as the Trustee in good faith determines that the withholding of such notice is in the interests of the securityholders; and
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provided, further, that in the case of any default of the character specified in clause (c) of Section 6.01 no such notice to securityholders shall be given until at least 30 days after the occurrence thereof. For the purpose of this Section, the term “default” means any event which is, or after notice or lapse of time or both would become, an Event of Default with respect to Securities of such series.
SECTION 7.15. Appointment of Authenticating Agent.
The Trustee may appoint an authenticating agent or agents (which may be an affiliate or affiliates of the Company) with respect to one or more series of Securities which shall be authorized to act on behalf of the Trustee to authenticate Securities of such series issued upon original issue or upon exchange, registration of transfer or partial redemption thereof or pursuant to Section 2.09, and Securities so authenticated shall be entitled to the benefits of this Indenture and shall be valid and obligatory for all purposes as if authenticated by the Trustee hereunder. Wherever reference is made in this Indenture to the authentication and delivery of Securities by the Trustee or the Trustee’s certificate of authentication, such reference shall be deemed to include authentication and delivery on behalf of the Trustee by an authenticating agent and a certificate of authentication executed on behalf of the Trustee by an authenticating agent. Each authenticating agent shall be acceptable to the Company and shall at all times be a corporation organized and doing business under the laws of the United States of America or of any State or Territory thereof or of the District of Columbia, which (a) is authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers or to otherwise act as authenticating agent, (b) is subject to supervision or examination by federal, state, territorial or District of Columbia authority, and (c) shall have at all times a combined capital and surplus of not less than $50,000,000. If such authenticating agent publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or to the requirements of said supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section, the combined capital and surplus of such authenticating agent shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. If at any time an authenticating agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, such authenticating agent shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in this Section.
Any corporation into which an authenticating agent may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which such authenticating agent shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to the corporate agency or corporate trust business of such authenticating agent, shall continue to be an authenticating agent, provided such corporation shall be otherwise eligible under this Section, without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of the Trustee or such authenticating agent.
An authenticating agent may resign at any time by giving written notice thereof to the Trustee and to the Company. The Trustee may at any time terminate the agency of an authenticating agent by giving written notice thereof to such authenticating agent and to the Company. Upon receiving such a notice of resignation or upon such a termination, or in case at any time such authenticating agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the Trustee may appoint a successor authenticating agent which shall be acceptable to the Company and shall promptly give notice of such appointment to all holders of Securities in the manner and to the extent provided in Section 15.04. Any successor authenticating agent upon acceptance of its appointment hereunder shall become vested with all the rights, powers and duties of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as an authenticating agent. No successor authenticating agent shall be appointed unless eligible under the provisions of this Section.
The Company agrees to pay to each authenticating agent from time to time reasonable compensation for its services under this Section.
If an appointment with respect to one or more series is made pursuant to this Section, the Securities of such series may have endorsed thereon, in addition to the Trustee’s certificate of authentication, an alternative certificate of authentication in the following form:
This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
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| [ ], |
| as Trustee |
|
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| By: |
| Authorized Signatory |
If all of the Securities of a series may not be originally issued at one time, and the Trustee does not have an office capable of authenticating Securities upon original issuance located in a Place of Payment where the Company wishes to have Securities of such series authenticated upon original issuance, the Trustee, if so requested by the Company in writing, shall appoint in accordance with this Section an authenticating agent (which, if so requested by the Company, shall be such affiliate of the Company) having an office in a Place of Payment designated by the Company with respect to such series of Securities, provided that the terms and conditions of such appointment are acceptable to the Trustee.
ARTICLE 8
CONCERNING THE SECURITYHOLDERS
SECTION 8.01. Action by Securityholders.
Whenever in this Indenture it is provided that the Holders of a specified percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series may take any action (including the making of any demand or request, the giving of any authorization, notice, consent or waiver or the taking of any other action), the fact that at the time of taking any such action the Holders of such specified percentage have joined therein may be evidenced (a) by any instrument or any number of instruments of similar tenor executed by securityholders in person or by agent or proxy appointed in writing, (b) if Securities of a series are issuable as Bearer Securities, by the record of the holders of Securities voting in favor thereof, either in person or by proxies duly appointed in writing, at any meeting of securityholders of such series duly called and held in accordance with the provisions of Article 9, or (c) by a combination of such instrument or instruments and any such record of such a meeting of securityholders.
In determining whether the Holders of a specified percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series have taken any action (including the making of any demand or request, the giving of any authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver or the taking of any other action), (i) the principal amount of any Original Issue Discount Security that may be counted in making such determination and that shall be deemed to be outstanding for such purposes shall be equal to the amount of the principal thereof that could be declared to be due and payable upon an Event of Default pursuant to the terms of such Original Issue Discount Security at the time the taking of such of such action is evidenced to the Trustee, and (ii) the principal amount of a Security denominated in a foreign currency or currency unit shall be the U.S. dollar equivalent, determined as of the date of original issuance of such Security in accordance with Section 2.03(b) hereof, of the principal amount of such Security.
SECTION 8.02. Proof of Execution by Securityholders.
Subject to the provisions of Section 7.01, Section 7.02 and Section 9.05, proof of the execution of any instrument by a securityholder or its agent or proxy, or of the holding by any person of a Security, shall be sufficient and conclusive in favor of the Trustee and the Company if made in accordance with such reasonable rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Trustee or in such manner as shall be satisfactory to the Trustee.
The principal amount and serial numbers of Registered Securities held by any person, and the date of holding the same, shall be proved by the Security Register. The principal amount and serial numbers of Bearer Securities held by any person, and the date of holding the same, may be proved by the production of such Bearer Securities or by a certificate executed, as depositary, by any trust company, bank, banker or other depositary, wherever situated, if such certificate shall be deemed by the Trustee to be satisfactory, showing that at the date therein mentioned such person had on deposit with such depositary, or exhibited to it, the Bearer Securities therein described; or such facts may be proved by the certificate or affidavit of the person holding such Bearer Securities, if such certificate or affidavit is deemed by the Trustee to be satisfactory. The Trustee and the Company may assume that such ownership of any Bearer Security continues until (1) another certificate or affidavit bearing a later date issued in respect of the same Bearer Security is produced, (2) such Bearer Security is produced to the Trustee by some other person, (3) such Bearer Security is surrendered in exchange for a Registered Security, or (4) such Bearer Security is no longer Outstanding. The principal amount and serial numbers of Bearer Securities held by any person, and the date of holding the same, may also be provided in any other manner which the Trustee deems sufficient.
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The record of any securityholders’ meeting shall be proved in the manner provided in Section 9.06.
SECTION 8.03. Who Are Deemed Absolute Owners.
Prior to due presentment of a Registered Security for registration of transfer, the Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or of the Trustee may deem the person in whose name such Registered Security shall be registered upon the Security Register to be, and may treat him as, the absolute owner of such Registered Security (whether or not such Security shall be overdue and notwithstanding any notation of ownership or other writing thereon), for the purpose of receiving payment of or on account of the principal of (and premium, if any) and, subject to the provisions of Section 2.05, any interest on such Security and for all other purposes; and neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any agent of the Company or of the Trustee shall be affected by any notice to the contrary. All such payments so made to any holder for the time being, or upon his or her order, shall be valid and, to the extent of the sum or sums so paid, effectual to satisfy and discharge the liability for moneys payable upon any such Security.
Title to any Bearer Security and any coupons appertaining thereto shall pass by delivery. The Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or of the Trustee may treat the bearer of any Bearer Security and the bearer of any coupon as the owner of such Security or coupon for the purpose of receiving payment thereof or on account thereof and for all other purposes whatsoever, whether or not such Security or coupon be overdue, and neither the Company, the Trustee nor any agent of the Company or the Trustee shall be affected by notice to the contrary.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to any temporary or permanent Global Security, nothing herein shall prevent the Company, the Trustee, or any agent of the Company or of the Trustee, from giving effect to any written certification, proxy or other authorization furnished by a U.S. Depositary, or impair, as between a U.S. Depositary and holders of beneficial interests in any temporary or permanent Global Security, as the case may be, the operation of customary practices governing the exercise of the rights of the U.S. Depositary as holder of such temporary or permanent global Security.
SECTION 8.04. Company-Owned Securities Disregarded.
In determining whether the holders of the required aggregate principal amount of Securities have provided any request, demand, authorization, notice, direction, consent or waiver under this Indenture, Securities which are owned by the Company or any other obligor on the Securities, or by any person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with the Company or any other obligor on the Securities, shall be disregarded and deemed not to be Outstanding for the purpose of any such determination, except that for the purpose of determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in relying on any such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver, only Securities which the Trustee knows are so owned shall be so disregarded. Securities so owned which have been pledged in good faith may be regarded as Outstanding for the purposes of this Section if the pledgee shall establish to the satisfaction of the Trustee the pledgee’s right to vote such Securities and that the pledgee is not a person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with the Company or any such other obligor. In the case of a dispute as to such right, any decision by the Trustee taken upon the advice of counsel shall provide full protection to the Trustee.
SECTION 8.05. Revocation of Consents; Future Securityholders Bound.
At any time prior to the taking of any action by the holders of the percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities specified in this Indenture in connection with such action, any holder of a Security, the identifying number of which is shown by the evidence to be included in the Securities the holders of which have consented to such action, may, by filing written notice with the Trustee at its office and upon proof of holding as provided in Section 8.02, revoke such action so far as concerns such Security. Except as aforesaid any such action taken by the Holder of any Security shall be conclusive and binding upon such holder and upon all future Holders and owners of
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such Security and of any Security issued upon registration of transfer of or in exchange or substitution therefor in respect of anything done, omitted or suffered to be done by the Trustee or the Company in reliance thereon, irrespective of whether or not any notation in regard thereto is made upon such Security. Any action taken by the Holders of the percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities specified in this Indenture in connection with such action shall be conclusively binding upon the Company, the Trustee and the holders of all the Securities.
SECTION 8.06. Record Date.
The Company may, but shall not be obligated to, set a record date for purposes of determining the identity of holders of Securities of any series entitled to vote or consent to any action by vote or consent or to otherwise take any action under this Indenture authorized or permitted by Section 6.12 and Section 6.13 or otherwise under this Indenture. Such record date shall be the later of (i) the date 20 days prior to the first solicitation of such consent or vote or other action and (ii) the date of the most recent list of holders of such Securities delivered to the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee pursuant to Section 5.01 prior to such solicitation. If such a record date is fixed, those persons who were holders of such Securities at the close of business on such record date shall be entitled to vote or consent or take such other action, or to revoke any such action, whether or not such persons continue to be Holders after such record date, and for that purpose the Outstanding Securities shall be computed as of such record date.
ARTICLE 9
SECURITYHOLDERS’ MEETINGS
SECTION 9.01. Purposes of Meeting.
A meeting of Holders of any or all series of Securities may be called at any time and from time to time pursuant to the provisions of this Article for any of the following purposes:
(a) to give any notice to the Company or to the Trustee, or to give any directions to the Trustee, or to waive any default hereunder and its consequences, or to take any other action authorized to be taken by securityholders pursuant to any of the provisions of Article 6;
(b) to remove the Trustee and appoint a successor trustee pursuant to the provisions of Article 7;
(c) to consent to the execution of an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto pursuant to the provisions of Section 10.02; or
(d) to take any other action authorized to be taken by or on behalf of the Holders of any specified aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series, as the case may be, under any other provision of this Indenture or under applicable law.
SECTION 9.02. Call of Meetings by Trustee.
The Trustee may at any time call a meeting of securityholders of any or all series to take any action specified in Section 9.01, to be held at such time and at such place in New York, New York or any place in the Netherlands as the Trustee shall determine. Notice of every meeting of the securityholders of any or all series, setting forth the time and place of such meeting and in general terms the action proposed to be taken at such meeting, shall be given in the manner provided in Section 15.04 not less than 20 nor more than 180 days prior to the date fixed for the meeting.
SECTION 9.03. Call of Meetings by Company or Securityholders.
In case at any time the Company, pursuant to a Board Resolution, or the holders of at least 10% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series, as the case may be, then Outstanding, shall have requested the Trustee to call a meeting of securityholders of any or all series to take any action authorized in Section 9.01, by written request setting forth in reasonable detail the action proposed to be taken at the meeting, and the Trustee shall not have provided notice of such meeting in the manner provided in Section 15.04 within 30 days after receipt of such request, then the Company or the holders of such Securities in the amount above specified may determine the time and the place in New York, New York or any place in the Netherlands for such meeting and may call such meeting by giving notice thereof as provided in Section 9.02.
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SECTION 9.04. Qualifications for Voting.
To be entitled to vote at any meeting of securityholders a person shall be a Holder of one or more Securities of such series Outstanding with respect to which a meeting is being held or a person appointed by an instrument in writing as proxy by such a Holder or Holders. The only persons who shall be entitled to be present or to speak at any meeting of the securityholders of any series shall be the persons entitled to vote at such meeting and their counsel, any representatives of the Trustee and its counsel and any representatives of the Company and its counsel.
SECTION 9.05. Regulations.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Indenture, the Trustee may make such reasonable regulations as it may deem advisable for any meeting of securityholders of a series, in regard to proof of the holding of Securities and of the appointment of proxies, and in regard to the appointment and duties of inspectors of votes, the submission and examination of proxies, certificates and other evidence of the right to vote, and such other matters concerning the conduct of the meeting as it deems fit. Except as otherwise permitted or required by any such regulations, the holding of Securities shall be proved in the manner specified in Article 8 and the appointment of any proxy shall be proved in the manner specified in Article 8 or by having the signature of the person executing the proxy witnessed or guaranteed by any trust company, bank or banker authorized by Article 8 to certify to the holding of Bearer Securities. Such regulations may provide that written instruments appointing proxies, regular on their face, may be presumed valid and genuine without the proof specified in Article 8 or other proof.
The Trustee shall, by an instrument in writing, appoint a temporary chairman of the meeting, unless the meeting shall have been called by the Company or by securityholders as provided in Section 9.03, in which case the Company or the securityholders calling the meeting, as the case may be, shall in like manner appoint a temporary chairman. A permanent chairman and a permanent secretary of the meeting shall be elected by vote of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities represented at the meeting and entitled to vote.
Subject to the provisions of Section 8.01 and Section 8.04, at any meeting each securityholder or proxy shall be entitled to one vote for each $1,000 (or the U.S. Dollar equivalent thereof in connection with Securities issued in a foreign currency or currency unit) Outstanding principal amount of Securities of such series held or represented by him or her; provided, however, that no vote shall be cast or counted at any meeting in respect of any Security challenged as not Outstanding and ruled by the chairman of the meeting to be not Outstanding. The chairman of the meeting shall have no right to vote except as a securityholder or proxy. Any meeting of securityholders duly called pursuant to the provisions of Section 9.02 or Section 9.03 may be adjourned from time to time, and the meeting may be reconvened without further notice.
SECTION 9.06. Voting.
The vote upon any resolution submitted to any meeting of securityholders shall be by written ballot on which shall be subscribed the signatures of the securityholders or proxies and on which shall be inscribed the identifying number or numbers or to which shall be attached a list of identifying numbers of the Securities held or represented by them. The chairman of the meeting shall appoint two inspectors of votes who shall count all votes cast at the meeting for or against any resolution and who shall make and file with the secretary of the meeting their verified written reports in duplicate of all votes cast at the meeting. A record in duplicate of the proceedings of each meeting of securityholders shall be prepared by the secretary of the meeting and there shall be attached to the record the original reports of the inspectors of votes on any vote by ballot taken thereat and affidavits by one or more persons having knowledge of the facts setting forth a copy of the notice of the meeting and showing that the notice was mailed as provided in Section 9.02. The record shall be signed and verified by the chairman and secretary of the meeting and one of the duplicates shall be delivered to the Company and the other to the Trustee to be preserved by the Trustee, the latter to have attached thereto the ballots voted at the meeting.
Any record so signed and verified shall be conclusive evidence of the matters therein stated.
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ARTICLE 10
SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES
SECTION 10.01. Supplemental Indentures without Consent of Securityholders.
Without the consent of any holders of Securities or coupons, the Company, when authorized by or pursuant to Board Resolution, and the Trustee may from time to time and at any time enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto (which shall conform to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act as in force at the date of the execution thereof) for one or more of the following purposes:
(a) to evidence the succession of another corporation to the Company, or successive successions, pursuant to Article 11 hereof, and the assumption by the successor corporation of the covenants, agreements and obligations of the Company herein and in the Securities;
(b) to add to the covenants of the Company such further covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions as its Board of Directors shall consider to be for the protection of the holders of Securities, and to make the occurrence, or the occurrence and continuance, of a default in any of such additional covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions an Event of Default permitting the enforcement of all or any of the several remedies provided in this Indenture as herein set forth, with such period of grace, if any, and subject to such conditions as such supplemental indenture may provide;
(c) to add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture to provide that Bearer Securities may be registrable as to principal, to change or eliminate any restrictions on the payment of principal of or any premium or interest on Bearer Securities, to permit Bearer Securities to be issued in exchange for Registered Securities, to permit Bearer Securities to be issued in exchange for Bearer Securities of other authorized denominations or to permit or facilitate the issuance of Securities in uncertificated form, provided that any such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the holders of Securities of any series or any related coupons in any material respect;
(d) to modify, eliminate or add to the provisions of this Indenture to such extent as shall be necessary to effect the qualification of this Indenture under the Trust Indenture Act, or under any similar federal statute hereafter enacted, and to add to this Indenture such other provisions as may be expressly permitted by the Trust Indenture Act, excluding however, the provisions referred to in Section 316(a)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act or any corresponding provision in any similar federal statute hereafter enacted;
(e) to modify, eliminate or add to any of the provisions of this Indenture, provided that any such change or elimination (i) shall become effective only when there is no Security of any series Outstanding and created prior to the execution of such supplemental indenture that is entitled to the benefit of such provision or (ii) shall not apply to any Security Outstanding;
(f) to cure any ambiguity or to correct or supplement any provision contained herein or in any supplemental indenture which may be defective or inconsistent with any other provisions contained herein or in any supplemental indenture; to convey, transfer, assign, mortgage or pledge any property to or with the Trustee; or to make such other provisions in regard to matters or questions arising under this Indenture, provided such other provisions shall not adversely affect in any material respect the interests of the holders of the Securities or any related coupons, including provisions necessary or desirable to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder;
(g) to secure any series of Security; and
(h) to evidence and provide for the acceptance and appointment hereunder by a successor trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more series and to add or change any provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one trustee, pursuant to Section 7.11.
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The Trustee is hereby authorized to join with the Company in the execution of any such supplemental indenture, to make any further appropriate agreements and stipulations which may be therein contained and to accept the conveyance, transfer, assignment, mortgage or pledge of any property thereunder, but the Trustee shall not be obligated to enter into any such supplemental indenture which adversely affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise. No supplemental indenture shall be effective as against the Trustee unless and until the Trustee has duly executed and delivered the same.
SECTION 10.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Holders.
With the consent (evidenced as provided in Section 8.01) of the holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of all series at the time Outstanding affected by such supplemental indenture (voting as one class), the Company, when authorized by a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may from time to time and at any time enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto (which shall conform to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act as in force at the date of the execution thereof) for the purpose of adding any provisions to or changing in any manner or eliminating any of the provisions of this Indenture or of any supplemental indenture or of modifying in any manner the rights of the holders of the Securities of such series and any related coupons under this Indenture; provided, that no such supplemental indenture shall (1) extend the fixed maturity of any Securities, or reduce the principal amount thereof or premium, if any, or reduce the rate or extend the time of payment of interest thereon, without the consent of the holder of each Security so affected, (2) reduce the aforesaid percentage of Securities, the consent of the holders of which is required for any such supplemental indenture, without the consent of the holders of all Securities then Outstanding, (3) modify the subordination provisions in a manner adverse to the holders of such Securities, or (4) modify any of the above provisions.
Upon the request of the Company, accompanied by a copy of a Board Resolution certified by and Officer the Company authorizing the execution of any such supplemental indenture, and upon the filing with the Trustee of evidence of the consent of securityholders as aforesaid, the Trustee shall join with the Company in the execution of such supplemental indenture unless such supplemental indenture affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise, in which case the Trustee may in its discretion, but shall not be obligated to, enter into such supplemental indenture.
It shall not be necessary for the consent of the securityholders under this Section to approve the particular form of any proposed supplemental indenture, but it shall be sufficient if such consent shall approve the substance thereof.
Promptly after the execution by the Company and the Trustee of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10, the Company shall provide notice, in the manner and to the extent provided in Section 15.04, setting forth in general terms the substance of such supplemental indenture, to all holders of Securities of each series so affected. Any failure of the Company so to provide such notice, or any defect therein, shall not, however, in any way impair or affect the validity of any such supplemental indenture.
SECTION 10.03. Compliance with Trust Indenture Act; Effect of Supplemental Indentures.
Any supplemental indenture executed pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10 shall comply with the Trust Indenture Act, as then in effect. Upon the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10 and subject to the provisions in any supplemental indenture relating to the prospective application of such instrument, this Indenture shall be and be deemed to be modified and amended in accordance therewith and the respective rights, limitations of rights, obligations, duties and immunities under this Indenture of the Trustee, the Company and the holders of Securities theretofore or thereafter authenticated and delivered hereunder and of any coupons appertaining thereto shall thereafter be determined, exercised and enforced hereunder subject in all respects to such modifications and amendments, and all the terms and conditions of any such supplemental indenture shall be and be deemed to be part of the terms and conditions of this Indenture for any and all purposes.
The Trustee, subject to the provisions of Section 7.01 and Section 7.02, shall be entitled to receive and shall be fully protected in relying upon an Officer’s Certificate or an Opinion of Counsel as conclusive evidence that any such supplemental indenture complies with the provisions of this Article 10.
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SECTION 10.04. Notation on Securities.
Securities of any series authenticated and delivered after the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10 may bear a notation in form approved by the Trustee as to any matter provided for in such supplemental indenture. New Securities of any series so modified as to conform, in the opinion of the Trustee and the Board of Directors, to any modification of this Indenture contained in any such supplemental indenture may be prepared by the Company, authenticated by the Trustee and delivered, without charge to the securityholders, in exchange for the Securities of such series then Outstanding.
ARTICLE 11
CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE OR CONVEYANCE
SECTION 11.01. Company May Consolidate, etc., on Certain Terms.
The Company covenants that it will not merge into or consolidate with any other corporation or sell or convey all or substantially all of its assets to any person, firm or corporation, unless (1) either the Company shall be the continuing corporation, or the successor corporation (if other than the Company) shall be a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the Netherlands, the United States of America or a state thereof or the District of Columbia and such corporation shall expressly assume the due and punctual payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on all the Securities, according to their tenor, and the due and punctual performance and observance of all of the covenants and conditions of this Indenture to be performed by the Company by supplemental indenture, executed and delivered to the Trustee by such corporation, and (2) the Company or such successor corporation, as the case may be, shall not, immediately after such merger or consolidation, or such sale or conveyance, be in default in the performance of any such covenant or condition.
SECTION 11.02. Successor Corporation Substituted.
In case of any such consolidation, merger, sale or conveyance and upon any such assumption by the successor corporation, such successor corporation shall succeed to and be substituted for, and may exercise every right and power of, the Company, with the same effect as if it had been named herein as the party of the first part. Such successor corporation thereupon may cause to be signed, and may issue either in its own name or in the name of the Company, any or all of the Securities issuable hereunder which theretofore shall not have been signed by the Company and delivered to the Trustee; and, upon the order of such successor corporation, instead of the Company, and subject to all the terms, conditions and limitations in this Indenture prescribed, the Trustee shall authenticate and shall make available for delivery any Securities which previously shall have been signed and delivered by the officers of the Company to the Trustee for authentication, and any Securities which such successor corporation thereafter shall cause to be signed and delivered to the Trustee for that purpose. All of the Securities so issued shall in all respects have the same legal rank and benefit under this Indenture as the Securities theretofore or thereafter issued in accordance with the terms of this Indenture as though all of such Securities had been issued at the date of the execution thereof.
In case of any such consolidation, merger, sale or conveyance such changes in phrasing and form (but not in substance) may be made in the Securities thereafter to be issued as may be appropriate.
SECTION 11.03. Opinion of Counsel and Officer’s Certificate to Trustee.
The Trustee shall receive an Opinion of Counsel and Officer’s Certificate as conclusive evidence that any such consolidation, merger, sale or conveyance, and any such assumption, complies with the provisions of this Article 11 and that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to such transaction have been complied with.
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ARTICLE 12
SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; UNCLAIMED MONEYS
SECTION 12.01. Discharge of Indenture.
If at any time:
(a) the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee for cancellation all Securities of any series theretofore authenticated and all coupons, if any, appertaining thereto (other than (i) coupons appertaining to Bearer Securities surrendered for exchange for Registered Securities and maturing after such exchange, whose surrender is not required or has been waived as provided in Section 2.07, (ii) Securities and coupons that have been destroyed, lost or stolen and that have been replaced or paid as provided in Section 2.09, (iii) coupons appertaining to Securities called for redemption and maturing after the relevant redemption date, whose surrender has been waived as provided in Section 3.03, and (iv) Securities and coupons for whose payment money has theretofore been deposited in trust or segregated and held in trust by the Company and thereafter repaid to the Company or discharged from such trust, as provided in Section 4.03), or
(b) all such Securities of such series and, in the case of (a)(i) or (a)(ii) above, any coupons appertaining thereto not theretofore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation (i) shall have become due and payable, (ii) are by their terms to become due and payable within one year, or (iii) are to be called for redemption within one year under arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the giving of notice of redemption, and the Company in the case of (a)(i) or (a)(iii) above shall deposit or cause to be deposited with the Trustee as trust funds the entire amount (other than moneys repaid by the Trustee or any paying agent to the Company in accordance with Section 12.04) sufficient to pay at maturity or upon redemption all Securities of such series and coupons not therefore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation, including principal (and premium, if any) and any interest due or to become due to such date of maturity or date fixed for redemption, as the case may be, and if in either case the Company shall also pay or cause to be paid all other sums payable hereunder by the Company with respect to such series, then this Indenture shall cease to be of further effect with respect to the Securities of such series, and the Trustee, on demand of and at the cost and expense of the Company and subject to Section 15.05, shall execute such instruments reasonably requested by the Company acknowledging satisfaction of and discharging this Indenture with respect to the Securities of such series. The Company agrees to reimburse the Trustee for any costs or expenses thereafter reasonably incurred by the Trustee in connection with this Indenture or the Securities of such series. Notwithstanding the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture with respect to the Securities of any series or of all series, the obligations of the Company to the Trustee under Section 7.06 shall survive.
The Company will deliver to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel which together shall state that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture have been complied with.
SECTION 12.02. Deposited Moneys to be Held in Trust by Trustee.
Subject to the provisions of Section 12.03 and 12.04, all moneys deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 12.01 shall be held in trust and applied by it to the payment, either directly or through any paying agent (including the Company acting as its own paying agent), to the persons entitled thereto, of all sums due and to become due thereon for principal and interest (and premium, if any) for which payment of such money has been deposited with the Trustee.
SECTION 12.03. Paying Agent to Repay Moneys Held.
In connection with the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture with respect to Securities of any series and the payment of all amounts due to the Trustee under Section 7.06, all moneys with respect to such Securities then held by any paying agent under the provisions of this Indenture shall, upon demand of the Company, be repaid to it or paid to the Trustee and thereupon such paying agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such moneys.
SECTION 12.04. Return of Unclaimed Moneys.
Any moneys deposited with or paid to the Trustee or any paying agent for the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) or interest on any Security and not applied but remaining unclaimed for two years after the date upon which such principal (and premium, if any, on) or interest shall have become due and payable, shall be repaid to the Company by the Trustee or such paying agent on demand, and the holder of such Security shall thereafter, as an unsecured general creditor, look only to the Company for any payment which such holder may be entitled to collect and all liability of the Trustee or any paying agent with respect to such moneys shall thereupon cease.
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ARTICLE 13
IMMUNITY OF INCORPORATORS, STOCKHOLDERS, OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
SECTION 13.01. Indenture and Securities Solely Corporate Obligations.
No recourse under or upon any obligation, covenant or agreement contained in this Indenture, or in any Security or coupon, or because of any indebtedness evidenced thereby, shall be had against any incorporator, or against any past, present or future stockholder, officer or director, as such, of the Company or of any successor corporation, either directly or through the Company or any successor corporation, under any rule of law, statute or constitutional provision or by the enforcement of any assessment or by any legal or equitable proceeding or otherwise, all such liability being expressly waived and released by the acceptance of the Securities or coupons by the holders thereof and as part of the consideration for the issue of the Securities.
ARTICLE 14
DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE
SECTION 14.01. Applicability of Article.
Unless, as specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b), provision is made that either or both of (a) defeasance of the Securities of a series under Section 14.02 and (b) covenant defeasance of the Securities of a series under Section 14.03 shall not apply to the Securities of a series, then the provisions of such Section 14.02 and Section 14.03, together with Section 14.04 and Section 14.05, shall be applicable to the Outstanding Securities of all series upon compliance with the conditions set forth below in this Article 14.
SECTION 14.02. Defeasance and Discharge.
Subject to Section 14.05, the Company may cause itself to be discharged from its obligations with respect to the Outstanding Securities of any series on and after the date the conditions precedent set forth below are satisfied but subject to satisfaction of the conditions subsequent set forth below (hereinafter, “defeasance”). For this purpose, such defeasance means that the Company shall be deemed to have paid and discharged the entire indebtedness represented by the Outstanding Securities of such series and to have satisfied all its other obligations under such Securities and this Indenture insofar as such Securities are concerned (and the Trustee, at the expense of the Company, shall execute such instruments reasonably requested by the Company acknowledging the same), except for the following which shall survive until otherwise terminated or discharged hereunder: (a) the rights of holders of Outstanding Securities of such series to receive, solely from the trust fund described in Section 14.04 and as more fully set forth in such Section, payments of the principal of and any premium and interest on such Securities when such payments are due, (b) the Company’s obligations with respect to such Securities under Section 2.07, Section 2.08, Section 2.09, Section 4.02 and Section 4.03 and such obligations as shall be ancillary thereto, (c) the rights, powers, trusts, duties, immunities and other provisions in respect of the Trustee hereunder, and (d) this Article 14. Subject to compliance with this Article 14, defeasance with respect to Securities of a series by the Company is permitted under this Section 14.02 notwithstanding the prior exercise of its rights under Section 14.03 with respect to the Securities of such series. Following a defeasance, payment of the Securities of such series may not be accelerated because of an Event of Default.
SECTION 14.03. Covenant Defeasance.
The Company may cause itself to be released from its obligations under any Sections applicable to Securities of a series that are determined pursuant to Section 2.03(b) to be subject to this provision with respect to the Outstanding Securities of such series on and after the date the conditions precedent set forth below are satisfied but subject to satisfaction of the conditions subsequent set forth below (hereinafter, “covenant defeasance”). For this
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purpose, such covenant defeasance means that, with respect to the Outstanding Securities of such series, the Company may omit to comply with and shall have no liability in respect of any term, condition or limitation set forth in any such Section, whether directly or indirectly by reason of any reference elsewhere herein to any such Section or by reason of any reference in any such Section to any other provision herein or in any other document, but the remainder of this Indenture and such Securities shall be unaffected thereby.
SECTION 14.04. Conditions to Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance.
The following shall be the conditions precedent or, as specifically noted below, subsequent to application of either Section 14.02 or Section 14.03 to the Outstanding Securities of such series:
(a) The Company shall irrevocably have deposited or caused to be deposited with the Trustee as trust funds in trust for the purpose of making the following payments, specifically pledged as security for, and dedicated solely to, the benefit of the holders of such Securities, (i) money in an amount, (ii) U.S. Government Obligations which through the scheduled payment of principal and interest in respect thereof in accordance with their terms will provide, not later than one day before the due date of any payment, money in an amount, or (iii) a combination thereof, sufficient, without reinvestment, in the opinion of a nationally recognized firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, to pay and discharge, and which shall be applied by the Trustee to pay and discharge, (1) the principal of and any premium and interest on the Outstanding Securities of such series to maturity or redemption, as the case may be, and (2) any mandatory sinking fund payments or analogous payments applicable to the Outstanding Securities of such series on the due dates thereof. Before such a deposit the Company may make arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the redemption of Securities at a future date or dates in accordance with Article 3 which shall be given effect in applying the foregoing. For this purpose, “U.S. Government Obligations” means securities that are (x) direct obligations of the United States of America for the payment of which its full faith and credit is pledged or (y) obligations of a person controlled or supervised by and acting as an agency or instrumentality of the United States of America the payment of which is unconditionally guaranteed as a full faith and credit obligation by the United States of America, which, in either case, are not callable or redeemable at the option of the issuer thereof, and shall also include a depository receipt issued by a bank (as defined in Section 3(a)(2) of the Securities Act) as custodian with respect to any such U.S. Government Obligation or a specific payment of principal of or interest on any such U.S. Government Obligation held by such custodian for the account of the holder of such depository receipt, provided that (except as required by law) such custodian is not authorized to make any deduction from the amount payable to the holder of such depository receipt from any amount received by the custodian in respect of the U.S. Government Obligation or the specific payment of principal of or interest on the U.S. Government Obligation evidenced by such depository receipt;
(b) No Default, or event that after notice or lapse of time, or both, would become a Default with respect to the Securities of such series, shall have happened and be continuing (i) on the date of such deposit or (ii) insofar as Section 6.01(d) and Section 6.01(e) are concerned, at any time during the period ending on the 123rd day after the date of such deposit or, if longer, ending on the day following the expiration of the longest preference period applicable to the Company in respect of such deposit (it being understood that the condition in this clause (b) is a condition subsequent and shall not be deemed satisfied until the expiration of such period);
(c) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not (i) cause the Trustee for the Securities of such series to have a “conflicting interest” as defined in Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act or (ii) result in the trust arising from such deposit to constitute, unless it is qualified as, a regulated investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended;
(d) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under, this Indenture or any other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which it is bound;
(e) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not cause any Securities of such series then listed on any registered national securities exchange under the Exchange Act to be delisted;
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(f) In the case of a defeasance under Section 14.02, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel stating that (x) the Company has received from, or there has been published by, the Internal Revenue Service a ruling, or (y) since the date of this Indenture there has been a change in the applicable federal income tax law, in either case to the effect that, and based thereon such opinion shall confirm that, the holders of the Outstanding Securities of such series will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such defeasance had not occurred;
(g) In the case of covenant defeasance under Section 14.03, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel to the effect that the holders of the Outstanding Securities of such series will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such covenant defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such covenant defeasance had not occurred;
(h) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall be effected in compliance with any additional terms, conditions or limitations which may be imposed on the Company in connection therewith pursuant to Section 2.03(b); and
(i) The Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent and subsequent provided for in this Indenture relating to either the defeasance under Section 14.02 or the covenant defeasance under Section 14.03, as the case may be, have been complied with.
SECTION 14.05. Deposited Money and U.S. Government Obligations to be Held in Trust; Other Miscellaneous Provisions.
All money and U.S. Government Obligations (including the proceeds thereof) deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 14.04 in respect of the Outstanding Securities of such series shall be held in trust and applied by the Trustee, in accordance with the provisions of such Securities and this Indenture, to the payment, either directly or through any paying agent (but not including the Company acting as its own paying agent) as the Trustee may determine, to the holders of such Securities of all sums due and to become due thereon in respect of principal and any premium and interest, but such money need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law.
The Company shall pay and indemnify the Trustee against any tax, fee or other charge imposed on or assessed against the money or U.S. Government Obligations deposited pursuant to Section 14.04 or the principal and interest received in respect thereof.
Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding, the Trustee shall deliver or pay to the Company from time to time upon Company Request any money or U.S. Government Obligations held by it as provided in Section 14.04 which, in the opinion of a nationally recognized firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, are in excess of the amount thereof which would then be required to be deposited to effect an equivalent defeasance or covenant defeasance, provided that the Trustee shall not be required to liquidate any U.S. Government Obligations in order to comply with the provisions of this paragraph.
Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding, if and to the extent the deposited money or U.S. Government Obligations (or the proceeds thereof) either (i) cannot be applied by the Trustee in accordance with this Section because of a court order or by operation of Article 16 or (ii) are for any reason insufficient in amount, then the Company’s obligations to pay principal of and any premium and interest on the Securities of such series shall be reinstated to the extent necessary to cover the deficiency on any due date for payment. In any such case, the Company’s interest in the deposited money and U.S. Government Obligations (and proceeds thereof) shall be reinstated to the extent the Company’s payment obligations are reinstated.
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ARTICLE 15
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SECTION 15.01. Benefits of Indenture Restricted to Parties and Securityholders.
Nothing in this Indenture or in the Securities, expressed or implied, shall give or be construed to give to any person, firm or corporation, other than the parties hereto and their successors and assigns and the holders of the Securities (and, with respect to the provisions of Article 16, the holders of senior Indebtedness), any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under this Indenture or under any covenant or provision herein contained, all such covenants and provisions being for the sole benefit of the parties hereto and their successors and assigns and the holders of the Securities (and, with respect to the provisions of Article 16, the holders of senior Indebtedness).
SECTION 15.02. Provisions Binding on Company’s Successors.
All the covenants, stipulations, promises and agreements in this Indenture contained by or in behalf of the Company shall bind its successors and assigns, whether so expressed or not.
SECTION 15.03. Addresses for Notices, etc., to Company and Trustee.
Any notice or demand which by any provisions of this Indenture is required or permitted to be given or served by the Trustee or by the holders of Securities to or on the Company may be given or served by postage prepaid first class mail addressed (until another address is filed by the Company with the Trustee), as follows: NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., [____], Attn: Chief Financial Officer. Any notice, direction, request or demand by any securityholder to or upon the Trustee shall be deemed to have been sufficiently given or made, for all purposes, if given or made in writing at the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee as set forth in Section 4.02.
SECTION 15.04. Notice to Holders of Securities; Waiver.
Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, where this Indenture provides for notice of holders of Securities of any event,
(a) such notice shall be sufficiently given to Holders of Registered Securities if in writing and mailed, first-class postage prepaid, to each holder of a Registered Security affected by such event, at the address of such holder as it appears in the Security Register, not earlier than the earliest date, and not later than the latest date, prescribed for the giving of such notice; and
(b) such notice shall be sufficiently given to Holders of Bearer Securities if published in an Authorized Newspaper in the Borough of Manhattan, the City of New York and in such other city or cities as may be specified in such Securities on a Business Day at least twice, the first such publication to be not earlier than the earliest date, and not later than the latest date, prescribed for the giving of such notice.
In any case where notice to Holders of Registered Securities is given by mail, neither the failure to mail such notice, nor any defect in any notice so mailed, to any particular Holder of a Registered Security shall affect the sufficiency of such notice with respect to other holders of Registered Securities or the sufficiency of any notice to Holders of Bearer Securities given as provided herein.
Neither the failure to give notice by publication to Holders of Bearer Securities as provided above, nor any defect in any notice so published, shall affect the sufficiency of any notice to Holders of Registered Securities given as provided herein.
Where this Indenture provides for notice in any manner, such notice may be waived in writing by the person entitled to receive such notice, either before or after the event, and such waiver shall be the equivalent of such notice. Waivers of notice by holders of Securities shall be filed with the Trustee, but such filing shall not be a condition precedent to the validity of any action taken in reliance upon such waiver.
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Any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver required or permitted under this Indenture shall be in the English language, except that any published notice may be in an official language of the country of publication.
Notwithstanding anything in this Indenture to the contrary, where any notice is to be given to the holders of Global Securities, notice shall be sufficient if given in accordance with the procedures of the U.S. Depositary.
SECTION 15.05. Evidence of Compliance with Conditions Precedent.
Upon any application or demand by the Company to the Trustee to take any action under any of the provisions of this Indenture, the Company shall furnish to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate stating that all conditions precedent, if any, provided for in this Indenture relating to the proposed action have been complied with and an Opinion of Counsel stating that in the opinion of such counsel all such conditions precedent, if any, have been complied with, except that in the case of any such application or demand as to which the furnishing of such documents is specifically required by any provision of this Indenture relating to such particular application or demand, no additional certificate or opinion need be furnished.
Each Officer’s Certificate and Opinion of Counsel provided for in this Indenture and delivered to the Trustee with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Indenture shall include (1) a statement that the person making such certificate or opinion has read such covenant or condition; (2) a brief statement as to the nature and scope of the examination or investigation upon which the statements or opinions contained in such certificate or opinion are based; (3) a statement that, in the opinion of such person, he or she has made such examination or investigation as is necessary to enable him or her to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such covenant or condition has been complied with; and (4) a statement as to whether or not, in the opinion of such person, such condition or covenant has been complied with.
SECTION 15.06. Legal Holidays.
In any case where the date of maturity of interest on or principal of the Securities or the date fixed for redemption of any Securities shall be a day other than a Business Day in the Place of Payment or in such other place or places as the Company may designate pursuant to Section 4.02, then payment of interest or principal (and premium, if any) need not be made on such date but may be made on the next succeeding Business Day with the same force and effect as if made on the date of maturity or the date fixed for redemption, and no interest shall accrue for the period after such date.
SECTION 15.07. Trust Indenture Act to Control.
If and to the extent that any provision of this Indenture limits, qualifies or conflicts with another provision included in this Indenture which is required to be included in this Indenture by any of Sections 310 to 317, inclusive, of the Trust Indenture Act, such required provision shall control.
SECTION 15.08. Execution in Counterparts.
This Indenture may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be an original; but such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same instrument. The exchange of copies of this Indenture and of signature pages by facsimile or PDF transmission will constitute effective execution and delivery of this Indenture as to the parties hereto and may be used in lieu of the original Indenture for all purposes. Signatures of the parties hereto transmitted by facsimile or PDF will be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes.
SECTION 15.09. Governing Law; Waiver of Jury Trial.
This Indenture and each Security shall be deemed to be a contract made under the laws of the State of New York, and for all purposes shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.
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EACH OF THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ANY AND ALL RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS INDENTURE, THE SECURITIES OR THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.
SECTION 15.10. Severability.
In case any provision in this Indenture or in the Securities shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.
The Trustee, by its execution of this Indenture, hereby accepts the trusts in this Indenture declared and provided, upon the terms and conditions hereinabove set forth.
SECTION 15.11. Interpretations.
The Table of Contents, Cross-Reference Table and Headings of the Articles and Sections of this Indenture have been inserted for convenience of reference only, are not to be considered a part of this Indenture and shall in no way modify or restrict any of the terms or provisions hereof.
This Indenture may not be used to interpret any other indenture, loan or debt agreement of the Company or its Subsidiaries or of any other Person. Any such indenture, loan or debt agreement may not be used to interpret this Indenture.
SECTION 15.12. U.S.A. Patriot Act.
The parties hereto acknowledge that in accordance with Title III of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA PATRIOT Act”), the Trustee, like all financial institutions and in order to help fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering, is required to obtain, verify, and record information that identifies each person or legal entity that establishes a relationship or opens an account with the Trustee. The parties to this Indenture agree that they will provide the Trustee with such information as it may request in order for the Trustee to satisfy the requirements of the USA PATRIOT Act.
SECTION 15.13. 15.13. Force Majeure.
In no event shall the Trustee be responsible or liable for any failure or delay in the performance of its obligations hereunder arising out of or caused by, directly or indirectly, forces beyond its control, including, without limitation, strikes, work stoppages, accidents, acts of war or terrorism, civil or military disturbances, nuclear or natural catastrophes or acts of God, and interruptions, loss or malfunctions of utilities, communications or computer (software and hardware) services, it being understood that the Trustee shall use reasonable efforts which are consistent with accepted practices in the banking industry to resume performance as soon as practicable under the circumstances.
SECTION 15.14. Jurisdiction.
The Company and the Trustee agree that any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Indenture or the Securities may be instituted in any state or Federal court in the Borough of Manhattan, New York, New York, and any appellate court from any thereof, and irrevocably submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of such courts in any suit, action or proceeding. The Company and the Trustee irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection to any suit, action, or proceeding that may be brought in connection with this Indenture or the Securities, including such actions, suits or proceedings relating to securities laws of the United States or any state thereof, in such courts whether on the grounds of venue, residence or domicile or on the ground that any such suit, action or proceeding has been brought in an inconvenient forum. The Company and the Trustee agree that final judgment in any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court shall be conclusive and binding upon the Company or the Trustee, as applicable, and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which the Company or the Trustee, as applicable, is subject by a suit upon such judgment.
46
ARTICLE 16
RANKING OF SECURITIES
SECTION 16.01. Ranking.
Except as otherwise provided in a supplemental indenture or pursuant to Section 2.03, the Company agrees, and each holder by accepting a Security agrees, that the indebtedness evidenced by the Securities constitutes and will constitute a senior unsecured general obligation of the Company, ranking equally with other existing and future senior unsecured Indebtedness of the Company, ranking equally with other existing and future senior unsecured Indebtedness of the Company and ranking senior in right of payment to any future Indebtedness of the Company that is expressly made subordinate to the Securities by the terms of such Indebtedness.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, NEWAMSTERDAM PHARMA COMPANY N.V. has caused this Indenture to be signed and acknowledged by its Chief Executive Officer or its Chief Financial Officer, and [_____________________] has caused this Indenture to be signed and acknowledged by one of its Responsible Officers, all as of the day and year first above written.
| NEWAMSTERDAM PHARMA COMPANY N.V. | ||
| By: |
| |
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
| [________] | ||
| AS TRUSTEE | ||
| By: |
| |
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
EXHIBIT A
[FORM OF CERTIFICATION]
[FORM OF CERTIFICATE TO BE GIVEN BY PERSON ENTITLED TO RECEIVE (1) BEARER
SECURITY, (2) SECURITY INITIALLY REPRESENTED BY A TEMPORARY GLOBAL SECURITY OR
(3) INTEREST ON A TEMPORARY GLOBAL SECURITY] CERTIFICATE
[Insert title or sufficient description of Securities]
This is to certify that the above-captioned Securities are being acquired by or on behalf of (or for offer to resell or for resale to), and if this certificate is being delivered in connection with a payment of interest, were beneficially owned by or on behalf of: (a) a person (other than a financial institution for purposes of resale during the restricted period) who is not a United States person; (b) a United States person (other than a financial institution for purposes of resale during the restricted period) who is (i) a foreign branch of a United States financial institution or (ii) a United States person acquiring such Securities through the foreign branch of a United States financial institution and who for purposes of this certification holds such Securities through such financial institution on the date hereof, and, in the case of either (i) or (ii), such United States financial institution has agreed, for the benefit of
47
the Company, to comply with the requirements of Section 165(j)(3)(A), (b) or (c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as from time to time amended, and the regulations thereunder; or (c) a financial institution for purposes of resale during the restricted period and such financial institution has not acquired such Securities for purposes of resale directly or indirectly to a United States person or to a person within the United States or its Possessions. If the undersigned is a clearing organization, the undersigned has obtained a similar certificate from its member organizations on which this certificate is based; provided, that if the undersigned has actual knowledge that the information contained in such a certificate is false (and, absent documentary evidence that the beneficial owner of such Security is not a United States person, it will be deemed to have actual knowledge that such certificate is false if it has a United States address for such beneficial owner, other than a financial institution described above), the undersigned will not deliver a Security in temporary or definitive bearer form to the person who signed such certificate notwithstanding the delivery of such certificate to the undersigned.
As used herein, “United States person” means a citizen or resident of the United States, a corporation, partnership or other entity created or organized in or under the laws of the United States and an estate or trust the income of which is subject to United States federal income taxation regardless of its source, “United States” means the United States of America (including the States and the District of Columbia), “Possessions” of the United States include Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, Wake Island and Northern Mariana Islands, “restricted period” means the period described in Section 1.163-5(c)(2)(i)(D)(7) of the Treasury Regulations and “financial institution” means the persons described in Section 1.165-12(c)(1)(v) of the Treasury Regulations.
We undertake to advise you by [telex] if the above statement as to beneficial ownership is not correct on the date of delivery of the above-captioned Securities or on the interest payment date with respect to the above-captioned Securities, as the case may be, as to all of such Securities.
We understand that this certificate may be required in connection with certain tax legislation in the United States. If administrative or legal proceedings are commenced or threatened in connection with which this certificate is or would be relevant, we irrevocably authorize you to produce this certificate or a copy thereof to any interested party in such proceedings.
| Dated: __________________, ___ |
| [To be dated on or after |
| __________________, ___ (the date determined as provided in the Indenture)] |
| [Name of Person Entitled to Receive Bearer Security or Interest] |
|
|
| (Authorized Signatory) |
| Name: |
| Title: |
48
Exhibit 4.2
NEWAMSTERDAM PHARMA COMPANY N.V.
AS ISSUER,
AND
[__________________________],
AS TRUSTEE,
SUBORDINATED INDENTURE
DATED AS OF [________________, _______]
SUBORDINATED DEBT SECURITIES
CROSS-REFERENCE TABLE
Reconciliation and tie between the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the “Trust Indenture Act”), and the Indenture dated as of [__________], [_____].
| SECTION OF Trust Indenture Act | SECTION OF INDENTURE | |
| 310(a)(1) and (2) | 7.09 | |
| 310(a)(3) and (4) | Not applicable | |
| 310(a)(5) | 7.09 | |
| 310(b) | 7.08 and 7.10 | |
| 310(c) | Not applicable | |
| 311(a) and (b) | 7.13 | |
| 311(c) | Not applicable | |
| 312(a) | 5.01 and 5.02(a) | |
| 312(b) and (c) | 5.02(b) | |
| 313(a) | 5.04(a) | |
| 313(b) | 5.04(b) | |
| 313(c) | 5.04(b) | |
| 313(d) | 5.04(c) | |
| 314(a) | 5.03 | |
| 314(b) | Not applicable | |
| 314(c)(1) and (2) | 14.04(i) | |
| 314(c)(3) | Not applicable | |
| 314(d) | Not applicable | |
| 314(e) | 15.05 | |
| 314(f) | Not applicable | |
| 315(a), (c) and (d) | 7.01 | |
| 315(b) | 7.14 | |
| 315(e) | 6.14 | |
| 316(a)(1) | 6.12 | |
| 316(a)(2) | Omitted | |
| 316(a) last sentence | 8.04 | |
| 316(b) | 6.08 | |
| 316(c) | 8.06 | |
| 317(a) | 6.03 and 6.04 | |
| 317(b) | 4.03(a) | |
| 318(a) | 15.07 |
Note: This reconciliation and tie shall not, for any purpose, be deemed to be a part of the Indenture.
Attention should also be directed to Section 318(c) of the Trust Indenture Act, which provides that the provisions of Sections 310 to and including Section 317 of the Trust Indenture Act are a part of and govern every qualified indenture, whether or not physically contained therein.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| ARTICLE 1 DEFINITIONS |
1 | |||
| SECTION 1.01. Definitions |
1 | |||
| ARTICLE 2 ISSUE, EXECUTION, REGISTRATION AND EXCHANGE OF SECURITIES |
5 | |||
| SECTION 2.01. Amount Unlimited; Issuable in Series |
5 | |||
| SECTION 2.02. Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication |
5 | |||
| SECTION 2.03. Form of Securities Generally; Establishment of Terms of Series |
6 | |||
| SECTION 2.04. Securities in Global Form |
8 | |||
| SECTION 2.05. Denominations; Record Date; Payment of Interest |
9 | |||
| SECTION 2.06. Execution, Authentication, Delivery and Dating of Securities |
9 | |||
| SECTION 2.07. Exchange and Registration of Transfer of Securities |
11 | |||
| SECTION 2.08. Temporary Securities |
13 | |||
| SECTION 2.09. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Securities and Coupons |
13 | |||
| SECTION 2.10. Cancellation |
14 | |||
| SECTION 2.11. Book Entry Only System |
15 | |||
| ARTICLE 3 REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES |
15 | |||
| SECTION 3.01. Redemption of Securities, Applicability of Section |
15 | |||
| SECTION 3.02. Notice of Redemption, Selection of Securities |
15 | |||
| SECTION 3.03. Payment of Securities Called for Redemption |
16 | |||
| SECTION 3.04. Redemption Suspended During Event of Default |
17 | |||
| ARTICLE 4 PARTICULAR COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY |
17 | |||
| SECTION 4.01. Payment of Principal, Premium and Interest |
17 | |||
| SECTION 4.02. Offices for Notices and Payments, etc. |
17 | |||
| SECTION 4.03. Provisions as to Paying Agent |
18 | |||
| SECTION 4.04. Statement as to Compliance |
19 | |||
| SECTION 4.05. Corporate Existence |
19 | |||
| SECTION 4.06. Waiver of Covenants |
19 | |||
| ARTICLE 5 SECURITYHOLDER LISTS AND REPORTS BY THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.01. Securityholder Lists |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.02. Preservation and Disclosure of Lists |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.03. Reports by the Company |
20 | |||
| SECTION 5.04. Reports by the Trustee |
20 | |||
| ARTICLE 6 REMEDIES |
21 | |||
| SECTION 6.01. Events of Default; Acceleration of Maturity |
21 | |||
| SECTION 6.02. Rescission and Annulment |
22 | |||
| SECTION 6.03. Collection of Indebtedness and Suits for Enforcement by Trustee |
22 | |||
| SECTION 6.04. Trustee May File Proofs of Claim |
23 | |||
| SECTION 6.05. Trustee May Enforce Claims Without Possession of Securities or Coupons |
23 | |||
| SECTION 6.06. Application of Money Collected |
23 | |||
| SECTION 6.07. Limitation on Suits |
24 | |||
| SECTION 6.08. Unconditional Right of Securityholders to Receive Principal and Interest |
24 | |||
| SECTION 6.09. Restoration of Rights and Remedies |
24 | |||
| SECTION 6.10. Rights and Remedies Cumulative |
25 | |||
i
| SECTION 6.11. Delay or Omission Not Waiver |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.12. Control by Securityholders |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.13. Waiver of Past Defaults |
25 | |||
| SECTION 6.14. Undertaking for Costs |
26 | |||
| SECTION 6.15. Waiver of Stay or Extension Laws |
26 | |||
| ARTICLE 7 CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE |
26 | |||
| SECTION 7.01. Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee |
26 | |||
| SECTION 7.02. Reliance on Documents, Opinions, etc. |
27 | |||
| SECTION 7.03. No Responsibility for Recitals, etc. |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.04. Ownership of Securities |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.05. Moneys to be Held in Trust |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.06. Compensation and Expenses of Trustee |
28 | |||
| SECTION 7.07. Officer’s Certificate as Evidence |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.08. Disqualifications; Conflicting Interest of Trustee |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.09. Eligibility of Trustee |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.10. Resignation or Removal of Trustee |
29 | |||
| SECTION 7.11. Acceptance by Successor Trustee |
30 | |||
| SECTION 7.12. Successor by Merger, etc. |
31 | |||
| SECTION 7.13. Limitations on Rights of Trustee as Creditor |
31 | |||
| SECTION 7.14. Notice of Default |
31 | |||
| SECTION 7.15. Appointment of Authenticating Agent |
31 | |||
| ARTICLE 8 CONCERNING THE SECURITYHOLDERS |
33 | |||
| SECTION 8.01. Action by Securityholders |
33 | |||
| SECTION 8.02. Proof of Execution by Securityholders |
33 | |||
| SECTION 8.03. Who Are Deemed Absolute Owners |
34 | |||
| SECTION 8.04. Company-Owned Securities Disregarded |
34 | |||
| SECTION 8.05. Revocation of Consents; Future Securityholders Bound |
34 | |||
| SECTION 8.06. Record Date |
34 | |||
| ARTICLE 9 SECURITYHOLDERS’ MEETINGS |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.01. Purposes of Meeting |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.02. Call of Meetings by Trustee |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.03. Call of Meetings by Company or Securityholders |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.04. Qualifications for Voting |
35 | |||
| SECTION 9.05. Regulations |
36 | |||
| SECTION 9.06. Voting |
36 | |||
| ARTICLE 10 SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES |
36 | |||
| SECTION 10.01. Supplemental Indentures without Consent of Securityholders |
36 | |||
| SECTION 10.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Holders |
38 | |||
| SECTION 10.03. Compliance with Trust Indenture Act; Effect of Supplemental Indentures |
38 | |||
| SECTION 10.04. Notation on Securities |
38 | |||
| ARTICLE 11 CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE OR CONVEYANCE |
39 | |||
| SECTION 11.01. Company May Consolidate, etc., on Certain Terms |
39 | |||
| SECTION 11.02. Successor Corporation Substituted |
39 | |||
| SECTION 11.03. Opinion of Counsel and Officer’s Certificate to Trustee |
39 | |||
ii
| ARTICLE 12 SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; UNCLAIMED MONEYS |
39 | |||
| SECTION 12.01. Discharge of Indenture |
39 | |||
| SECTION 12.02. Deposited Moneys to be Held in Trust by Trustee |
40 | |||
| SECTION 12.03. Paying Agent to Repay Moneys Held |
40 | |||
| SECTION 12.04. Return of Unclaimed Moneys |
40 | |||
| ARTICLE 13 IMMUNITY OF INCORPORATORS, STOCKHOLDERS, OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS |
41 | |||
| SECTION 13.01. Indenture and Securities Solely Corporate Obligations |
41 | |||
| ARTICLE 14 DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.01. Applicability of Article |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.02. Defeasance and Discharge |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.03. Covenant Defeasance |
41 | |||
| SECTION 14.04. Conditions to Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance |
42 | |||
| SECTION 14.05. Deposited Money and U.S. Government Obligations to be Held in Trust; Other Miscellaneous Provisions |
43 | |||
| ARTICLE 15 MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS |
43 | |||
| SECTION 15.01. Benefits of Indenture Restricted to Parties and Securityholders |
43 | |||
| SECTION 15.02. Provisions Binding on Company’s Successors |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.03. Addresses for Notices, etc., to Company and Trustee |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.04. Notice to Holders of Securities; Waiver |
44 | |||
| SECTION 15.05. Evidence of Compliance with Conditions Precedent |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.06. Legal Holidays |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.07. Trust Indenture Act to Control |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.08. Execution in Counterparts |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.09. Governing Law; Waiver of Jury Trial |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.10. Severability |
45 | |||
| SECTION 15.11. Interpretations |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.12. U.S.A. Patriot Act |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.13. Force Majeure |
46 | |||
| SECTION 15.14. Jurisdiction |
46 | |||
| ARTICLE 16 SUBORDINATION OF SECURITIES |
46 | |||
| SECTION 16.01. Securities Subordinate to Senior Indebtedness |
46 | |||
iii
THIS INDENTURE, dated as of [_____________,______], between NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., a public limited company (naamloze vennootschap) incorporated under the laws of the Netherlands (the “Company”), and [________________], as trustee (the “Trustee,” which term shall include any successor trustee appointed pursuant to Article 7 of this Indenture).
WHEREAS, the Company deems it necessary to issue from time to time for its lawful purposes securities (the “Securities”) evidencing its indebtedness and has duly authorized the execution and delivery of this Indenture to provide for the issuance of the Securities in one or more series, unlimited as to principal amount, to bear such rates of interest, to mature at such time or times, and to have such other provisions as shall be fixed as hereinafter provided; and
WHEREAS, the Company represents that all acts and things necessary to constitute these presents a valid indenture and agreement according to its terms have been done and performed, and the execution of this Indenture has in all respects been duly authorized, and the Company, in the exercise of legal right and power in it vested, is executing this Indenture;
NOW, THEREFORE:
In order to declare the terms and conditions upon which the Securities are authenticated, issued and received, and in consideration of the premises, of the purchase and acceptance of the Securities by the holders thereof and of the sum of One Dollar to it duly paid by the Trustee at the execution of these presents, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, the Company covenants and agrees with the Trustee, for the equal and proportionate benefit of the respective holders from time to time of the Securities, as follows:
ARTICLE 1
DEFINITIONS
SECTION 1.01. Definitions.
The terms defined in this Section (except as herein otherwise expressly provided or unless the context otherwise requires) for all purposes of this Indenture and of any supplemental indenture shall have the respective meanings specified in this Section. All other terms used in this Indenture that are defined in the Trust Indenture Act or that are by reference therein defined in the Securities Act shall have the meanings (except as herein otherwise expressly provided or unless the context otherwise requires) assigned to such terms in the Trust Indenture Act or in the Securities Act, as applicable, in each case as in force at the date of this Indenture as originally executed. All accounting terms used herein and not expressly defined shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles, and the term “generally accepted accounting principles” means such accounting principles as are generally accepted at the time of any computation. The words “herein,” “hereof” and “hereunder” and other words of similar import refer to this Indenture as a whole and not to any particular Article, Section or other subdivision. The terms defined in this Article have the meanings assigned to them in this Article and include the plural as well as the singular.
“Additional Amounts” shall mean any additional amounts to be paid by the Company in respect of Securities of a series, as may be specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b) hereof and in such Security and under the circumstances specified therein, in respect of specified taxes, assessments or other governmental charges imposed on certain Holders.
“Authorized Newspaper” shall mean a newspaper (which, in the case of the United Kingdom, will, if practicable, be the Financial Times (London Edition), in the case of Luxembourg, will, if practicable, be the Luxemburger Wort and, in the case of the Netherlands, will, if practicable be, [_____]) of general circulation in the place of publication, published in an official language of the country of publication and customarily published at least once a day for at least five days in each calendar week. Whenever successive weekly publications in an Authorized Newspaper are authorized or required hereunder, they may be made (unless otherwise provided herein) on the same or different days of the week and in the same or different Authorized Newspapers.
1
“Authorized Officer” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 3.02 hereof.
“Bearer Security” shall mean any Security established pursuant to Section 2.01 and Section 2.03 hereof which is payable to the bearer (including, without limitation, any Security in temporary or permanent global bearer form) and title to which passes by delivery only, but does not include any coupons.
“Board of Directors” or “Board” shall mean the Board of Directors of the Company or any duly authorized committee of such Board.
“Board Resolution” shall mean a resolution certified by an Officer of the Company to have been duly adopted by the Board of Directors or by a committee acting under authority of or appointment by the Board of Directors and to be in full force and effect on the date of such certification, and delivered to the Trustee.
“Business Day” shall mean, unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b), a day other than a Saturday, a Sunday and, with respect to any Place of Payment or any other particular location referred to in this Indenture or in the Securities, a day that in the city (or in any one of the cities, if more than one) in which amounts are payable, as specified in the form of such Security, a day on which banking institutions are authorized or required by law or regulation to be closed.
“Capital Stock” shall mean, (i) as to shares of a particular corporation, outstanding shares of stock of any class, whether now or hereafter authorized, irrespective of whether such class shall be limited to a fixed sum or percentage in respect of the rights of the holders thereof to participate in dividends and in the distribution of assets upon the voluntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of such corporation, (ii) in the case of an association or business entity, any and all shares, interests, participations, rights or other equivalents (however designated) of corporate stock, (iii) in the case of a partnership or limited liability company, partnership or membership interests (whether general or limited) and (iv) any other interest or participation that confers on a Person the right to receive a share of the profits and losses of, or distribution of assets of, the issuing Person.
“Commission” shall mean the Securities and Exchange Commission or any successor agency.
“Company” shall mean the person named as the “Company” in the first paragraph of this instrument until a successor corporation shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter “Company” shall mean such successor corporation.
“Company Request” and “Company Order” mean, respectively, a written request or order signed in the name of the Company by an Authorized Officer, and delivered to the Trustee.
“Corporate Trust Office” shall mean the designated office of the Trustee at which, at any particular time, its corporate trust business relating to this Indenture shall be administered, which office at the date hereof is located at [_________________], or such other address as the Trustee may designate from time to time by notice to the Company, or the principal corporate trust office of any successor Trustee (or such other address as such successor Trustee may designate from time to time by notice to the Company).
“Coupon” shall mean any interest coupon appertaining to a Bearer Security.
“Default” or “default” shall have the meaning specified in Article 6.
“Dollar” or “$” shall mean a dollar or other equivalent unit in such coin or currency of the United States of America as at the time shall be legal tender for the payment of public and private debts.
“Event of Default” shall have the meaning specified in Article 6.
“Exchange Act” shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
“Exchange Date” shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2.08.
2
“Global Security” shall mean a Security or Securities, as the case may be, in the form established pursuant to Section 2.04 evidencing all or part of a Series of Securities, issued to the Depositary for such Series or its nominee, and registered in the name of such Depositary or nominee.
“Holder,” “holder of Securities,” “securityholder” or other similar term shall mean (a) in the case of any Registered Security, the person in whose name such Security is registered in the Security Register kept by the Company for that purpose, in accordance with the terms hereof, and (b) in the case of any Bearer Security, the bearer thereof, and as used with respect to any coupon appertaining to any Bearer Security, the term “holder” shall mean the bearer thereof.
“Indenture” shall mean this instrument as originally executed and delivered or as it may from time to time be supplemented or amended by one or more supplemental indentures entered into pursuant to the applicable provisions hereof, including, without limitation, the forms and terms of particular series of Securities established as contemplated by Article 2.
“Officer” shall mean, with respect to any Person, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Financial Officer, any Vice President of such Person, or such other officer of the Company as may be specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b).
“Officer’s Certificate” shall mean a certificate signed by an Authorized Officer of the Company and delivered to the Trustee.
“Opinion of Counsel” shall mean an opinion in writing signed by legal counsel, who may be an employee of or counsel to the Company and who shall be reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, or who may be other counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee.
“Original Issue Discount Securities” shall mean any Securities that are initially sold at a discount from the principal amount thereof and that provide upon an Event of Default for declaration of an amount less than the principal amount thereof to be due and payable upon acceleration thereof.
“Outstanding” or “outstanding,” when used with reference to Securities, shall, subject to the provisions of Section 8.01 and Section 8.04, mean, as of any particular time, all Securities authenticated and delivered by the Trustee under this Indenture, except:
(a) Securities theretofore cancelled by the Trustee or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation;
(b) Securities, or portions thereof, for the payment or redemption of which moneys in the necessary amount shall have been deposited in trust with the Trustee or with any paying agent (other than the Company) or shall have been set aside and segregated and held in trust by the Company (if the Company shall act as its own paying agent) for the holders of such Securities and any coupons appertaining thereto; provided, that if such Securities, or portions thereof, are to be redeemed prior to the maturity thereof, notice of such redemption shall have been given as provided in Article 3, or provision satisfactory to the Trustee shall have been made for giving such notice;
(c) Securities that have been defeased pursuant to Section 14.02 hereof; and
(d) Securities that have been paid, mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen and replaced pursuant to Section 2.09, or Securities in exchange for, in lieu of and in substitution for which other Securities shall have been authenticated and delivered pursuant to the terms of Section 2.07, unless proof satisfactory to the Trustee is presented that any such Securities are held by bona fide holders in due course.
“Periodic Offering” shall mean an offering of Securities of a series, from time to time, the specific terms of which (including, without limitation, the rate or rates of interest or formula for determining the rate or rates of interest thereon, if any, the maturity date or dates thereof and the redemption provisions, if any, with respect thereto) are to be determined by the Company upon the issuance of such Securities.
3
“Person” or “person” shall mean any individual, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, association, joint stock company, trust, unincorporated organization or government or any agency or political subdivision thereof.
“Place of Payment,” when used with respect to the Securities of any series, means the place or places where, subject to the provisions of Section 4.02, the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on the Securities of that series are payable as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b).
“Possessions,” when used with respect to the United States, shall include Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, Wake Island and Northern Mariana Islands.
“Record date” as used with respect to any interest payment date shall have the meaning specified in Section 2.05.
“Registered Security” shall mean any Security established pursuant to Section 2.01 and Section 2.03(b) that is registered on the Security Register of the Company.
“Responsible Officer,” when used with respect to the Trustee, shall mean any officer within the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee (or any successor group of the Trustee), including any Vice President, Assistant Vice President, Assistant Secretary or any other officer of the Trustee customarily performing functions similar to those performed by any of the above designated officers and also shall mean, with respect to a particular corporate trust matter, any other officer to whom such matter is referred because of such officer’s knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject.
“Securities” shall have the meaning set forth in the preamble of this Indenture.
“Securities Act” shall mean the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
“Security Register” and “Security Registrar” shall have the respective meanings set forth in Section 2.07(a) hereof.
“Senior Indebtedness” means, without duplication, the principal, premium, if any, unpaid interest (including interest accruing on or after the filing of any petition in bankruptcy or for reorganization relating to the Company whether or not a claim for post-filing interest is allowed in such proceeding), fees, charges, expenses, reimbursement and indemnification obligations, and all other amounts payable under or in respect of the following indebtedness of the Company, whether any such indebtedness exists as of the date of the Indenture or is created, incurred or assumed after such date: (i) all obligations for borrowed money, (ii) all obligations evidenced by debentures, Securities or other similar instruments, (iii) all obligations associated with derivative products, including but not limited to, securities contracts, foreign currency exchange contracts, swap agreements (including interest rate and foreign exchange rate swap agreements), cap agreements, floor agreements, collar agreements, interest rate agreements, foreign exchange rate agreements, options, commodity futures contracts, commodity option contracts and similar financial instruments, (iv) all obligations in respect of letters of credit or bankers acceptances or similar instruments (or reimbursement obligations with respect thereto), (v) all obligations to pay the deferred purchase price of property or services, except trade accounts payable arising in the ordinary course of business, (vi) all indebtedness of others guaranteed by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or for which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is legally responsible or liable (whether by agreement to purchase indebtedness of, or to supply funds or to invest in, others), (vii) indebtedness secured by any mortgage, pledge, lien, charge, encumbrance or any security interest existing on property owned by the Company but excluding any obligations of the Company which are required (as opposed to elected) to be treated as finance leases under generally accepted accounting principles, (viii) purchase money and similar obligations, and (ix) any renewals, extensions, refundings or replacements of any of the foregoing.
“Subsidiary” shall mean, in respect of any Person, any corporation, association, partnership, limited liability company or other business entity of which more than 50% of the total voting power of shares of Capital Stock or other interests (including partnership interests) entitled (without regard to the occurrence of any contingency) to vote in the election of directors, managers or trustees thereof is at the time owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by (a) such Person, (b) such Person and one or more Subsidiaries of such Person or (c) one or more Subsidiaries of such Person.
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“Trust Indenture Act,” except as otherwise provided in this Indenture, shall mean the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, as in force at the date of this Indenture as originally executed.
“Trustee” shall mean the person identified as “Trustee” in the first paragraph hereof until the acceptance of appointment of a successor trustee pursuant to the provisions of Article 7, and thereafter shall mean such successor trustee.
“United States Alien” shall mean any person who, for United States federal income tax purposes, is a foreign corporation, a non-resident alien individual, a non-resident alien fiduciary of a foreign estate or trust, or a foreign partnership to the extent that one or more of its members is, for United States federal income tax purposes, a foreign corporation, a non-resident alien individual or a non-resident alien fiduciary of a foreign estate or trust.
“U.S. Depositary” shall mean, with respect to the Securities of any series issuable or issued in whole or in part in the form of one or more permanent Global Securities, the person designated as U.S. Depositary by the Company pursuant to Section 2.03(b), which must be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act, until a successor U.S. Depositary shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter “U.S. Depositary” shall mean or include each person who is then a U.S. Depositary hereunder, and if at any time there is more than one such person, “U.S. Depositary” as used with respect to the Securities of any series shall mean the U.S. Depositary with respect to the Securities of such series.
“Vice President” when used with respect to the Company or the Trustee shall mean any vice president, whether or not designated by a number or word or words added before or after the title “vice president,” including any Executive Vice President or Senior Vice President.
ARTICLE 2
ISSUE, EXECUTION, REGISTRATION AND EXCHANGE OF SECURITIES
SECTION 2.01. Amount Unlimited; Issuable in Series.
Upon the execution of this Indenture, or from time to time thereafter, Securities up to the aggregate principal amount and containing terms and conditions from time to time authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution, or in a supplemental indenture, as set forth in Section 2.03, may be executed by the Company and delivered to the Trustee for authentication, and the Trustee shall thereupon authenticate and make available for delivery the Securities to or upon Company Order, without any further action by the Company but subject to the provisions of Section 2.03, or in a supplemental indenture, as set forth in Section 2.03.
The Securities may be issued in one or more series. The aggregate principal amount of Securities of all series that may be authenticated, delivered and outstanding under this Indenture is not limited hereunder. The Securities of a particular series may be issued up to the aggregate principal amount of Securities for such series from time to time authorized by or pursuant to a Board Resolution.
SECTION 2.02. Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication.
The Trustee’s certificate of authentication shall be in substantially the following form:
[Form of Trustee’s Certificate of Authentication]
This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
Dated: [ ]
| as Trustee | ||
| By: |
| |
| Authorized Signatory | ||
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SECTION 2.03. Form of Securities Generally; Establishment of Terms of Series.
(a) The Registered Securities, if any, of each series, the Bearer Securities, if any, of each series and related coupons, if any, the temporary Global Securities of each series, if any, and the permanent Global Securities of each series, if any, shall be in the forms established from time to time in or pursuant to one or more Board Resolutions (and, to the extent established pursuant to rather than set forth in one or more Board Resolutions, in an Officer’s Certificate (to which shall be attached true and correct copies of the relevant Board Resolution(s)) detailing such establishment) or established in a supplemental indenture.
The Securities may be issued in typewritten, printed or engraved form with such letters, numbers or other marks of identification or designation (including “CUSIP” numbers, if then generally in use) and such legends or endorsements printed, lithographed or engraved thereon as the Company may deem appropriate and as are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Indenture, or as may be required to comply with any law or with any rule or regulation made pursuant thereto or with any rule or regulation of any stock exchange on which the Securities may be listed, or to conform to usage. Unless otherwise specified as contemplated hereinafter, Securities in bearer form shall have interest coupons attached.
(b) At or prior to the initial issuance of Securities of any series, the particular terms of Securities of such series shall be established in or pursuant to one or more Board Resolutions (and to the extent established pursuant to rather than set forth in one or more Board Resolutions, in an Officer’s Certificate (to which shall be attached true and correct copies of the relevant Board Resolution(s)) detailing such establishment) or established in a supplemental indenture, including the following:
(1) the designation of the particular series (which shall distinguish such series from all other series);
(2) the price or prices (which may be expressed as a percentage of the aggregate principal amount of the Securities being issued) at which the Securities of the series will be issued;
(3) the aggregate principal amount of such series that may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture (except for Securities authenticated and delivered upon registration of transfer of, or in exchange for, or in lieu of, other Securities of the series pursuant to this Indenture and except for any Securities which, pursuant to Section 2.06, are deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered hereunder);
(4) whether Securities of the series are to be issuable as Registered Securities, Bearer Securities (with or without coupons) or both, whether any Securities of the series are to be issuable initially in temporary global form with or without coupons and, if so, the name of the U.S. Depositary with respect to any such temporary Global Security, and whether any Securities of the series are to be issuable in permanent global form with or without coupons and, if so, whether beneficial owners of interests in any such permanent Global Security may exchange such interests for Securities of such series and of like tenor of any authorized form and denomination and the circumstances under which any such exchanges may occur, if other than in the manner provided in Section 2.07 and the name of the U.S. Depositary with respect to any such permanent Global Security;
(5) the date as of which any Bearer Securities of such series and any temporary Security in global form representing Outstanding Securities of such series shall be dated, if other than the date of original issuance of the first Securities of the series to be issued;
(6) the person to whom any interest on any Registered Security of the series shall be payable, if other than the person in whose name that Security (or one or more predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the regular record date for such interest, the manner in which, or the person to whom, any interest on any Bearer Security of the series shall be payable, if otherwise than upon presentation and surrender of the coupons appertaining thereto as they severally mature, the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a temporary Global Security on an interest payment date will be paid if other than in the manner provided in Section 2.05 and the extent to which, or the manner in which, any interest payable on a permanent Global Security on an interest payment date will be paid;
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(7) the date or dates on which the principal of the Securities of such series is payable;
(8) the rate or rates, and if applicable the method used to determine the rate, at which the Securities of such series shall bear interest, if any, the date or dates from which such interest shall accrue, the date or dates on which such interest shall be payable and the record date or dates for the interest payable on any Registered Securities on any interest payment date;
(9) the place or places at which, subject to the provisions of Section 4.02, the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on Securities of such series shall be payable, any Registered Securities of the series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, Securities of the series may be surrendered for exchange and notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of the series and this Indenture may be served;
(10) the obligation, if any, of the Company to redeem or purchase Securities of such series, at the option of the Company or at the option of a holder thereof, pursuant to any sinking fund or other redemption provisions and the period or periods within which, the price or prices at which and the terms and conditions upon which Securities of the series may be so redeemed or purchased, in whole or in part;
(11) if other than minimum denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof, the denominations in which any Registered Securities of such series shall be issuable, and the denomination or denominations in which any Bearer Securities of the series shall be issuable, if other than the minimum denomination of $5,000;
(12) if other than the principal amount thereof, the portion of the principal amount of Securities of such series which shall be payable upon declaration of acceleration of the maturity thereof;
(13) the currency, currencies or currency units in which payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on any Securities of the series shall be payable if other than the currency of the United States of America and the manner of determining the equivalent thereof in the currency of the United States of America for purposes of the definition of “Outstanding” in Section 1.01;
(14) if the principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of the series is to be payable, at the election of the Company or a holder thereof, in one or more currencies or currency units, other than that or those in which the Securities are stated to be payable, the currency or currencies in which payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on Securities of such series as to which such election is made shall be payable, and the periods within which and the terms and conditions upon which such election is to be made;
(15) if the amount of payments of principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of the series may be determined with reference to an index, the manner in which such amounts shall be determined;
(16) whether the Securities will be issued in book-entry only form;
(17) any interest rate calculation agents, exchange rate calculation agents or other agents with respect to Securities of such series;
(18) if either or both of Section 14.02 and Section 14.03 do not apply to the Securities of the series;
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(19) whether and under what circumstances the Company will pay Additional Amounts in respect of any series of Securities and whether the Company has the option to redeem such Securities rather than pay such Additional Amounts;
(20) any provisions relating to the extension of maturity of, or the renewal of, Securities of such series, or the conversion of Securities of such series into other securities of the Company;
(21) any provisions relating to the purchase or redemption of all or any portion of a tranche or series of Securities, including the period of notice required to redeem those Securities;
(22) the terms and conditions, if any, pursuant to which the Securities of the series are secured;
(23) the subordination terms of the Securities of the series; and
(24) any other terms of the Securities or provisions relating to the payment of principal of, premium (if any) or interest thereon, including, but not limited to, whether such Securities are issuable at a discount or premium, as amortizable Securities, and if payable in, convertible or exchangeable for commodities or for the securities of the Company.
All Securities of any one series need not be issued at the same time and may be issued from time to time, consistent with the terms of this Indenture, if so provided by or pursuant to the Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate referred to above or as set forth in a supplemental indenture, and, unless otherwise provided, the authorized principal amount of any series may be increased to provide for issuances of additional Securities of such series. If so provided by or pursuant to the Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture referred to above, the terms of such Securities to be issued from time to time may be determined as set forth in such Board Resolution, Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture, as the case may be. All Securities of any one series shall be substantially identical except as to denomination, interest rate, maturity and other similar terms and except as may be provided otherwise by or pursuant to such Board Resolution, Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture.
SECTION 2.04. Securities in Global Form.
If Securities of a series are issuable in global form, as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), then, notwithstanding clause (11) of Section 2.03(b) and the provisions of Section 2.05, any such Security in global form shall represent such of the Securities of such series Outstanding as shall be specified therein, and any such Security in global form may provide that it shall represent the aggregate amount of Securities Outstanding from time to time endorsed thereon and that the aggregate amount of Securities Outstanding represented thereby may from time to time be reduced to reflect any exchanges of beneficial interests in such Security in global form for Securities of such series as contemplated herein. Any endorsement of a Security in global form to reflect the amount, or any decrease in the amount, of Securities Outstanding represented thereby shall be made by the Trustee or the Security Registrar in such manner and upon instructions given by such person or persons as shall be specified in such Security in global form or in the Company Order to be delivered to the Trustee pursuant to Section 2.06 or Section 2.08. Subject to the provisions of Section 2.06 and, if applicable, Section 2.08, the Trustee or the Security Registrar shall deliver and redeliver any Security in permanent global form in the manner and upon instructions given by the person or persons specified in such Security in global form or in the applicable Company Order. If a Company Order pursuant to Section 2.06 or Section 2.08 has been, or simultaneously is, delivered, any instructions by the Company with respect to endorsement or delivery or redelivery of a Security in global form shall be in writing but need not be represented by a Company Order and need not be accompanied by an Opinion of Counsel.
The provisions of the last sentence of Section 2.06 shall apply to any Security represented by a Security in global form if such Security was never issued and sold by the Company and the Company delivers to the Trustee or the Security Registrar the Security in global form together with written instructions (which need not be represented by a Company Order and need not be accompanied by an Opinion of Counsel) with regard to the reduction in the principal amount of Securities represented thereby, together with the written statement contemplated by the last sentence of Section 2.06.
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Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2.05, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), payment of principal of and any premium and interest on any Security in permanent global form shall be made to the persons or persons specified therein.
SECTION 2.05. Denominations; Record Date; Payment of Interest.
(a) Unless otherwise provided as contemplated by Section 2.03(b) with respect to any series of Securities, any Registered Securities of a series shall be issuable without coupons in minimum denominations of $1,000 and any Bearer Securities of a series shall be issuable, with interest coupons attached, in the minimum denomination of $5,000.
(b) The term “record date” as used with respect to an interest payment date for any series of a Registered Security shall mean such day or days as shall be specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b); provided, that in the absence of any such provisions with respect to any series, such term shall mean (1) the last day of the calendar month next preceding such interest payment date if such interest payment date is the 15th day of a calendar month; or (2) the 15th day of a calendar month next preceding such interest payment date if such interest payment date is the first day of the calendar month.
Unless otherwise provided as contemplated by Section 2.03 with respect to any series of Securities, the person in whose name any Registered Security is registered at the close of business on the record date with respect to an interest payment date shall be entitled to receive the interest payable on such interest payment date notwithstanding the cancellation of such Security upon any registration of transfer or exchange thereof subsequent to such record date prior to such interest payment date; provided, that if and to the extent the Company shall default in the payment of the interest due on such interest payment date, such defaulted interest shall be paid to the persons in whose names the Securities are registered on a subsequent record date established by notice given to the extent and in the manner set forth in Section 15.04 by or on behalf of the Company to the holders of Securities of the series in default not less than 15 days preceding such subsequent record date, such record date to be not less than five days preceding the date of payment of such defaulted interest, or in any other lawful manner acceptable to the Trustee.
(c) Unless otherwise specified by Board Resolution or Company Order for a particular series of Securities, the principal of, redemption premium, if any, on and interest, if any, on the Securities of any series shall be payable at the office or agency of the Company maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 in a Place of Payment for such series, in the coin or currency of the United States of America that at the time is legal tender for public and private debt; provided, that, at the option of the Company, payment of interest with respect to a Registered Security may be paid by check mailed to the holders of the Registered Securities entitled thereto at their last addresses as they appear on the Security Register or wired if held in book-entry form at the U.S. Depositary.
SECTION 2.06. Execution, Authentication, Delivery and Dating of Securities.
The Securities shall be signed on behalf of the Company by an Authorized Officer. Such signatures may be the manual or facsimile signatures of such then-current officers.
Coupons shall bear the facsimile signature of an Officer of the Company. Any Security or coupon may be signed on behalf of the Company by such persons as, at the actual date of the execution of such Security, shall be the proper officers of the Company, although at the date of the execution of this Indenture any such person was not such Officer. Securities and coupons bearing the manual or facsimile signatures of individuals who were, at the actual date of the execution of such Security or coupon, the proper Officers of the Company shall bind the Company, notwithstanding that such individuals or any of them have ceased to hold such offices prior to the authentication and delivery of such Securities, or the delivery of such coupons, as the case may be, or did not hold such offices at the date of such Securities.
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Upon the execution and delivery of this Indenture, the Company shall deliver to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate as to the incumbency and specimen signatures of Officers authorized to execute and deliver the Securities and coupons and give instructions under this Section and, as long as Securities are Outstanding under this Indenture, shall deliver a similar Officer’s Certificate each year on the anniversary of the date of the first such Officer’s Certificate. The Trustee may conclusively rely on the documents delivered pursuant to this Section (unless revoked by superseding comparable documents) and Section 2.03 hereof as to the authorization of the Board of Directors of any Securities delivered hereunder, and the form and terms thereof, and as to the authority of the instructing Officers referred to in this Section so to act.
The Trustee shall at any time, and from time to time, authenticate Securities for original issue in an unlimited aggregate principal amount upon receipt by the Trustee of a Company Order; provided, that with respect to Securities of a series subject to a Periodic Offering, (a) such Company Order may be delivered to the Trustee prior to the delivery to the Trustee of such Securities for authentication and delivery, (b) the Trustee shall authenticate and deliver Securities of such series for original issue from time to time, in an aggregate principal amount not exceeding the aggregate principal amount, if any, established for such series, pursuant to a Company Order or pursuant to such procedures acceptable to the Trustee as may be specified from time to time by a Company Order, (c) the maturity date or dates, original issue date or dates, interest rate or rates and any other terms of Securities of such series shall be determined by Company Order or pursuant to such procedures, and (d) if provided for in such procedures, such Company Order may authorize authentication and delivery pursuant to oral or electronic instructions from the Company or its duly authorized agent or agents, which oral instructions shall be promptly confirmed in writing. Except as permitted by Section 2.09, the Trustee shall not authenticate and deliver any Bearer Security unless all appurtenant coupons for interest then matured have been detached and cancelled.
Prior to the issuance of a Security of any new series and any related coupons, and the authentication thereof by the Trustee, the Trustee shall have received and (subject to Section 7.02) shall be fully protected in relying on:
(a) The Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture establishing the terms and the form of the Securities of that series pursuant to Section 2.01 and Section 2.03;
(b) An Officer’s Certificate stating that all conditions precedent provided for in this Indenture relating to the authentication and delivery of Securities in such form have been complied with; and
(c) An Opinion of Counsel stating that the form and terms of such Securities and coupons, if any, have been established in conformity with the provisions of this Indenture; provided, that with respect to Securities of a series subject to a Periodic Offering, the Trustee shall be entitled to receive such Opinion of Counsel only once at or prior to the time of the first authentication of Securities of such series.
With respect to Securities of a series offered in a Periodic Offering, the Trustee may rely, as to the authorization by the Company of any of such Securities, the form and terms thereof, any coupons and the legality, validity, binding effect and enforceability thereof, upon the Opinion of Counsel and other documents delivered pursuant to this Section in connection with the first authentication of Securities of such series unless and until such Opinion of Counsel or other documents have been superseded or revoked. In connection with the authentication and delivery of Securities of a series subject to a Periodic Offering, the Trustee shall be entitled to assume that the Company’s instructions to authenticate and deliver such Securities do not violate any rules, regulations or orders of any governmental agency or commission having jurisdiction over the Company.
Each Registered Security shall be dated the date of its authentication except as otherwise provided by Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture; and each Bearer Security shall be dated as of the date of original issuance of the first Security of such series to be issued unless otherwise specified pursuant to Section 2.03 hereof.
The aggregate principal amount of Securities of any series outstanding at any time may not exceed any limit upon the maximum principal amount for such series set forth in or pursuant to the Board Resolution or Officer’s Certificate or supplemental indenture delivered pursuant to Section 2.03, except as provided in Section 2.08.
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No Security or coupon shall be entitled to any benefit under this Indenture or be valid or obligatory for any purpose unless there appears on such Security, or the Security to which such coupon appertains, a certificate of authentication substantially in the form provided for herein executed by the Trustee by manual signature, and such certificate upon any Security shall be conclusive evidence, and the only evidence, that such Security has been duly authenticated and delivered hereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any Security shall have been authenticated and delivered hereunder but never issued and sold by the Company, and the Company shall deliver such Security to the Trustee for cancellation as provided in Section 2.10 together with a written statement stating that such Security has never been issued and sold by the Company, for all purposes of this Indenture such Security shall be deemed never to have been authenticated and delivered hereunder and shall never be entitled to the benefits of this Indenture.
SECTION 2.07. Exchange and Registration of Transfer of Securities.
(a) The Company shall keep, at an office or agency to be designated and maintained by the Company in accordance with Section 4.02 (as such, a “Security Registrar”), registry books (the “Security Register”) in which, subject to such reasonable regulations as it may prescribe, the Company shall register Registered Securities and shall register the transfer of Registered Securities of each such series as provided in this Article 2. Such Security Register shall be in written form or in any other form capable of being converted into written form within a reasonable time. At all reasonable times such Security Register shall be open for inspection by the Trustee. Upon due presentment for registration of transfer of any Registered Security of a particular series at such office or agency maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 for such purpose in a Place of Payment, the Company shall execute and register and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in the name of the transferee or transferees a new Registered Security or Registered Securities of such series of any authorized denominations and for an equal aggregate principal amount and tenor.
(b) At the option of the holder, Registered Securities of any series may be exchanged for other Registered Securities of the same series of any authorized denominations and of an equal aggregate principal amount and tenor. Registered Securities to be exchanged shall be surrendered at any such office or agency maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 for such purpose in a Place of Payment, and the Company shall execute and register and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor the Security or Securities that the securityholder making the exchange shall be entitled to receive. Registered Securities, including Registered Securities received in exchange for Bearer Securities, may not be exchanged for Bearer Securities, unless the Company otherwise expressly provides for the issuance, upon such terms and conditions as may be provided with respect to such series, by the Company of Registered Securities of a series that may be exchanged, at the option of the securityholder upon such conditions and limitations as may be specified by the Company, for Bearer Securities of such series.
At the option of the holder, Bearer Securities of any series may be exchanged for Registered Securities of the same series of any authorized denominations and of a like aggregate principal amount and tenor, upon surrender of the Bearer Securities to be exchanged at any such office or agency, with all unmatured coupons (except as provided below) and with all matured coupons in default appertaining thereto. If the holder of a Bearer Security is unable to produce any such unmatured coupon or coupons or matured coupon or coupons in default, such exchange may be effected if the Bearer Securities are accompanied by payment in funds acceptable to the Company in an amount equal to the face amount of such missing coupon or coupons, or the surrender of such missing coupon or coupons may be waived by the Company and the Trustee if there is furnished to them such security or indemnity as they may require to save each of them and any paying agent harmless. If thereafter the holder of such Securities shall surrender to any paying agent any such missing coupon in respect of which such a payment shall have been made, such holder shall be entitled to receive the amount of such payment; provided, that, except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02, interest represented by coupons shall be payable only upon presentation and surrender of those coupons at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in case a Bearer Security of any series is surrendered at any such office or agency in exchange for a Registered Security of the same series and like tenor after the close of business at such office or agency on (i) any record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the relevant interest payment date, or (ii) any special record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the related proposed date for payment of defaulted interest as set forth in Section 2.05, such Bearer Security shall be surrendered without the coupon relating to such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, and interest or defaulted interest, as the case may be, will not be payable on such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, in respect of the Registered Security issued in exchange for such Bearer Security, but will be payable only to the holder of such coupon when due in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture.
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Whenever any Securities are so surrendered for exchange, the Company shall execute and register, and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, the Securities which the holder making the exchange is entitled to receive.
(c) All Securities issued upon any registration of transfer or exchange of Securities shall be the valid obligations of the Company, evidencing the same debt, and entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture, as the Securities surrendered upon such registration of transfer or exchange.
All Registered Securities presented for registration of transfer or for exchange, redemption or payment, as the case may be, shall (if so required by the Company or the Trustee) be duly endorsed by, or be accompanied by a written instrument or instruments of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee or the Security Registrar duly executed by, the holder thereof or his or her attorney duly authorized in writing.
No service charge shall be made by the holder for any exchange or registration of transfer of Securities, but the Company may require payment by the holder of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in connection therewith, other than exchanges pursuant to the terms of this Indenture not involving any transfer.
The Company shall not be required (1) to exchange or register the transfer of Securities of any series to be redeemed for a period of 15 days next preceding any selection of such Securities to be redeemed, (2) to exchange or register the transfer of any Registered Security so selected, called or being called for redemption, except in the case of any such series to be redeemed in part the portion thereof not to be so redeemed, or (3) to exchange any Bearer Security so selected for redemption except that such a Bearer Security may be exchanged for a Registered Security of that series and of like tenor, provided that such Registered Security shall be simultaneously surrendered for redemption.
(d) Notwithstanding the foregoing, except as otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), any permanent Global Security shall be exchangeable pursuant to this Section only as provided in this paragraph. If the beneficial owners of interests in a permanent Global Security are entitled to exchange such interests for Securities of such series and of like tenor and principal amount of another authorized form and denomination, as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b), then without unnecessary delay but in any event not later than the earliest date on which such interests may be so exchanged, the Company shall deliver to the Trustee or the Security Registrar definitive Securities of that series in aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of such permanent Global Security executed by the Company. On or after the earliest date on which such interests may be so exchanged, in accordance with instructions given by the Company to the Trustee or the Security Registrar and the U.S. Depositary (which instructions shall be in writing), such permanent Global Security shall be surrendered from time to time by the U.S. Depositary, or such other depositary or U.S. Depositary, as the case may be, as shall be specified in the Company Order with respect thereto to the Trustee, as the Company’s agent for such purpose, or to the Security Registrar, to be exchanged, in whole or in part, for definitive Securities of the same series without charge and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in accordance with such instructions, in exchange for each portion of such permanent Global Security, a like aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series of authorized denominations and of like tenor as the portion of such permanent Global Security to be exchanged which (unless the Securities of the series are not issuable both as Bearer Securities and as Registered Securities, in which case the definitive Securities exchanged for the permanent Global Security shall be issuable only in the form in which the Securities are issuable, as specified as contemplated by Section 2.03(b)), shall be in the form of Bearer Securities or Registered Securities, or any combination thereof, as shall be specified by the beneficial owner thereof; provided, that no such exchanges may occur for a period of 15 days next preceding any selection of Securities of that series and of like tenor for redemption; and provided further, that no Bearer Security delivered in exchange for a portion of a permanent Global security shall be mailed or otherwise delivered to any location in the United States or its Possessions. Promptly following any such exchange in part, such permanent Global Security should be returned by the Trustee or the Security Registrar to the U.S. Depositary, or such other depositary or U.S. Depositary referred to above in accordance with the instructions of the Company referred to above. If a Registered Security is issued in exchange for any portion of a permanent Global Security after the close
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of business at the office or agency where such exchange occurs on (i) any record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the relevant interest payment date, or (ii) any special record date and before the opening of business at such office or agency on the related proposed date for payment of defaulted interest as provided in Section 2.05, interest or defaulted interest, as the case may be, will not be payable on such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, in respect of such Registered Security, but will be payable on such interest payment date or proposed date for payment, as the case may be, only to the person to whom interest in respect of such portion of such permanent Global Security is payable in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture.
SECTION 2.08. Temporary Securities.
Pending the preparation of definitive Securities of any series, the Company may execute and the Trustee shall, upon Company Order, authenticate and make available for delivery, temporary Securities of such series (typewritten, printed, lithographed or otherwise produced). Such temporary Securities, in any authorized denominations, shall be substantially in the form of the definitive Securities in lieu of which they are issued, in registered form or, if authorized, in bearer form with one or more or without coupons, in the form approved from time to time by or pursuant to a Board Resolution but with such omissions, insertions, substitutions and other variations as may be appropriate for temporary Securities, all as may be determined by the Company, but not inconsistent with the terms of this Indenture or any provision of applicable law. In the case of any series issuable as Bearer Securities, such temporary Securities shall be delivered only in compliance with the conditions set forth in Section 2.06 and may be in global form.
Except in the case of temporary Securities in global form (which shall be exchanged as hereinafter provided), if temporary Securities of any series are issued, the Company will cause definitive Securities of that series to be prepared without unreasonable delay. After the preparation of definitive Securities of such series, the temporary Securities of such series shall be exchangeable for definitive Securities of such series upon surrender of the temporary Securities of such series at the office or agency of the Company maintained pursuant to Section 4.02 in a Place of Payment for such series for the purpose of exchanges of Securities of such series, without charge to the holder. Upon surrender for cancellation of any one or more temporary Securities of any series (accompanied by any unmatured coupons appertaining thereto), the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor a like aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series and of like tenor of authorized denominations; provided, that, except as otherwise expressly provided by the Company as contemplated in Section 2.07(b), no definitive Bearer Security shall be delivered in exchange for a temporary Registered Security; and provided further, however, that a definitive Bearer Security shall be delivered in exchange for a temporary Bearer Security only in compliance with the conditions set forth in Section 2.06.
Without unnecessary delay but in any event not later than the date specified in, or determined pursuant to the terms of, any such temporary Global Security of a series (the “Exchange Date”), the Company shall deliver to the Trustee definitive Securities of that series, in aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of such temporary Global Security, executed by the Company. On or after the Exchange Date such temporary Global Security shall be presented and surrendered by the U.S. Depositary to the Trustee, as the Company’s agent for such purpose, or to the Security Registrar, to be exchanged, in whole or from time to time in part, for definitive Securities of such series without charge, and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, in exchange for each portion of such temporary Global Security, a like aggregate principal amount of definitive Securities of the same series of authorized denominations and of like tenor as the portion of such temporary Global Security to be exchanged.
Every temporary Security shall be executed by the Company and shall be authenticated by the Trustee upon the same conditions and in substantially the same manner, and with like effect, as the definitive Securities.
SECTION 2.09. Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Securities and Coupons.
If any mutilated Security or a Security with a mutilated coupon appertaining thereto is surrendered to the Trustee, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange therefor a new Security of the same series and of like tenor and principal amount and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding, with coupons corresponding to the coupons, if any, appertaining to the surrendered Security.
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If there shall be delivered to the Company and the Trustee (i) evidence to their satisfaction of the destruction, loss or theft of any Security or coupon and (ii) such security or indemnity as may be required by them to save each of them and any agent of either of them harmless, then, in the absence of notice to the Company or the Trustee that such Security or coupon has been acquired by a bona fide purchaser, the Company shall, subject to the following paragraph, execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, in lieu of any such destroyed, lost or stolen Security or in exchange for the Security to which a destroyed, lost or stolen coupon appertains (with all appurtenant coupons not destroyed, lost or stolen), a new Security of the same series and of like tenor and principal amount and bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding, with coupons corresponding to the coupons, if any, appertaining to such destroyed, lost or stolen Security or to the Security to which such destroyed, lost or stolen coupon appertains.
In case any such mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Security or coupon has become or is about to become due and payable, the Company in its discretion may, instead of issuing a new Security, pay such Security or coupon; provided, however, that principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on Bearer Securities shall, except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02, be payable only at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions.
Upon the issuance of any new Security under this Section, the Company may require payment by the holder of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation thereto and any other expenses (including the fees and expenses of the Trustee) connected therewith.
Every new Security of any series, with any coupons appertaining thereto, issued pursuant to this Section in lieu of any destroyed, lost or stolen Security or in exchange for a Security to which a destroyed, lost or stolen coupon appertains, shall constitute an original additional contractual obligation of the Company, whether or not the destroyed, lost or stolen Security and any coupons appertaining thereto, or the destroyed, lost or stolen coupon shall be at any time enforceable by anyone, and any such new Security and coupons, if any, shall be entitled to all the benefits of this Indenture equally and proportionately with any and all other Securities of that series and their coupons, if any, duly issued hereunder.
The provisions of this Section are exclusive and shall preclude (to the extent lawful) all other rights and remedies with respect to the replacement or payment of mutilated, destroyed, lost or stolen Securities or coupons.
SECTION 2.10. Cancellation.
All Securities surrendered for payment, redemption, exchange or registration of transfer or for credit against any sinking fund payment, as the case may be, and any coupons surrendered for payment, shall, if surrendered to the Company or any agent of the Company or of the Trustee, be delivered to the Trustee. All Registered Securities and matured coupons so delivered shall be promptly cancelled by the Trustee. All Bearer Securities and unmatured coupons so delivered shall be held by the Trustee, and upon instruction by a Company Order, shall be cancelled or held for reissuance. All Bearer Securities and unmatured coupons held by the Trustee pending such cancellation or reissuance shall be deemed to be delivered for cancellation for all purposes of this Indenture and the Securities. The Company may deliver to the Trustee for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated and delivered hereunder which the Company may have acquired in any manner whatsoever, and may deliver to the Trustee (or to any other person for delivery to the Trustee) for cancellation any Securities previously authenticated hereunder which the Company has not issued and sold, and all Securities so delivered shall be promptly cancelled by the Trustee. No Securities shall be authenticated in lieu of or in exchange for any Securities cancelled as provided in this Section except as expressly provided by this Indenture. Any cancelled Securities and coupons held by the Trustee shall be delivered to the Company or disposed of (including by destruction of such Securities in accordance with the Trustee’s customary procedures) as directed by the Company. Upon written request in the form of a Company Order, the Company may direct the Trustee to deliver a certificate of such disposal or destruction to the Company.
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SECTION 2.11. Book Entry Only System.
If specified by the Company pursuant to Section 2.03(b) with respect to Securities represented by a Security in global form, a series of Securities may be issued initially in book-entry only form and, if issued in such form, shall be represented by one or more Securities in global form registered in the name of the U.S. Depositary or other depositary designated with respect thereto. So long as such system of registration is in effect, (a) Securities of such series so issued in book-entry only form will not be issuable in the form of or exchangeable for Securities in certificated or definitive registered form, (b) the records of the U.S. Depositary or such other depositary will be determinative for all purposes and (c) neither the Company, the Trustee nor any paying agent, Security Registrar or transfer agent for such Securities will have any responsibility or liability for (i) any aspect of the records relating to or payments made on account of owners of beneficial interests in the Securities of such series, (ii) maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial interests, (iii) receipt of notices, voting and requesting or directing the Trustee to take, or not to take, or consenting to, certain actions hereunder, or (iv) the records and procedures of the U.S. Depositary or such other depositary, as the case may be.
ARTICLE 3
REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES
SECTION 3.01. Redemption of Securities, Applicability of Section.
Redemption of Securities of any series as permitted or required by the terms thereof shall be made in accordance with the terms of such Securities as specified pursuant to Section 2.03 hereof and this Article; provided, however, that if any provision of any series of Securities shall conflict with any provision of this Section, the provision of such series of Securities shall govern.
SECTION 3.02. Notice of Redemption, Selection of Securities.
In case the Company shall desire to exercise the right to redeem all or, as the case may be, any part of a series of Securities pursuant to Section 3.01, it shall fix a date for redemption. Notice of redemption of Securities to be redeemed at the election of the Company shall be given by the Company, or, at the Company’s request, by the Trustee in the name and at the expense of the Company. The Company or the Trustee, as the case may be, shall give notice of such redemption, in the manner and to the extent set forth in Section 15.04, on that date prior to the date fixed for a redemption to the holders of such Securities so to be redeemed, as a whole or in part, (a) as set forth in a Board Resolution, as described in Section 2.03, or (b) as determined by the Chief Executive Officer or the Chief Financial Officer of the Company (each, an “Authorized Officer”) and evidenced by the preparation of an offering document or an Officer’s Certificate specifying the period of notice of such redemption. If the Board Resolutions or an Authorized Officer do not specify a period of notice of such redemption, the Company or the Trustee, as the case may be, shall give notice of such redemption, in the manner and to the extent set forth in Section 15.04, at least 10 Business Days and not more than 60 calendar days prior to the date fixed for a redemption to the holders of such Securities so to be redeemed as a whole or in part. Notice given in such manner shall be conclusively presumed to have been duly given, whether or not the holder receives such notice. In any case, failure to give such notice or any defect in the notice to the holder of any such Security designated for redemption as a whole or in part shall not affect the validity of the proceedings for the redemption of any other such Security. If the Company requests the Trustee to give any notice of redemption, it shall make such request at least 10 days prior to the designated date for delivering such notice, unless a shorter period is satisfactory to the Trustee.
Each such notice of redemption shall specify the date fixed for redemption, the redemption price at which such Securities are to be redeemed, the CUSIP numbers of such Securities, the Place of Payment where such Securities, together, in the case of Bearer Securities, with all coupons appertaining thereto, if any, maturing after the date of redemption, are to be surrendered for payment of the redemption prices, that payment will be made upon presentation and surrender of such Securities, that interest accrued to the date fixed for redemption will be paid as specified in the notice, and that on and after the date interest thereon or on the portions thereof to be redeemed will cease to accrue. If less than all of a series is to be redeemed, the notice of redemption shall specify the numbers of the Securities to be redeemed. In case any Security is to be redeemed in part only, the notice of redemption shall state the portion of the principal amount thereof to be redeemed and shall state that, upon surrender of such Security, a new Security or Securities of the same series in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion thereof will be issued.
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On or before the redemption date specified in the notice of redemption given as provided in this Section, the Company will deposit in trust with the Trustee or with one or more paying agents an amount of money sufficient to redeem on the redemption date all the Securities or portions of Securities so called for redemption at the appropriate redemption price, together with accrued interest, if any, to the date fixed for redemption. If less than all of a series of Securities is to be redeemed, the Company will give the Trustee adequate written notice at least 45 days in advance (unless a shorter notice shall be satisfactory to the Trustee) as to the aggregate principal amount of Securities to be redeemed.
If less than all the Securities of a series are to be redeemed, the Trustee shall select, pro rata, by lot or in such other manner is it shall deem appropriate and fair, not more than 60 days prior to the date of redemption, the numbers of such Securities Outstanding not previously called for redemption, to be redeemed in whole or in part. The portion of principal of Securities so selected for partial redemption shall be equal to the minimum authorized denomination for Securities of that series or any integral multiple thereof. The Trustee shall promptly notify the Company of the Securities to be redeemed. If, however, less than all the Securities of a series having differing issue dates, interest rates and stated maturities are to be redeemed, the Company in its sole discretion shall select the particular Securities of such series to be redeemed and shall notify the Trustee in writing at least 45 days prior to the relevant redemption date.
SECTION 3.03. Payment of Securities Called for Redemption.
If notice of redemption has been given as above provided, the Securities or portions of Securities with respect to which such notice has been given shall become due and payable on the date and at the place stated in such notice at the applicable redemption price, together with any interest accrued to the date fixed for redemption, and on and after that date (unless the Company shall default in the payment of such Securities at the redemption price, together with interest accrued to that date) interest on such Securities or portions of Securities so called for redemption shall cease to accrue and the coupons, if any, for such interest appertaining to any Bearer Securities so to be redeemed, except to the extent provided below, shall be void. On presentation and surrender of such Securities subject to redemption at the Place of Payment and in the manner specified in such notice, together with all coupons, if any, appertaining thereto and maturing after the date specified in such notice for redemption, such Securities or the specified portions thereof shall be paid and redeemed by the Company at the applicable redemption price, together with interest accrued thereon to the date fixed for redemption; provided, that installments of interest on Bearer Securities whose stated maturity date is on or prior to the date of redemption shall be payable only at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions (except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02) and, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03, only upon presentation and surrender of coupons for such interest; and provided further, that unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03, installments of interest on Registered Securities whose stated maturity date is on or prior to the date of redemption shall be payable to the holders of such Registered Securities, or one or more predecessor Securities, registered as such at the close of business on the relevant record dates according to their terms and the provisions of Section 2.05.
At the option of the Company, payment with respect to Registered Securities may be made by check to the holders of such Securities or other persons entitled thereto against presentation and surrender of such Securities.
If any Bearer Security surrendered for redemption shall not be accompanied by all appurtenant coupons maturing after the date of redemption, such Security may be paid after deducting from the redemption price an amount equal to the face amount of all such missing coupons, or the surrender of such missing coupon or coupons may be waived by the Company and the Trustee if there is furnished to them such security or indemnity as they may require to save each of them and any paying agent harmless. If thereafter the holder of such Security shall surrender to the Trustee or any paying agent any such missing coupon in respect of which a deduction shall have been made from the redemption price, such holder shall be entitled to receive the amount so deducted; provided, that interest represented by coupons shall be payable only at an office or agency located outside the United States and its Possessions (except as otherwise provided in Section 4.02) and, unless otherwise specified as contemplated by Section 2.03, only upon presentation and surrender of those coupons.
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Any Security (including any coupons appertaining thereto) that is to be redeemed only in part shall be surrendered at a Place of Payment therefor (with, if the Company or the Trustee so requires, due endorsement by, or a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Trustee duly executed by, the holder thereof or such holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing), and upon such presentation, the Company shall execute and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery to the holder thereof, at the expense of the Company, a new Security or Securities of the same series, of authorized denominations, in aggregate principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion of the principal of the Security so presented. If a temporary Global Security or permanent Global Security is so surrendered, such new Security so issued shall be a new temporary Global Security or permanent Global Security, respectively.
SECTION 3.04. Redemption Suspended During Event of Default.
The Trustee shall not redeem any Securities (unless all Securities then outstanding are to be redeemed) or commence the giving of any notice of redemption of Securities during the continuance of any Event of Default of which a Responsible Officer of the Trustee has actual knowledge or notice, except that where the giving of notice of redemption of any Securities shall theretofore have been made, the Trustee shall redeem such Securities, provided funds are deposited with it for such purpose. Except as aforesaid, any moneys theretofore or thereafter received by the Trustee shall, during the continuance of such Event of Default, be held in trust for the benefit of the securityholders and applied in the manner set forth in Section 6.06; provided, that in case such Event of Default shall have been waived as provided herein or otherwise cured, such moneys shall thereafter be held and applied in accordance with the provisions of this Article.
ARTICLE 4
PARTICULAR COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY
SECTION 4.01. Payment of Principal, Premium and Interest.
The Company will duly and punctually pay or cause to be paid the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on each of the Securities of a series at the place, at the respective times and in the manner provided in the terms of the Securities, any coupons appertaining thereto and this Indenture. Unless otherwise specified in and contemplated by Section 2.03(b) with respect to any series of Securities, any interest due on and any Additional Amounts payable in respect of Bearer Securities on or before maturity shall be payable only upon presentation and surrender of the several coupons for such interest installments as are evidenced thereby as they severally mature.
SECTION 4.02. Offices for Notices and Payments, etc.
If Securities of a series are issuable only as Registered Securities, the Company will maintain in each Place of Payment for such series an office or agency where Securities of that series may be presented or surrendered for payment, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer or exchange and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served. If Securities of a series are issuable as Bearer Securities, the Company will maintain (a) in the contiguous United States, an office or agency where any Registered Securities of that series may be presented or surrendered for payment, where any Registered Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for exchange, where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served and where Bearer Securities of that series and related coupons may be presented or surrendered for payment in the circumstances described below (and not otherwise), (b) subject to any laws or regulations applicable thereto, in a Place of Payment for that series which is located outside the United States and its Possessions, an office or agency where Securities of that series and related coupons may be presented and surrendered for payment; provided, that if the Securities of that series are listed on any stock exchange located outside the United States and its Possessions and such stock exchange shall so require, the Company will maintain a paying agent for the Securities of that series in any required city located outside the United States and its Possessions, as the case may be, so long as the Securities of that series are listed on such exchange, and (c) subject to any laws or regulations applicable thereto, in a Place of Payment for that series which is located outside the United States and its Possessions, an office or agency where any Registered Securities of that series may be surrendered for registration of transfer, where Securities of that series may be surrendered for exchange and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities of that series and this Indenture may be served.
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The Company will give to the Trustee notice of the location of each such office or agency and of any change in the location thereof. In case the Company shall fail to maintain any such office or agency as required, or shall fail to give such notice of the location or of any change in the location thereof, presentations and surrenders of Securities of that series may be made and notices and demands may be served at the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee, except that Bearer Securities of that series and the related coupons may be presented and surrendered for payment at any paying agent for such series located outside the United States and its Possessions.
No payment of principal, premium or interest on Bearer Securities shall be made at any office or agency of the Company in the United States or its Possessions or by check mailed to any address in the United States or its Possessions or by transfer to any account maintained with a financial institution located in the United States or its Possessions; provided, that, if the Securities of a series are denominated and payable in Dollars, payment of principal of (and premium, if any) and any interest on any Bearer Security shall be made at the office of the Company’s paying agent in the contiguous United States, if (but only if) payment in Dollars of the full amount of such principal, premium, interest or Additional Amounts, as the case may be, at all offices or agencies outside the United States and its Possessions maintained for the purpose by the Company in accordance with this Indenture is illegal or effectively precluded by exchange controls or other similar restrictions.
The Company may also from time to time designate one or more other offices or agencies where the Securities of one or more series may be presented or surrendered for any or all such purposes and may from time to time rescind such designations; provided, that no such designation or rescission shall in any manner relieve the Company of its obligation to maintain an office or agency in accordance with the requirements set forth above for Securities of any series for such purposes. The Company will give prompt written notice to the Trustee and the holders of any such designation or rescission and of any change in the location of any such other office or agency.
The Company hereby initially designates the Corporate Trust Office as the office of the Company in the contiguous United States where Registered Securities may be presented for payment, for registration of transfer and for exchange as in this Indenture provided and where notices and demands to or upon the Company in respect of the Securities or of this Indenture may be served; provided that the Corporate Trust Office shall not be an office or agency of the Company for the service of legal process against the Company.
SECTION 4.03. Provisions as to Paying Agent.
(a) Whenever the Company shall appoint a paying agent other than the Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series, it will cause such paying agent to execute and deliver to the Trustee an instrument in which such agent shall agree with the Trustee, subject to the provisions of this Section:
(1) that it will hold sums held by it as such agent for the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of such series (whether such sums have been paid to it by the Company or by any other obligor on the Securities of such series) in trust for the benefit of the persons entitled thereto until such sums shall be paid to such persons or otherwise disposed of as herein provided and will notify the Trustee of the receipt of sums to be so held;
(2) that it will give the Trustee notice of any failure by the Company (or by any other obligor on the Securities of such series) to make any payment of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) or any interest on the Securities of such series when the same shall be due and payable; and
(3) that at any time when any such failure has occurred and is continuing, it will, upon the written request of the Trustee, forthwith pay to the Trustee all sums so held in trust by such paying agent.
(b) If the Company shall act as its own paying agent, it will, on or before each due date of the principal of (and premium, if any) or any interest on the Securities of any series, set aside, segregate and hold in trust for the benefit of the persons entitled thereto a sum sufficient to pay such principal (and premium, if any) or any interest so becoming due until such sums shall be paid to such persons or otherwise disposed of as herein provided. The Company will promptly notify the Trustee of any failure to take such action.
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(c) Whenever the Company shall have one or more paying agents with respect to a series of Securities, it will, on or prior to each due date of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) or any interest on, any Securities, deposit with a paying agent a sum sufficient to pay the principal (and premium, if any) or any interest so becoming due, such sum to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled to such principal, premium or interest, and (unless such paying agent is the Trustee) the Company will promptly notify the Trustee of its action or failure so to act.
(d) Anything in this Section to the contrary notwithstanding, the Company may, at any time, for the purpose of obtaining the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture with respect to one or more or all series of Securities hereunder, or for any other reason, pay or cause to be paid to the Trustee all sums held in trust for such series by it or any paying agent hereunder as required by this Section, such sums to be held by the Trustee upon the trusts herein contained, and upon such payment by any paying agent to the Trustee, such paying agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such money.
(e) Anything in this Section to the contrary notwithstanding, the agreement to hold sums in trust as provided in this Section is subject to the provisions of Section 12.03 and Section 12.04.
SECTION 4.04. Statement as to Compliance.
The Company will deliver to the Trustee, within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Company, commencing with the fiscal year ending in the year during which the first series of Securities is issued hereunder (but in no event more than one year from the issuance of the first series hereunder), a written statement signed by the Chief Executive Officer or other principal executive officer and by the Chief Financial Officer or other principal financial officer or principal accounting officer of the Company, stating, as to each signer thereof, that:
(a) a review of the activities of the Company during such year and of performance under this Indenture has been made under his or her supervision; and
(b) to the best of his or her knowledge, based on such review, the Company has fulfilled all its obligations under this Indenture throughout such year, or, if there has been a default in the fulfillment of any such obligation, specifying each such default known to him or her and the nature and status thereof.
SECTION 4.05. Corporate Existence.
Subject to the provisions of Article 11, the Company will do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve and keep in full force and effect its corporate existence, rights (charter and statutory) and franchises and the corporate existence and rights (charter and statutory) and franchises of its Subsidiaries; provided, that the Company shall not be required to, or to cause any Subsidiary to, preserve any right or franchise or to keep in full force and effect the corporate existence of any Subsidiary if the Company shall determine that the keeping in existence or preservation thereof is no longer desirable in or consistent with the conduct of the business of the Company.
SECTION 4.06. Waiver of Covenants.
The Company may omit in any particular instance to comply with any covenant or condition set forth herein if before or after the time for such compliance the holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of all series affected thereby then Outstanding shall either waive such compliance in such instance or generally waive compliance with such covenant or condition, but no such waiver shall extend to or affect such covenant or condition except to the extent so expressly waived, and, until such waiver shall become effective, the obligations of the Company and the duties of the Trustee in respect of any such covenant or condition shall remain in full force and effect.
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ARTICLE 5
SECURITYHOLDER LISTS AND REPORTS BY THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE
SECTION 5.01. Securityholder Lists.
The Company covenants and agrees that it will furnish or cause to be furnished to the Trustee as the Trustee may request in writing, a list, in such form and as of such date as the Trustee may reasonably require, of all information in the possession or control of the Company as to the names and addresses of the holders of Registered Securities of a particular series specified by the Trustee; provided, that if and so long as the Trustee shall be the Security Registrar with respect to such series, such list shall not be required to be furnished.
SECTION 5.02. Preservation and Disclosure of Lists.
(a) The Trustee shall preserve, in as current a form as is reasonably practicable, all information as to the names and addresses of the holders of each series of Securities contained in the most recent list furnished to it as provided in Section 5.01 or received by the Trustee in its capacity as Security Registrar. The Trustee may destroy any list furnished to it as provided in Section 5.01 upon receipt of a new list so furnished.
(b) Securityholders may communicate as provided in Section 312(b) of the Trust Indenture Act with other securityholders with respect to their rights under this Indenture or under the Securities. The Company, the Trustee, the Security Registrar and anyone else shall have the protection of Section 312(c) of the Trust Indenture Act with respect to the sending of any material pursuant to a request made pursuant to Section 312(b) of the Trust Indenture Act.
SECTION 5.03. Reports by the Company.
The Company covenants so long as Securities are Outstanding:
(a) to file with the Trustee, within 15 days after the Company is required to file the same with the Commission, copies of the annual reports and of the information, documents and other reports (or copies of such portions of any of the foregoing as the Commission may from time to time by rules and regulations prescribe) that the Company may be required to file with the Commission pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act; or, if the Company is not required to file information, documents or reports pursuant to either of such sections, then to file with the Trustee and the Commission, in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed from time to time by the Commission, such of the supplementary and periodic information, documents and reports that may be required pursuant to Section 13 of the Exchange Act in respect of a security listed and registered on a national securities exchange as may be prescribed from time to time in such rules and regulations;
(b) to file with the Trustee and the Commission, in accordance with the rules and regulations prescribed from time to time by the Commission, such additional information, documents and reports with respect to compliance by the Company with the conditions and covenants provided for in this Indenture as may be required from time to time by such rules and regulations; and
(c) to transmit by mail to all the holders of Registered Securities of each series, as the names and addresses of such holders appear on the registry books, within 30 days after the filing thereof with the Trustee, such summaries of any information, documents and reports required to be filed by the Company with respect to each such series pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of this Section as may be required by rules and regulations prescribed from time to time by the Commission.
SECTION 5.04. Reports by the Trustee.
(a) On or about [________________, _______], so long as any Securities are outstanding hereunder and if there has been any change in the following, the Trustee shall transmit by mail, first class postage prepared, to the securityholders, as their names appear upon the Security Register, a brief report dated as of the preceding [________________, _______], if and to the extent required under Section 313(a) of the Trust Indenture Act, detailing certain events that occurred within the previous 12 months.
(b) The Trustee shall comply with Sections 313(b) and 313(c) of the Trust Indenture Act.
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(c) A copy of each such report shall, at the time of such transmission to securityholders, be filed by the Trustee with the Company, with each stock exchange upon which any Securities are listed (if so listed) and also with the Commission. The Company agrees to notify the Trustee when any Securities become listed on any stock exchange.
ARTICLE 6
REMEDIES
SECTION 6.01. Events of Default; Acceleration of Maturity.
In case one or more of the following Events of Default with respect to a particular series shall have occurred and be continuing:
(a) default in (i) the payment of the principal of (or premium, if any, on) any of the Securities of such series as and when the same shall become due and payable either at maturity, upon redemption, by declaration or otherwise or (ii) any payment required by any sinking or analogous fund established with respect to that series;
(b) default in the payment of any installment of interest upon any of the Securities of such series as and when the same shall become due and payable, and continuance of such default for a period of 90 days;
(c) failure on the part of the Company duly to observe or perform any other of the covenants or agreements on the part of the Company contained in the Securities or in this Indenture for a period of 90 days after the date on which written notice of such failure, requiring the Company to remedy the same, shall have been given to the Company by the Trustee, or to the Company and the Trustee by the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of that series at the time Outstanding;
(d) a court having jurisdiction in the premises shall enter a decree or order for relief in respect of the Company in an involuntary case or proceeding under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, or appointing a receiver, liquidator, assignee, custodian, trustee, sequestrator (or similar official) of the Company or for any substantial part of the Company’s property, or ordering the winding-up or liquidation of its affairs and such decree or order shall remain unstayed and in effect for a period of 60 consecutive days;
(e) the Company shall commence a voluntary case or proceeding under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law now or hereafter in effect, or shall consent to the entry of a decree or order for relief in an involuntary case under any such law, or shall consent to the appointment of or taking possession by a receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, custodian, sequestrator (or similar official) of the Company or for any substantial part of the Company’s property, or shall make any general assignment for the benefit of creditors; or
(f) any other Event of Default provided with respect to Securities of that series;
then, if an Event of Default described in clause (a), (b), (c) or (f) shall have occurred and be continuing, and in each and every such case, unless the principal amount of all the Securities of such series shall have already become due and payable, either the Trustee or the holders of not less than 25% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of that series then Outstanding hereunder, by notice in writing to the Company (and to the Trustee if given by securityholders) may declare the principal amount of all the Securities (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, such lesser amount as may be specified in the terms of such Securities) of that series to be due and payable immediately, and upon any such declaration the same shall become and shall be immediately due and payable, anything in this Indenture or in the Securities of such series contained to the contrary notwithstanding; or, if an Event of Default described in clause (d) or (e) shall have occurred and be continuing, and in each and every such case, unless the principal of all the Securities of such series shall have already become due and payable, the principal amount of all the Securities (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, such lesser amount as may be specified in the terms of such Securities) shall be automatically deemed immediately due and payable.
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SECTION 6.02. Rescission and Annulment.
The provisions in Section 6.01 are subject to the condition that if, at any time after the principal of the Securities of any one or more of all series, as the case may be, shall have been so declared due and payable, and before any judgment or decree for the payment of the moneys due shall have been obtained or entered as hereinafter provided, the Company shall pay or shall deposit with the Trustee a sum sufficient to pay all matured installments of interest upon all the Securities of such series or of all the Securities, as the case may be, and the principal of (and premium, if any, on) all Securities of such series or of all the Securities, as the case may be (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, such lesser amount as may be specified in the terms of such Securities), which shall have become due otherwise than by acceleration (with interest upon such principal and premium, if any) and, to the extent that payment of such interest is enforceable under applicable law, on overdue installments of interest, at the same rate as the rate of interest specified in the Securities of such series or all Securities, as the case may be (or, with respect to Original Issue Discount Securities, at the rate specified in the terms of such Securities for interest on overdue principal thereof upon maturity, redemption or acceleration of such series, as the case may be), to the date of such payment or deposit, and such amount as shall be sufficient to cover reasonable compensation to the Trustee, its agents, attorneys and counsel, and all other expenses and liabilities incurred, and all advances made, by the Trustee except as a result of its negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct, and any and all defaults under the Indenture, other than the non-payment of the principal of Securities that has become due by acceleration, shall have been remedied; then and in every such case the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of such series (or of all the Securities, as the case may be) then Outstanding, by written notice to the Company and to the Trustee, may waive all defaults with respect to that series or with respect to all Securities, as the case may be in such case, treated as a single class and rescind and annul such declaration and its consequences; but no such waiver or rescission and annulment shall extend to or shall affect any subsequent default or shall impair any right consequent thereon.
In case the Trustee shall have proceeded to enforce any right under this Indenture and such proceedings shall have been discontinued or abandoned because of such rescission and annulment or for any other reason or shall have been determined adversely to the Trustee, then and in every such case the Company, the Trustee and the securityholders, as the case may be, shall be restored respectively to their former positions and rights hereunder, and all rights, remedies and powers of the Company, the Trustee and the securityholders, as the case may be, shall continue as though no such proceedings had been taken.
SECTION 6.03. Collection of Senior Indebtedness and Suits for Enforcement by Trustee.
The Company covenants that if:
(a) default is made in the payment of any installment of interest on any Security when such interest becomes due and payable and such default continues for a period of 90 days,
(b) default is made in the payment of the principal or premium, if any, of any Security at the maturity thereof, including any maturity occurring by reason of a call for redemption or otherwise, or
(c) default is made in the deposit of any sinking fund payment when and as due by the terms of a Security, the Company will, upon demand of the Trustee, pay to it, for the benefit of the holders of such Securities and any coupons appertaining thereto, the whole amount that shall have become due and payable on such Securities and coupons for principal or premium, if any, and interest, with interest upon the overdue principal and, to the extent that payment of such interest shall be legally enforceable, upon overdue installments of interest, at the rate borne by such Securities; and, in addition thereto, such further amount as shall be sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of collection, including the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel.
If the Company fails to pay such amounts forthwith upon such demand, the Trustee, in its own name and as trustee of an express trust, may institute a judicial proceeding for the collection of the sums so due and unpaid, and may prosecute such proceedings to judgment or final decree, and may enforce the same against the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities and collect the moneys adjudged or decreed to be payable in the manner provided by law out of the property of the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities, wherever situated.
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If an Event of Default occurs and is continuing, the Trustee may in its discretion proceed to protect and enforce its rights and the rights of the securityholders by such appropriate judicial proceedings as the Trustee shall deem most effectual to protect and enforce any such rights, whether for the specific enforcement of any covenant or agreement in this Indenture or in aid of the exercise of any power granted herein, or to enforce any other proper remedy.
SECTION 6.04. Trustee May File Proofs of Claim.
In the case of the pendency of a receivership, insolvency, liquidation, bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, adjustment, composition or other judicial proceeding relative to the Company or any other obligor upon the Securities or the property of the Company or such other obligor or their creditors, the Trustee (irrespective of whether the principal of the Securities shall then be due and payable as therein expressed or by declaration or otherwise and irrespective of whether the Trustee shall have made any demand on the Company for the payment of overdue principal or interest) shall be entitled and empowered, by intervention in such proceeding or otherwise:
(a) to file and prove a claim for the whole amount of principal and premium, if any, and any interest owing and unpaid in respect of the Securities and to file such other papers or documents as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Trustee (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel) and of the holders of Securities and coupons allowed in such judicial proceeding; and
(b) to collect and receive any moneys or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims and to distribute the same;
and any receiver, assignee, trustee, liquidator or sequestrator (or other similar official) in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each holder of Securities and coupons to make such payments to the Trustee, and in the event that the Trustee shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the holders of Securities and coupons, to pay to the Trustee any amount due to it for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Trustee under Section 7.06. To the extent that such payment of reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements, advances and other amounts out of the estate in any such proceedings shall be denied for any reason, payment of the same shall be secured by a lien on, and shall be paid out of, any and all distributions, dividends, moneys, securities and other property which the holders of the Securities and coupons may be entitled to receive in such proceedings, whether in liquidation or under any plan or reorganization or arrangements or otherwise.
Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to authorize the Trustee to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of the holder of a Security or a coupon any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Securities or coupons or the rights of any holder thereof, or to authorize the Trustee to vote in respect of the claim of any holder of a Security or a coupon in any such proceeding.
SECTION 6.05. Trustee May Enforce Claims Without Possession of Securities or Coupons.
All rights of action and claims under this Indenture or the Securities or coupons may be prosecuted and enforced by the Trustee without the possession of any of the Securities or coupons or the production thereof in any proceeding relating thereto, and any such proceeding instituted by the Trustee shall be brought in its own name as trustee of an express trust, and any recovery of judgment shall, after provision for the payment of the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel, be for the ratable benefit of the Securities and coupons in respect of which such judgment has been recovered.
SECTION 6.06. Application of Money Collected.
Any money collected by the Trustee pursuant to this Article shall be applied in the following order, at the date or dates fixed by the Trustee and, in case of the distribution of such money on account of principal or premium, if any, or any interest, upon presentation of the Securities or coupons, or both, as the case may be, and the notation thereon of the payment if only partially paid and upon surrender thereof if fully paid:
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FIRST: To the payment of all amounts due the Trustee under Section 7.06;
SECOND: To the payment of all Senior Indebtedness of the Company if and to the extent required by Article 16;
THIRD: To the payment of the amounts then due and unpaid upon the Securities for principal of and premium, if any, and any interest on the Securities and coupons, in respect of which or for the benefit of which such money has been collected, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the amounts due and payable on such Securities and coupons, for principal and any interest, respectively; and
FOURTH: To the Company or its successors or assigns, or to whomsoever may be lawfully entitled to receive the same.
SECTION 6.07. Limitation on Suits.
No Holder of any Security of any series or any related coupons shall have any right to institute any proceeding, judicial or otherwise, with respect to this Indenture, or for the appointment of a receiver or trustee, or for any other remedy hereunder, unless:
(1) such Holder has previously given written notice to the Trustee of a continuing Event of Default;
(2) the Holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of that series shall have made written request to the Trustee to institute proceedings in respect of such Event of Default in its own name as Trustee hereunder;
(3) such Holder or Holders have offered to the Trustee reasonable indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities to be incurred in compliance with such request;
(4) the Trustee for 60 days after its receipt of such notice, request and offer of indemnity has failed to institute any such proceedings; and
(5) no direction inconsistent with such written request has been given to the Trustee during such 60-day period by the Holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Outstanding Securities;
it being understood and intended that no one or more such holders of Securities shall have any right in any manner whatever by virtue of, or by availing of, any provision of this Indenture to affect, disturb or prejudice the rights of any other of such holders of Securities or to obtain or to seek to obtain priority or preference over any other of such holders or to enforce any right under this Indenture, except in the manner herein provided and for the equal and ratable benefit of all such holders of Securities.
SECTION 6.08. Unconditional Right of Securityholders to Receive Principal and Interest.
Notwithstanding any other provision in this Indenture, the Holder of any Security or coupon shall have the right, which is absolute and unconditional, to receive payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and (subject to Section 2.05 and Section 3.02) any interest on such Security or payment of such coupon on the respective stated maturities expressed in such Security or coupon (or, in the case of redemption, on the redemption date) and to institute suit for the enforcement of any such payment, and such right shall not be impaired without the consent of such holder.
SECTION 6.09. Restoration of Rights and Remedies.
If the Trustee or any Holder of a Security or coupon has instituted any proceeding to enforce any right or remedy under this Indenture and such proceeding has been discontinued or abandoned for any reason, or has been determined adversely to the Trustee or to such holder, then and in every such case the Company, the Trustee and the Holders of Securities and coupons shall, subject to any determination in such proceeding, be restored severally and respectively to their former positions hereunder, and thereafter all rights and remedies of the Trustee and the holders shall continue as though no such proceeding has been instituted.
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SECTION 6.10. Rights and Remedies Cumulative.
Except as provided in Section 2.09, no right or remedy herein conferred upon or reserved to the Trustee or to the holders of Securities or coupons is intended to be exclusive of any other right or remedy, and every right and remedy shall, to the extent permitted by law, be cumulative and in addition to every other right and remedy given hereunder or now or hereafter existing at law or in equity or otherwise. The assertion or employment of any right or remedy hereunder or otherwise, shall not prevent the concurrent assertion or employment of any other appropriate right or remedy.
SECTION 6.11. Delay or Omission Not Waiver.
No delay or omission of the Trustee or of any Holder of any Security or coupon to exercise any right or remedy accruing upon any Default shall impair any such right or remedy or constitute a waiver of any such Default or any acquiescence therein. Every right and remedy given by this Article or by law to the Trustee or to the holders of Securities or coupons may be exercised from time to time, and as often as may be deemed expedient, by the Trustee or by the holders of Securities or coupons, as the case may be.
SECTION 6.12. Control by Securityholders.
The Holders of a majority in principal amount of Outstanding Securities of each series shall have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee or exercising any trust or power conferred on the Trustee, provided that:
(1) such direction shall not be in conflict with any statute, rule of law or with this Indenture;
(2) the Trustee may take any other action deemed proper by the Trustee which is not inconsistent with such direction; and
(3) the Trustee need not take any action which it in good faith determines might involve it in personal liability or be unjustly prejudicial to the securityholders not consenting.
Upon receipt by the Trustee of any such direction with respect to Securities of a series all or part of which is represented by a temporary Global Security or a permanent Global Security, the Trustee shall establish a record date for determining holders of Outstanding Securities of such series entitled to join in such direction, which record date shall be at the close of business on the day the Trustee receives such direction. The holders on such record date, or their duly designated proxies, and only such persons, shall be entitled to join in such direction, whether or not such holders remain holders after such record date; provided that, unless such majority in principal amount shall have been obtained prior to the day which is 90 days after such record date, such direction shall automatically and without further action by any holder be cancelled and of no further effect. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a holder, or a proxy of a holder, from giving, after expiration of such 90-day period, a new direction identical to a direction which has been cancelled pursuant to the proviso to the preceding sentence, in which event a new record date shall be established pursuant to the provisions of this Section 6.12.
SECTION 6.13. Waiver of Past Defaults.
The Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of each series at the time Outstanding may, on behalf of the Holders of all the Securities of that series and any coupons appertaining thereto, waive any past default hereunder and its consequences, except a default:
(1) in the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, or any interest on any Security;
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(2) described in clauses (d) or (e) of Section 6.01; or
(3) in respect of a covenant or provision hereof that pursuant to Article 10 cannot be modified or amended without the consent of the Holder of each Outstanding Security affected.
Upon any such waiver, such default shall cease to exist, and any Default or Event of Default arising therefrom shall be deemed to have been cured, for every purpose of this Indenture, but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other default or impair any right consequent thereon.
SECTION 6.14. Undertaking for Costs.
All parties to this Indenture agree, and each Holder of any Security or coupon by his or her acceptance thereof shall be deemed to have agreed, that any court may in its discretion require, in any suit for the enforcement of any right or remedy under this Indenture, or in any suit against the Trustee for any action taken, suffered or omitted by it as Trustee, the filing by any party litigant in such suit of an undertaking to pay the costs of such suit, and that such court may in its discretion assess reasonable costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, against any party litigant in such suit, having due regard to the merits and good faith of the claims or defenses made by such party litigant; but the provisions of this Section shall not apply to any suit instituted by the Trustee, to any suit instituted by any Holder, or group of Holders, holding in the aggregate more than 10% in principal amount of the Outstanding Securities of any series, or to any suit instituted by any Holder of any Securities or coupons for the enforcement of the payment of the principal of, premium, if any, or any interest on any Security or the payment of any coupon on or after the respective stated maturities expressed in such Security or coupon (or, in the case of redemption, on or after the redemption date, except, in the case of a partial redemption, with respect to the portion not so redeemed).
SECTION 6.15. Waiver of Stay or Extension Laws.
The Company covenants (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) that it will not at any time insist upon, or plead, or in any manner whatsoever claim or take the benefit or advantage of, any stay or extension laws wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, which may affect the covenants or the performance of this Indenture; and the Company (to the extent that it may lawfully do so) hereby expressly waives all benefits or advantage of any such law, and covenants that it will not hinder, delay or impede the execution of any power herein granted to the Trustee, but will suffer and permit the execution of every such power as though no such law had been enacted.
ARTICLE 7
CONCERNING THE TRUSTEE
SECTION 7.01. Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee.
(a) The Trustee, prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default of a particular series and after the curing of all Events of Default of such series which may have occurred, undertakes to perform such duties and only such duties with respect to such series as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee. In the absence of bad faith on the part of the Trustee, the Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon any certificates or opinions furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture; but in the case of any such certificates or opinions which by any provision hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not they conform to the requirements of this Indenture.
(b) In case an Event of Default with respect to a particular series has occurred (which has not been cured), the Trustee shall exercise with respect to such series such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture, and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent man would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of his own affairs.
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(c) No provisions of this Indenture shall be construed to relieve the Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct, except that:
(1) prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to a particular series and after the curing of all Events of Default with respect to such series which may have occurred, the duties and obligations of the Trustee with respect to such series shall be determined solely by the express provisions of this Indenture, and the Trustee shall not be liable except for the performance of such duties and obligations as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee;
(2) the Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer or Responsible Officers, unless it shall be proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts; and
(3) the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith in accordance with the direction of the holders of Securities pursuant to Section 6.12 relating to the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Trustee, under this Indenture.
(d) No provision of this Indenture shall be construed as requiring the Trustee to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise to incur any personal financial liability in the performance of any of its duties hereunder, or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers, if it shall have reasonable grounds for believing that repayment of such funds or adequate indemnity against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it.
SECTION 7.02. Reliance on Documents, Opinions, etc.
Subject to the provisions of Section 7.01:
(a) the Trustee may rely and shall be protected in acting or refraining from acting upon any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, coupon or other paper or document believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper party or parties;
(b) any request, direction, order or demand of the Company mentioned herein shall be sufficiently evidenced by a Company Request or Company Order (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed); and any Board Resolution may be evidenced to the Trustee by a copy thereof certified by an Officer of the Company; and whenever in the administration of this Indenture the Trustee shall deem it desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking, suffering or omitting any action hereunder, the Trustee (unless other evidence be herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of bad faith on its part, rely upon an Officer’s Certificate;
(c) the Trustee may consult with counsel and the written advice of such counsel and any Opinion of Counsel shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by it hereunder in good faith and in reliance thereon;
(d) the Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Indenture at the request, order or direction of any of the holders of any Securities or any related coupons pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture, unless such holders shall have offered to the Trustee security or indemnity reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee against the losses, costs, expenses and liabilities which might be incurred therein or thereby;
(e) the Trustee shall not be bound to make any investigation into the facts or matters stated in any resolution, certificate, statement, instrument, opinion, report, notice, request, direction, consent, order, bond, debenture, note, coupon or other paper or documents, but the Trustee, in its discretion, may make such further inquiry or investigation into such facts or matters as it may see fit, and, if the Trustee shall determine to make such further inquiry or investigation, it shall be entitled to examine the books, records and premises of the Company, personally or by agent or attorney;
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(f) the Trustee may execute any of the trusts or powers hereunder or perform any duties hereunder either directly or by or through agents or attorneys and the Trustee shall not be responsible for any misconduct or negligence on the part of any agent or attorney appointed with due care by it hereunder;
(g) the Trustee shall not be liable for any action taken, suffered or omitted to be taken by it in good faith and believed by it to be authorized or within the discretion or rights or powers conferred upon it by this Indenture;
(h) in no event shall the Trustee be liable to any person for special, punitive, indirect, consequential or incidental loss or damage of any kind whatsoever (including but not limited to lost profits), even if the Trustee has been advised of the likelihood of such loss or damage and regardless of the form of action; and
(i) the Trustee shall not be required to give any bond or surety in respect of the execution of the trusts and powers or otherwise in respect of the Indenture.
SECTION 7.03. No Responsibility for Recitals, etc.
The recitals contained herein and in the Securities, other than the Trustee’s certificate of authentication, and in any coupons shall be taken as the statements of the Company, and the Trustee assumes no responsibility for the correctness of the same. The Trustee makes no representations as to the validity or sufficiency of this Indenture or of the Securities or coupons, provided that the Trustee shall not be relieved of its duty to authenticate Securities only as authorized by this Indenture. The Trustee shall not be accountable for the use or application by the Company of Securities or the proceeds thereof.
SECTION 7.04. Ownership of Securities.
The Trustee, any authenticating agent, any paying agent, any Security Registrar or any other agent of the Company or of the Trustee, in its individual or any other capacity, may become the owner or pledgee of Securities and coupons with the same rights it would have if it were not Trustee, authenticating agent, paying agent, Security Registrar or such other agent of the Company or of the Trustee.
SECTION 7.05. Moneys to be Held in Trust.
Subject to the provisions of Section 12.04 hereof, all moneys received by the Trustee or any paying agent shall, until used or applied as herein provided, be held in trust for the purposes for which they were received, but need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law. Neither the Trustee nor any paying agent shall be under any liability for interest on any moneys received by it hereunder except such as it may agree in writing with the Company to pay thereon.
SECTION 7.06. Compensation and Expenses of Trustee.
The Company covenants and agrees to pay to the Trustee from time to time, and the Trustee shall be entitled to, such compensation for all services rendered by it hereunder as the Company and the Trustee shall from time to time agree in writing (which to the extent permitted by law shall not be limited by any provision of law in regard to the compensation of a trustee of an express trust), and, except as otherwise expressly provided, the Company will pay or reimburse the Trustee forthwith upon its request for all reasonable expenses, disbursements and advances incurred or made by the Trustee in accordance with any of the provisions of this Indenture (including the reasonable compensation and the expenses and disbursements of its counsel and of all persons not regularly in its employ) except any such expense, disbursement or advance as may arise from its negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct. If any property other than cash shall at any time be subject to the lien of this Indenture, the Trustee, if and to the extent authorized by a receivership or bankruptcy court of competent jurisdiction or by the supplemental instrument subjecting such property to such lien, shall be entitled to make and to be reimbursed for, advances for the
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purpose of preserving such property or of discharging tax liens or other prior liens or encumbrances thereon. The Company also covenants to indemnify the Trustee for, and to hold it harmless against, any and all loss, damage, claims, liability or expense, including taxes (other than taxes based upon, measured or determined by, the income of the Trustee) incurred without negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee, arising out of or in connection with the acceptance or administration of this trust, including the costs and expenses of defending itself against any claim of liability and enforcing the provisions of this Section 7.06. The obligations of the Company under this Section shall constitute additional indebtedness hereunder. Such additional indebtedness shall be secured by a lien prior to that of the Securities upon all property and funds held or collected by the Trustee as such, except funds held in trust for the benefit of the holders of particular Securities.
To secure the Company’s obligations under this Section, the Trustee shall have a senior claim to which the Securities are hereby made subordinate on all money or property held or collected by the Trustee, except that held in trust to pay principal of (and premium, if any) and interest, if any, on particular Securities.
When the Trustee incurs expenses or renders services after an Event of Default, the expenses and the compensation for the services are intended to constitute expenses of administration under any bankruptcy law.
The Company’s obligations under this Section 7.06 shall survive satisfaction and discharge of the Indenture, payment of the Securities and any resignation or removal of the Trustee hereunder.
SECTION 7.07. Officer’s Certificate as Evidence.
Subject to the provisions of Section 7.01, whenever in the administration of the provisions of this Indenture the Trustee shall deem it necessary or desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking or suffering any action to be taken hereunder, such matter (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed) may, in the absence of negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee, be deemed to be conclusively proved and established by an Officer’s Certificate delivered to the Trustee, and such certificate, in the absence of negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Trustee, shall be full warrant to the Trustee for any action taken, suffered or omitted by it under the provisions of this Indenture upon the faith thereof.
SECTION 7.08. Disqualifications; Conflicting Interest of Trustee.
If the Trustee has or shall acquire any “conflicting interest” within the meaning of the Trust Indenture Act, the Trustee and the Company shall in all respects comply with the provisions of Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act.
SECTION 7.09. Eligibility of Trustee.
There shall at all times be a Trustee hereunder which shall be a corporation organized and doing business under the laws of the United States or of any State or Territory thereof or of the District of Columbia, which (a) is authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers, (b) is subject to supervision or examination by federal, state, territorial or District of Columbia authority, (c) shall have at all times a combined capital and surplus of not less than $50,000,000 and (d) shall not be the Company or any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Company. If such corporation publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law, or to the requirements of the aforesaid supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section, the combined capital and surplus of such corporation at any time shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. In case at any time the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the Trustee shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in Section 7.10.
SECTION 7.10. Resignation or Removal of Trustee.
(a) The Trustee, or any trustee or trustees hereafter appointed, may at any time resign with respect to one or more or all series by giving written notice of resignation to the Company. Upon receiving such notice of resignation, the Company shall promptly appoint a successor trustee with respect to the applicable series by written
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instrument, in duplicate, executed by order of the Board of Directors, one copy of which instrument shall be delivered to the resigning Trustee and one copy to the successor trustee. If no successor trustee shall have been so appointed and have accepted appointment within 30 days after the mailing of such notice of resignation, the resigning Trustee may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor trustee. Such court may thereupon, after such notice, if any, as it may deem proper and prescribe, appoint a successor trustee.
(b) In case at any time any of the following shall occur:
(1) the Trustee shall fail to comply with the provisions of Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act, as specified in Section 7.08 with respect to any series of Securities after written request therefor by the Company or by any securityholder who has been a bona fide holder of a Security or Securities of such series for at least six months,
(2) the Trustee shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of Section 7.09 with respect to any series of Securities and shall fail to resign after written request therefor by the Company or by any such securityholder, or
(3) the Trustee shall become incapable of acting with respect to any series of Securities, or shall be adjudged a bankrupt or insolvent, or a receiver of the Trustee or of its property shall be appointed, or any public officer shall take charge or control of the Trustee or of its property or affairs for the purpose of rehabilitation, conservation or liquidation, then, in any such case, the Company may remove the Trustee with respect to the applicable series of Securities and appoint a successor trustee with respect to such series by written instrument, in duplicate, executed by order of the Board of Directors, one copy of which instrument shall be delivered to the Trustee so removed and one copy to the successor trustee, or, subject to the provisions of Section 6.14, any securityholder of such series who has been a bona fide holder of a Security or Securities of the applicable series for at least six months may, on behalf of himself or herself and all others similarly situated, petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the removal of the Trustee and the appointment of a successor trustee with respect to such series. Such court may thereupon, after such notice, if any, as it may deem proper and prescribe, remove the Trustee and appoint a successor trustee.
(c) The holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of all series (voting as one class) at the time Outstanding may at any time remove the Trustee with respect to Securities of all series and appoint a successor trustee with respect to the Securities of all series.
(d) Any resignation or removal of the Trustee and any appointment of a successor trustee pursuant to any of the provisions of this Section shall become effective upon the appointment of a successor trustee and the acceptance of appointment by the successor trustee as provided in Section 7.11.
SECTION 7.11. Acceptance by Successor Trustee.
Any successor trustee appointed as provided in Section 7.10 shall execute, acknowledge and deliver to the Company and to its predecessor trustee an instrument accepting such appointment hereunder, and thereupon the resignation or removal of the predecessor trustee with respect to all or any applicable series shall become effective and such successor trustee, without any further act, deed or conveyance, shall become vested with all the rights, powers, duties and obligations with respect to such series of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as trustee herein; but, nevertheless, on the written request of the Company or of the successor trustee, the predecessor trustee shall, upon payment of any amounts then due it pursuant to the provisions of Section 7.06, execute and deliver an instrument transferring to such successor trustee all the rights and powers of the predecessor trustee. Upon request of any such successor trustee, the Company shall execute any and all instruments in writing in order more fully and certainly to vest in and confirm to such successor trustee all such rights and powers. Any trustee, including the initial Trustee, ceasing to act shall, nevertheless, retain a lien upon all property or funds held or collected by such trustee to secure any amounts then due it pursuant to the provisions of Section 7.06.
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In case of the appointment hereunder of a successor trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more (but not all) series, the Company, the predecessor Trustee and each successor trustee with respect to the Securities of any applicable series shall execute and deliver a supplemental indenture which shall contain such provisions as shall be deemed necessary or desirable to confirm that all the rights, powers, trusts and duties of the predecessor Trustee with respect to the Securities of any series as to which the predecessor Trustee is not retiring shall continue to be vested in the predecessor Trustee, and shall add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one trustee, it being understood that nothing herein or in such supplemental indenture shall constitute such trustees co-trustees of the same trust and that each such trustee shall be trustee of a trust or trusts hereunder separate and apart from any trust or trusts hereunder administered by any other such trustee.
No successor trustee shall accept appointment as provided in this Section unless at the time of such acceptance such successor trustee shall be qualified and eligible under the provisions of this Article 7.
Upon acceptance of appointment by a successor trustee as provided in this Section, the Company shall mail notice of the succession of such trustee hereunder to all holders of Securities of any applicable series as the names and addresses of such holders shall appear on the registry books. If the Company fails to mail such notice in the prescribed manner within 10 days after the acceptance of appointment by the successor trustee, the successor trustee shall cause such notice to be so mailed at the expense of the Company.
SECTION 7.12. Successor by Merger, etc.
Any corporation into which the Trustee may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which the Trustee shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to all or substantially all of the corporate trust business of the Trustee, shall be the successor of the Trustee hereunder; provided such corporation shall be qualified and eligible under the provisions of this Article 7, without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of any of the parties hereto, anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding. In case any Securities shall have been authenticated, but not delivered, by the Trustee then in office, any successor by merger, conversion or consolidation to such authenticating Trustee may adopt such authentication and deliver the Securities so authenticated with the same effect as if such successor Trustee had itself authenticated such Securities.
SECTION 7.13. Limitations on Rights of Trustee as Creditor.
The Trustee shall comply with Section 311(a) of the Trust Indenture Act, excluding any creditor relationship described in Section 311(b) of the Trust Indenture Act. A Trustee who has resigned or been removed shall be subject to Section 311(a) of the Trust Indenture Act to the extent included therein.
SECTION 7.14. Notice of Default.
Within 90 days after the occurrence of any default on a series of Securities hereunder, the Trustee shall transmit to all securityholders of that series, in the manner and to the extent provided in Section 15.04, notice of such default hereunder known to the Trustee, unless such default shall have been cured or waived; provided, that except in the case of a default in the payment of the principal of or interest on any Security or on the payment of any sinking or purchase fund installment, the Trustee shall be protected in withholding such notice if and so long as the Trustee in good faith determines that the withholding of such notice is in the interests of the securityholders; and provided, further, that in the case of any default of the character specified in clause (c) of Section 6.01 no such notice to securityholders shall be given until at least 30 days after the occurrence thereof. For the purpose of this Section, the term “default” means any event which is, or after notice or lapse of time or both would become, an Event of Default with respect to Securities of such series.
SECTION 7.15. Appointment of Authenticating Agent.
The Trustee may appoint an authenticating agent or agents (which may be an affiliate or affiliates of the Company) with respect to one or more series of Securities which shall be authorized to act on behalf of the Trustee to authenticate Securities of such series issued upon original issue or upon exchange, registration of transfer or partial redemption thereof or pursuant to Section 2.09, and Securities so authenticated shall be entitled to the
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benefits of this Indenture and shall be valid and obligatory for all purposes as if authenticated by the Trustee hereunder. Wherever reference is made in this Indenture to the authentication and delivery of Securities by the Trustee or the Trustee’s certificate of authentication, such reference shall be deemed to include authentication and delivery on behalf of the Trustee by an authenticating agent and a certificate of authentication executed on behalf of the Trustee by an authenticating agent. Each authenticating agent shall be acceptable to the Company and shall at all times be a corporation organized and doing business under the laws of the United States of America or of any State or Territory thereof or of the District of Columbia, which (a) is authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers or to otherwise act as authenticating agent, (b) is subject to supervision or examination by federal, state, territorial or District of Columbia authority, and (c) shall have at all times a combined capital and surplus of not less than $50,000,000. If such authenticating agent publishes reports of condition at least annually, pursuant to law or to the requirements of said supervising or examining authority, then for the purposes of this Section, the combined capital and surplus of such authenticating agent shall be deemed to be its combined capital and surplus as set forth in its most recent report of condition so published. If at any time an authenticating agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, such authenticating agent shall resign immediately in the manner and with the effect specified in this Section.
Any corporation into which an authenticating agent may be merged or converted or with which it may be consolidated, or any corporation resulting from any merger, conversion or consolidation to which such authenticating agent shall be a party, or any corporation succeeding to the corporate agency or corporate trust business of such authenticating agent, shall continue to be an authenticating agent, provided such corporation shall be otherwise eligible under this Section, without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of the Trustee or such authenticating agent.
An authenticating agent may resign at any time by giving written notice thereof to the Trustee and to the Company. The Trustee may at any time terminate the agency of an authenticating agent by giving written notice thereof to such authenticating agent and to the Company. Upon receiving such a notice of resignation or upon such a termination, or in case at any time such authenticating agent shall cease to be eligible in accordance with the provisions of this Section, the Trustee may appoint a successor authenticating agent which shall be acceptable to the Company and shall promptly give notice of such appointment to all holders of Securities in the manner and to the extent provided in Section 15.04. Any successor authenticating agent upon acceptance of its appointment hereunder shall become vested with all the rights, powers and duties of its predecessor hereunder, with like effect as if originally named as an authenticating agent. No successor authenticating agent shall be appointed unless eligible under the provisions of this Section.
The Company agrees to pay to each authenticating agent from time to time reasonable compensation for its services under this Section.
If an appointment with respect to one or more series is made pursuant to this Section, the Securities of such series may have endorsed thereon, in addition to the Trustee’s certificate of authentication, an alternative certificate of authentication in the following form:
This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.
| [ ], | ||
| as Trustee | ||
| By: |
| |
| Authorized Signatory | ||
If all of the Securities of a series may not be originally issued at one time, and the Trustee does not have an office capable of authenticating Securities upon original issuance located in a Place of Payment where the Company wishes to have Securities of such series authenticated upon original issuance, the Trustee, if so requested by the Company in writing, shall appoint in accordance with this Section an authenticating agent (which, if so requested by the Company, shall be such affiliate of the Company) having an office in a Place of Payment designated by the Company with respect to such series of Securities, provided that the terms and conditions of such appointment are acceptable to the Trustee.
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ARTICLE 8
CONCERNING THE SECURITYHOLDERS
SECTION 8.01. Action by Securityholders.
Whenever in this Indenture it is provided that the Holders of a specified percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series may take any action (including the making of any demand or request, the giving of any authorization, notice, consent or waiver or the taking of any other action), the fact that at the time of taking any such action the Holders of such specified percentage have joined therein may be evidenced (a) by any instrument or any number of instruments of similar tenor executed by securityholders in person or by agent or proxy appointed in writing, (b) if Securities of a series are issuable as Bearer Securities, by the record of the holders of Securities voting in favor thereof, either in person or by proxies duly appointed in writing, at any meeting of securityholders of such series duly called and held in accordance with the provisions of Article 9, or (c) by a combination of such instrument or instruments and any such record of such a meeting of securityholders.
In determining whether the Holders of a specified percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series have taken any action (including the making of any demand or request, the giving of any authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver or the taking of any other action), (i) the principal amount of any Original Issue Discount Security that may be counted in making such determination and that shall be deemed to be outstanding for such purposes shall be equal to the amount of the principal thereof that could be declared to be due and payable upon an Event of Default pursuant to the terms of such Original Issue Discount Security at the time the taking of such of such action is evidenced to the Trustee, and (ii) the principal amount of a Security denominated in a foreign currency or currency unit shall be the U.S. dollar equivalent, determined as of the date of original issuance of such Security in accordance with Section 2.03(b) hereof, of the principal amount of such Security.
SECTION 8.02. Proof of Execution by Securityholders.
Subject to the provisions of Section 7.01, Section 7.02 and Section 9.05, proof of the execution of any instrument by a securityholder or its agent or proxy, or of the holding by any person of a Security, shall be sufficient and conclusive in favor of the Trustee and the Company if made in accordance with such reasonable rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Trustee or in such manner as shall be satisfactory to the Trustee.
The principal amount and serial numbers of Registered Securities held by any person, and the date of holding the same, shall be proved by the Security Register. The principal amount and serial numbers of Bearer Securities held by any person, and the date of holding the same, may be proved by the production of such Bearer Securities or by a certificate executed, as depositary, by any trust company, bank, banker or other depositary, wherever situated, if such certificate shall be deemed by the Trustee to be satisfactory, showing that at the date therein mentioned such person had on deposit with such depositary, or exhibited to it, the Bearer Securities therein described; or such facts may be proved by the certificate or affidavit of the person holding such Bearer Securities, if such certificate or affidavit is deemed by the Trustee to be satisfactory. The Trustee and the Company may assume that such ownership of any Bearer Security continues until (1) another certificate or affidavit bearing a later date issued in respect of the same Bearer Security is produced, (2) such Bearer Security is produced to the Trustee by some other person, (3) such Bearer Security is surrendered in exchange for a Registered Security, or (4) such Bearer Security is no longer Outstanding. The principal amount and serial numbers of Bearer Securities held by any person, and the date of holding the same, may also be provided in any other manner which the Trustee deems sufficient.
The record of any securityholders’ meeting shall be proved in the manner provided in Section 9.06.
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SECTION 8.03. Who Are Deemed Absolute Owners.
Prior to due presentment of a Registered Security for registration of transfer, the Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or of the Trustee may deem the person in whose name such Registered Security shall be registered upon the Security Register to be, and may treat him as, the absolute owner of such Registered Security (whether or not such Security shall be overdue and notwithstanding any notation of ownership or other writing thereon), for the purpose of receiving payment of or on account of the principal of (and premium, if any) and, subject to the provisions of Section 2.05, any interest on such Security and for all other purposes; and neither the Company nor the Trustee nor any agent of the Company or of the Trustee shall be affected by any notice to the contrary. All such payments so made to any holder for the time being, or upon his or her order, shall be valid and, to the extent of the sum or sums so paid, effectual to satisfy and discharge the liability for moneys payable upon any such Security.
Title to any Bearer Security and any coupons appertaining thereto shall pass by delivery. The Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or of the Trustee may treat the bearer of any Bearer Security and the bearer of any coupon as the owner of such Security or coupon for the purpose of receiving payment thereof or on account thereof and for all other purposes whatsoever, whether or not such Security or coupon be overdue, and neither the Company, the Trustee nor any agent of the Company or the Trustee shall be affected by notice to the contrary.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to any temporary or permanent Global Security, nothing herein shall prevent the Company, the Trustee, or any agent of the Company or of the Trustee, from giving effect to any written certification, proxy or other authorization furnished by a U.S. Depositary, or impair, as between a U.S. Depositary and holders of beneficial interests in any temporary or permanent Global Security, as the case may be, the operation of customary practices governing the exercise of the rights of the U.S. Depositary as holder of such temporary or permanent Global Security.
SECTION 8.04. Company-Owned Securities Disregarded.
In determining whether the holders of the required aggregate principal amount of Securities have provided any request, demand, authorization, notice, direction, consent or waiver under this Indenture, Securities which are owned by the Company or any other obligor on the Securities, or by any person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with the Company or any other obligor on the Securities, shall be disregarded and deemed not to be Outstanding for the purpose of any such determination, except that for the purpose of determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in relying on any such request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver, only Securities which the Trustee knows are so owned shall be so disregarded. Securities so owned which have been pledged in good faith may be regarded as Outstanding for the purposes of this Section if the pledgee shall establish to the satisfaction of the Trustee the pledgee’s right to vote such Securities and that the pledgee is not a person directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with the Company or any such other obligor. In the case of a dispute as to such right, any decision by the Trustee taken upon the advice of counsel shall provide full protection to the Trustee.
SECTION 8.05. Revocation of Consents; Future Securityholders Bound.
At any time prior to the taking of any action by the holders of the percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities specified in this Indenture in connection with such action, any holder of a Security, the identifying number of which is shown by the evidence to be included in the Securities the holders of which have consented to such action, may, by filing written notice with the Trustee at its office and upon proof of holding as provided in Section 8.02, revoke such action so far as concerns such Security. Except as aforesaid any such action taken by the Holder of any Security shall be conclusive and binding upon such holder and upon all future Holders and owners of such Security and of any Security issued upon registration of transfer of or in exchange or substitution therefor in respect of anything done, omitted or suffered to be done by the Trustee or the Company in reliance thereon, irrespective of whether or not any notation in regard thereto is made upon such Security. Any action taken by the Holders of the percentage in aggregate principal amount of the Securities specified in this Indenture in connection with such action shall be conclusively binding upon the Company, the Trustee and the holders of all the Securities.
SECTION 8.06. Record Date.
The Company may, but shall not be obligated to, set a record date for purposes of determining the identity of holders of Securities of any series entitled to vote or consent to any action by vote or consent or to otherwise take any action under this Indenture authorized or permitted by Section 6.12 and Section 6.13 or otherwise under this
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Indenture. Such record date shall be the later of (i) the date 20 days prior to the first solicitation of such consent or vote or other action and (ii) the date of the most recent list of holders of such Securities delivered to the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee pursuant to Section 5.01 prior to such solicitation. If such a record date is fixed, those persons who were holders of such Securities at the close of business on such record date shall be entitled to vote or consent or take such other action, or to revoke any such action, whether or not such persons continue to be Holders after such record date, and for that purpose the Outstanding Securities shall be computed as of such record date.
ARTICLE 9
SECURITYHOLDERS’ MEETINGS
SECTION 9.01. Purposes of Meeting.
A meeting of Holders of any or all series of Securities may be called at any time and from time to time pursuant to the provisions of this Article for any of the following purposes:
(a) to give any notice to the Company or to the Trustee, or to give any directions to the Trustee, or to waive any default hereunder and its consequences, or to take any other action authorized to be taken by securityholders pursuant to any of the provisions of Article 6;
(b) to remove the Trustee and appoint a successor trustee pursuant to the provisions of Article 7;
(c) to consent to the execution of an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto pursuant to the provisions of Section 10.02; or
(d) to take any other action authorized to be taken by or on behalf of the Holders of any specified aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series, as the case may be, under any other provision of this Indenture or under applicable law.
SECTION 9.02. Call of Meetings by Trustee.
The Trustee may at any time call a meeting of securityholders of any or all series to take any action specified in Section 9.01, to be held at such time and at such place in New York, New York or any place in the Netherlands as the Trustee shall determine. Notice of every meeting of the securityholders of any or all series, setting forth the time and place of such meeting and in general terms the action proposed to be taken at such meeting, shall be given in the manner provided in Section 15.04 not less than 20 nor more than 180 days prior to the date fixed for the meeting.
SECTION 9.03. Call of Meetings by Company or Securityholders.
In case at any time the Company, pursuant to a Board Resolution, or the holders of at least 10% in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of any or all series, as the case may be, then Outstanding, shall have requested the Trustee to call a meeting of securityholders of any or all series to take any action authorized in Section 9.01, by written request setting forth in reasonable detail the action proposed to be taken at the meeting, and the Trustee shall not have provided notice of such meeting in the manner provided in Section 15.04 within 30 days after receipt of such request, then the Company or the holders of such Securities in the amount above specified may determine the time and the place in New York, New York or any place in the Netherlands for such meeting and may call such meeting by giving notice thereof as provided in Section 9.02.
SECTION 9.04. Qualifications for Voting.
To be entitled to vote at any meeting of securityholders a person shall be a Holder of one or more Securities of such series Outstanding with respect to which a meeting is being held or a person appointed by an instrument in writing as proxy by such a Holder or Holders. The only persons who shall be entitled to be present or to speak at any meeting of the securityholders of any series shall be the persons entitled to vote at such meeting and their counsel, any representatives of the Trustee and its counsel and any representatives of the Company and its counsel.
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SECTION 9.05. Regulations.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Indenture, the Trustee may make such reasonable regulations as it may deem advisable for any meeting of securityholders of a series, in regard to proof of the holding of Securities and of the appointment of proxies, and in regard to the appointment and duties of inspectors of votes, the submission and examination of proxies, certificates and other evidence of the right to vote, and such other matters concerning the conduct of the meeting as it deems fit. Except as otherwise permitted or required by any such regulations, the holding of Securities shall be proved in the manner specified in Article 8 and the appointment of any proxy shall be proved in the manner specified in Article 8 or by having the signature of the person executing the proxy witnessed or guaranteed by any trust company, bank or banker authorized by Article 8 to certify to the holding of Bearer Securities. Such regulations may provide that written instruments appointing proxies, regular on their face, may be presumed valid and genuine without the proof specified in Article 8 or other proof.
The Trustee shall, by an instrument in writing, appoint a temporary chairman of the meeting, unless the meeting shall have been called by the Company or by securityholders as provided in Section 9.03, in which case the Company or the securityholders calling the meeting, as the case may be, shall in like manner appoint a temporary chairman. A permanent chairman and a permanent secretary of the meeting shall be elected by vote of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities represented at the meeting and entitled to vote.
Subject to the provisions of Section 8.01 and Section 8.04, at any meeting each securityholder or proxy shall be entitled to one vote for each $1,000 (or the U.S. Dollar equivalent thereof in connection with Securities issued in a foreign currency or currency unit) Outstanding principal amount of Securities of such series held or represented by him or her; provided, however, that no vote shall be cast or counted at any meeting in respect of any Security challenged as not Outstanding and ruled by the chairman of the meeting to be not Outstanding. The chairman of the meeting shall have no right to vote except as a securityholder or proxy. Any meeting of securityholders duly called pursuant to the provisions of Section 9.02 or Section 9.03 may be adjourned from time to time, and the meeting may be reconvened without further notice.
SECTION 9.06. Voting.
The vote upon any resolution submitted to any meeting of securityholders shall be by written ballot on which shall be subscribed the signatures of the securityholders or proxies and on which shall be inscribed the identifying number or numbers or to which shall be attached a list of identifying numbers of the Securities held or represented by them. The chairman of the meeting shall appoint two inspectors of votes who shall count all votes cast at the meeting for or against any resolution and who shall make and file with the secretary of the meeting their verified written reports in duplicate of all votes cast at the meeting. A record in duplicate of the proceedings of each meeting of securityholders shall be prepared by the secretary of the meeting and there shall be attached to the record the original reports of the inspectors of votes on any vote by ballot taken thereat and affidavits by one or more persons having knowledge of the facts setting forth a copy of the notice of the meeting and showing that the notice was mailed as provided in Section 9.02. The record shall be signed and verified by the chairman and secretary of the meeting and one of the duplicates shall be delivered to the Company and the other to the Trustee to be preserved by the Trustee, the latter to have attached thereto the ballots voted at the meeting.
Any record so signed and verified shall be conclusive evidence of the matters therein stated.
ARTICLE 10
SUPPLEMENTAL INDENTURES
SECTION 10.01. Supplemental Indentures without Consent of Securityholders.
Without the consent of any holders of Securities or coupons, the Company, when authorized by or pursuant to Board Resolution, and the Trustee may from time to time and at any time enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto (which shall conform to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act as in force at the date of the execution thereof) for one or more of the following purposes:
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(a) to evidence the succession of another corporation to the Company, or successive successions, pursuant to Article 11 hereof, and the assumption by the successor corporation of the covenants, agreements and obligations of the Company herein and in the Securities;
(b) to add to the covenants of the Company such further covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions as its Board of Directors shall consider to be for the protection of the holders of Securities, and to make the occurrence, or the occurrence and continuance, of a default in any of such additional covenants, restrictions, conditions or provisions an Event of Default permitting the enforcement of all or any of the several remedies provided in this Indenture as herein set forth, with such period of grace, if any, and subject to such conditions as such supplemental indenture may provide;
(c) to add to or change any of the provisions of this Indenture to provide that Bearer Securities may be registrable as to principal, to change or eliminate any restrictions on the payment of principal of or any premium or interest on Bearer Securities, to permit Bearer Securities to be issued in exchange for Registered Securities, to permit Bearer Securities to be issued in exchange for Bearer Securities of other authorized denominations or to permit or facilitate the issuance of Securities in uncertificated form, provided that any such action shall not adversely affect the interests of the holders of Securities of any series or any related coupons in any material respect;
(d) to modify, eliminate or add to the provisions of this Indenture to such extent as shall be necessary to effect the qualification of this Indenture under the Trust Indenture Act, or under any similar federal statute hereafter enacted, and to add to this Indenture such other provisions as may be expressly permitted by the Trust Indenture Act, excluding however, the provisions referred to in Section 316(a)(2) of the Trust Indenture Act or any corresponding provision in any similar federal statute hereafter enacted;
(e) to modify, eliminate or add to any of the provisions of this Indenture, provided that any such change or elimination (i) shall become effective only when there is no Security of any series Outstanding and created prior to the execution of such supplemental indenture that is entitled to the benefit of such provision or (ii) shall not apply to any Security Outstanding;
(f) to cure any ambiguity or to correct or supplement any provision contained herein or in any supplemental indenture which may be defective or inconsistent with any other provisions contained herein or in any supplemental indenture; to convey, transfer, assign, mortgage or pledge any property to or with the Trustee; or to make such other provisions in regard to matters or questions arising under this Indenture, provided such other provisions shall not adversely affect in any material respect the interests of the holders of the Securities or any related coupons, including provisions necessary or desirable to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder;
(g) to secure any series of Security; and
(h) to evidence and provide for the acceptance and appointment hereunder by a successor trustee with respect to the Securities of one or more series and to add or change any provisions of this Indenture as shall be necessary to provide for or facilitate the administration of the trusts hereunder by more than one trustee, pursuant to Section 7.11.
The Trustee is hereby authorized to join with the Company in the execution of any such supplemental indenture, to make any further appropriate agreements and stipulations which may be therein contained and to accept the conveyance, transfer, assignment, mortgage or pledge of any property thereunder, but the Trustee shall not be obligated to enter into any such supplemental indenture which adversely affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise. No supplemental indenture shall be effective as against the Trustee unless and until the Trustee has duly executed and delivered the same.
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SECTION 10.02. Supplemental Indentures with Consent of Holders.
With the consent (evidenced as provided in Section 8.01) of the holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of all series at the time Outstanding affected by such supplemental indenture (voting as one class), the Company, when authorized by a Board Resolution, and the Trustee may from time to time and at any time enter into an indenture or indentures supplemental hereto (which shall conform to the provisions of the Trust Indenture Act as in force at the date of the execution thereof) for the purpose of adding any provisions to or changing in any manner or eliminating any of the provisions of this Indenture or of any supplemental indenture or of modifying in any manner the rights of the holders of the Securities of such series and any related coupons under this Indenture; provided, that no such supplemental indenture shall (1) extend the fixed maturity of any Securities, or reduce the principal amount thereof or premium, if any, or reduce the rate or extend the time of payment of interest thereon, without the consent of the holder of each Security so affected, (2) reduce the aforesaid percentage of Securities, the consent of the holders of which is required for any such supplemental indenture, without the consent of the holders of all Securities then Outstanding, (3) modify the subordination provisions in a manner adverse to the holders of such Securities, or (4) modify any of the above provisions.
Upon the request of the Company, accompanied by a copy of a Board Resolution certified by an Officer of the Company authorizing the execution of any such supplemental indenture, and upon the filing with the Trustee of evidence of the consent of securityholders as aforesaid, the Trustee shall join with the Company in the execution of such supplemental indenture unless such supplemental indenture affects the Trustee’s own rights, duties or immunities under this Indenture or otherwise, in which case the Trustee may in its discretion, but shall not be obligated to, enter into such supplemental indenture.
It shall not be necessary for the consent of the securityholders under this Section to approve the particular form of any proposed supplemental indenture, but it shall be sufficient if such consent shall approve the substance thereof.
Promptly after the execution by the Company and the Trustee of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10, the Company shall provide notice, in the manner and to the extent provided in Section 15.04, setting forth in general terms the substance of such supplemental indenture, to all holders of Securities of each series so affected. Any failure of the Company so to provide such notice, or any defect therein, shall not, however, in any way impair or affect the validity of any such supplemental indenture.
SECTION 10.03. Compliance with Trust Indenture Act; Effect of Supplemental Indentures.
Any supplemental indenture executed pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10 shall comply with the Trust Indenture Act, as then in effect. Upon the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10 and subject to the provisions in any supplemental indenture relating to the prospective application of such instrument, this Indenture shall be and be deemed to be modified and amended in accordance therewith and the respective rights, limitations of rights, obligations, duties and immunities under this Indenture of the Trustee, the Company and the holders of Securities theretofore or thereafter authenticated and delivered hereunder and of any coupons appertaining thereto shall thereafter be determined, exercised and enforced hereunder subject in all respects to such modifications and amendments, and all the terms and conditions of any such supplemental indenture shall be and be deemed to be part of the terms and conditions of this Indenture for any and all purposes.
The Trustee, subject to the provisions of Section 7.01 and Section 7.02, shall be entitled to receive and shall be fully protected in relying upon an Officer’s Certificate or an Opinion of Counsel as conclusive evidence that any such supplemental indenture complies with the provisions of this Article 10.
SECTION 10.04. Notation on Securities.
Securities of any series authenticated and delivered after the execution of any supplemental indenture pursuant to the provisions of this Article 10 may bear a notation in form approved by the Trustee as to any matter provided for in such supplemental indenture. New Securities of any series so modified as to conform, in the opinion of the Trustee and the Board of Directors, to any modification of this Indenture contained in any such supplemental indenture may be prepared by the Company, authenticated by the Trustee and delivered, without charge to the securityholders, in exchange for the Securities of such series then Outstanding.
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ARTICLE 11
CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE OR CONVEYANCE
SECTION 11.01. Company May Consolidate, etc., on Certain Terms.
The Company covenants that it will not merge into or consolidate with any other corporation or sell or convey all or substantially all of its assets to any person, firm or corporation, unless (1) either the Company shall be the continuing corporation, or the successor corporation (if other than the Company) shall be a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the Netherlands, United States of America or a state thereof or the District of Columbia and such corporation shall expressly assume the due and punctual payment of the principal of (and premium, if any, on) and any interest on all the Securities, according to their tenor, and the due and punctual performance and observance of all of the covenants and conditions of this Indenture to be performed by the Company by supplemental indenture, executed and delivered to the Trustee by such corporation, and (2) the Company or such successor corporation, as the case may be, shall not, immediately after such merger or consolidation, or such sale or conveyance, be in default in the performance of any such covenant or condition.
SECTION 11.02. Successor Corporation Substituted.
In case of any such consolidation, merger, sale or conveyance and upon any such assumption by the successor corporation, such successor corporation shall succeed to and be substituted for, and may exercise every right and power of, the Company, with the same effect as if it had been named herein as the party of the first part. Such successor corporation thereupon may cause to be signed, and may issue either in its own name or in the name of the Company, any or all of the Securities issuable hereunder which theretofore shall not have been signed by the Company and delivered to the Trustee; and, upon the order of such successor corporation, instead of the Company, and subject to all the terms, conditions and limitations in this Indenture prescribed, the Trustee shall authenticate and shall make available for delivery any Securities which previously shall have been signed and delivered by the officers of the Company to the Trustee for authentication, and any Securities which such successor corporation thereafter shall cause to be signed and delivered to the Trustee for that purpose. All of the Securities so issued shall in all respects have the same legal rank and benefit under this Indenture as the Securities theretofore or thereafter issued in accordance with the terms of this Indenture as though all of such Securities had been issued at the date of the execution thereof.
In case of any such consolidation, merger, sale or conveyance such changes in phrasing and form (but not in substance) may be made in the Securities thereafter to be issued as may be appropriate.
SECTION 11.03. Opinion of Counsel and Officer’s Certificate to Trustee.
The Trustee shall receive an Opinion of Counsel and Officer’s Certificate as conclusive evidence that any such consolidation, merger, sale or conveyance, and any such assumption, complies with the provisions of this Article 11 and that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to such transaction have been complied with.
ARTICLE 12
SATISFACTION AND DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; UNCLAIMED MONEYS
SECTION 12.01. Discharge of Indenture.
If at any time:
(a) the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee for cancellation all Securities of any series theretofore authenticated and all coupons, if any, appertaining thereto (other than (i) coupons appertaining to Bearer Securities surrendered for exchange for Registered Securities and maturing after such exchange, whose surrender is not required or has been waived as provided in Section 2.07, (ii) Securities and coupons that have been destroyed, lost or stolen and that have been replaced or paid as provided in Section 2.09, (iii) coupons appertaining to Securities called for redemption and maturing after the relevant redemption date, whose surrender has been waived as provided in Section 3.03, and (iv) Securities and coupons for whose payment money has theretofore been deposited in trust or segregated and held in trust by the Company and thereafter repaid to the Company or discharged from such trust, as provided in Section 4.03), or
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(b) all such Securities of such series and, in the case of (a)(i) or (a)(ii) above, any coupons appertaining thereto not theretofore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation (i) shall have become due and payable, (ii) are by their terms to become due and payable within one year, or (iii) are to be called for redemption within one year under arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the giving of notice of redemption, and the Company in the case of (a)(i) or (a)(iii) above shall deposit or cause to be deposited with the Trustee as trust funds the entire amount (other than moneys repaid by the Trustee or any paying agent to the Company in accordance with Section 12.04) sufficient to pay at maturity or upon redemption all Securities of such series and coupons not therefore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation, including principal (and premium, if any) and any interest due or to become due to such date of maturity or date fixed for redemption, as the case may be, and if in either case the Company shall also pay or cause to be paid all other sums payable hereunder by the Company with respect to such series, then this Indenture shall cease to be of further effect with respect to the Securities of such series, and the Trustee, on demand of and at the cost and expense of the Company and subject to Section 15.05, shall execute such instruments reasonably requested by the Company acknowledging satisfaction of and discharging this Indenture with respect to the Securities of such series. The Company agrees to reimburse the Trustee for any costs or expenses thereafter reasonably incurred by the Trustee in connection with this Indenture or the Securities of such series. Notwithstanding the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture with respect to the Securities of any series or of all series, the obligations of the Company to the Trustee under Section 7.06 shall survive.
The Company will deliver to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel which together shall state that all conditions precedent herein provided for relating to the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture have been complied with.
SECTION 12.02. Deposited Moneys to be Held in Trust by Trustee.
Subject to the provisions of Section 12.03 and 12.04, all moneys deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 12.01 shall be held in trust and applied by it to the payment, either directly or through any paying agent (including the Company acting as its own paying agent), to the persons entitled thereto, of all sums due and to become due thereon for principal and interest (and premium, if any) for which payment of such money has been deposited with the Trustee.
SECTION 12.03. Paying Agent to Repay Moneys Held.
In connection with the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture with respect to Securities of any series and the payment of all amounts due to the Trustee under Section 7.06, all moneys with respect to such Securities then held by any paying agent under the provisions of this Indenture shall, upon demand of the Company, be repaid to it or paid to the Trustee and thereupon such paying agent shall be released from all further liability with respect to such moneys.
SECTION 12.04. Return of Unclaimed Moneys.
Any moneys deposited with or paid to the Trustee or any paying agent for the payment of the principal of (and premium, if any) or interest on any Security and not applied but remaining unclaimed for two years after the date upon which such principal (and premium, if any, on) or interest shall have become due and payable, shall be repaid to the Company by the Trustee or such paying agent on demand, and the holder of such Security shall thereafter, as an unsecured general creditor, look only to the Company for any payment which such holder may be entitled to collect and all liability of the Trustee or any paying agent with respect to such moneys shall thereupon cease.
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ARTICLE 13
IMMUNITY OF INCORPORATORS, STOCKHOLDERS, OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
SECTION 13.01. Indenture and Securities Solely Corporate Obligations.
No recourse under or upon any obligation, covenant or agreement contained in this Indenture, or in any Security or coupon, or because of any indebtedness evidenced thereby, shall be had against any incorporator, or against any past, present or future stockholder, officer or director, as such, of the Company or of any successor corporation, either directly or through the Company or any successor corporation, under any rule of law, statute or constitutional provision or by the enforcement of any assessment or by any legal or equitable proceeding or otherwise, all such liability being expressly waived and released by the acceptance of the Securities or coupons by the holders thereof and as part of the consideration for the issue of the Securities.
ARTICLE 14
DEFEASANCE AND COVENANT DEFEASANCE
SECTION 14.01. Applicability of Article.
Unless, as specified pursuant to Section 2.03(b), provision is made that either or both of (a) defeasance of the Securities of a series under Section 14.02 and (b) covenant defeasance of the Securities of a series under Section 14.03 shall not apply to the Securities of a series, then the provisions of such Section 14.02 and Section 14.03, together with Section 14.04 and Section 14.05, shall be applicable to the Outstanding Securities of all series upon compliance with the conditions set forth below in this Article 14.
SECTION 14.02. Defeasance and Discharge.
Subject to Section 14.05, the Company may cause itself to be discharged from its obligations with respect to the Outstanding Securities of any series on and after the date the conditions precedent set forth below are satisfied but subject to satisfaction of the conditions subsequent set forth below (hereinafter, “defeasance”). For this purpose, such defeasance means that the Company shall be deemed to have paid and discharged the entire indebtedness represented by the Outstanding Securities of such series and to have satisfied all its other obligations under such Securities and this Indenture insofar as such Securities are concerned (and the Trustee, at the expense of the Company, shall execute such instruments reasonably requested by the Company acknowledging the same), except for the following which shall survive until otherwise terminated or discharged hereunder: (a) the rights of holders of Outstanding Securities of such series to receive, solely from the trust fund described in Section 14.04 and as more fully set forth in such Section, payments of the principal of and any premium and interest on such Securities when such payments are due, (b) the Company’s obligations with respect to such Securities under Section 2.07, Section 2.08, Section 2.09, Section 4.02 and Section 4.03 and such obligations as shall be ancillary thereto, (c) the rights, powers, trusts, duties, immunities and other provisions in respect of the Trustee hereunder, and (d) this Article 14. Subject to compliance with this Article 14, defeasance with respect to Securities of a series by the Company is permitted under this Section 14.02 notwithstanding the prior exercise of its rights under Section 14.03 with respect to the Securities of such series. Following a defeasance, payment of the Securities of such series may not be accelerated because of an Event of Default.
SECTION 14.03. Covenant Defeasance.
The Company may cause itself to be released from its obligations under any Sections applicable to Securities of a series that are determined pursuant to Section 2.03(b) to be subject to this provision with respect to the Outstanding Securities of such series on and after the date the conditions precedent set forth below are satisfied but subject to satisfaction of the conditions subsequent set forth below (hereinafter, “covenant defeasance”). For this purpose, such covenant defeasance means that, with respect to the Outstanding Securities of such series, the Company may omit to comply with and shall have no liability in respect of any term, condition or limitation set forth in any such Section, whether directly or indirectly by reason of any reference elsewhere herein to any such Section or by reason of any reference in any such Section to any other provision herein or in any other document, but the remainder of this Indenture and such Securities shall be unaffected thereby.
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SECTION 14.04. Conditions to Defeasance or Covenant Defeasance.
The following shall be the conditions precedent or, as specifically noted below, subsequent to application of either Section 14.02 or Section 14.03 to the Outstanding Securities of such series:
(a) The Company shall irrevocably have deposited or caused to be deposited with the Trustee as trust funds in trust for the purpose of making the following payments, specifically pledged as security for, and dedicated solely to, the benefit of the holders of such Securities, (i) money in an amount, (ii) U.S. Government Obligations which through the scheduled payment of principal and interest in respect thereof in accordance with their terms will provide, not later than one day before the due date of any payment, money in an amount, or (iii) a combination thereof, sufficient, without reinvestment, in the opinion of a nationally recognized firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, to pay and discharge, and which shall be applied by the Trustee to pay and discharge, (1) the principal of and any premium and interest on the Outstanding Securities of such series to maturity or redemption, as the case may be, and (2) any mandatory sinking fund payments or analogous payments applicable to the Outstanding Securities of such series on the due dates thereof. Before such a deposit the Company may make arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the redemption of Securities at a future date or dates in accordance with Article 3 which shall be given effect in applying the foregoing. For this purpose, “U.S. Government Obligations” means securities that are (x) direct obligations of the United States of America for the payment of which its full faith and credit is pledged or (y) obligations of a person controlled or supervised by and acting as an agency or instrumentality of the United States of America the payment of which is unconditionally guaranteed as a full faith and credit obligation by the United States of America, which, in either case, are not callable or redeemable at the option of the issuer thereof, and shall also include a depository receipt issued by a bank (as defined in Section 3(a)(2) of the Securities Act) as custodian with respect to any such U.S. Government Obligation or a specific payment of principal of or interest on any such U.S. Government Obligation held by such custodian for the account of the holder of such depository receipt, provided that (except as required by law) such custodian is not authorized to make any deduction from the amount payable to the holder of such depository receipt from any amount received by the custodian in respect of the U.S. Government Obligation or the specific payment of principal of or interest on the U.S. Government Obligation evidenced by such depository receipt;
(b) No Default, or event that after notice or lapse of time, or both, would become a Default with respect to the Securities of such series, shall have happened and be continuing (i) on the date of such deposit or (ii) insofar as Section 6.01(d) and Section 6.01(e) are concerned, at any time during the period ending on the 123rd day after the date of such deposit or, if longer, ending on the day following the expiration of the longest preference period applicable to the Company in respect of such deposit (it being understood that the condition in this clause (b) is a condition subsequent and shall not be deemed satisfied until the expiration of such period);
(c) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not (i) cause the Trustee for the Securities of such series to have a “conflicting interest” as defined in Section 310(b) of the Trust Indenture Act or (ii) result in the trust arising from such deposit to constitute, unless it is qualified as, a regulated investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended;
(d) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under, this Indenture or any other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which it is bound;
(e) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall not cause any Securities of such series then listed on any registered national securities exchange under the Exchange Act to be delisted;
(f) In the case of a defeasance under Section 14.02, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel stating that (x) the Company has received from, or there has been published by, the Internal Revenue Service a ruling, or (y) since the date of this Indenture there has been a change in the applicable federal income tax law, in either case to the effect that, and based thereon such opinion shall confirm that, the holders of the Outstanding Securities of such series will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such defeasance had not occurred;
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(g) In the case of covenant defeasance under Section 14.03, the Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel to the effect that the holders of the Outstanding Securities of such series will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such covenant defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such covenant defeasance had not occurred;
(h) Such defeasance or covenant defeasance shall be effected in compliance with any additional terms, conditions or limitations which may be imposed on the Company in connection therewith pursuant to Section 2.03(b); and
(i) The Company shall have delivered to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that all conditions precedent and subsequent provided for in this Indenture relating to either the defeasance under Section 14.02 or the covenant defeasance under Section 14.03, as the case may be, have been complied with.
SECTION 14.05. Deposited Money and U.S. Government Obligations to be Held in Trust; Other Miscellaneous Provisions.
All money and U.S. Government Obligations (including the proceeds thereof) deposited with the Trustee pursuant to Section 14.04 in respect of the Outstanding Securities of such series shall be held in trust and applied by the Trustee, in accordance with the provisions of such Securities and this Indenture, to the payment, either directly or through any paying agent (but not including the Company acting as its own paying agent) as the Trustee may determine, to the holders of such Securities of all sums due and to become due thereon in respect of principal and any premium and interest, but such money need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law.
The Company shall pay and indemnify the Trustee against any tax, fee or other charge imposed on or assessed against the money or U.S. Government Obligations deposited pursuant to Section 14.04 or the principal and interest received in respect thereof.
Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding, the Trustee shall deliver or pay to the Company from time to time upon Company Request any money or U.S. Government Obligations held by it as provided in Section 14.04 which, in the opinion of a nationally recognized firm of independent public accountants expressed in a written certification thereof delivered to the Trustee, are in excess of the amount thereof which would then be required to be deposited to effect an equivalent defeasance or covenant defeasance, provided that the Trustee shall not be required to liquidate any U.S. Government Obligations in order to comply with the provisions of this paragraph.
Anything herein to the contrary notwithstanding, if and to the extent the deposited money or U.S. Government Obligations (or the proceeds thereof) either (i) cannot be applied by the Trustee in accordance with this Section because of a court order or by operation of Article 16 or (ii) are for any reason insufficient in amount, then the Company’s obligations to pay principal of and any premium and interest on the Securities of such series shall be reinstated to the extent necessary to cover the deficiency on any due date for payment. In any such case, the Company’s interest in the deposited money and U.S. Government Obligations (and proceeds thereof) shall be reinstated to the extent the Company’s payment obligations are reinstated.
ARTICLE 15
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SECTION 15.01. Benefits of Indenture Restricted to Parties and Securityholders.
Nothing in this Indenture or in the Securities, expressed or implied, shall give or be construed to give to any person, firm or corporation, other than the parties hereto and their successors and assigns and the holders of the Securities (and, with respect to the provisions of Article 16, the holders of Senior Indebtedness), any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under this Indenture or under any covenant or provision herein contained, all such covenants and provisions being for the sole benefit of the parties hereto and their successors and assigns and the holders of the Securities (and, with respect to the provisions of Article 16, the holders of Senior Indebtedness).
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SECTION 15.02. Provisions Binding on Company’s Successors.
All the covenants, stipulations, promises and agreements in this Indenture contained by or in behalf of the Company shall bind its successors and assigns, whether so expressed or not.
SECTION 15.03. Addresses for Notices, etc., to Company and Trustee.
Any notice or demand which by any provisions of this Indenture is required or permitted to be given or served by the Trustee or by the holders of Securities to or on the Company may be given or served by postage prepaid first class mail addressed (until another address is filed by the Company with the Trustee), as follows: NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., [ ], Attn: Chief Financial Officer. Any notice, direction, request or demand by any securityholder to or upon the Trustee shall be deemed to have been sufficiently given or made, for all purposes, if given or made in writing at the Corporate Trust Office of the Trustee as set forth in Section 4.02.
SECTION 15.04. Notice to Holders of Securities; Waiver.
Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, where this Indenture provides for notice of holders of Securities of any event,
(a) such notice shall be sufficiently given to Holders of Registered Securities if in writing and mailed, first-class postage prepaid, to each holder of a Registered Security affected by such event, at the address of such holder as it appears in the Security Register, not earlier than the earliest date, and not later than the latest date, prescribed for the giving of such notice; and
(b) such notice shall be sufficiently given to Holders of Bearer Securities if published in an Authorized Newspaper in the Borough of Manhattan, the City of New York and in such other city or cities as may be specified in such Securities on a Business Day at least twice, the first such publication to be not earlier than the earliest date, and not later than the latest date, prescribed for the giving of such notice.
In any case where notice to Holders of Registered Securities is given by mail, neither the failure to mail such notice, nor any defect in any notice so mailed, to any particular Holder of a Registered Security shall affect the sufficiency of such notice with respect to other holders of Registered Securities or the sufficiency of any notice to Holders of Bearer Securities given as provided herein.
Neither the failure to give notice by publication to Holders of Bearer Securities as provided above, nor any defect in any notice so published, shall affect the sufficiency of any notice to Holders of Registered Securities given as provided herein.
Where this Indenture provides for notice in any manner, such notice may be waived in writing by the person entitled to receive such notice, either before or after the event, and such waiver shall be the equivalent of such notice. Waivers of notice by holders of Securities shall be filed with the Trustee, but such filing shall not be a condition precedent to the validity of any action taken in reliance upon such waiver.
Any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver required or permitted under this Indenture shall be in the English language, except that any published notice may be in an official language of the country of publication.
Notwithstanding anything in this Indenture to the contrary, where any notice is to be given to the holders of Global Securities, notice shall be sufficient if given in accordance with the procedures of the U.S. Depositary.
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SECTION 15.05. Evidence of Compliance with Conditions Precedent.
Upon any application or demand by the Company to the Trustee to take any action under any of the provisions of this Indenture, the Company shall furnish to the Trustee an Officer’s Certificate stating that all conditions precedent, if any, provided for in this Indenture relating to the proposed action have been complied with and an Opinion of Counsel stating that in the opinion of such counsel all such conditions precedent, if any, have been complied with, except that in the case of any such application or demand as to which the furnishing of such documents is specifically required by any provision of this Indenture relating to such particular application or demand, no additional certificate or opinion need be furnished.
Each Officer’s Certificate and Opinion of Counsel provided for in this Indenture and delivered to the Trustee with respect to compliance with a condition or covenant provided for in this Indenture shall include (1) a statement that the person making such certificate or opinion has read such covenant or condition; (2) a brief statement as to the nature and scope of the examination or investigation upon which the statements or opinions contained in such certificate or opinion are based; (3) a statement that, in the opinion of such person, he or she has made such examination or investigation as is necessary to enable him or her to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such covenant or condition has been complied with; and (4) a statement as to whether or not, in the opinion of such person, such condition or covenant has been complied with.
SECTION 15.06. Legal Holidays.
In any case where the date of maturity of interest on or principal of the Securities or the date fixed for redemption of any Securities shall be a day other than a Business Day in the Place of Payment or in such other place or places as the Company may designate pursuant to Section 4.02, then payment of interest or principal (and premium, if any) need not be made on such date but may be made on the next succeeding Business Day with the same force and effect as if made on the date of maturity or the date fixed for redemption, and no interest shall accrue for the period after such date.
SECTION 15.07. Trust Indenture Act to Control.
If and to the extent that any provision of this Indenture limits, qualifies or conflicts with another provision included in this Indenture which is required to be included in this Indenture by any of Sections 310 to 317, inclusive, of the Trust Indenture Act, such required provision shall control.
SECTION 15.08. Execution in Counterparts.
This Indenture may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be an original; but such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same instrument. The exchange of copies of this Indenture and of signature pages by facsimile or PDF transmission will constitute effective execution and delivery of this Indenture as to the parties hereto and may be used in lieu of the original Indenture for all purposes. Signatures of the parties hereto transmitted by facsimile or PDF will be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes.
SECTION 15.09. Governing Law; Waiver of Jury Trial.
This Indenture and each Security shall be deemed to be a contract made under the laws of the State of New York, and for all purposes shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.
EACH OF THE COMPANY AND THE TRUSTEE HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ANY AND ALL RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS INDENTURE, THE SECURITIES OR THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.
SECTION 15.10. Severability.
In case any provision in this Indenture or in the Securities shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.
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The Trustee, by its execution of this Indenture, hereby accepts the trusts in this Indenture declared and provided, upon the terms and conditions hereinabove set forth.
SECTION 15.11. Interpretations.
The Table of Contents, Cross-Reference Table and Headings of the Articles and Sections of this Indenture have been inserted for convenience of reference only, are not to be considered a part of this Indenture and shall in no way modify or restrict any of the terms or provisions hereof.
This Indenture may not be used to interpret any other indenture, loan or debt agreement of the Company or its Subsidiaries or of any other Person. Any such indenture, loan or debt agreement may not be used to interpret this Indenture.
SECTION 15.12. U.S.A. Patriot Act.
The parties hereto acknowledge that in accordance with Title III of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (the “USA PATRIOT Act”), the Trustee, like all financial institutions and in order to help fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering, is required to obtain, verify, and record information that identifies each person or legal entity that establishes a relationship or opens an account with the Trustee. The parties to this Indenture agree that they will provide the Trustee with such information as it may request in order for the Trustee to satisfy the requirements of the USA PATRIOT Act.
SECTION 15.13. Force Majeure.
In no event shall the Trustee be responsible or liable for any failure or delay in the performance of its obligations hereunder arising out of or caused by, directly or indirectly, forces beyond its control, including, without limitation, strikes, work stoppages, accidents, acts of war or terrorism, civil or military disturbances, nuclear or natural catastrophes or acts of God, and interruptions, loss or malfunctions of utilities, communications or computer (software and hardware) services, it being understood that the Trustee shall use reasonable efforts which are consistent with accepted practices in the banking industry to resume performance as soon as practicable under the circumstances.
SECTION 15.14. Jurisdiction.
The Company and the Trustee agree that any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or based upon this Indenture or the Securities may be instituted in any state or Federal court in the Borough of Manhattan, New York, New York, and any appellate court from any thereof, and irrevocably submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of such courts in any suit, action or proceeding. The Company and the Trustee irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection to any suit, action, or proceeding that may be brought in connection with this Indenture or the Securities, including such actions, suits or proceedings relating to securities laws of the United States or any state thereof, in such courts whether on the grounds of venue, residence or domicile or on the ground that any such suit, action or proceeding has been brought in an inconvenient forum. The Company and the Trustee agree that final judgment in any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court shall be conclusive and binding upon the Company or the Trustee, as applicable, and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which the Company or the Trustee, as applicable, is subject by a suit upon such judgment.
ARTICLE 16
SUBORDINATION OF SECURITIES
SECTION 16.01. Securities Subordinate to Senior Indebtedness.
Except as otherwise provided in a supplemental indenture or pursuant to Section 2.03, the Company agrees, and each holder by accepting a Security agrees, that the indebtedness evidenced by the Securities is subordinated in right of payment, to the extent and in the manner provided in this Article, to the prior payment in full of all Senior
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Indebtedness and that the subordination is for the benefit of the holders of Senior Indebtedness. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a deposit is made pursuant to Section 14.02 or Section 14.03 with respect to any Securities (and provided all other conditions set out in Section 14.02 or 14.03, as applicable, shall have been satisfied with respect to such Securities), then, when the 90th day after such deposit has ended, no money obligations so deposited, and no proceeds thereon, will be subject to any rights of holders of Senior Indebtedness, including any such rights arising under this Article 16. Notwithstanding anything in this Indenture to the contrary, the provisions of this Article 16 shall not apply to any amounts due to the Trustee under Section 7.06.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, NEWAMSTERDAM PHARMA COMPANY N.V. has caused this Indenture to be signed and acknowledged by its Chief Executive Officer or its Chief Financial Officer, and [_____________________] has caused this Indenture to be signed and acknowledged by one of its Responsible Officers, all as of the day and year first above written.
| NEWAMSTERDAM PHARMA COMPANY N.V. | ||
| By: |
| |
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
| [______________________________________] | ||
| AS TRUSTEE | ||
| By: |
| |
| Name: | ||
| Title: | ||
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EXHIBIT A
[FORM OF CERTIFICATION]
[FORM OF CERTIFICATE TO BE GIVEN BY PERSON ENTITLED TO RECEIVE (1) BEARER SECURITY, (2) SECURITY INITIALLY REPRESENTED BY A TEMPORARY GLOBAL SECURITY OR (3) INTEREST ON A TEMPORARY GLOBAL SECURITY] CERTIFICATE
[Insert title or sufficient description of Securities]
This is to certify that the above-captioned Securities are being acquired by or on behalf of (or for offer to resell or for resale to), and if this certificate is being delivered in connection with a payment of interest, were beneficially owned by or on behalf of: (a) a person (other than a financial institution for purposes of resale during the restricted period) who is not a United States person; (b) a United States person (other than a financial institution for purposes of resale during the restricted period) who is (i) a foreign branch of a United States financial institution or (ii) a United States person acquiring such Securities through the foreign branch of a United States financial institution and who for purposes of this certification holds such Securities through such financial institution on the date hereof, and, in the case of either (i) or (ii), such United States financial institution has agreed, for the benefit of the Company, to comply with the requirements of Section 165(j)(3)(A), (b) or (c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as from time to time amended, and the regulations thereunder; or (c) a financial institution for purposes of resale during the restricted period and such financial institution has not acquired such Securities for purposes of resale directly or indirectly to a United States person or to a person within the United States or its Possessions. If the undersigned is a clearing organization, the undersigned has obtained a similar certificate from its member organizations on which this certificate is based; provided, that if the undersigned has actual knowledge that the information contained in such a certificate is false (and, absent documentary evidence that the beneficial owner of such Security is not a United States person, it will be deemed to have actual knowledge that such certificate is false if it has a United States address for such beneficial owner, other than a financial institution described above), the undersigned will not deliver a Security in temporary or definitive bearer form to the person who signed such certificate notwithstanding the delivery of such certificate to the undersigned.
As used herein, “United States person” means a citizen or resident of the United States, a corporation, partnership or other entity created or organized in or under the laws of the United States and an estate or trust the income of which is subject to United States federal income taxation regardless of its source, “United States” means the United States of America (including the States and the District of Columbia), “Possessions” of the United States include Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, Wake Island and Northern Mariana Islands, “restricted period” means the period described in Section 1.163-5(c)(2)(i)(D)(7) of the Treasury Regulations and “financial institution” means the persons described in Section 1.165-12(c)(1)(v) of the Treasury Regulations.
We undertake to advise you by [telex] if the above statement as to beneficial ownership is not correct on the date of delivery of the above-captioned Securities or on the interest payment date with respect to the above-captioned Securities, as the case may be, as to all of such Securities.
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We understand that this certificate may be required in connection with certain tax legislation in the United States. If administrative or legal proceedings are commenced or threatened in connection with which this certificate is or would be relevant, we irrevocably authorize you to produce this certificate or a copy thereof to any interested party in such proceedings.
| Dated: __________________, ___ |
| [To be dated on or after |
| __________________, ___ (the date determined as provided in the Indenture)] |
| [Name of Person Entitled to Receive Bearer Security or Interest] |
|
|
| (Authorized Signatory) |
| Name: |
| Title: |
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Exhibit 5.1
| ATTORNEYS • CIVIL LAW NOTARIES • TAX ADVISERS |
|
P.O. Box 7113
1007 JC Amsterdam
Beethovenstraat 400
1082 PR Amsterdam
T +31 20 71 71 000
F +31 20 71 71 111
Amsterdam, 28 February 2025.
To the Company:
We have acted as legal counsel as to Dutch law to the Company in connection with the filing of the Registration Statement with the SEC. This opinion letter is rendered to you in order to be filed with the SEC as an exhibit to the Registration Statement.
Capitalised terms used in this opinion letter have the meanings set forth in Exhibit A to this opinion letter. The section headings used in this opinion letter are for convenience of reference only and are not to affect its construction or to be taken into consideration in its interpretation.
This opinion letter is strictly limited to the matters stated in it and may not be read as extending by implication to any matters not specifically referred to in it. Nothing in this opinion letter should be taken as expressing an opinion in respect of any representations or warranties, or other information, contained in any document reviewed by us in connection with this opinion letter.
In rendering the opinions expressed in this opinion letter, we have reviewed and relied upon a draft of the Registration Statement and pdf copies of the Corporate Documents and we have assumed that any issuance of Registered Securities shall be effected for bona fide commercial reasons. We have not investigated or verified any factual matter disclosed to us in the course of our review.
This opinion letter sets out our opinion on certain matters of the laws with general applicability of the Netherlands, and, insofar as they are directly applicable in the Netherlands, of the European Union, as at today’s date and as presently interpreted under published authoritative case law of the Dutch courts, the General Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union. We do not express any opinion on Dutch or European competition law, data protection law, tax law, securitisation law or regulatory law. No undertaking is assumed on our part to revise, update or amend this opinion letter in connection with, or to notify or inform you of, any developments and/or changes of Dutch law subsequent to today’s date. We do not purport to opine on the consequences of amendments to the Registration Statement or the Corporate Documents subsequent to the date of this opinion letter.
All legal relationships are subject to NautaDutilh N.V.’s general terms and conditions (see https://www.nautadutilh.com/terms), which apply mutatis mutandis to our relationship with third parties relying on statements of NautaDutilh N.V., include a limitation of liability clause, have been filed with the Rotterdam District Court and will be provided free of charge upon request. NautaDutilh N.V.; corporate seat Rotterdam; trade register no. 24338323.
2
The opinions expressed in this opinion letter are to be construed and interpreted in accordance with Dutch law. The competent courts at Amsterdam, the Netherlands, have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any issues of interpretation or liability arising out of or in connection with this opinion letter. Any legal relationship arising out of or in connection with this opinion letter (whether contractual or non-contractual), including the above submission to jurisdiction, is governed by Dutch law and shall be subject to the general terms and conditions of NautaDutilh. Any liability arising out of or in connection with this opinion letter shall be limited to the amount which is paid out under NautaDutilh’s insurance policy in the matter concerned. No person other than NautaDutilh may be held liable in connection with this opinion letter.
In this opinion letter, legal concepts are expressed in English terms. The Dutch legal concepts concerned may not be identical in meaning to the concepts described by the English terms as they exist under the law of other jurisdictions. In the event of a conflict or inconsistency, the relevant expression shall be deemed to refer only to the Dutch legal concepts described by the English terms.
For the purposes of this opinion letter, we have assumed that:
| a. | each copy of a document conforms to the original, each original is authentic, and each signature is the genuine signature of the individual purported to have placed that signature; |
| b. | if any signature under any document is an electronic signature (as opposed to a handwritten (“wet ink”) signature) only, it is either a qualified electronic signature within the meaning of the eIDAS Regulation, or the method used for signing is otherwise sufficiently reliable; |
| c. | the Registration Statement has been or will be declared effective by the SEC in the form reviewed by us; |
| d. | at each Relevant Moment, (i) Ordinary Shares shall have been admitted for trading on a trading system outside the European Economic Area comparable to a regulated market or a multilateral trading facility as referred to in Section 2:86c(1) DCC and (ii) no financial instruments issued by the Company (or depository receipts for or otherwise representing such financial instruments) have been admitted to trading on a regulated market, multilateral trading facility or organised trading facility operating in the European Economic Area and no request for admission of any such financial instruments to trading on any such trading venue has been made; |
| e. | the Current Articles are the Articles of Association currently in force and as they will be in force at each Relevant Moment; |
| f. | at each Relevant Moment, the authorised share capital (maatschappelijk kapitaal) of the Company shall allow for the issuance of the Registered Shares; |
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| g. | at each Relevant Moment, the Company will not have (i) been dissolved (ontbonden), (ii) ceased to exist pursuant to a merger (fusie) or a division (splitsing), (iii) been converted (omgezet) into another legal form, either national or foreign, (iv) had its assets placed under administration (onder bewind gesteld), (v) been declared bankrupt (failliet verklaard), (vi) been granted a suspension of payments (surseance van betaling verleend), (vii) started or become subject to statutory proceedings for the restructuring of its debts (akkoordprocedure) or (viii) been made subject to similar proceedings in any jurisdiction or otherwise been limited in its power to dispose of its assets; |
| h. | any Registered Securities shall be issued, and any pre-emption rights in connection therewith shall have been excluded, pursuant to resolutions validly passed by the corporate body (orgaan) of the Company duly authorised to do so; |
| i. | the issue price for any Registered Shares shall at least equal the aggregate nominal value thereof, any conversion, exchange or exercise price of other Registered Securities shall at least equal the aggregate nominal value of the underlying Registered Shares, any such issue, conversion, exchange or exercise price shall have been satisfied in cash and shall have been received and accepted by the Company ultimately upon the issuance of the relevant Registered Shares and, where relevant, the Company shall have consented to payment in a currency other than Euro; |
| j. | any Registered Shares issued in connection with the conversion, exchange or exercise of other Registered Securities shall be issued pursuant to a valid conversion, exchange or exercise of such Registered Securities in accordance with their respective terms; |
| k. | in respect of any payment (storting) on any Registered Shares to be satisfied by means of a set-off (verrekening), the Company shall have validly effected such set-off of a debt of the Company vis-à-vis the relevant subscriber for such Registered Shares against the Company’s claim on such subscriber to pay up such Registered Shares in full in accordance with Section 6:127 DCC, the Company shall have the authority to set off such debt vis-à-vis such claim and the amount payable by the Company under such debt shall be sufficient to pay up such Registered Shares in full by means of such set-off, in each at the moment when the relevant Registered Shares are issued; and |
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| l. | no Registered Securities shall be offered to the public (aanbieden aan het publiek) in the Netherlands other than in conformity with the Prospectus Regulation, the PRIIPs Regulation and the rules promulgated thereunder. |
Based upon and subject to the foregoing and subject to the qualifications set forth in this opinion letter and to any matters, documents or events not disclosed to us, we express the following opinions:
Corporate Status
| 1. | The Company has been duly incorporated as a besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid and is validly existing as a naamloze vennootschap. |
Registered Shares
| 2. | Subject to receipt by the Company of payment in full for, or other satisfaction of the issue, conversion, exchange or exercise price for, the Registered Shares, and when issued by the Company and accepted by the acquiror(s) thereof, the Registered Shares shall be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable. |
The opinions expressed above are subject to the following qualifications:
| A. | Opinion 1 must not be read to imply that the Company cannot be dissolved (ontbonden). A company such as the Company may be dissolved, inter alia by the competent court at the request of the company’s board of directors, any interested party (belanghebbende) or the public prosecution office in certain circumstances, such as when there are certain defects in the incorporation of the company. Any such dissolution will not have retro-active effect. |
| B. | Pursuant to Section 2:7 DCC, any transaction entered into by a legal entity may be nullified by the legal entity itself or its liquidator in bankruptcy proceedings (curator) if the objects of that entity were transgressed by the transaction and the other party to the transaction knew or should have known this without independent investigation (wist of zonder eigen onderzoek moest weten). The Dutch Supreme Court (Hoge Raad der Nederlanden) has ruled that in determining whether the objects of a legal entity are transgressed, not only the description of the objects in that legal entity’s articles of association (statuten) is decisive, but all (relevant) circumstances must be taken into account, in particular whether the |
5
| interests of the legal entity were served by the transaction. Based on the objects clause contained in the Current Articles, we have no reason to believe that, by issuing Registered Securities, the Company would transgress the description of the objects contained in its Articles of Association. However, we cannot assess whether there are other relevant circumstances that must be taken into account, in particular whether the interests of the Company are served by issuing Registered Securities since this is a matter of fact. |
| C. | Pursuant to Section 2:98c DCC, a company such as the Company may grant loans (leningen verstrekken) only in accordance with the restrictions set out in Section 2:98c DCC, and may not provide security (zekerheid stellen), give a price guarantee (koersgarantie geven) or otherwise bind itself, whether jointly and severally or otherwise with or for third parties (zich op andere wijze sterk maken of zich hoofdelijk of anderszins naast of voor anderen verbinden) with a view to (met het oog op) the subscription or acquisition by third parties of shares in its share capital or depository receipts. This prohibition also applies to its subsidiaries (dochtervennootschappen). It is generally assumed that a transaction entered into in violation of Section 2:98c DCC is null and void (nietig). |
| D. | The opinions expressed in this opinion letter may be limited or affected by: |
| a. | rules relating to Insolvency Proceedings or similar proceedings under a foreign law and other rules affecting creditors’ rights generally; |
| b. | the provisions of fraudulent preference and fraudulent conveyance (Actio Pauliana) and similar rights available in other jurisdictions to insolvency practitioners and insolvency office holders in bankruptcy proceedings or creditors; |
| c. | claims based on tort (onrechtmatige daad); |
| d. | sanctions and measures, including but not limited to those concerning export control, pursuant to European Union regulations, under the Dutch Sanctions Act 1977 (Sanctiewet 1977) or other legislation; |
| e. | the Anti-Boycott Regulation, Anti Money Laundering Laws and related legislation; |
| f. | any intervention, recovery or resolution measure by any regulatory or other authority or governmental body in relation to financial enterprises or their affiliated entities; and |
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| g. | the rules of force majeure (niet toerekenbare tekortkoming), reasonableness and fairness (redelijkheid en billijkheid), suspension (opschorting), dissolution (ontbinding), unforeseen circumstances (onvoorziene omstandigheden) and vitiated consent (i.e., duress (bedreiging), fraud (bedrog), abuse of circumstances (misbruik van omstandigheden) and error (dwaling)) or a difference of intention (wil) and declaration (verklaring). |
| E. | The term “non-assessable” has no equivalent in the Dutch language and for purposes of this opinion letter such term should be interpreted to mean that a holder of an Ordinary Share shall not by reason of merely being such a holder be subject to assessment or calls by the Company or its creditors for further payment on such Ordinary Share. |
| F. | This opinion letter does not purport to express any opinion or view on the operational rules and procedures of any clearing or settlement system or agency. |
We consent to the filing of this opinion letter as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and also consent to the reference to NautaDutilh in the Registration Statement under the caption “Legal Matters”. In giving this consent we do not admit or imply that we are a person whose consent is required under Section 7 of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
| Sincerely yours, |
| /s/ NautaDutilh N.V. |
| NautaDutilh N.V. |
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EXHIBIT A
LIST OF DEFINITIONS
| “Anti Money Laundering Laws” | The European Anti-Money Laundering Directives, as implemented in the Netherlands in the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act (Wet ter voorkoming van witwassen en financieren van terrorisme) and the Dutch Criminal Code (Wetboek van Strafrecht). | |
| “Anti-Boycott Regulation” | The Council Regulation (EC) No 2271/96 of 22 November 1996 on protecting against the effects of the extra-territorial application of legislation adopted by a third country, and actions based thereon or resulting therefrom. | |
| “Articles of Association” | The Company’s articles of association (statuten) as they read from time to time. | |
| “Bankruptcy Code” | The Dutch Bankruptcy Code (Faillissementswet). | |
| “Commercial Register” | The Dutch Commercial Register (handelsregister). | |
| “Company” | NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., a public company with limited liability (naamloze vennootschap), registered with the Commercial Register under number 86649051. | |
| “Corporate Documents” | The Deed of Incorporation, the Deed of Conversion and the Current Articles. | |
| “Current Articles” | The Articles of Association as contained in the Deed of Conversion. | |
| “DCC” | The Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek). | |
| “Debt Securities” | One or more series of (i) senior debt securities issuable by the Company pursuant to a senior debt indenture in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 4.1 to the Registration Statement and (ii) subordinated debt securities issuable by the Company pursuant to a subordinated debt indenture in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 4.2 to the Registration Statement, in each case registered pursuant to the Registration Statement. | |
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| “Deed of Conversion” | The deed of conversion and amendment to the Articles of Association dated 21 November 2022. | |
| “Deed of Incorporation” | The Company’s deed of incorporation (akte van oprichting) dated 10 June 2022. | |
| “eIDAS Regulation” | Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market and repealing Directive 1999/93/EC. | |
| “Insolvency Proceedings” | Any insolvency proceedings within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on insolvency proceedings (recast), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2021/2260 of the European Parliament and of the Counsel of 15 December 2021, listed in Annex A thereto and any statutory proceedings for the restructuring of debts (akkoordprocedure) pursuant to the Bankruptcy Code. | |
| “NautaDutilh” | NautaDutilh N.V. | |
| “the Netherlands” | The European territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and “Dutch” is in or from the Netherlands. | |
| “Ordinary Shares” | Ordinary shares in the Company’s capital, with a nominal value of EUR 0.12 each. | |
| “PRIIPs Regulation” | Regulation (EU) No 1286/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 November 2014 on key information documents for packaged retail and insurance-based investment products (PRIIPs). | |
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| “Prospectus Regulation” | Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading on a regulated market, and repealing Directive 2003/71/EC. | |
| “Purchase Contracts” | One or more series of purchase contracts issuable by the Company and registered pursuant to the Registration Statement, for the purchase or sale of Debt Securities, equity securities or other securities as specified in the applicable prospectus supplement. | |
| “Registered Securities” | The Debt Securities, Registered Shares, Units, Subscription Rights, Purchase Contracts and Warrants. | |
| “Registered Shares” | The following Ordinary Shares:
a. the Ordinary Shares registered pursuant to the Registration Statement; and
b. the Ordinary Shares issuable pursuant to the conversion, exchange or exercise of other Registered Securities. | |
| “Registration Statement” | The Company’s registration statement on Form S-3 filed or to be filed with the SEC in the form reviewed by us. | |
| “Relevant Moment” | Each time when one or more Registered Securities are issued by the Company. | |
| “SEC” | The United States Securities and Exchange Commission. | |
| “Subscription Rights” | One or more series of subscription rights issuable by the Company and registered pursuant to the Registration Statement, for the purchase of Registered Securities as specified in the applicable prospectus supplement. | |
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| “Units” | One or more series of units issuable by the Company and registered pursuant to the Registration Statement consisting of one or more Debt Securities, Registered Shares, Warrants, Subscription Rights, Purchase Contracts or any combination of such Registered Securities as specified in the applicable prospectus supplement. | |
| “Warrants” | One or more series of warrants issuable by the Company and registered pursuant to the Registration Statement for the purchase of Debt Securities, Registered Shares or other Registered Securities as specified in the applicable prospectus supplement. | |
Exhibit 5.2
| ATTORNEYS • CIVIL LAW NOTARIES • TAX ADVISERS |
|
P.O. Box 7113
1007 JC Amsterdam
Beethovenstraat 400
1082 PR Amsterdam
T +31 20 71 71 000
F +31 20 71 71 111
Amsterdam, 28 February 2025.
To the Company:
We have acted as legal counsel as to Dutch law to the Company in connection with the Offering. This opinion letter is rendered to you in order to be filed with the SEC as an exhibit to the Registration Statement.
Capitalised terms used in this opinion letter have the meanings set forth in Exhibit A to this opinion letter. The section headings used in this opinion letter are for convenience of reference only and are not to affect its construction or to be taken into consideration in its interpretation.
This opinion letter is strictly limited to the matters stated in it and may not be read as extending by implication to any matters not specifically referred to in it. Nothing in this opinion letter should be taken as expressing an opinion in respect of any representations or warranties, or other information, contained in any document reviewed by us in connection with this opinion letter.
In rendering the opinions expressed in this opinion letter, we have reviewed and relied upon drafts of the Registration Statement and Prospectus and pdf copies of the Corporate Documents and we have assumed that any issuance of Registered Shares shall be effected for bona fide commercial reasons. We have not investigated or verified any factual matter disclosed to us in the course of our review.
This opinion letter sets out our opinion on certain matters of the laws with general applicability of the Netherlands, and, insofar as they are directly applicable in the Netherlands, of the European Union, as at today’s date and as presently interpreted under published authoritative case law of the Dutch courts, the General Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union. We do not express any opinion on Dutch or European competition law, data protection law, tax law, securitisation law or regulatory law. No undertaking is assumed on our part to revise, update or amend this opinion letter in connection with, or to notify or inform you of, any developments and/or changes of Dutch law subsequent to today’s date. We do not purport to opine on the consequences of amendments to the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, or the Corporate Documents subsequent to the date of this opinion letter.
All legal relationships are subject to NautaDutilh N.V.’s general terms and conditions (see https://www.nautadutilh.com/terms), which apply mutatis mutandis to our relationship with third parties relying on statements of NautaDutilh N.V., include a limitation of liability clause, have been filed with the Rotterdam District Court and will be provided free of charge upon request. NautaDutilh N.V.; corporate seat Rotterdam; trade register no. 24338323.
2
The opinions expressed in this opinion letter are to be construed and interpreted in accordance with Dutch law. The competent courts at Amsterdam, the Netherlands, have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any issues of interpretation or liability arising out of or in connection with this opinion letter. Any legal relationship arising out of or in connection with this opinion letter (whether contractual or non-contractual), including the above submission to jurisdiction, is governed by Dutch law and shall be subject to the general terms and conditions of NautaDutilh. Any liability arising out of or in connection with this opinion letter shall be limited to the amount which is paid out under NautaDutilh’s insurance policy in the matter concerned. No person other than NautaDutilh may be held liable in connection with this opinion letter.
In this opinion letter, legal concepts are expressed in English terms. The Dutch legal concepts concerned may not be identical in meaning to the concepts described by the English terms as they exist under the law of other jurisdictions. In the event of a conflict or inconsistency, the relevant expression shall be deemed to refer only to the Dutch legal concepts described by the English terms.
For the purposes of this opinion letter, we have assumed that:
| a. | each copy of a document conforms to the original, each original is authentic, and each signature is the genuine signature of the individual purported to have placed that signature; |
| b. | if any signature under any document is an electronic signature (as opposed to a handwritten (“wet ink”) signature) only, it is either a qualified electronic signature within the meaning of the eIDAS Regulation, or the method used for signing is otherwise sufficiently reliable; |
| c. | the Registration Statement and the Prospectus have been filed with the SEC in the form reviewed by us; |
| d. | at each Relevant Moment, (i) Ordinary Shares shall have been admitted for trading on a trading system outside the European Economic Area comparable to a regulated market or a multilateral trading facility as referred to in Section 2:86c(1) DCC and (ii) no financial instruments issued by the Company (or depository receipts for or otherwise representing such financial instruments) have been admitted to trading on a regulated market, multilateral trading facility or organised trading facility operating in the European Economic Area and no request for admission of any such financial instruments to trading on any such trading venue has been made; |
| e. | the Current Articles are the Articles of Association currently in force and as they will be in force at each Relevant Moment; |
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| f. | at each Relevant Moment, the authorised share capital (maatschappelijk kapitaal) of the Company shall allow for the issuance of the Registered Shares; |
| g. | at each Relevant Moment, the Company will not have (i) been dissolved (ontbonden), (ii) ceased to exist pursuant to a merger (fusie) or a division (splitsing), (iii) been converted (omgezet) into another legal form, either national or foreign, (iv) had its assets placed under administration (onder bewind gesteld), (v) been declared bankrupt (failliet verklaard), (vi) been granted a suspension of payments (surseance van betaling verleend), (vii) started or become subject to statutory proceedings for the restructuring of its debts (akkoordprocedure) or (viii) been made subject to similar proceedings in any jurisdiction or otherwise been limited in its power to dispose of its assets; |
| h. | any Registered Shares shall be issued, and any pre-emption rights in connection therewith shall have been excluded, pursuant to resolutions validly passed by the corporate body (orgaan) of the Company duly authorised to do so; |
| i. | the issue price for any Registered Shares shall at least equal the aggregate nominal value thereof and shall have been received and accepted by the Company ultimately upon the issuance of the relevant Registered Shares and, where relevant, the Company shall have consented to payment in a currency other than Euro; and |
| j. | no Registered Shares shall be offered to the public (aanbieden aan het publiek) in the Netherlands other than in conformity with the Prospectus Regulation and the rules promulgated thereunder. |
Based upon and subject to the foregoing and subject to the qualifications set forth in this opinion letter and to any matters, documents or events not disclosed to us, we express the following opinions:
Corporate Status
| 1. | The Company has been duly incorporated as a besloten vennootschap met beperkte aansprakelijkheid and is validly existing as a naamloze vennootschap. |
4
Registered Shares
| 2. | Subject to receipt by the Company of payment in full for the Registered Shares, and when issued by the Company and accepted by the acquiror(s) thereof, the Registered Shares shall be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable. |
The opinions expressed above are subject to the following qualifications:
| A. | Opinion 1 must not be read to imply that the Company cannot be dissolved (ontbonden). A company such as the Company may be dissolved, inter alia by the competent court at the request of the company’s board of directors, any interested party (belanghebbende) or the public prosecution office in certain circumstances, such as when there are certain defects in the incorporation of the company. Any such dissolution will not have retro-active effect. |
| B. | Pursuant to Section 2:7 DCC, any transaction entered into by a legal entity may be nullified by the legal entity itself or its liquidator in bankruptcy proceedings (curator) if the objects of that entity were transgressed by the transaction and the other party to the transaction knew or should have known this without independent investigation (wist of zonder eigen onderzoek moest weten). The Dutch Supreme Court (Hoge Raad der Nederlanden) has ruled that in determining whether the objects of a legal entity are transgressed, not only the description of the objects in that legal entity’s articles of association (statuten) is decisive, but all (relevant) circumstances must be taken into account, in particular whether the interests of the legal entity were served by the transaction. Based on the objects clause contained in the Current Articles, we have no reason to believe that, by issuing Registered Shares, the Company would transgress the description of the objects contained in its Articles of Association. However, we cannot assess whether there are other relevant circumstances that must be taken into account, in particular whether the interests of the Company are served by issuing Registered Shares since this is a matter of fact. |
| C. | Pursuant to Section 2:98c DCC, a company such as the Company may grant loans (leningen verstrekken) only in accordance with the restrictions set out in Section 2:98c DCC, and may not provide security (zekerheid stellen), give a price guarantee (koersgarantie geven) or otherwise bind itself, whether jointly and severally or otherwise with or for third parties (zich op andere wijze sterk maken of zich hoofdelijk of anderszins naast of voor anderen verbinden) with a view to (met het oog op) the subscription or acquisition by third parties of shares in its share capital or depository receipts. This prohibition also applies to its subsidiaries (dochtervennootschappen). It is generally assumed that a transaction entered into in violation of Section 2:98c DCC is null and void (nietig). |
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| D. | The opinions expressed in this opinion letter may be limited or affected by: |
| a. | rules relating to Insolvency Proceedings or similar proceedings under a foreign law and other rules affecting creditors’ rights generally; |
| b. | the provisions of fraudulent preference and fraudulent conveyance (Actio Pauliana) and similar rights available in other jurisdictions to insolvency practitioners and insolvency office holders in bankruptcy proceedings or creditors; |
| c. | claims based on tort (onrechtmatige daad); |
| d. | sanctions and measures, including but not limited to those concerning export control, pursuant to European Union regulations, under the Dutch Sanctions Act 1977 (Sanctiewet 1977) or other legislation; |
| e. | the Anti-Boycott Regulation, Anti Money Laundering Laws and related legislation; |
| f. | any intervention, recovery or resolution measure by any regulatory or other authority or governmental body in relation to financial enterprises or their affiliated entities; and |
| g. | the rules of force majeure (niet toerekenbare tekortkoming), reasonableness and fairness (redelijkheid en billijkheid), suspension (opschorting), dissolution (ontbinding), unforeseen circumstances (onvoorziene omstandigheden) and vitiated consent (i.e., duress (bedreiging), fraud (bedrog), abuse of circumstances (misbruik van omstandigheden) and error (dwaling)) or a difference of intention (wil) and declaration (verklaring). |
| E. | The term “non-assessable” has no equivalent in the Dutch language and for purposes of this opinion letter such term should be interpreted to mean that a holder of an Ordinary Share shall not by reason of merely being such a holder be subject to assessment or calls by the Company or its creditors for further payment on such Ordinary Share. |
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| F. | This opinion letter does not purport to express any opinion or view on the operational rules and procedures of any clearing or settlement system or agency. |
We consent to the filing of this opinion letter as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and also consent to the reference to NautaDutilh in the Prospectus under the caption “Legal Matters”. In giving this consent we do not admit or imply that we are a person whose consent is required under Section 7 of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
| Sincerely yours, |
| /s/ NautaDutilh N.V. |
| NautaDutilh N.V. |
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EXHIBIT A
LIST OF DEFINITIONS
| “Anti Money Laundering Laws” | The European Anti-Money Laundering Directives, as implemented in the Netherlands in the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act (Wet ter voorkoming van witwassen en financieren van terrorisme) and the Dutch Criminal Code (Wetboek van Strafrecht). | |
| “Anti-Boycott Regulation” | The Council Regulation (EC) No 2271/96 of 22 November 1996 on protecting against the effects of the extra-territorial application of legislation adopted by a third country, and actions based thereon or resulting therefrom. | |
| “Articles of Association” | The Company’s articles of association (statuten) as they read from time to time. | |
| “Bankruptcy Code” | The Dutch Bankruptcy Code (Faillissementswet). | |
| “Commercial Register” | The Dutch Commercial Register (handelsregister). | |
| “Company” | NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., a public company with limited liability (naamloze vennootschap), registered with the Commercial Register under number 86649051. | |
| “Corporate Documents” | The Deed of Incorporation, the Deed of Conversion and the Current Articles. | |
| “Current Articles” | The Articles of Association as contained in the Deed of Conversion. | |
| “DCC” | The Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek). | |
| “Deed of Conversion” | The deed of conversion and amendment to the Articles of Association dated 21 November 2022. | |
| “Deed of Incorporation” | The Company’s deed of incorporation (akte van oprichting) dated 10 June 2022. | |
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| “eIDAS Regulation” | Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market and repealing Directive 1999/93/EC. | |
| “Insolvency Proceedings” | Any insolvency proceedings within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on insolvency proceedings (recast), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2021/2260 of the European Parliament and of the Counsel of 15 December 2021, listed in Annex A thereto and any statutory proceedings for the restructuring of debts (akkoordprocedure) pursuant to the Bankruptcy Code. | |
| “NautaDutilh” | NautaDutilh N.V. | |
| “the Netherlands” | The European territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and “Dutch” is in or from the Netherlands. | |
| “Offering” | The “at-the-market” offering of Ordinary Shares as contemplated by the Prospectus. | |
| “Ordinary Shares” | Ordinary shares in the Company’s capital, with a nominal value of EUR 0.12 each. | |
| “Prospectus Regulation” | Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading on a regulated market, and repealing Directive 2003/71/EC. | |
| “Prospectus” | The Company’s prospectus to the Registration Statement with respect to the Registered Shares, filed with the SEC in the form reviewed by us on or about the date of this opinion letter. | |
| “Registered Shares” | The Ordinary Shares issuable pursuant to the Sales Agreement for gross sales proceeds of up to USD 250,000,000. | |
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| “Registration Statement” | The Company’s registration statement on Form S-3 filed with the SEC in the form reviewed by us. | |
| “Relevant Moment” | Each time when one or more Registered Shares are issued by the Company. | |
| “Sales Agreement” | The Amended and Restated Sales Agreement between the Company, Cowen and Company, LLC and TD Securities (USA) LLC, an affiliate of Cowen and Company, LLC, dated 9 August 2024. | |
| “SEC” | The United States Securities and Exchange Commission. | |
Exhibit 5.3
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|
February 28, 2025
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
Gooimeer 2-35
1411 DC Naarden
The Netherlands
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as United States counsel to NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V., a Dutch public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) (the “Company”), in connection with the registration by the Company under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), of the offer and sale by the Company from time to time of up to $500 million in aggregate amount of, among other things: (i) ordinary shares of the Company, nominal value €0.12 per share (the “Ordinary Shares”), (ii) one or more series of senior debt securities of the Company (the “Senior Debt Securities”), to be issued pursuant to a senior debt indenture in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 4.1 to the Registration Statement (as defined below) (the “Senior Debt Indenture”), (iii) one or more series of subordinated debt securities of the Company (the “Subordinated Debt Securities,” and, together with the Senior Debt Securities, the “Debt Securities”), to be issued pursuant to a subordinated debt indenture in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 4.2 to the Registration Statement (the “Subordinated Debt Indenture”), (iv) warrants to purchase Ordinary Shares, Debt Securities or other securities of the Company (the “Warrants”), the terms of which will be determined by the board of directors of the Company prior to the issuance thereof, (v) purchase contracts that will entitle the holder thereof to purchase or sell certain Debt Securities or equity securities at a specified purchase price or at a purchase price determined by reference to a specific formula at a future date (the “Purchase Contracts”), (vi) rights to subscribe for and to purchase Ordinary Shares, Debt Securities or other securities of the Company (the “Subscription Rights”) and (vii) units, consisting of any combination of Ordinary Shares, Debt Securities, Warrants, Purchase Contracts and/or Subscription Rights (the “Units” and, collectively with the Debt Securities, the Warrants, the Purchase Contracts and the Subscription Rights, the “Covered Securities”), pursuant to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-3 (the “Registration Statement”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on the date hereof.
We have reviewed the Registration Statement, including the form of prospectus included therein, the forms of Senior Debt Indenture and Subordinated Debt Indenture and such corporate records, certificates and other documents, and such questions of law, as we have considered necessary or appropriate for the purposes of this opinion. We have assumed that all signatures are genuine, that all documents submitted to us as originals are authentic and that all copies of documents submitted to us conform to the originals.
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
February 28, 2025
Page 2
We have assumed that, at the time of the issuance, sale and delivery of each issue of Covered Securities:
| (i) | the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of (a) the Senior Debt Indenture or the Subordinated Debt Indenture, as applicable, and any indenture supplement thereto (as applicable, an “Indenture”), (b) any warrant agreement (a “Warrant Agreement”), and (c) any purchase contract agreement, subscription agreement or subscription rights certificate, and unit agreement (collectively with any Indenture and Warrant Agreement, the “Documents”), as applicable, and all actions necessary for the issuance of the applicable Covered Securities and the form and terms thereof, will comply with all requirements and restrictions, if any, applicable to the Company, whether imposed by any agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which it is bound or any court or other governmental or regulatory body having jurisdiction over the Company; |
| (ii) | the Company will have duly authorized, executed and delivered any such Document and will have duly authorized the issuance of any such Covered Securities, and none of such authorizations will have been modified or rescinded, and there will not have occurred any change in law affecting the validity, legally binding character or enforceability thereof; and |
| (iii) | the prospectus included in the Registration Statement will describe the Covered Securities offered thereby or an appropriate prospectus supplement will have been prepared, delivered and filed with the Commission in compliance with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations thereunder and will describe the Covered Securities offered thereby. |
We have also assumed that the Covered Securities will be offered and sold in compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws and in the manner stated in the Registration Statement and the appropriate prospectus supplement. We have assumed further that the Documents and any Covered Securities issued pursuant thereto will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York. We have further assumed that, at the time of the issuance, sale and delivery of any Covered Securities that are exercisable or exchangeable for, or convertible into, Ordinary Shares, the Company will have a sufficient number of authorized but unissued Ordinary Shares under its articles of association. With respect to any Document executed or to be executed by any party other than the Company, we have assumed that such party has, or will have, duly authorized, executed and delivered the Documents to which it is a party and that each such Document is, or will be, the valid and binding obligation of such party, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms.
We have assumed further that the Company is, and shall remain, a company duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the Netherlands and has, and will have, all requisite power, authority and legal right to execute, deliver and perform its obligations under the Covered Securities and the Documents. With respect to all matters of laws of the Netherlands, we note that you are relying on an opinion of NautaDutilh B.V., dated as of the date hereof, which opinion is filed as Exhibit 5.1 to the Registration Statement.
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
February 28, 2025
Page 3
We have relied as to certain matters on information obtained from public officials, officers of the Company and other sources believed by us to be responsible.
Based upon the foregoing, and subject to the qualifications set forth below, we are of the opinion that when, as and if:
(1) With respect to the Debt Securities: (i) the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and all prospectus supplements required by applicable law have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) an Indenture (including any supplements thereto) has been duly executed and delivered on behalf of the Company and a trustee qualified to act under applicable law and such Indenture has been qualified under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended; (iii) all necessary corporate action has been taken by the Company to authorize, execute and deliver such Indenture and any necessary supplement thereto and to authorize the form, terms, execution and delivery of any Debt Securities; (iv) any legally required consents, approvals, authorizations and other orders of the Commission and other regulatory authorities have been obtained; (v) any Ordinary Shares or Covered Securities issuable upon the conversion of such Debt Securities, as applicable, have been duly and validly authorized and, in the case of Ordinary Shares, reserved for issuance and sale; and (vi) such Debt Securities have been duly executed by the Company and authenticated by the Indenture trustee in accordance with the Indenture and any applicable indenture supplement and have been duly issued and delivered against payment therefor in accordance with such corporate action and applicable law and as contemplated in the Registration Statement and the related prospectus supplement setting forth the terms of the Debt Securities and the plan of distribution, then, upon the happening of such events, such Debt Securities (including any Debt Securities to be issued by the Company upon the conversion or exercise of other securities issued by the Company pursuant to the Registration Statement) will constitute the valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles.
(2) With respect to the Warrants: (i) the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and all prospectus supplements required by applicable law have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) all necessary corporate action has been taken by the Company to authorize, execute and deliver the applicable Warrant Agreement, if any, and to authorize the form, terms, execution and delivery of any Warrants and to fix or otherwise determine the consideration to be received for such Warrants and the terms of the offer and sale thereof; (iii) any legally required consents, approvals, authorizations and other orders of the Commission and any other regulatory authorities have been obtained; (iv) any Ordinary Shares or Covered Securities purchasable upon the exercise of such Warrants, as applicable, have been duly and validly authorized and, in the case of Ordinary Shares,
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
February 28, 2025
Page 4
reserved for issuance and sale; (v) the applicable Warrant Agreement, if any, with respect to the Warrants has been duly executed and delivered by the Company and the warrant agent; and (vi) the Warrants have been duly executed and delivered by the Company against payment therefor in accordance with any applicable warrant agreement, in accordance with such corporate action and applicable law and as contemplated in the Registration Statement and the related prospectus supplement setting forth the terms of the Warrants and the plan of distribution, then, upon the happening of such events, such Warrants (including any Warrants to be issued by the Company upon the conversion or exercise of other securities issued by the Company pursuant to the Registration Statement) will constitute the valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles.
(3) With respect to the Purchase Contracts: (i) the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and all prospectus supplements required by applicable law have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) all necessary corporate action has been taken by the Company to authorize, execute and deliver any necessary purchase contract agreement and to authorize the form, terms, execution and delivery of the Purchase Contracts, and to fix or otherwise determine the consideration to be received for the Purchase Contracts, and the terms of the offer and sale thereof; (iii) any legally required consents, approvals, authorizations and other orders of the Commission and any other regulatory authorities have been obtained; (iv) any Ordinary Shares or Covered Securities to be issued pursuant to such Purchase Contracts have been duly and validly authorized and, in the case of Ordinary Shares, reserved for issuance and sale; (v) any necessary purchase contract agreement has been duly executed and delivered by the Company and any other party thereto; and (vi) the Purchase Contracts have been duly executed and delivered by the Company against payment therefor in accordance with any applicable purchase contract agreement and in accordance with such corporate action and applicable law and as contemplated in the Registration Statement and the related prospectus supplement setting forth the terms of the Purchase Contracts and the plan of distribution, then, upon the happening of such events, the Purchase Contracts will constitute the valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles.
(4) With respect to the Subscription Rights: (i) the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and all prospectus supplements required by applicable law have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) all necessary corporate action has been taken by the Company to authorize, execute and deliver a subscription agreement or subscription rights certificate and to authorize the form, terms, execution and delivery of the Subscription Rights and to fix or otherwise determine the consideration to be received for the Subscription Rights and the terms of the offer and sale thereof; (iii) any legally required consents, approvals, authorizations and other orders of the
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
February 28, 2025
Page 5
Commission and any other regulatory authorities have been obtained; (iv) any Ordinary Shares or Covered Securities purchasable upon exercise of such Subscription Rights, as applicable, have been duly and validly authorized and, in the case of Ordinary Shares, reserved for issuance and sale; (v) the subscription agreement or subscription rights certificate, as applicable, has been duly executed, and delivered by the Company and any other party thereto; and (vi) the Subscription Rights have been duly executed and delivered by the Company against payment therefor in accordance with any applicable subscription agreement or subscription rights certificate, and in accordance with such corporate action and applicable law and as contemplated in the Registration Statement and the prospectus supplement setting forth the terms of the Subscription Rights and the plan of distribution, then, upon the happening of such events, the Subscription Rights will constitute the valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles.
(5) With respect to the Units: (i) the Registration Statement and any required post-effective amendments thereto have all become effective under the Securities Act and all prospectus supplements required by applicable law have been delivered and filed as required by such laws; (ii) all necessary corporate action has been taken by the Company to authorize, execute and deliver a unit agreement and to authorize the form, terms, execution and delivery of the Units and to fix or otherwise determine the consideration to be received for the Units and the terms of the offer and sale thereof; (iii) any legally required consents, approvals, authorizations and other orders of the Commission and any other regulatory authorities have been obtained; (iv) any Ordinary Shares or Covered Securities to be issued pursuant to such Units have been duly and validly authorized and, in the case of Ordinary Shares, reserved for issuance and sale; (v) the unit agreement has been duly executed, and delivered by the Company and any other party thereto; and (vi) the Units and the Covered Securities underlying the Units have been duly executed and delivered by the Company against payment therefor in accordance with any applicable unit agreement, and in accordance with such corporate action and applicable law and as contemplated in the Registration Statement and the prospectus supplement setting forth the terms of the Units and the Ordinary Shares or Covered Securities underlying the Units and the plan of distribution and the Ordinary Shares underlying such Units have been validly issued and are fully paid and non-assessable, then, upon the happening of such events, the Units will constitute the valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles.
We express no opinion as to: (i) waivers of defenses, subrogation and related rights, rights to trial by jury, rights to object to venue, or other rights or benefits bestowed by operation of law; (ii) releases or waivers of unmatured claims or rights; (iii) indemnification, contribution, exculpation, or arbitration provisions, or provisions for the non-survival of representations, to the extent they purport to indemnify any party against, or release or limit any party’s liability for, its own breach or failure to comply with statutory obligations, or to the extent such provisions are
NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.
February 28, 2025
Page 6
contrary to public policy; (iv) provisions for liquidated damages and penalties, penalty interest and interest on interest; (v) provisions purporting to supersede equitable principles, including provisions requiring amendments and waivers to be in writing and provisions making notices effective even if not actually received; (vi) restrictions upon transfers, pledges or assignments of a party’s rights under any Indenture (including any supplement thereto); or (vii) provisions purporting to make a party’s determination conclusive. We express no opinion as to the valid issuance or enforceability of any securities other than the Covered Securities, including any securities not issued by the Company.
Our opinion above is qualified to the extent that the enforcement of any Covered Securities denominated in a currency other than United States dollars may be limited by requirements that a claim (or a foreign currency judgment in respect of such claim) be converted into United States dollars at a rate of exchange prevailing on a date determined pursuant to applicable law.
We are members of the bar of the State of New York. We do not express any opinion herein on any laws other than the laws of the State of New York.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as Exhibit 5.3 to the Registration Statement. We also hereby consent to the reference to our firm under the heading “Legal Matters” in the prospectus relating to the offer and sale of the Covered Securities constituting part of the Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not thereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act.
| Very truly yours, |
| /s/ Covington & Burling LLP |
Exhibit 23.4
CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
We consent to the incorporation by reference in this Registration Statement on Form S-3 of our reports dated February 26, 2025, relating to the financial statements of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. and the effectiveness of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V.’s internal control over financial reporting, appearing in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. for the year ended December 31, 2024. We also consent to the reference to us under the heading “Experts” in such Registration Statement.
/s/ Deloitte Accountants B.V.
Eindhoven, The Netherlands
February 28, 2025