Company: FRME
Filing Date: 2025-04-01
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0000712534-25-000077
Chunk: 67

Company: FIRST MERCHANTS CORP
Filing Date: 2025-04-01
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 67
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 all cases within six years after the director is first elected to the Board. All of the current directors have met this guideline or are on course to do so within this period.

The Company also has a written policy prohibiting its directors from engaging in short sales or in hedging against a possible decrease in the market value of FMC stock granted to the director under the ECPND or otherwise held, directly or indirectly, by the director. A primary purpose of the hedging prohibition is to avoid reducing the director’s incentive to seek to improve the Company’s performance. The Company also has a written policy prohibiting its directors from pledging their shares as collateral for a loan.

#### NON-EMPLOYEE DIRECTORS DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN
In December 2017, the Board approved the establishment of a Non-Employee Directors' Deferred Compensation Plan (the "Plan" ). The Plan permits our non-employee directors, commencing January 1, 2018, to defer all or part of the compensation that is payable to them in cash for their services as board members. The Plan also provides that (a) the Company will match all participant deferrals by making a contribution equal to 10% of the amounts being deferred, and (b) the value in each participant's deferred compensation account will be adjusted quarterly for earnings, and gains or losses, in each case, based upon a hypothetical investment in the Company's common stock of the deferred compensation, the Company match, and the previous adjustments to the account's value. Notwithstanding the foregoing, none of the deferrals, matches or valuation changes will be in the form of cash. Instead, such amounts will be reflected as credits or debits to the deferred compensation account maintained on behalf of each participant. Participants are able to defer payments to their accounts until retirement, at which time the participant may elect to receive all amounts in their account as a lump sum or in installments.

The Plan was recommended and designed by the Company's compensation consultant at the time. There are currently four of the Company's directors who are participants in the Plan.

The following table contains information concerning the compensation paid to the non-employee directors for their services as directors in 2024.

51 First Merchants Corporation 2025 Proxy Statement

#### DIRECTOR COMPENSATION FOR 2024 FISCAL YEAR
| Name                    |     | Fees Earned or Paid in Cash |     |        Stock 
 Awards(1)(2) |     | All Other Compensation(3) |     |    Total |
|