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Item 9.01.
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Financial Statements and Exhibits.
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(d) Exhibits.
CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This communication may contain certain forward-looking
statements, including, but not limited to, certain plans, expectations, goals, projections, and statements about the benefits of the proposed
transaction, the plans, objectives, expectations and intentions of Sterling and Webster, the expected timing of completion of the transaction,
and other statements that are not historical facts. Such statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks, and uncertainties. Statements
that do not describe historical or current facts, including statements about beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as expect, anticipate, believe, intend, estimate, plan, target, goal, or similar
expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as will, may, might, should, would, could, or similar variations. The forward-looking
statements are intended to be subject to the safe harbor provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
While there is no assurance that any list of
risks and uncertainties or risk factors is complete, below are certain factors which could cause actual results to differ materially
from those contained or implied in the forward-looking statements: changes in general economic, political, or industry conditions;
the magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the global economy and financial market conditions and our
business, results of operations, and financial condition; uncertainty in U.S. fiscal and monetary policy, including the interest
rate policies of the Federal Reserve Board; volatility and disruptions in global capital and credit markets; movements in interest
rates; reform of LIBOR; competitive pressures on product pricing and services; success, impact, and timing of our business
strategies, including market acceptance of any new products or services; the nature, extent, timing, and results of governmental
actions, examinations, reviews, reforms, regulations, and interpretations, including those related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street
Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the Basel III regulatory capital reforms, as well as those involving the OCC, Federal
Reserve, FDIC, and CFPB; the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the right of one or both
of the parties to terminate the merger agreement between Sterling and Webster; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be
instituted against Sterling or Webster; delays in completing the transaction; the failure to satisfy any of the conditions to the
transaction on a timely basis or at all; the possibility that the anticipated benefits of the transaction are not realized when
expected or at all, including as a result of the impact of, or problems arising from, the integration of the two companies or as a
result of the strength of the economy and competitive factors in the areas where Sterling and Webster do business; the possibility
that the transaction may be more expensive to complete than anticipated, including as a result of unexpected factors or events;
diversion of management’s attention from ongoing business operations and opportunities; potential adverse reactions or changes
to business or employee relationships, including those resulting from the announcement or completion of the transaction; the ability
to complete the transaction and integration of Sterling and Webster successfully; the dilution caused by Webster’s issuance of
additional shares of its capital stock in connection with the transaction; and other factors that may affect the future results of
Sterling and Webster. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described above can be found in
Sterling’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, which is on file with the SEC and available on
Sterling’s website, https://sterlingbancorp.com/, under the heading “Financial Information” and in other documents
Sterling files with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), and in Webster’s Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, which is on file with the SEC and available on Webster’s investor relations
website, https://webster.gcs-web.com/, under the heading “Financials” and in other documents Webster files with the
SEC.
All forward-looking statements speak only as of
the date they are made and are based on information available at that time. Neither Sterling nor Webster assumes any obligation to update
forward-looking statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date the forward-looking statements were made or to
reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events except as required by federal securities laws. As forward-looking statements involve significant
risks and uncertainties, caution should be exercised against placing undue reliance on such statements.