SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) – October 26, 2008
THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON CORPORATION
(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)
| Delaware | 000-52710 | 13-2614959 | ||
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) | (Commission File Number) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
One Wall Street New York, New York | 10286 | |
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip code) |
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code – (212) 495-1784
N/A
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ¨ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
| Item 3.02 | Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities. |
On October 26, 2008, as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (“TARP”) Capital Purchase Program, The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (the “Company”) agreed to issue and sell, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury (the “Treasury”) agreed to purchase, (i) 3,000,000 shares (the “Preferred Shares”) of the Company’s Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series B, having a liquidation preference of $1,000 per share, and (ii) a ten-year warrant (the “Warrant”) to purchase up to 14,516,129 shares of the Company’s voting common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Common Stock”), at an exercise price of $31.00 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $3.0 billion in cash.
This transaction closed on October 28, 2008 (the “Closing Date”). The issuance and sale of these securities was a private placement exempt from registration pursuant to Section 4(2) of the Securities Act of 1933.
Cumulative dividends on the Preferred Shares will accrue on the liquidation preference at a rate of 5% per annum for the first five years, and at a rate of 9% per annum thereafter, but will be paid only if, as and when declared by the Company’s Board of Directors. The Preferred Shares have no maturity date and rank senior to the Common Stock (andpari passu with the Company’s other authorized series of preferred stock, of which no shares are currently outstanding) with respect to the payment of dividends and distributions and amounts payable upon liquidation, dissolution and winding up of the Company. Subject to the approval of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Preferred Shares are redeemable at the option of the Company at 100% of their liquidation preference, provided that the Preferred Shares may be redeemed prior to the first dividend payment date falling after the third anniversary of the Closing Date (October 28, 2011) only if (i) the Company has raised aggregate gross proceeds in one or more Qualified Equity Offerings (as defined in the letter agreement, dated October 26, 2008 between the Company and the Treasury (including the Securities Purchase Agreement—Standard Terms incorporated by reference therein) (the “Purchase Agreement”) and set forth below) in excess of $750 million and (ii) the aggregate redemption price does not exceed the aggregate net proceeds from such Qualified Equity Offerings.
The Treasury may not transfer a portion or portions of the Warrant with respect to, and/or exercise the Warrant for more than one-half of, the 14,516,129 shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrant, in the aggregate, until the earlier of (i) the date on which the Company has received aggregate gross proceeds of not less than $3 billion from one or more Qualified Equity Offerings (as defined in the Purchase Agreement and set forth below) and (ii) December 31, 2009. In the event the Company completes one or more Qualified Equity Offerings (as defined in the Purchase Agreement and set forth below) on or prior to December 31, 2009 that result in the Company receiving aggregate gross proceeds of not less than $3 billion, the number of the shares of Common Stock underlying the portion of the Warrant then held by the Treasury will be reduced by one-half of the shares of Common Stock originally covered by the Warrant. For the purposes of the foregoing, “Qualified Equity Offering” is defined as the sale and issuance for cash by the Company to persons other than the Company or any Company subsidiary after the Closing Date of shares of perpetual Preferred Stock, Common Stock or any combination of such stock, that, in each case, qualify as and may be included in Tier I capital of the Company at the time of issuance under the applicable risk-based capital guidelines of the Company’s federal banking agency (other than any such sales and issuances made pursuant to agreements or arrangements entered into, or pursuant to financing plans which were publicly announced, on or prior to October 13, 2008).
The Purchase Agreement pursuant to which the Preferred Shares and the Warrant were sold, contains limitations on the payment of dividends on the Common Stock (including with respect to the payment of cash dividends in excess of $0.24 per share, which was the amount of the last regular dividend declared by the Company prior to October 14, 2008) and on the Company’s ability to repurchase its Common Stock, and subjects the Company to certain of the executive compensation limitations included in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (the “EESA”). As a condition to the closing of the transaction, each of Messrs. Robert P. Kelly, Gerald L. Hassell, Thomas P. Gibbons, Steven G. Elliott and Ronald P. O’Hanley, the Company’s Senior Executive Officers (as defined in the Purchase Agreement) (the “Senior Executive Officers”), (i) executed a waiver (the “Waiver”) voluntarily waiving any claim against the Treasury or the Company for any changes to such Senior Executive Officer’s compensation or benefits that are required to comply with the regulation issued by the Treasury under the TARP Capital Purchase Program as published in the Federal Register on October 20, 2008 and acknowledging that the regulation may require modification of the compensation, bonus, incentive and other benefit plans, arrangements and policies and agreements (including so-called “golden parachute” agreements) (collectively, “Benefit Plans”) as they relate to the period the Treasury holds any equity or debt securities of the Company acquired through the TARP Capital Purchase Program; and (ii) entered into a letter agreement (the “Letter Agreement”) with the Company amending the Benefit Plans with respect to such Senior Executive Officer as may be necessary, during the period that the Treasury owns any debt or equity securities of the Company acquired pursuant to the Purchase Agreement or the Warrant, as necessary to comply with Section 111(b) of the EESA.
Copies of the Purchase Agreement, the form of Warrant, the Certificate of Designations with respect to the Preferred Shares, the form of Waiver executed by the Senior Executive Officers and the form of Letter Agreement executed by the Senior Executive Officers are included as exhibits to this Report on Form 8-K and are incorporated by reference into these Item 3.02, 3.03, 5.02 and 5.03. The foregoing summary of certain provisions of these documents is qualified in its entirety by reference thereto.
| Item 3.03 | Material Modification of the Rights of Security Holders. |
The information set forth under “Item 3.02 Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities” is incorporated by reference into this Item 3.03.
| Item 5.02 | Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers. |
(e) The information set forth under “Item 3.02 Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities” is incorporated by reference into this Item 5.02.
| Item 5.03 | Amendments to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws; Change in Fiscal Year. |
On October 27, 2008, the Company filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware a Certificate of Designations to its Restated Certificate of Incorporation establishing the terms of the Preferred Shares. A copy of the Certificate of Designations is included as an exhibit to this Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated by reference into this Item 5.03.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits.
The following exhibit is being filed as part of this Report on Form 8-K:
3.1 Certificate of Designations with respect to the Preferred Shares.
3.2 Warrant to Purchase up to 14,516,129 shares of Common Stock.
10.1 Letter Agreement, dated October 26, 2008, including Securities Purchase Agreement – Standard Terms incorporated by reference therein, between the Company and the United States Department of the Treasury.
10.2 Form of Waiver, executed by each of Messrs. Robert P. Kelly, Gerald L. Hassell, Thomas P. Gibbons, Steven G. Elliott and Ronald P. O’Hanley.
10.3 Form of Letter Agreement, executed by each of Messrs. Robert P. Kelly, Gerald L. Hassell, Thomas P. Gibbons, Steven G. Elliott and Ronald P. O’Hanley with the Company.
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.
The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (Registrant) | ||||
| Date: October 30, 2008 | By: | /s/ Arlie R. Nogay | ||
| Name: | Arlie R. Nogay | |||
| Title: | Corporate Secretary | |||
EXHIBIT INDEX
Index | Description | |
| 3.1 | Certificate of Designations with respect to the Preferred Shares. | |
| 3.2 | Warrant to Purchase up to 14,516,129 shares of Common Stock. | |
| 10.1 | Letter Agreement, dated October 26, 2008, including Securities Purchase Agreement – Standard Terms incorporated by reference therein, between the Company and the United States Department of the Treasury. | |
| 10.2 | Form of Waiver, executed by each of Messrs. Robert P. Kelly, Gerald L. Hassell, Thomas P. Gibbons, Steven G. Elliott and Ronald P. O’Hanley. | |
| 10.3 | Form of Letter Agreement, executed by each of Messrs. Robert P. Kelly, Gerald L. Hassell, Thomas P. Gibbons, Steven G. Elliott and Ronald P. O’Hanley with the Company. | |