UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 6-K

 

 

REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER

PURSUANT TO RULE 13A-16 OR 15D-16

UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the month of July 2024

Commission File Number: 001-32199

 

 

SFL Corporation Ltd.

(Translation of registrant’s name into English)

 

 

Par-la-Ville Place

14 Par-la-Ville Road

Hamilton, HM 08, Bermuda

(Address of principal executive office)

 

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.

Form 20-F ☒     Form 40-F ☐

 

 

 


INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS FORM 6-K REPORT

On July 25, 2024, SFL Corporation Ltd. (“SFL” or the “Company”) closed its previously announced underwritten public offering (the “Offering”) of 8,000,000 common shares, par value $0.01 per share (the “Shares”).

Attached to this Report on Form 6-K as Exhibit 1.1 is a copy of the Underwriting Agreement, dated July 23, 2024, among the Company and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, as representative of the several underwriters named therein.

Attached to this Report on Form 6-K as Exhibit 5.1 is the opinion of MJM Limited.

The information contained in this Report on Form 6-K is hereby incorporated by reference into the Company’s registration statement on Form F-3ASR (Registration No. 333-264330) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on April 15, 2022 and the Company’s Registration Statement on Form F-3ASR (Registration No. 333-271504) filed with the SEC on April 28, 2023.


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 

    SFL CORPORATION LTD
Date: July 25, 2024      
    By:  

/s/ Ole B. Hjertaker

    Name: Ole B. Hjertaker
    Title: SFL Management AS (Principal Executive Officer)

8,000,000 Common Shares

SFL CORPORATION LTD.

COMMON SHARES, PAR VALUE $0.01 PER SHARE

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

July 23, 2024


July 23, 2024

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

As representative of the Underwriters

c/o

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

1585 Broadway

New York, New York 10036

Ladies and Gentlemen:

SFL Corporation Ltd., a Bermuda exempted company (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to the several Underwriters named in Schedule II hereto (the “Underwriters”) the number of its common shares, par value $0.01 per share, set forth in Schedule I hereto (the “Firm Shares”).

The Company also proposes to issue and sell to the several Underwriters not more than 1,200,000 additional common shares, par value $0.01 per share, set forth in Schedule I hereto (the “Additional Shares”) if and to the extent that Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC (“Morgan Stanley”), as representative of the offering, shall have determined to exercise, on behalf of the Underwriters, the right to purchase such common shares granted to the Underwriters in Section 2 hereof. The Firm Shares and the Additional Shares are hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Shares.” The shares of common shares, par value $0.01 per share, of the Company to be outstanding after giving effect to the sales contemplated hereby are hereinafter referred to as the “Common Shares.”

The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) a registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-271504), including a prospectus, relating to the securities (the “Shelf Securities”), including the Shares, to be issued from time to time by the Company. The registration statement, as amended to the date of this Agreement, including the information (if any) deemed to be part of the registration statement at the time of effectiveness pursuant to Rule 430A or Rule 430B under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), is hereinafter referred to as the “Registration Statement”; and the related prospectus covering the Shelf Securities dated April 28, 2023 in the form first used to confirm sales of the Shares (or in the form first made available to the Underwriters by the Company to meet requests of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) is hereinafter referred to as the “Basic Prospectus.” The Basic Prospectus, as supplemented by the prospectus supplement specifically relating to the Shares in the form first used to confirm sales of the Shares (or in the form first made available to the Underwriters by the Company to meet requests of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) is hereinafter referred to as the “Prospectus,” and the term “preliminary prospectus” means any preliminary form of the Prospectus.


For purposes of this Agreement, “free writing prospectus” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 under the Securities Act, “Time of Sale Prospectus” means the documents and pricing information set forth opposite the caption “Time of Sale Prospectus” in Schedule I hereto, and “broadly available road show” means a “bona fide electronic road show” as defined in Rule 433(h)(5) under the Securities Act that has been made available without restriction to any person. As used herein, the terms “Registration Statement,” “Basic Prospectus,” “preliminary prospectus,” “Time of Sale Prospectus” and “Prospectus” shall include the documents, if any, incorporated by reference therein as of the date hereof. The terms “supplement,” “amendment” and “amend” as used herein with respect to the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus shall include all documents subsequently filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), that are deemed to be incorporated by reference therein.

1. Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to and agrees with each of the Underwriters that:

(a) The Registration Statement has become effective; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement is in effect, and no proceedings for such purpose are pending before or threatened by the Commission. If the Registration Statement is an automatic shelf registration statement as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act, the Company is a well-known seasoned issuer (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) eligible to use the Registration Statement as an automatic shelf registration statement and the Company has not received notice that the Commission objects to the use of the Registration Statement as an automatic shelf registration statement. The Company meets the requirements for use of Form F-3 under the Securities Act specified in FINRA Conduct Rule 5110(h)(1)(C).

(b) (i) Each document, if any, filed or to be filed pursuant to the Exchange Act and incorporated by reference in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus complied or will comply when so filed in all material respects with the Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder and did not or will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, (ii) the Registration Statement, when it became effective, did not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, (iii) the Registration Statement as of the date hereof does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, (iv) the Registration Statement and the Prospectus comply and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, (v) the Time of Sale Prospectus does not, and at the time of each sale of the Shares in connection with the offering when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and at the Closing Date (as defined in Section 4), the Time of Sale Prospectus, as then amended or supplemented by the Company, if applicable, will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary

 

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to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, (vi) each broadly available road show, if any, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading and (vii) the Prospectus does not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, except that the representations and warranties set forth in this paragraph do not apply to statements or omissions in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus based upon information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through Morgan Stanley expressly for use therein. There are no contracts or other documents required to be described in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement which have not been described or filed as required.

(c) The Company is not an “ineligible issuer” in connection with the offering pursuant to Rules 164, 405 and 433 under the Securities Act. Any free writing prospectus that the Company is required to file pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act has been, or will be, filed with the Commission in accordance with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder. Each free writing prospectus that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act or that was prepared by or on behalf of or used or referred to by the Company complies or will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, and each such free writing prospectus, as of its issue date and at all subsequent times through the completion of the public offer and sale of the Shares did not, does not and will not include any information that conflicted, conflicts or will conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or any preliminary prospectus and not superseded or modified. Except for the free writing prospectuses, identified in Schedule I hereto forming part of the Time of Sale Prospectus, and any electronic road shows, each furnished to Morgan Stanley before first use, the Company has not prepared, used, referred to or distributed, and will not, without Morgan Stanley’s prior consent, prepare, use, refer to or distribute, any free writing prospectus.

(d) No filing with, or authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree of, any U.S. or non-U.S. federal, state, local or other governmental or regulatory authority, governmental or regulatory agency or body, court, arbitrator or self-regulatory organization (each, a “Governmental Authority”) is necessary or required for the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, in connection with the offering, issuance or sale of the Shares hereunder or the supplemental listing application to be submitted to the NYSE (defined below).

 

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(e) The financial statements, together with the related schedules and notes, contained or incorporated by reference in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus present fairly the financial position, results of operations, changes in stockholders’ equity and cash flows of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries as of the dates shown, and such financial statements have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“U.S. GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods covered thereby, except for any normal year-end adjustments in the Company’s quarterly financial statements. The other financial information and forward-looking statements (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act) included in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus are fairly and accurately presented, are based on or derived from sources that the Company believes to be reliable and accurate and are presented on a reasonable basis. No other financial statements or supporting schedules are required to be included in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus. All disclosures contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, or incorporated by reference therein, regarding “non-GAAP financial measures” (as such term is defined by the rules and regulations of the Commission) comply with Regulation G of the Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K of the Securities Act, to the extent applicable. The statistical, industry-related and market-related data included in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company reasonably and in good faith believes are reliable and accurate and such data is consistent with the sources from which they are derived, in each case in all material respects. To the extent required, the Company has obtained the written consent to the use of such data from such sources. The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.

(f) The Company and its subsidiaries have established and maintain an effective system of disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(e) of the Exchange Act) that is designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules and forms, including controls and procedures designed to ensure that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. The Company and its subsidiaries have carried out evaluations of the effectiveness of their disclosure controls and procedures as required by Rule 13a-15 of the Exchange Act. The statements relating to disclosure controls and procedures made by the principal executive officers (or their equivalents) and principal financial officers (or their equivalents) of the Company in the certifications required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith are complete and correct.

 

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(g) (i) MSPC Certified Public Accountants and Advisors, who have certified certain consolidated financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries and whose report appears in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, were, to the Company’s knowledge,1 independent public accountants with respect to the Company within the meaning of Rule 101 of the Code of Professional Conduct of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and its interpretations and rulings thereunder until November 2022 and (ii) Ernst & Young AS, who have certified certain consolidated financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries and whose report appears in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, are, independent public accountants with respect to the Company within the meaning of Rule 101 of the Code of Professional Conduct of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and its interpretations and rulings thereunder.

(h) Subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, (i) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has incurred any liabilities, direct or contingent, including without limitation any losses or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood, earthquakes, accident or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any strike, labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, that are material, individually or in the aggregate, to the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or has entered into any material transactions not in the ordinary course of business, (ii) there has not been any material decrease in the capital stock or any material increase in any short-term or long-term indebtedness of the Company or its subsidiaries, or any payment of or declaration to pay any dividends or any other distribution with respect to the Company, and (iii) there has not been any material adverse change, or any development that could reasonably be expected to result in a material adverse change, in the properties, business, prospects, operations, earnings, assets, liabilities or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.

(i) The Company has been duly incorporated, is validly existing and is in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, (ii) has all requisite corporate power and authority to carry on its business and to own, lease and operate its properties and assets as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and (iii) is duly qualified or licensed to do business and is in good standing as a foreign corporation, partnership or other entity as the case may be, authorized to do business in each jurisdiction in which the nature of such businesses or the ownership or leasing of such properties requires such qualification, except where the failure to be so qualified would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on (A) the properties, business, prospects, operations, earnings, assets, liabilities or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, (B) the ability of the Company or any subsidiary to perform its obligations in all material respects under this Agreement, (C) the validity or enforceability of this Agreement, or (D) the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated by each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (each, a “Material Adverse Effect”).

 

1 

Note to Skadden: Given MSPC’s withdrawal status from the PCAOB, we are reinserting the knowledge qualifier.

 

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(j) Each “significant subsidiary” (as such term is defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X) (each, a “Subsidiary” and, collectively, the “Subsidiaries”) of the Company has been duly incorporated, organized or formed, as applicable, is validly existing as a corporation or other business entity, as applicable, in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation, organization or formation, as applicable, has the corporate or other business entity power, as applicable, and authority to own or lease its property and to conduct its business as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement. Each Subsidiary of the Company is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing in each jurisdiction in which the conduct of its business or its ownership or leasing of property requires such qualification, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or be in good standing would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; all of the issued shares of capital stock or other equity interests of each Subsidiary of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned directly or indirectly by the Company, free and clear of all liens, security interests, mortgages, pledges, charges, equities, claims or restrictions on transferability or encumbrances of any kind (“Liens”). The Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than (i) the subsidiaries listed in Exhibit 8.1 to the Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 and (ii) certain other subsidiaries which, considered in the aggregate as a single subsidiary, do not constitute a “significant subsidiary” as defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X.

(k) The Company has all necessary power and authority to execute, deliver and perform their respective obligations under this Agreement and to consummate the transactions contemplated in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus.

(l) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company. When executed and delivered, this the Agreement will conform in all material respects to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus.

(m) The authorized capital stock of the Company conforms as to legal matters to the description thereof contained in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus.

(n) The Common Shares outstanding prior to the issuance of the Shares to be sold by the Company have been duly authorized and are validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.

(o) The Shares to be sold by the Company have been duly authorized and, when issued, delivered and paid for in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, and the issuance of the Shares will not be subject to any preemptive or similar rights.

 

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(p) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is (i) in violation of its certificate of incorporation, by-laws or other organizational documents (the “Charter Documents”); (ii) in violation of any U.S. or non-U.S. federal, state or local statute, law (including, without limitation, common law) or ordinance, or any judgment, decree, rule, regulation, order or injunction (collectively, “Applicable Law”) of any Governmental Authority, applicable to any of them or any of their respective properties; or (iii) in breach of or default under any bond, debenture, note, loan or other evidence of indebtedness, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, lease or any other agreement or instrument to which any of them is a party or by which any of them or their respective property is bound (collectively, the “Applicable Agreements”); except, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii), for such violations, breaches or defaults that would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. There exists no condition that, with the passage of time or otherwise, will constitute (a) a violation of such Charter Documents or applicable laws, (b) a breach of or default or a “Debt Repayment Triggering Event” (as defined below) under any Applicable Agreement or (c) result in the imposition of any penalty or the acceleration of any indebtedness, except, in the case of clauses (b) and (c), for such breaches, defaults, penalties or the acceleration of indebtedness that would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. As used herein, a “Debt Repayment Triggering Event” means any event or condition that gives, or with the giving of notice or lapse of time would give, the holder of any note, debenture or other evidence of indebtedness (or any person acting on such holder’s behalf) the right to require the repurchase, redemption or repayment of all or a portion of such indebtedness by the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their respective properties.

(q) The Company and its subsidiaries have been and are in compliance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations, except where failure to be so in compliance could not be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(r) Neither the execution, delivery or performance of this Agreement nor the consummation of any of the transactions (including the use of proceeds from the sale of the Shares) as contemplated in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus under the caption “Use of Proceeds”) will conflict with, violate, constitute a breach of or a default (with the passage of time or otherwise) or a Debt Repayment Triggering Event under, or result in the imposition of a Lien on any assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or the imposition of any penalty or a Debt Repayment Triggering Event under or pursuant to (a) the Charter Documents, (b) any Applicable Agreement, (c) any Applicable Law or (d) any order, writ, judgment, injunction, decree, determination or award binding upon or affecting the Company (except, with respect to clauses (b), (c) and (d) above, for such violations, breaches, defaults, Debt Repayment Triggering Events, Liens or impositions that would not, singly or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Effect).

 

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(s) Other than proceedings accurately described in all material respects in the Time of Sale Prospectus, there are no actions, suits, investigations, inquiries or legal or governmental proceedings pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or to which any of the properties of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject that would, singly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or on the power or ability of the Company to perform its obligations under this Agreement or to consummate the transactions contemplated by each of this Agreement, the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, and the aggregate of all pending legal or governmental proceedings to which the Company or any such subsidiary is a party or of which any of their respective properties or assets is the subject, including ordinary routine litigation incidental to the business, if determined adversely to the Company, could not be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. No material labor dispute with the employees of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or with the employees of any principal supplier, manufacturer, customer or contractor of the Company, exists or, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, is threatened or imminent, which, in either case, would result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(t) Each of the Company and its subsidiaries possess all licenses, permits, certificates, consents, orders, approvals and other authorizations from, and has made all declarations and filings with, all Governmental Authorities, presently required or necessary to own or lease, as the case may be, and to operate its properties and to carry on its businesses as now or proposed to be conducted as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (“Permits”), except where the failure to possess such Permits would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; each of the Company and its subsidiaries has fulfilled and performed all of its obligations with respect to such Permits; no event has occurred which allows, or after notice or lapse of time would allow, revocation or termination of any such Permit or has resulted, or after notice or lapse of time would reasonably be expected to result, in any other material impairment of the rights of the holder of any such Permit; and none of the Company or its subsidiaries has received or has any reason to believe it will receive any notice of any proceeding relating to revocation or modification of any such Permit, except as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus except where such revocation or modification would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(u) Each of the Company and its subsidiaries has good, marketable and valid title to all real property owned by it and good title to all personal property owned by it and good and valid title to all leasehold estates in real and personal property being leased by it and, as of the Closing Date and any Option Closing Date (as defined herein), will be free and clear of all Liens, except such as (A) are described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and (B) do not, singly or in the aggregate, materially affect the value of such property and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company of any of its subsidiaries or the ability of the Company to perform its obligations under

 

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this Agreement. All Applicable Agreements to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which any of them is bound are valid and enforceable against each of the Company or such subsidiary, as applicable, and are valid and enforceable against the other party or parties thereto and are in full force and effect with only such exceptions as would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(v) All Tax (as hereinafter defined) returns required to be filed by the Company and each of its subsidiaries have been filed and all such returns are true, complete and correct in all respects except insofar as the failure to file such returns would not result in a Material Adverse Effect. All material Taxes (as defined herein) that are due from the Company and its subsidiaries have been paid other than those (i) currently payable without penalty or interest or (ii) being contested in good faith and by appropriate proceedings and for which adequate accruals have been established in accordance with U.S. GAAP, applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved. To the knowledge of the Company, there are no actual or proposed Tax assessments against the Company or any of its subsidiaries that would, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. The accruals on the books and records of the Company and its subsidiaries in respect of any Tax liability for any period not finally determined are adequate to meet any assessments of Tax for any such period, except to the extent of any inadequacy that would not result in a Material Adverse Effect. For purposes of this Agreement, the terms “Tax” and “Taxes” shall mean all U.S. and non-U.S. federal, state, local and taxes, and other assessments of a similar nature (whether imposed directly or through withholding), including any interest, additions to tax or penalties applicable thereto.

(w) The Company and its subsidiaries own or have a valid license to all patents, inventions, copyrights, know how (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or confidential information, systems or procedures), trademarks, service marks and trade names (collectively, “Intellectual Property Rights”) used in or reasonably necessary to the conduct of their businesses ; (ii) the Intellectual Property Rights owned by the Company and its subsidiaries and, to the Company’s knowledge, the Intellectual Property Rights licensed to the Company and its subsidiaries, are valid, subsisting and enforceable, and there is no pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others challenging the validity, scope or enforceability of any such Intellectual Property Rights; (iii) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has received any notice alleging any infringement, misappropriation or other violation of Intellectual Property Rights, or any notice questioning the validity or effectiveness of any Intellectual Property Rights or any license or agreement related thereto, which, singly or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would have a Material Adverse Effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; (iv) to the Company’s knowledge, no third party is infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating, or has infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated, any Intellectual Property Rights owned by the Company; (v) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries infringes, misappropriates or otherwise violates, or has infringed, misappropriated or otherwise violated, any Intellectual Property Rights, nor has the

 

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Company or any of its subsidiaries obtained or used intellectual property in violation of any contractual obligation binding on the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or to the Company or any of its subsidiaries’ knowledge, its officers, directors or employees or otherwise in violation of the rights of any person; (vi) all employees or contractors engaged in the development of Intellectual Property Rights on behalf of the Company or any subsidiary of the Company have executed an invention assignment agreement whereby such employees or contractors presently assign all of their right, title and interest in and to such Intellectual Property Rights to the Company or the applicable subsidiary, and to the Company’s knowledge no such agreement has been breached or violated; (vii) the Company and its subsidiaries use, and have used, commercially reasonable efforts to appropriately maintain all information intended to be maintained as a trade secret; (viii) the Company is not a party to, or bound by, any options, licenses or agreements with respect to the intellectual property rights of any other person or entity that are necessary to be described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus to avoid a material misstatement or omission and are not described therein; and (ix) as of the Closing Date, the Intellectual Property Rights, if any, will be free and clear of all Liens.

(x) All of the vessels described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus are owned directly (or as set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus) by subsidiaries of the Company; each of the vessels listed on Schedule III hereto (collectively, the “Owned Vessels”) is duly registered as a vessel under the laws and regulations and flag of the jurisdiction set forth opposite its name on Schedule III (with respect to the vessels listed therein) in the sole ownership of the subsidiary of the Company set forth opposite its name on Schedule III hereto (with respect to the vessels listed therein); each such subsidiary of the Company has good title to the applicable Owned Vessel, free and clear of all Liens and claims and all defects of the title of record except for those Liens as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, and such other encumbrances which would not, in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Effect; and each subsidiary of the Company that owns an Owned Vessel is in good standing with respect to the payment of past and current taxes, fees and other amounts payable under the laws of the jurisdiction where it is registered as would affect its registration with the ship registry of such jurisdiction except for failures to be in good standing which would not, in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(y) Each Owned Vessel flagged in Hong Kong (i) is not owned by any company or other entity subject to or contemplating any wind-up proceedings or the appointment of a receiver and (ii) is not subject to any orders for arrest or pending litigation.

(z) Each Owned Vessel is operated in compliance with the applicable rules, codes of practice, conventions, protocols, guidelines or similar requirements or restrictions imposed, published or promulgated by any international, national, state or local regulatory agencies or bodies, classification society or insurer applicable to the respective vessel (collectively, “Maritime Guidelines”) and all applicable international, national, state and local conventions, laws, regulations, orders, permits,

 

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licenses, certificates, approvals, financial assurances, consents and other authorizations and other requirements (including, without limitation, all Environmental Laws (as defined herein)), except where such failure to be in compliance would not have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect. The Company and each applicable subsidiary are qualified to own or lease, as the case may be, and operate such vessels under all applicable international, national, state and local conventions, laws, regulations, orders, such permits, licenses, certificates, approvals, financial assurances, consents and other authorizations and other requirements (including, without limitation, all Environmental Laws) and Maritime Guidelines, including the laws, regulations and orders of each such vessel’s flag state, except where such failure to be so qualified would not have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect.

(aa) Each Owned Vessel is classed by a classification society which is a full member of the International Association of Classification Societies and each Owned Vessel is in class with valid class and trading certificates, without any overdue recommendations, except where such failure to be classed would not have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect.

(bb) Since the date of the last unaudited quarterly Company financial statements included in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, (i) there has not been a material partial loss or total loss of or to any of the Owned Vessels, whether actual or constructive, (ii) no Owned Vessel has been arrested or requisitioned for title or hire and (iii) neither the Company nor any of the subsidiaries has sustained any material loss or interference with its respective business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree.

(cc) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, none of the contracts or agreements filed as an exhibit to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 have been terminated (other than by its own terms), materially amended, modified, supplemented or waived; neither the Company nor any subsidiary has sent or received any communication regarding the termination, amendment, modification, supplementation or waiver of, or an intention to terminate, amend, modify, supplement or waive, or not to consummate any transaction contemplated by, any such contract or agreement; and no such termination, amendment, modification, supplementation or waiver, or intention to terminate, amend, modify, supplement or waive, or not to consummate any transaction contemplated by, any such contract or agreement has been threatened by the Company or any subsidiary or, to the knowledge of the Company, any other party to any such contract or agreement.

(dd) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries nor any agent thereof acting on their behalf has taken, and none of them will take, any action that might cause this Agreement or the sale of the Shares to violate Regulation T, Regulation U or Regulation X of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

 

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(ee) The Company and its subsidiaries and any “employee benefit plan” (as defined under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (as amended, “ERISA,” which term, as used herein, includes the regulations and published interpretations thereunder)) established or maintained by the Company and its subsidiaries or their “ERISA Affiliates” (as defined below) are in compliance in all material respects with ERISA. “ERISA Affiliate” means, with respect to the Company or a subsidiary of the Company, any member of any group of organizations described in Section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (as amended, the “Code,” which term, as used herein, includes the regulations and published interpretations thereunder) of which the Company or such subsidiary is a member. No “reportable event” (as defined under ERISA) has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur with respect to any “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company, its subsidiaries or any of their ERISA Affiliates. No “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company or its subsidiaries or any of their ERISA Affiliates, if such “employee benefit plan” were terminated, would have any “amount of unfunded benefit liabilities” (as defined under ERISA). Neither the Company or its subsidiaries nor any of their ERISA Affiliates has incurred or reasonably expects to incur any liability under (i) Title IV of ERISA with respect to termination of, or withdrawal from, any “employee benefit plan” or (ii) Sections 412, 4971, 4975 or 4980B of the Code. Except in each case as would not, individually or in the aggregate, cause a Material Adverse Effect, each “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company or its subsidiaries or any of their ERISA Affiliates that is intended to be qualified under Section 401 of the Code is so qualified and nothing has occurred, whether by action or failure to act, which would cause the loss of such qualification.

(ff) The Company is not party to or bound by any collective bargaining agreement with any labor organization; (ii) there is no union representation question existing with respect to the employees of the Company, and, to the knowledge of the Company, after due inquiry, no union organizing activities are taking place that, could, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; (iii) to the knowledge of the Company, after due inquiry, no union organizing or decertification efforts are underway or threatened against the Company; (iv) no labor strike, work stoppage, slowdown or other material labor dispute is pending against the Company, or, to the Company’s knowledge, after due inquiry, threatened against the Company; (v) there is no worker’s compensation liability, experience or matter that could be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (vi) to the knowledge of the Company, after due inquiry, there is no threatened or pending liability against the Company pursuant to the Worker Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act of 1988, as amended, or any similar state or local law; (vii) there is no employment-related charge, complaint, grievance, investigation, unfair labor practice claim or inquiry of any kind, pending against the Company that could, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; (viii) to the knowledge of the Company, after due inquiry, no employee or agent of the Company has committed any act or omission giving rise to liability for any violation identified in subsections (vi) and (vii) above, other than such acts or omissions that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; and (ix) no term or condition of employment exists through arbitration awards, settlement agreements or side agreement that is contrary to the express terms of any applicable collective bargaining agreement.

 

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(gg) Except as or would not, singly or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Effect, (A) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is in violation of any international, federal, state, local or foreign statute, law, rule, regulation, ordinance, code, policy or rule of common law or any judicial or administrative interpretation thereof, including any judicial or administrative order, consent, decree or judgment, and including conventions adopted by the International Maritime Organization, relating to pollution or protection of human health, the environment (including, without limitation, ambient air, surface water, groundwater, land surface or subsurface strata) or wildlife, including, without limitation, laws and regulations relating to the release or threatened release of chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, wastes, toxic substances, hazardous substances, petroleum or petroleum products, asbestos-containing materials, oily bilge water, harmful organisms or mold (collectively, “Hazardous Materials”) or to the manufacture, processing, distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or handling of Hazardous Materials (collectively, “Environmental Laws”), (B) the Company and its subsidiaries have all permits, licenses, authorizations and approvals required, and having made all filings and provided all financial assurances and notices, required for the ownership and operation of the business, properties and facilities of the Company or its subsidiaries under any applicable Environmental Laws and, are each in compliance with their requirements, (C) there are no pending or threatened administrative, regulatory or judicial actions, suits, demands, demand letters, claims, liens, notices of noncompliance or violation, investigation or proceedings relating to any Environmental Law against the Company or any of its subsidiaries, (D) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is conducting or paying for, in whole or in part, any investigation, response or other corrective action pursuant to any Environmental Law at any site or facility, nor is any of them subject or a party to any order, judgment, decree, contract or agreement which imposes any obligation or liability under any Environmental Law (E) there are no events or circumstances that would reasonably be expected to form the basis of an order for clean-up or remediation, or an action, suit or proceeding by any private party or governmental entity, against or affecting the Company or any of its subsidiaries relating to Hazardous Materials or any Environmental Laws, (F) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has been named as a “potentially responsible party” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended, and (G) no lien, charge, encumbrance or restriction has been recorded pursuant to any Environmental Law with respect to any assets, facility or property owned, operated or leased by the Company or any of its subsidiaries.

(hh) In the ordinary course of its business, the Company conducts a periodic review of the effect of Environmental Laws on the business, operations and properties of the Company and its subsidiaries, in the course of which it identifies and evaluates associated costs and liabilities (including, without limitation, any capital or operating expenditures required for clean-up, closure of properties or compliance with Environmental Laws or any permit, license or approval, any related constraints on operating activities and any potential liabilities to third parties). On the basis of such review and the amount of its established reserves, the Company has reasonably concluded that such associated costs and liabilities would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.

 

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(ii) Each of the Company and its subsidiaries are insured by recognized, financially sound and reputable institutions (which term shall include protection and indemnity insurance clubs) with policies in such amounts and with such deductibles and covering such risks as are generally deemed adequate and customary for their businesses, including, but not limited to, policies covering their personnel, operations, business and real and personal property owned or leased by the Company and its subsidiaries against theft, damage, destruction, acts of vandalism and earthquakes. There are no material claims by the Company or any of its subsidiaries under any insurance policy or instrument as to which any insurance company or mutual protection and indemnity association is denying liability or defending under a reservation of rights clause; none of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is currently required to make any material payment, or is aware of any facts that would require it to make any material payment, in respect of a call by, or a contribution to, any mutual protection and indemnity association. The Company has no reason to believe that it or any of its subsidiaries will not be able (i) to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such policies expire or (ii) to obtain comparable coverage from similar institutions as may be necessary or appropriate to conduct its business as now conducted.

(jj) The Company is a “foreign private issuer” as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

(kk) To ensure the legality, validity, enforceability and admissibility into evidence of this Agreement and any other document to be furnished hereunder in Bermuda, it is not necessary that this Agreement, or such other document be filed or recorded with any court or other authority in Bermuda or any stamp or similar tax be paid in Bermuda on or in respect of this Agreement or any such other document.

(ll) The Company and each of its subsidiaries make and keep accurate books and records and maintain a system of internal accounting controls and procedures that is in compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and is sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that: (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP and to maintain asset accountability; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any material differences. Since the end of the Company’s most recent audited fiscal year, there has been (i) no material weakness in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (whether or not remediated) and (ii) no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

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(mm) The Company has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that might be reasonably expected to cause or result in stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares.

(nn) The Company has been advised of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (collectively, the “Investment Company Act”); as of the date hereof and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, each of the Company and its subsidiaries is not and will not be, individually or on a consolidated basis, an “investment company” that is required to be registered under the Investment Company Act; and following the Closing Date and any Option Closing Date, the Company and its subsidiaries will conduct their businesses in a manner so as not to be required to register under the Investment Company Act.

(oo) Each preliminary prospectus filed as part of the Registration Statement as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act, complied when so filed in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

(pp) The Common Shares are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act and are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), and the Company has taken no action designed to, or likely to have the effect of, terminating the registration of the Common Shares under the Exchange Act or delisting the Common Shares from the NYSE. Except as described in the Company’s periodic filings under the Exchange Act incorporated by reference in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, the Company has not received any notification that the Commission or the NYSE is contemplating terminating such registration or listing.

(qq) Neither the Company nor any of its affiliates has engaged any broker, finder, commission agent or other person (other than the Underwriters) in connection with the offering of the Shares, and neither the Company nor any of its affiliates is under any obligation to pay any broker’s fee or commission in connection with such offering of Shares (other than commissions or fees to the Underwriters).

(rr) Except as otherwise disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, there is no encumbrance or restriction on the ability of any subsidiary of the Company (x) to pay dividends or make other distributions on such subsidiary’s capital stock or to pay any indebtedness to the Company or any other subsidiary of the Company, (y) to make loans or advances or pay any indebtedness to, or investments in, the Company or any other subsidiary or (z) to transfer any of its property or assets to the Company or any other subsidiary of the Company.

(ss) There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company and its subsidiaries or any of the officers and directors of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, in their capacities as such, to comply with the applicable provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith.

 

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(tt) There are no contracts, agreements or understandings between the Company and any person granting such person the right to require the Company to file a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to any securities of the Company or to require the Company to include such securities with the Shares registered pursuant to the Registration Statement.

(uu) Each of the Company’s directors and executive officers has executed and delivered to Morgan Stanley a lock-up agreement in the form of Exhibit A hereto (a “Lock-up Agreement”). Exhibit B hereto contains a true, complete and correct list of all directors, executive officers and principal shareholders of the Company. Each director, executive officer and shareholder who is required pursuant to this Agreement to execute and deliver a Lock-up Agreement is hereinafter referred to as a “Locked-up Person” and, collectively, “Locked-up Persons.”

(vv) (i) None of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates, or any director, officer, or employee thereof, or, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent or representative of the Company or of any of its subsidiaries or affiliates, has taken or will take any action in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization or approval of the payment, giving or receipt of money, property, gifts or anything else of value, directly or indirectly, to any person to improperly influence official action by that person for the benefit of the Company or its subsidiaries or affiliates, or to otherwise secure any improper advantage, or to any person in violation of (1) the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, (2) the U.K. Bribery Act 2010 and (3) any other applicable law, regulation, order, decree or directive having the force of law and relating to bribery or corruption (collectively, the “Anti-Corruption Laws”); (ii) the Company and each of its subsidiaries and affiliates have conducted their businesses in compliance with applicable anti-corruption laws and have instituted and maintained and will continue to maintain policies and procedures reasonably designed to promote and achieve compliance with such laws and with the representations and warranties contained herein; and (iii) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries will use, directly or indirectly, the proceeds of the offering in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment or giving of money, or anything else of value, to any person in violation of any applicable anti-corruption laws.

(ww) The operations of the Company and each of its subsidiaries are, have been and will, as of the Closing Date, be conducted at all times in material compliance with all applicable anti-money laundering laws, rules and regulations, including the financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements contained therein, and including the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970, applicable provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, the Money Laundering Control Act of 1986, the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 and the applicable anti-money laundering statutes of jurisdictions where the Company and each of its subsidiaries conduct business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by

 

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any governmental agency (collectively, the “Anti-Money Laundering Laws”), and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Anti-Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened.

(xx) (i) None of the Company, any of its subsidiaries, or any director, officer, or employee thereof, or, to the Company’s knowledge, 2 agent, affiliate or representative of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, is an individual or entity (“Person”) that is, or is owned or controlled by one or more Persons that are:

(A) the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the United States Government (including the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the U.S. Department of State), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, His Majesty’s Treasury, or any other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”), or

(B) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of comprehensive territorial Sanctions (including, without limitation, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Russia, the Crimea region of Ukraine, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic or any other Covered Region of Ukraine identified pursuant to Executive Order 14065).

(ii) The Company will not, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other Person:

(A) to fund or facilitate any activities or business of or with any Person or in any country or territory that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is the subject of Sanctions;

(B) in any other manner that would cause or result in a violation of any Sanctions by any Person (including any Person participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).

(iii) The Company and each of its subsidiaries have not knowingly engaged in, are not now knowingly engaged in, and will not engage in, any dealings or transactions with any Person, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject of Sanctions, except as permitted by Sanctions.

 

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Note to Skadden: Sanctions rep is intended to mirror the disclosure found in SFL’s sales agreement from April 2022, prior Morgan Stanley underwriting agreement reps (See here) and peer reps (See here), which discloses that the Company may operate within certain sanctions counties and that the Company is in compliance with such sanctions.

 

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(yy) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company (i) does not have any material lending or other relationship with any bank affiliate or lending affiliate of any of the Underwriters and (ii) does not intend to use any of the proceeds from the sale of the Shares to repay any outstanding debt owed to any affiliate of the Underwriters.

(zz) No stamp, documentary, issuance, registration, transfer, withholding, capital gains, income or other taxes or duties are payable by or on behalf of the Underwriters, the Company or any of its subsidiaries in Bermuda or to any taxing authority thereof or therein in connection with (i) the execution, delivery or consummation of this Agreement, (ii) the sale and delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters or purchasers procured by the Underwriters, or (iii) the resale and delivery of the Shares by the Underwriters in the manner contemplated herein.

(aaa) The Company was not a “passive foreign investment company” (“PFIC”) as defined in Section 1297 of the Code, for its most recently completed taxable year and, based on the Company’s current projected income, assets and activities, the Company does not expect to be classified as a PFIC for any subsequent taxable year.

(bbb) Other than the Subsidiaries, there is no entity or other person (i) of which a majority of the voting equity securities or other interests is owned, directly or indirectly, by the Company and (ii) which held more than 5% of the total assets of the Company on a consolidated basis as of March 31, 2024, excluding inter-company balances.

(ccc) To the Company’s knowledge, the Company and each of its subsidiaries have complied and are presently in compliance with all internal and external privacy policies, contractual obligations, industry standards, applicable laws, statutes, judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or other governmental or regulatory authority and any other legal obligations, in each case, relating to the collection, use, transfer, import, export, storage, protection, disposal and disclosure by the Company or any of its subsidiaries of personal, personally identifiable, household, sensitive, confidential or regulated data (“Data Security Obligations”, and such data, “Data”); (ii) the Company has not received any written notification of or written complaint regarding (or, to the Company’s knowledge, oral notification or complaint) and is unaware of any other facts that, individually or in the aggregate, would reasonably indicate non-compliance with any Data Security Obligation; and (iii) of there is no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body pending or threatened alleging non-compliance with any Data Security Obligation that would result in a Material Adverse Effect.

 

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(ddd) The Company and each of its subsidiaries have taken all technical and organizational measures necessary to protect the information technology systems and Data used in connection with the operation of the Company’s and its subsidiaries’ businesses. Without limiting the foregoing, the Company and its subsidiaries have used reasonable efforts to establish and maintain, and have established, maintained, implemented and complied with, reasonable information technology, information security, cyber security and data protection controls, policies and procedures, including oversight, access controls, encryption, technological and physical safeguards and business continuity/disaster recovery and security plans that are designed to protect against and prevent breach, destruction, loss, unauthorized distribution, use, access, disablement, misappropriation or modification, or other compromise or misuse of or relating to any information technology system or Data used in connection with the operation of the Company’s and its subsidiaries’ businesses (“Breach”). To the Company’s knowledge, there has been no such Breach, and the Company and its subsidiaries have not been notified of and have no knowledge of any event or condition that would reasonably be expected to result in, any such Breach.

(eee) The Company and each of its subsidiaries have filed all federal, state, local and foreign tax returns required to be filed through the date of this Agreement or have requested extensions thereof (except where the failure to file would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole) and have paid all taxes required to be paid thereon (except for cases in which the failure to file or pay would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or, except as currently being contested in good faith and for which reserves required by U.S. GAAP have been created in the financial statements of the Company), and no tax deficiency has been determined adversely to the Company or any of its subsidiaries which, singly or in the aggregate, has had (nor does the Company nor any of its subsidiaries have any notice or knowledge of any tax deficiency which could reasonably be expected to be determined adversely to the Company or its subsidiaries and which could reasonably be expected to have) a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole.

(fff) (i) The Company and its subsidiaries use and have used any and all software and other materials distributed under a “free,” “open source,” or similar licensing model (including but not limited to the MIT License, Apache License, GNU General Public License, GNU Lesser General Public License and GNU Affero General Public License) (“Open Source Software”) in compliance with all license terms applicable to such Open Source Software; and (ii) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries uses or distributes or has used or distributed any Open Source Software in any manner that requires or has required (A) the Company or any of its subsidiaries to permit reverse engineering of any software code or other technology owned by the Company or any of its subsidiaries or (B) any software code or other technology owned by the Company or any of its subsidiaries to be (1) disclosed or distributed in source code form, (2) licensed for the purpose of making derivative works or (3) redistributed at no charge.

 

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(ggg) Under the current laws and regulations of Bermuda all dividends and other distributions declared and payable on the Shares in cash may be freely remitted out of Bermuda and may be paid in, or freely converted into, United States dollars, in each case without there being required any consent, approval, authorization or order of, or qualification with, any court or governmental agency or body in Bermuda; and except as disclosed in each of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, all such dividends and other distributions paid by the Company will not be subject to withholding under the laws and regulations of the Bermuda.

(hhh) It is not necessary under the laws of Bermuda (i) to enable the Underwriters to enforce their rights under this Agreement, provided that they are not otherwise engaged in business in Bermuda, or (ii) solely by reason of the execution, delivery or consummation of this Agreement, for any of the Underwriters to be qualified or entitled to carry out business in Bermuda.

(iii) This Agreement is in proper form under the laws of Bermuda for the enforcement thereof against the Company, and to ensure the legality, validity, enforceability or admissibility into evidence in Bermuda of this Agreement.

(jjj) The courts of Bermuda would recognize as a valid judgment any final monetary judgment obtained against the Company in the courts of the State of New York.

(kkk) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries nor any of its or their properties or assets has any immunity from the jurisdiction of any court or from any legal process (whether through service or notice, attachment prior to judgment, attachment in aid of execution or otherwise) under the laws of Bermuda. The irrevocable and unconditional waiver and agreement of the Company contained in Section 21(a) not to plead or claim any such immunity in any legal action, suit or proceeding based on this Agreement is valid and binding under the laws of Bermuda.

(lll) The choice of law of the State of New York as the governing law of this Agreement is a valid choice of law under the laws of Bermuda and will be honored by the courts of Bermuda. The Company has the power to submit, and pursuant to Section 21(a) has, to the extent permitted by law, legally, validly, effectively and irrevocably submitted, to the jurisdiction of the Specified Courts (as defined in Section 21(a)), and has the power to designate, appoint and empower, and pursuant to Section 21(b), has legally, validly and effectively designated, appointed and empowered an agent for service of process in any suit or proceeding based on or arising under this Agreement in any of the Specified Courts.

(mmm) Subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in each of the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, (i) the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, have not incurred any material liability or obligation, direct or contingent, nor entered into any material transaction; (ii) the Company has not purchased any of its outstanding capital stock, nor declared, paid or otherwise made any dividend or distribution of any kind on its capital stock other than ordinary and customary dividends; and (iii) there has not been any material change in the capital stock, short term debt or long term debt of the Company and its subsidiaries.

 

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(nnn) The Company is subject to, and is in compliance in all material respects with, the reporting requirements of Section 13 and Section 15(d), as applicable, of the Exchange Act.

(ooo) The statements set forth or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus under the caption “Description of Share Capital” insofar as they purport to constitute a summary of the terms of the Common Shares, and under the captions “Risk Factors,” “Taxation,” “Underwriting,” “Summary – Our Company” and “Where You Can Find Additional Information” insofar as they purport to describe the provisions of the laws and documents referred to therein, are fair and accurate in all material respects.

(ppp) As of the time of each sale of the Shares in connection with the offering when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, none of (A) the Time of Sale Prospectus and (B) any free writing prospectus, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, included, includes or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted, omits or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

2. Agreements to Sell and Purchase. The Company hereby agrees to sell to the several Underwriters, and each Underwriter, upon the basis of the representations and warranties herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions hereinafter stated, agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company at $12.03125 a share (the “Purchase Price”) the number of Firm Shares (subject to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as Morgan Stanley may determine) that bears the same proportion to the number of Firm Shares to be sold by the Company as the number of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule II hereto opposite the name of such Underwriter bears to the total number of Firm Shares.

On the basis of the representations and warranties contained in this Agreement, and subject to its terms and conditions, the Company agrees to sell to the Underwriters the Additional Shares, and the Underwriters shall have the right to purchase, severally and not jointly, up to 1,200,000 Additional Shares at the Purchase Price, provided, however, that the amount paid by the Underwriters for any Additional Shares shall be reduced by an amount per share equal to any dividends declared by the Company and payable on the Firm Shares but not payable on such Additional Shares. Morgan Stanley may exercise this right on behalf of the Underwriters in whole or from time to time in part by giving written notice not later than 30 days after the date of this Agreement. Any exercise notice shall specify the number of Additional Shares to be purchased by the Underwriters and the date on which such shares are to be purchased. Each purchase date must be at least one business day after the written notice is given and may not be earlier than the closing date for the Firm Shares or later than ten business days after the date of such notice. Additional Shares may be purchased as provided in Section 4 hereof solely for the purpose of covering over-allotments made in connection with the offering of the Firm Shares. On each day, if any, that Additional Shares are to be purchased (an “Option Closing Date”), each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase

 

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the number of Additional Shares (subject to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as Morgan Stanley may determine) that bears the same proportion to the total number of Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date as the number of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule II hereto opposite the name of such Underwriter bears to the total number of Firm Shares.

3. Terms of Public Offering. The Company is advised by Morgan Stanley that the Underwriters propose to make a public offering of their respective portions of the Shares as soon after the Registration Statement and this Agreement have become effective as in Morgan Stanley’s judgment is advisable. The Company is further advised by Morgan Stanley that the Shares are to be offered to the public upon the terms set forth in the Prospectus.

4. Payment and Delivery. Payment for the Firm Shares to be sold by the Company shall be made to the Company in Federal or other funds immediately available in New York City against delivery of such Firm Shares for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters at 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on July 25, 2024, or at such other time on the same or such other date, not later than the fifth business day thereafter, as may be agreed between you and Morgan Stanley. The time and date of such payment are hereinafter referred to as the “Closing Date.”

Payment for any Additional Shares shall be made to the Company in Federal or other funds immediately available in New York City against delivery of such Additional Shares for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters at 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on the date specified in the corresponding notice described in Section 2 or at such other time on the same or on such other date, in any event not later than the tenth business day thereafter, as may be agreed between you and Morgan Stanley.

The Firm Shares and the Additional Shares shall be registered in such names and in such denominations as Morgan Stanley shall request prior to the Closing Date or the applicable Option Closing Date, as the case may be. The Firm Shares and Additional Shares shall be delivered to Morgan Stanley on the Closing Date or an Option Closing Date, as the case may be, for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters, with any transfer taxes payable in connection with the transfer of the Shares to the Underwriters duly paid, against payment of the Purchase Price therefor.

5. Conditions to the Underwriters Obligations. The several obligations of the Underwriters are subject to the following conditions:

(a) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date:

(i) no order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement shall be in effect, and no proceeding for such purpose or pursuant to Section 8A under the Securities Act shall be pending before or threatened by the Commission;

 

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(ii) there shall not have occurred any downgrading, nor shall any notice have been given of any intended or potential downgrading or of any review for a possible change that does not indicate the direction of the possible change, in the rating accorded any of the securities of the Company or any of its subsidiaries by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as such term is defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the Exchange Act; and

(iii) there shall not have occurred any change, or any development involving a prospective change, in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business or operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, from that set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus that, in Morgan Stanley’s judgment, is material and adverse and that makes it, in Morgan Stanley’s judgment, impracticable to market the Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus.

(b) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date a certificate, dated the Closing Date and signed by an executive officer of the Company, (i) to the effect set forth in Sections 5(a)(i), 5(a)(ii) and 5(a)(iii) and above and to the effect that the representations and warranties of the Company contained in this Agreement are true and correct as of the Closing Date (ii) that the Company has complied with all of the agreements and satisfied all of the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder on or before the Closing Date, (iii) since the date of the most recent financial statements in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto after the date hereof), other than as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus or contemplated hereby, neither the Company nor any subsidiary has incurred any liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent, not in the ordinary course of business that are material to the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or entered into any transactions not in the ordinary course of business that are material to the business, condition (financial or otherwise) or results of operations or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, and there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term indebtedness of the Company or any subsidiary of the Company that is material to the business, condition (financial or otherwise) or results of operations or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, and (iv) the sale of the Shares has not been enjoined (temporarily or permanently).

The officer signing and delivering such certificate may rely upon the best of his or her knowledge as to proceedings threatened.

(c) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion and negative assurance letter of Seward & Kissel LLP, outside counsel for the Company, dated the Closing Date, in form satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.

(d) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion of MJM Limited, Hamilton, Bermuda, special counsel for the Company with respect to matters of Bermuda law, dated the Closing Date, in form satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.

 

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(e) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion of each of: (i) the General Counsel of the Company, (ii) Seward & Kissel LLP, special Liberia counsel for the Company, (iii) Seward & Kissel LLP, special Marshall Islands counsel for the Company, (iv) Advokatfirmaet Wiersholm AS, special Norway counsel for the Company, and (v) K.C. Savirades & Co. LLC, special Cyprus counsel to the Company, in each case in form satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.

(f) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, in form satisfactory to Morgan Stanley covering such matters as are customarily covered in such opinions.

(g) On the date hereof, the Underwriters shall have received: (i) from Ernst & Young AS, the independent registered public accounting firm for the Company, a “comfort letter” dated the date hereof addressed to the Underwriters, in form and substance satisfactory to Morgan Stanley, covering the financial information in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus and other customary matters, and (ii) from MSPC Certified Public Accountants and Advisors, P.C., a “comfort letter” dated the date hereof addressed to the Underwriters, in form and substance satisfactory to Morgan Stanley, covering the financial information in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and other customary matters. In addition, on the Closing Date, the Underwriters shall have received from each of such accountants a “bring-down comfort letter” dated the Closing Date addressed to the Underwriters, in form and substance satisfactory to Morgan Stanley, in the form of the “comfort letter” delivered on the date hereof, except that (i) it shall cover the financial information in the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto and (ii) procedures shall be brought down to a date no more than two days prior to the Closing Date.

(h) The Lock-up Agreements, each substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto, between Morgan Stanley and the Locked-up Persons shall be in full force and effect on the Closing Date.

(i) The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date such other documents as they may reasonably request with respect to the good standing of the Company, the due authorization and issuance of the Shares to be sold on the Closing Date and other matters related to the issuance of such Shares.

(j) The Company shall have filed the Prospectus with the Commission (including the information previously omitted from the Registration Statement pursuant to Rule 430B under the Securities Act) in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act; or the Company shall have filed a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement containing the information previously omitted from the Registration Statement pursuant to such Rule 430B under the Securities Act, and such post-effective amendment shall have become effective.

 

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(k) No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement shall be in effect, and no proceedings for such purpose shall have been instituted or threatened by the Commission.

(l) If a filing has been made with FINRA, FINRA shall have raised no objection to the fairness and reasonableness of the underwriting terms and arrangements.

(m) At the Closing Date, the Shares shall have been approved for listing on the NYSE, subject only to official notice of issuance.

(n) The several obligations of the Underwriters to purchase Additional Shares hereunder are subject to the delivery to Morgan Stanley on the applicable Option Closing Date of the following:

(i) a certificate, dated the Option Closing Date and signed by an executive officer of the Company, confirming that the certificate delivered on the Closing Date pursuant to Section 5(c) hereof remains true and correct as of such Option Closing Date;

(ii) an opinion and negative assurance letter of Seward & Kissel LLP, outside counsel for the Company, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(d) hereof;

(iii) an opinion of MJM Limited, Hamilton, Bermuda, special counsel for the Company with respect to matters of Bermuda law, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(e) hereof;

(iv) an opinion of each of (i) the General Counsel of the Company, (ii) Seward & Kissel LLP, special Liberia counsel for the Company, (iii) Seward & Kissel LLP, special Marshall Islands counsel for the Company, (iv) Advokatfirmaet Wiersholm AS, special Norway counsel for the Company, and (v) K.C. Savirades & Co. LLC, special Cyprus counsel to the Company, in each case dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(f) hereof;

 

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(v) an opinion and negative assurance letter of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 6(i) hereof;

(vi) a letter dated the Option Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters, from Ersnt & Young AS, the independent registered public accounting firm for the Company, and MSPC Certified Public Accountants and Advisors, P.C., independent public accountants, substantially in the same form and substance as the letter furnished to the Underwriters pursuant to Section 5(h) hereof; provided that the letter delivered on the Option Closing Date shall use a “cut-off date” not earlier than two business days prior to such Option Closing Date; and

(vii) such other documents as Morgan Stanley may reasonably request with respect to the good standing of the Company, the due authorization and issuance of the Additional Shares to be sold on such Option Closing Date and other matters related to the issuance of such Additional Shares.

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

6. Covenants of the Company. The Company covenants with each Underwriter as follows:

(a) To furnish to Morgan Stanley, without charge, signed copies of the Registration Statement (including exhibits thereto and documents incorporated by reference) and for delivery to each other Underwriter a conformed copy of the Registration Statement (without exhibits thereto but including documents incorporated by reference) and to furnish to Morgan Stanley in New York City, without charge, prior to 7:00 a.m. New York City time on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement and during the period mentioned in Section 6(e) or 6(f) below, as many copies of the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, any documents incorporated by reference therein and any supplements and amendments thereto or to the Registration Statement as Morgan Stanley may reasonably request.

(b) Before amending or supplementing the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, to furnish to Morgan Stanley a copy of each such proposed amendment or supplement and not to file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which Morgan Stanley reasonably objects, and to file with the Commission within the applicable period specified in Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act any prospectus required to be filed pursuant to such Rule.

 

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(c) To furnish to Morgan Stanley a copy of each proposed free writing prospectus to be prepared by or on behalf of, used by, or referred to by the Company and not to use or refer to any proposed free writing prospectus without Morgan Stanley’s prior written consent, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld; provided that Morgan Stanley will be deemed to have consented to any free writing prospectus listed on Schedule I hereto and any “road show that is a written communication” within the meaning of Rule 422(d)(8)(i) under the Securities Act that has been reviewed by Morgan Stanley. The Company shall furnish to each Underwriter, without charge, as many copies of any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of, used by or referred to by the Company as such Underwriter may reasonably request.

(d) Not to take any action that would result in an Underwriter or the Company being required to file with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of the Underwriter that the Underwriter otherwise would not have been required to file thereunder.

(e) If the Time of Sale Prospectus is being used to solicit offers to buy the Shares at a time when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Time of Sale Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances, not misleading, or if any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which the Time of Sale Prospectus conflicts with the information contained in the Registration Statement then on file, or if, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, it is necessary to amend or supplement the Time of Sale Prospectus to comply with applicable law, forthwith to prepare, file with the Commission and furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to any dealer upon request, either amendments or supplements to the Time of Sale Prospectus so that the statements in the Time of Sale Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when the Time of Sale Prospectus is delivered to a prospective purchaser, be misleading or so that the Time of Sale Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will no longer conflict with the Registration Statement, or so that the Time of Sale Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will comply with applicable law, provided, however, that prior to filing amendments or supplements, the Company shall furnish to the Underwriters for review, a reasonable amount of time prior to the proposed time of filing or use thereof, a copy of such proposed amendments or supplements and the Company shall not file, use or refer to any such amendment or supplements without the Underwriters’ prior written consent, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld.

(f) If, during such period after the first date of the public offering of the Shares as in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is required by law to be delivered in connection with sales by an Underwriter or dealer, any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading, or if, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus to comply with applicable law, forthwith to prepare, file with the Commission and furnish,

 

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at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to the dealers (whose names and addresses Morgan Stanley will furnish to the Company) to which Shares may have been sold by Morgan Stanley on behalf of the Underwriters and to any other dealers upon request, either amendments or supplements to the Prospectus so that the statements in the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will comply with applicable law.

To pay, indemnify and hold the Underwriters harmless against, any stamp, issue, registration, documentary, sales, transfer, income, capital gains or other similar taxes or duties imposed under the laws of Bermuda or any political sub-division or taxing authority thereof or therein that is payable in connection with (i) the execution, delivery, consummation or enforcement of this Agreement, (ii) the creation, allotment and issuance of the Shares, (iii) the sale and delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters or purchasers procured by the Underwriters, or (iv) the resale and delivery of the Shares by the Underwriters in the manner contemplated herein.

If requested by Morgan Stanley, the Company shall cause to be prepared and delivered, at its expense, within one business day from the effective date of this Agreement, to Morgan Stanley an “electronic Prospectus” to be used by the Underwriters in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares. As used herein, the term “electronic Prospectus” means a form of Time of Sale Prospectus, and any amendment or supplement thereto, that meets each of the following conditions: (i) it shall be encoded in an electronic format, satisfactory to Morgan Stanley, that may be transmitted electronically by Morgan Stanley and the other Underwriters to offerees and purchasers of the Shares; (ii) it shall disclose the same information as the paper Time of Sale Prospectus, except to the extent that graphic and image material cannot be disseminated electronically, in which case such graphic and image material shall be replaced in the electronic Prospectus with a fair and accurate narrative description or tabular representation of such material, as appropriate; and (iii) it shall be in or convertible into a paper format or an electronic format, satisfactory to the Morgan Stanley, that will allow investors to store and have continuously ready access to the Time of Sale Prospectus at any future time, without charge to investors (other than any fee charged for subscription to the Internet as a whole and for on-line time). The Company hereby confirms that it has included or will include in the Prospectus filed pursuant to the Commission’s Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval System or otherwise with the Commission and in the Registration Statement at the time it was declared effective an undertaking that, upon receipt of a request by an investor or his or her representative, the Company shall transmit or cause to be transmitted promptly, without charge, a paper copy of the Time of Sale Prospectus.

(g) To endeavor to qualify the Shares for offer and sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as Morgan Stanley shall reasonably request. The Company will advise Morgan Stanley promptly of the suspension of any such exemption relating to the Shares for offering, sale or trading in any jurisdiction or any initiation or threat of any proceeding for any such purpose, and in the event of the issuance of any order suspending such exemption, the Company shall use its best efforts to obtain the withdrawal thereof at the earliest possible moment.

 

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(h) To make generally available to the Company’s security holders and to Morgan Stanley as soon as practicable an earnings statement covering a period of at least twelve months beginning with the first fiscal quarter of the Company occurring after the date of this Agreement which shall satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder. To comply with the Securities Act and the Exchange Act so as to permit the completion of the distribution of the Shares as contemplated by this Agreement, the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Company will, during the period when a prospectus relating to the Shares is required by the Securities Act to be delivered (whether physically or through compliance with Rule 172 under the Securities Act or any similar rule), file on a timely basis with the Commission and the NYSE all reports and documents required to be filed under the Exchange Act.

(i) To use its best efforts to permit the Shares to be eligible for clearance and settlement through The Depositary Trust Company.

(j) The Company and its subsidiaries will conduct their business in a manner so as to not be required to register under the Investment Company Act.

(k) The Company will not take, and will ensure that no controlled affiliate of the Company will take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that might cause or result in stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Shares, the Common Shares or any reference security with respect to the Common Shares, whether to facilitate the resale of the Shares or otherwise, and the Company will, and shall cause each of its affiliates to, comply with all applicable provisions of Regulation M.

(l) The Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to effect and maintain the listing of the Common Shares on the NYSE.

(m) To use the proceeds of the offering of the Shares in the manner described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus under the caption “Use of Proceeds.

(n) If the third anniversary of the initial effective date of the Registration Statement occurs before all the Shares have been sold by the Underwriters, prior to the third anniversary to file a new shelf registration statement and to take any other action necessary to permit the public offering of the Shares to continue without interruption; references herein to the Registration Statement shall include the new registration statement declared effective by the Commission.

(o) If requested by the Underwriters, to prepare a final term sheet relating to the offering of the Shares, containing only information that describes the final terms of the offering in a form consented to by the Underwriters, and to file such final term sheet within the period required by Rule 433(d)(5)(ii) under the Securities Act following the date the final terms have been established for the offering of the Shares.

 

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(p) The Company will deliver to each Underwriter (or its agent), on the date of execution of this Agreement, a properly completed and executed Certification Regarding Beneficial Owners of Legal Entity Customers, together with copies of identifying documentation, and the Company undertakes to provide such additional supporting documentation as each Underwriter may reasonably request in connection with the verification of the foregoing Certification.

(q) The Company also covenants with each Underwriter that, without the prior written consent of Morgan Stanley on behalf of the Underwriters, it will not, and will not publicly disclose an intention to, during the period ending 60 days after the date of the Prospectus (the “Restricted Period”), (1) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any Common Shares or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Shares or (2) enter into any swap or other arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Shares, whether any such transaction described in clause (1) or (2) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Shares or such other securities, in cash or otherwise or (3) file any registration statement with the Commission relating to the offering of any Common Shares or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Shares.

The restrictions contained in the preceding paragraph shall not apply to (A) the Shares to be sold hereunder, (B) the issuance by the Company of Common Shares upon the exercise of an option or warrant or the conversion of a security outstanding on the date hereof as described in each of the Time of Sale Prospectus and Prospectus, or (C) facilitating the establishment of a trading plan on behalf of a shareholder, officer or director of the Company pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of Common Shares, provided that (i) such plan does not provide for the transfer of Common Shares during the Restricted Period and (ii) to the extent a public announcement or filing under the Exchange Act, if any, is required of or voluntarily made by the Company regarding the establishment of such plan, such announcement or filing shall include a statement to the effect that no transfer of Common Shares may be made under such plan during the Restricted Period.

7. Expenses. Whether or not the transactions contemplated in this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, the Company agrees to pay or cause to be paid all costs, expenses, fees and taxes incident to the performance of their obligations under this Agreement, including: (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel, the Company’s accountants in connection with the registration and delivery of the Shares under the Securities Act and all other fees or expenses in connection with the preparation and filing of the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of, used by, or referred to by the Company and

 

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amendments and supplements to any of the foregoing, including all printing costs associated therewith, and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers, in the quantities hereinabove specified, (ii) all costs and expenses related to the transfer and delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters, including any transfer or other taxes payable thereon, (iii) the cost of printing or producing any Blue Sky or Legal Investment memorandum in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares under state securities laws and all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Shares for offer and sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 6(g) hereof, including filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky or Legal Investment memorandum not to exceed $7,500 in the aggregate, (iv) all filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters incurred in connection with the review and qualification of the offering of the Shares by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority not to exceed $7,500 in the aggregate, (v) all costs and expenses incident to listing the Shares on the NYSE, (vi) the cost of printing certificates representing the Shares, (vii) the costs and charges of any transfer agent, registrar or depositary, (viii) the costs and expenses of the Company relating to investor presentations on any “road show” undertaken in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Shares, including, without limitation, expenses associated with the preparation or dissemination of any electronic road show, expenses associated with the production of road show slides and graphics, fees and expenses of any consultants engaged in connection with the road show presentations with the prior approval of the Company, travel and lodging expenses of the representatives and officers of the Company and any such consultants, and the cost of any aircraft chartered in connection with the road show in each case with the prior approval of the Company, (ix) the document production charges and expenses associated with printing this Agreement and (x) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of the obligations of the Company hereunder for which provision is not otherwise made in this Section. It is understood, however, that except as provided in this Section, Section 9 entitled “Indemnity and Contribution” and the last paragraph of Section 10 below, the Underwriters will pay all of their costs and expenses, including fees and disbursements of their counsel, stock transfer taxes payable on resale of any of the Shares by them and any advertising expenses connected with any offers they may make.

The provisions of this Section shall not supersede or otherwise affect any agreement that the Company may otherwise have for the allocation of such expenses among themselves.

8. Covenants of the Underwriters. Each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, covenants with the Company not to take any action that would result in the Company being required to file with the Commission under Rule 433(d) a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of such Underwriter that otherwise would not be required to be filed by the Company thereunder, but for the action of the Underwriter.

 

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9. Indemnity and Contribution.

(a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its directors, officers, employees and agents, each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, and each affiliate of any Underwriter within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act, any Company information that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any “road show” as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act (including any electronic road show) (a “road show”), the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or arise out of, or are based upon, any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, except insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities arise out of, or are based upon, any such untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with any information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through Morgan Stanley expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by the Underwriters through Morgan Stanley consists of the information described as such in paragraph (c) below.

(b) Each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, the directors of the Company, the officers of the Company who sign the Registration Statement and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act, any Company information that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any road show, or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or arise out of, or are based upon, any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, but only with reference to information relating to such Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through Morgan Stanley expressly for use in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, any issuer free writing prospectus, road show or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto.

 

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(c) In case any proceeding (including any governmental investigation) shall be instituted involving any person in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to Section 9(a), 1(a) or 9(b), such person (the “indemnified party”) shall promptly notify the person against whom such indemnity may be sought (the “indemnifying party”) in writing and the indemnifying party, upon request of the indemnified party, shall retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party to represent the indemnified party and any others the indemnifying party may designate in such proceeding and shall pay the fees and disbursements of such counsel related to such proceeding. In any such proceeding, any indemnified party shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party unless (i) the indemnifying party and the indemnified party shall have mutually agreed to the retention of such counsel or (ii) the named parties to any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the indemnifying party and the indemnified party and representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them. It is understood that the indemnifying party shall not, in respect of the legal expenses of any indemnified party in connection with any proceeding or related proceedings in the same jurisdiction, be liable for (i) the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to any local counsel) for all Underwriters and all persons, if any, who control any Underwriter within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act or who are affiliates of any Underwriter within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act and (ii) the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to any local counsel) for the Company, its directors, its officers who sign the Registration Statement and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of either such Section, and that all such fees and expenses shall be reimbursed as they are incurred. In the case of any such separate firm for the Underwriters and such control persons and affiliates of any Underwriters, such firm shall be designated in writing by Morgan Stanley. In the case of any such separate firm for the Company, and such directors, officers and control persons of the Company, such firm shall be designated in writing by the Company. The indemnifying party shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, but if settled with such consent or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff, the indemnifying party agrees to indemnify the indemnified party from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment. Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by the second and third sentences of this paragraph, the indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 30 days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request and (ii) such indemnifying party shall not have reimbursed the indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which any indemnified party is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such indemnified party, unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding.

 

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(d) To the extent the indemnification provided for in Section 9(a), 1(a) or 9(b) is unavailable to an indemnified party or insufficient in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to therein, then each indemnifying party under such paragraph, in lieu of indemnifying such indemnified party thereunder, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the indemnifying party or parties on the one hand and the indemnified party or parties on the other hand from the offering of the Shares or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause 9(c)(iii) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause 9(c)(iii) above but also the relative fault of the indemnifying party or parties on the one hand and of the indemnified party or parties on the other hand in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand in connection with the offering of the Shares shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the net proceeds from the offering of the Shares (before deducting expenses) received by the Company and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover of the Prospectus, bear to the aggregate Public Offering Price of the Shares. The relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or by the Underwriters and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Underwriters’ respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 9 are several in proportion to the respective number of Shares they have purchased hereunder, and not joint. The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just or equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 9 were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in Section 1(a). The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages and liabilities referred to in Section 1(a) shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 9, no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Shares underwritten by it and distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.

 

34


The remedies provided for in this Section 9 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.

(e) The indemnity and contribution provisions contained in this Section 9 and the representations, warranties and other statements of the Company contained in this Agreement shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of (i) any termination of this Agreement, (ii) any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter, any person controlling any Underwriter or any affiliate of any Underwriter, or by or on behalf of the Company, its officers or directors or any person controlling the Company and (iii) acceptance of and payment for any of the Shares.

10. Termination. The Underwriters may terminate this Agreement by notice given by Morgan Stanley to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to or on the Closing Date or any Option Closing Date, as the case may be, (i) trading generally shall have been suspended or materially limited on, or by, as the case may be, any of the New York Stock Exchange, the NYSE American, the NASDAQ Global Market, the Chicago Board of Options Exchange, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange or the Chicago Board of Trade or other relevant exchanges, (ii) trading of any securities of the Company shall have been suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market, (iii) a material disruption in securities settlement, payment or clearance services in the United States or other relevant jurisdiction shall have occurred, (iv) any moratorium on commercial banking activities shall have been declared by Federal or New York State or relevant foreign country authorities or (v) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities, or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis that, in Morgan Stanley’s judgment, is material and adverse and which, singly or together with any other event specified in this clause (v), makes it, in Morgan Stanley’s judgment, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offer, sale or delivery of the Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus.

11. Effectiveness; Defaulting Underwriters. This Agreement shall become effective upon the execution and delivery hereof by the parties hereto.

If, on the Closing Date or an Option Closing Date, as the case may be, any one or more of the Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Shares that it has or they have agreed to purchase hereunder on such date, and the aggregate number of Shares which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase is not more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of the Shares to be purchased on such date, the other Underwriters shall be obligated severally in the proportions that the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite their respective names in Schedule II bears to the aggregate number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the names of all such non-defaulting Underwriters, or in such other proportions as Morgan Stanley may specify, to purchase the Shares which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase on such date; provided that in no event shall the number of Shares that any Underwriter has agreed to purchase pursuant to this Agreement be increased pursuant to this Section 11 by an amount in excess of one-ninth

 

35


of such number of Shares without the written consent of such Underwriter. If, on the Closing Date, any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Firm Shares and the aggregate number of Firm Shares with respect to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of Firm Shares to be purchased on such date, and arrangements satisfactory to Morgan Stanley, the Company for the purchase of such Firm Shares are not made within 36 hours after such default, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter and the Company. In any such case either Morgan Stanley or the relevant Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date, but in no event for longer than seven days, in order that the required changes, if any, in the Registration Statement, in the Time of Sale Prospectus, in the Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements may be effected. If, on an Option Closing Date, any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Additional Shares and the aggregate number of Additional Shares with respect to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date, the non-defaulting Underwriters shall have the option to (i) terminate their obligation hereunder to purchase the Additional Shares to be sold on such Option Closing Date or (ii) purchase not less than the number of Additional Shares that such non-defaulting Underwriters would have been obligated to purchase in the absence of such default. Any action taken under this paragraph shall not relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability in respect of any default of such Underwriter under this Agreement.

If this Agreement shall be terminated by the Underwriters, or any of them, because of any failure or refusal on the part of the Company to comply with the terms or to fulfill any of the conditions of this Agreement, or if for any reason the Company shall be unable to perform its obligations under this Agreement, the Company will reimburse the Underwriters or such Underwriters as have so terminated this Agreement with respect to themselves, severally, for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the fees and disbursements of their counsel) reasonably incurred by such Underwriters in connection with this Agreement or the offering contemplated hereunder.

12. Entire Agreement.

(a) This Agreement, together with any contemporaneous written agreements and any prior written agreements (to the extent not superseded by this Agreement) that relate to the offering of the Shares, represents the entire agreement between the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, with respect to the preparation of any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, the conduct of the offering, and the purchase and sale of the Shares.

(b) The Company acknowledges that in connection with the offering of the Shares: (i) the Underwriters have acted at arm’s length, are not agents of, and owe no fiduciary duties to the Company or any other person, (ii) the Underwriters owe the Company only those duties and obligations set forth in this Agreement, any contemporaneous written agreements and prior written agreements (to the extent not superseded by this Agreement), if any, (iii) the Underwriters may have interests that differ from those of the Company, and (iv) none of the activities of the Underwriters in

 

36


connection with the transactions contemplated herein constitutes a recommendation, investment advice, or solicitation of any action by the Underwriters with respect to any entity or natural person. The Company waives to the full extent permitted by applicable law any claims it may have against the Underwriters arising from an alleged breach of fiduciary duty in connection with the offering of the Shares.

13. Recognition of the U.S. Special Resolution Regimes. (a) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.

(a) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.

For purposes of this Section a “BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning assigned to the term “affiliate” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. § 1841(k). “Covered Entity” means any of the following: (i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b); (ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b); or (iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b). “Default Right” has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable. “U.S. Special Resolution Regime” means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.

14. Beneficiaries. This Agreement has been and is made solely for the benefit of and shall be binding upon the Company, the Underwriters and to the extent provided in Section 9 hereof, the controlling persons, affiliates, officers, directors, employees and agents referred to in Section 9 hereof and their respective heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns, all as and to the extent provided in this Agreement, and no other person shall acquire or have any right under or by virtue of this Agreement. The term “successors and assigns” shall not include a purchaser of any of the Securities from the Underwriters merely because of such purchase.

15. Severability. If any term, provision, covenant or restriction of this Agreement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable, the remainder of the terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions set forth herein shall remain in full force and effect and shall in no way be affected, impaired or invalidated, and the parties hereto shall use their reasonable best efforts to find and

 

37


employ an alternative means to achieve the same or substantially the same result as that contemplated by such term, provision, covenant or restriction. It is hereby stipulated and declared to be the intention of the parties that they would have executed the remaining terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions without including any of such that may be hereafter declared invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable.

16. Assignment and Subcontractors. Neither this Agreement nor any rights or obligations hereunder may be assigned by any party hereto without the prior written consent of the other parties hereto.

17. Counterparts. This Agreement may be signed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be an original, with the same effect as if the signatures thereto and hereto were upon the same instrument.

18. Applicable Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York.

19. Headings. The headings of the sections of this Agreement have been inserted for convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed a part of this Agreement.

20. Notices. All communications hereunder shall be in writing and effective only upon receipt and if to the Underwriters shall be delivered, mailed or sent to Morgan Stanley at 1585 Broadway, New York, New York 10036, Attention: Equity Syndicate Desk, with a copy to the Legal Department and if to the Company shall be delivered, mailed or sent to 14 Par-la-Ville Road, Hamilton, HM 08, Bermuda.

21. Submission to Jurisdiction; Appointment of Agents for Service.

(a) The Company irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of any New York State or United States Federal court sitting in The City of New York over any suit, action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement, the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus or the offering of the Securities (each, an “Related Proceeding”). The Company irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any Related Proceeding brought in such a court and any claim that any such Related Proceeding brought in such a court has been brought in an inconvenient forum. To the extent that the Company has or hereafter may acquire any immunity (on the grounds of sovereignty or otherwise) from the jurisdiction of any court or from any legal process with respect to itself or its property, the Company irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, such immunity in respect of any such suit, action or proceeding.

(b) The Company hereby irrevocably appoints Seward & Kissel LLP, with offices at One Battery Park Plaza, New York, New York 10004 as its agent for service of process in any Related Proceeding and agrees that service of process in any such Related Proceeding may be made upon it at the office of such agent. The Company waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any other requirements of or objections

 

38


to personal jurisdiction with respect thereto. The Company represents and warrants that such agent has agreed to act as the Company’s agent for service of process, and the Company agrees to take any and all action, including the filing of any and all documents and instruments, that may be necessary to continue such appointment in full force and effect.

22. Judgment Currency. If for the purposes of obtaining judgment in any court it is necessary to convert a sum due hereunder into any currency other than United States dollars, the parties hereto agree, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that the rate of exchange used shall be the rate at which in accordance with normal banking procedures the Underwriters could purchase United States dollars with such other currency in The City of New York on the business day preceding that on which final judgment is given. The obligation of the Company with respect to any sum due from it to any Underwriter or any person controlling any Underwriter shall, notwithstanding any judgment in a currency other than United States dollars, not be discharged until the first business day following receipt by such Underwriter or controlling person of any sum in such other currency, and only to the extent that such Underwriter or controlling person may in accordance with normal banking procedures purchase United States dollars with such other currency. If the United States dollars so purchased are less than the sum originally due to such Underwriter or controlling person hereunder, the Company agrees as a separate obligation and notwithstanding any such judgment, to indemnify such Underwriter or controlling person against such loss. If the United States dollars so purchased are greater than the sum originally due to such Underwriter or controlling person hereunder, such Underwriter or controlling person agrees to pay to the Company an amount equal to the excess of the dollars so purchased over the sum originally due to such Underwriter or controlling person hereunder.

23. Taxes. If any sum payable by the Company under this Agreement is subject to tax in the hands of an Underwriter or taken into account as a receipt in computing the taxable income of that Underwriter (excluding net income taxes on underwriting commissions payable hereunder), the sum payable to the Underwriter under this Agreement shall be increased to such sum as will ensure that the Underwriter shall be left with the sum it would have had in the absence of such tax

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

 

39


Very truly yours,

 

SFL CORPORATION LTD.

By:   /s/ Aksel Olesen
  Name: Aksel Olesen
  Title: Chief Financial Officer

 

Accepted as of the date hereof

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

 

Acting severally on behalf of themselves and the several Underwriters named in Schedule II hereto

By:   Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
By:   /s/ Daniel J. F. McCullough
  Name: Daniel J. F. McCullough
  Title: Executive Director

 

40


SCHEDULE I

Time of Sale Prospectus

 

1.

Prospectus, dated April 28, 2023, relating to the Shelf Securities.

 

2.

Preliminary Prospectus supplement, dated July 23, 2024, relating to the Shares.

 

3.

Number of Firm Shares: 8,000,000

 

4.

Number of Additional Shares: 1,200,000

 

5.

Initial Public Offering Price: $12.50 per share

 

I-1


SCHEDULE II

 

Underwriter

   Number of Firm Shares
To Be Purchased
 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

     6,400,000  

BTIG, LLC

     800,000  

Arctic Securities AS

     200,000  

DNB Markets, Inc.

     200,000  

Fearnley Securities, Inc.

     200,000  

Pareto Securities AS

     200,000  
  

 

 

 

Total:

     8,000,000  
  

 

 

 

 

1

        

  

        
        
        
LOGO          LOGO

 

25 July 2024    Ref. 29404.0052    

SFL Corporation Ltd.

Par-la-Ville Place

14 Par-la-Ville Road

Hamilton HM 08

Bermuda

  

Dear Sirs,

SFL Corporation Ltd. (the “Company”)

 

1.

Subject of Opinion

We are lawyers duly qualified to practise in Bermuda. This opinion as to the laws of Bermuda is addressed to you in connection with the public offering (the “Offering”) of 8,000,000 of the Company’s common shares of par value US$0.01, plus an underwriters’ overallotment option of up to an additional 1,200,000 common shares (the “Shares”) pursuant to (i) the underwriting agreement (the “Agreement”) dated 23 July 2024 among the Company, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and any other underwriters party thereto and (ii) the registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-271504, such registration statement as amended and supplemented from time to time the “Registration Statement”, which term does not include any other document or agreement whether or not specifically referred to therein or attached as an exhibit or schedule thereto) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on 28 April 2023 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”) and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, including a base prospectus of the Company dated 28 April 2023 (the “Base Prospectus”), as supplemented by a prospectus supplement thereto dated 23 July 2024 with respect to the issuance and sale of the Shares included therein (the “Supplement” and together with the Base Prospectus, the “Prospectus”).

 

2.

Documents Examined

For the purposes of this opinion we have examined and relied upon the following (collectively, the “Documents”):

 

  2.1.

a copy of the Registration Statement;

 

  2.2.

a copy of the Prospectus;

 

  2.3.

a copy of the Agreement;


Page 2

 

  2.4.

a copy of the following documents of the Company, as certified by the Secretary thereof on 25 July 2024:

 

  (a)

Certificate of Incorporation;

 

  (b)

Memorandum of Association;

 

  (c)

Certificate of Deposit of Memorandum of Increase of Share Capital;

 

  (d)

Bye-laws;

 

  (e)

Minutes of the meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company held on 4 July 2024 (the “Resolutions”);

 

  (f)

Tax Assurance;

 

  (g)

Register of Directors and Officers;

 

  2.5.

a Certificate of Compliance issued by the Bermuda Registrar of Companies (“ROC”) in respect of the Company dated 23 July 2024; and

 

  2.6.

such other documents as we have deemed necessary in order to render this opinion.

A reference to a document does not include any other instrument or agreement whether or not specifically referred to therein or attached as an exhibit or schedule thereto. Except as stated in this paragraph 2, we have not examined any contract, instrument or other document entered into by, or affecting, the Company or any corporate records of the Company and have not made any other enquiries concerning the Company.

 

3.

Searches

We have also relied upon our search of the documents of public record relating to the Company maintained and provided by the ROC and on our search of the Cause Book maintained by the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Bermuda, both made on 24 July 2024 (the “Searches”).

 

4.

Opinion Limited to Bermuda Law

We have made no investigation of the laws of any jurisdiction other than Bermuda and this opinion is given only with respect to Bermuda law as applied by the courts of Bermuda at the date thereof and is governed by, and should be construed in accordance with, those laws. This opinion is limited to the matters stated herein and does not extend to, and is not intended to be extended by implication to, any other matters. We give this opinion on the basis that it will not give rise to any legal proceedings with respect thereto in any jurisdiction other than Bermuda.

 

5.

Assumptions

In giving this opinion we have assumed:

 

  5.1.

the authenticity, accuracy and completeness of all Documents (including, without limitation, public records) submitted to us as originals and the conformity to authentic original documents of all Documents submitted to us as certified, conformed, notarised or photo static copies;

 

  5.2.

the genuineness of all seals, signatures and markings on the Documents;


Page 3

 

  5.3.

the authority, capacity and power of each of the persons signing the Documents (other than the Company);

 

  5.4.

that any representation, warranty or statement of fact or law, other than the laws of Bermuda, made in any of the Documents, is true, accurate and complete;

 

  5.5.

that each of the Documents which was received by electronic means is complete, intact and in conformity with the transmission as sent;

 

  5.6.

that there are no provisions of the laws or regulations of any jurisdiction other than Bermuda which would have any implication in relation to the opinions expressed herein;

 

  5.7.

that the Resolutions certified as being true and accurate and provided to us in connection with the giving of this opinion were duly adopted by the duly elected or appointed directors of the Company or any duly constituted committee thereof; that any provisions contained in the Companies Act 1981 of Bermuda, as amended (the “Companies Act”), or the bye-laws of the Company relating to the declaration of directors’ interests and the convening of, the quorum required for, and voting at the meetings of the directors and the adopting of written resolutions of the directors were duly observed; and that such Resolutions have not been amended or rescinded, either in whole or in part, and are in full force and effect;

 

  5.8.

that at the time the Shares are issued, the common shares of the Company will be listed on an “appointed stock exchange” as defined in the Companies Act;

 

  5.9.

that upon issue of any Shares the Company will receive consideration for the full issue price thereof which shall be equal to at least the par value thereof;

 

  5.10.

when issued, all Shares will be issued in compliance with all matters of, and will represent valid and enforceable obligations under, applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws and other laws (other than the laws of Bermuda, in respect of which we are opining); and.

 

  5.11.

that, as of each and every time any of the Shares are issued in accordance with the Agreement, the Company will have a sufficient number of authorised and unissued Shares available for issuance.

 

6.

Opinion

Based upon and subject to the foregoing and subject to the reservations set out below and to any matters not disclosed to us, we are of the opinion that:

 

  6.1.

the Company is duly incorporated for an indefinite period as an exempted company limited by shares, and is validly existing and in ‘good standing’ under the laws of Bermuda;

 

  6.2.

the Shares, when issued, sold and paid for as contemplated in the Prospectus and the Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable; and

 

  6.3.

so far as can be ascertained from the Searches, the Company is not engaged in or threatened with any action, suit, or proceeding before any court in Bermuda.


Page 4

 

7.

Reservations

We have the following reservations:

 

  7.1.

we have relied upon searches of public records on file at the offices of the ROC and the Registry of the Supreme Court of Bermuda but we note that the records disclosed by those searches may not be complete or up to date;

 

  7.2.

any reference in this opinion to shares being “non-assessable” means, in relation to fully-paid shares of the Company and subject to any contrary provision in any agreement in writing between the Company and the holder of shares, that: no shareholder shall be obliged to contribute further amounts to the capital of the Company, either in order to complete payment for their shares, to satisfy claims of creditors of the Company, or otherwise; and no shareholder shall be bound by an alteration of the Memorandum of Association or Bye-Laws of the Company after the date on which he became a shareholder, if and so far as the alteration requires him to take, or subscribe for additional shares, or in any way increases his liability to contribute to the share capital of, or otherwise to pay money to, the Company; and

 

  7.3.

any reference in this opinion to the Company being “in good standing” means having paid all fees and taxes and having made all filings required by the laws of Bermuda in order to maintain the valid existence of the Company pursuant to such laws.

 

8.

Disclosure

This opinion has been prepared for use in connection with the filing by the Company of a current report on Form 6-K which will be incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement and the prospectus thereto and is not to be relied upon in respect of any other matter.

We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as Exhibit 5.1 to the above-described Form 6-K and to the reference to our firm under the caption “Legal Matters” in the prospectus attached to the Registration Statement, without admitting that we are “experts” within the meaning of the Act or the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, with respect to any part of the Registration Statement. In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under section 7 of the Act.

This opinion speaks as of its date and is strictly limited to the matters stated in it and we assume no obligation to review or update this opinion if applicable law or the existing facts or circumstances should change.

Yours faithfully,

/s/ MJM Limited

MJM LIMITED


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