Exhibit 10.17

 

EXECUTION COPY

 

VOTING AGREEMENT

 

VOTING AGREEMENT, dated as of June 2, 2011 (this “Agreement”),  by and between BankUnited, Inc. (“Purchaser”),  a Delaware corporation, and Charles Aswad (the “Shareholder”).

 

WHEREAS, concurrently herewith, Herald National Bank, a national banking association (the “Bank”),  and Purchaser are entering into a Merger Agreement (the “Merger Agreement”)  pursuant to which Merger Sub will merge with and into the Bank on the terms and conditions set forth therein, with the Bank surviving such merger (the “Merger”)  and, in connection therewith, the shares of common stock, par value $1.00 per share, of the Bank (“Bank Common Stock”)  issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Effective Time, other than any share to be cancelled pursuant to Section 1.4(e) of the Merger Agreement and the Dissenting Shares, and the shares of Series A Convertible Noncumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock of the Bank, no par value (the “Series A Preferred Stock” and, together with the Bank Common Stock, the “Bank Capital Stock”),  issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Effective Time will, without any further action on the part of the holder thereof, be cancelled and extinguished and automatically converted into the right to receive the Merger Consideration as set forth in the Merger Agreement;

 

WHEREAS, as of the date hereof, the Shareholder is the record and beneficial owner of, and has the sole right to vote and dispose of, 25,000 shares of Bank Common Stock and 0 shares of Series A Preferred Stock (such Bank Common Stock and Series A Preferred Stock, together with any other capital stock of the Bank acquired by the Shareholder after the date hereof whether acquired directly or indirectly, upon the exercise of options, conversion of convertible securities or otherwise, and any other securities issued by the Bank that are entitled to vote on the ratification and confirmation of the Merger Agreement held or acquired by the Shareholder (whether acquired heretofore or hereafter), being collectively referred to herein as the “Shares”);

 

WHEREAS, receiving the Shareholder Approval is a condition to the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement; and

 

WHEREAS, as an inducement to Purchaser to enter into the Merger Agreement and incur the obligations therein, Purchaser has required that the Shareholder enter into this Agreement.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing, the mutual covenants and agreements set forth herein, and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

Section 1.                                            Agreement to Vote, Restrictions on Voting and Dispositions, Revocation of Proxies.

 

(a)                                          Agreement to Vote Bank Capital Stock. The Shareholder irrevocably and unconditionally hereby agrees that from the date hereof until the Expiration Time, at any meeting (whether annual or special and each adjourned or postponed meeting) of

 











 

the Bank’s shareholders, however called or in connection with any written consent of the Bank’s shareholders, the Shareholder will (x) appear at such meeting or otherwise cause its Owned Shares (as defined below) to be counted as present thereat for purposes of calculating a quorum and (y) vote or cause to be voted (including by written consent, if applicable) all of the Shares beneficially owned by the Shareholder as of the relevant time (the “Owned Shares”),  (1) in favor of the ratification and confirmation of the Merger Agreement, (2) against any Acquisition Proposal, without regard to any recommendation to the shareholders of the Bank by the Board of Directors of the Bank concerning such Acquisition Proposal, and without regard to the terms of such Acquisition Proposal, or other proposal made in opposition to or that is otherwise in competition or inconsistent with the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, (3) against any agreement, amendment of any agreement (including the Bank Articles and the Bank Bylaws), or any other action that is intended or would reasonably be expected to prevent, impede, or, in any material respect, interfere with, delay, postpone, or discourage the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, or (4) against any action, agreement, transaction or proposal that would reasonably be expected to result in a breach of any representation, warranty, covenant, agreement or other obligation of the Bank in the Merger Agreement.

 

(b)                                               Restrictions on Transfers. The Shareholder hereby agrees that, from the date hereof until the Expiration Time, the Shareholder shall not, directly or indirectly, sell, offer to sell, give, pledge, encumber, assign, grant any option for the sale of or otherwise transfer or dispose of, or enter into any agreement, arrangement or understanding to sell, any Shares (collectively, “Transfer”)  other than in connection with bona fide estate planning purposes to his, her or its affiliates or immediate family members, provided that as a condition to such Transfer, such affiliate or immediate family member shall execute an agreement that is identical to this Agreement (except to reflect the change in the identity of the Shareholder) and provided, further, that the assigning Shareholder shall remain jointly and severally liable for the breaches of any of his, her or its affiliates or immediate family members of the terms hereof. Any Transfer in violation of this provision shall be void. The Shareholder further agrees to authorize and request the Bank to notify the Bank’s transfer agent that there is a stop transfer order with respect to all of the Bank Capital Stock owned by the Shareholder and that this Agreement places limits on the voting of the Shareholder’s shares of Bank Capital Stock.

 

(c)                                                Transfer of Voting Rights. The Shareholder hereby agrees that the Shareholder shall not deposit any Shares in a voting trust, grant any proxy or power of attorney or enter into any voting agreement or similar agreement or arrangement in contravention of the obligations of Shareholder under this Agreement with respect to any of the Shares.

 

(d)                                               Acquired Shares. Any Shares or other voting securities of the Bank with respect to which beneficial ownership is acquired by Shareholder or its affiliates, including, without limitation, by purchase, as a result of a stock dividend, stock split, recapitalization, combination, reclassification, exchange or change of such Shares or upon exercise or conversion of any securities of the Bank, if any, after the date hereof shall automatically become subject to the terms of this Agreement.

 

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(e)                                  Grant of Irrevocable Proxy, Appointment of Proxy.

 

(i)                                          THE SHAREHOLDER HEREBY GRANTS TO, AND APPOINTS, PURCHASER AND ANY DESIGNEE OF PURCHASER, EACH OF THEM INDIVIDUALLY, THE SHAREHOLDER’S IRREVOCABLE (UNTIL THE TERMINATION OF THIS AGREEMENT) PROXY AND ATTORNEY-IN-FACT (WITH FULL POWER OF SUBSTITUTION) TO VOTE THE SHARES SOLELY AS INDICATED IN SECTION 1. THE SHAREHOLDER INTENDS THIS PROXY TO BE IRREVOCABLE (UNTIL THE TERMINATION OF THIS AGREEMENT) AND COUPLED WITH AN INTEREST AND WILL TAKE SUCH FURTHER ACTION OR EXECUTE SUCH OTHER INSTRUMENTS AS MAY BE NECESSARY TO EFFECTUATE THE INTENT OF THIS PROXY AND HEREBY REVOKES ANY PROXY PREVIOUSLY GRANTED BY THE SHAREHOLDER WITH RESPECT TO THE SHARES (THE SHAREHOLDER REPRESENTING TO PURCHASER THAT ANY SUCH PROXY IS NOT IRREVOCABLE).

 

(ii)                                       The proxy granted in this Section 1(e) shall automatically expire at the Expiration Time.

 

(f)                                    Inconsistent Agreements. The Shareholder hereby agrees that, he, she or it shall not enter into any agreement, contract or understanding with any person prior to the termination of this Agreement, directly or indirectly, to vote, grant a proxy or power of attorney or give instructions with respect to the voting of the Shareholder’s Shares in any manner which is inconsistent with this Agreement.

 

Section 2.                                            Non-Solicit. The Shareholder shall not, and shall use his, her or its reasonable best efforts to cause his, her or its affiliates and each of their respective officers, directors, employees and Representatives not to, directly or indirectly, (i) solicit, initiate, encourage (including by providing information or assistance) or knowingly facilitate any inquiries, proposals or offers with respect to, or the making or completion of, any proposal that constitutes, or may reasonably be expected to lead to, an Acquisition Proposal, (ii) provide or cause to be provided any non-public information or data relating to the Bank in connection with, or have any discussions with, any person relating to or in connection with an actual or proposed Acquisition Proposal (except to disclose the existence of the provisions of this Section), (iii) engage in any discussions or negotiations concerning an Acquisition Proposal (provided that the Shareholder may refer any such person or entity to the provisions of this Section) or otherwise take any action to encourage or knowingly facilitate any effort or attempt to make or implement an Acquisition Proposal, (iv) approve, recommend, agree to or accept, or propose publicly to approve, recommend, agree to or accept, any Acquisition Proposal, (v) solicit proxies or become a “participant” in a “solicitation” (as such terms are defined in Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act) with respect to an Acquisition Proposal (other than the Merger Agreement) or otherwise encourage or assist any party in taking or planning any action that would reasonably be expected to compete with, restrain or otherwise serve to interfere with or inhibit the timely consummation of the Merger in accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, (vi) initiate a shareholders’ vote or action by consent of the Bank’s shareholders with respect to an Acquisition Proposal, (vii)

 

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except by reason of this Agreement, become a member of a “group” (as such term is used in Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act) with respect to any voting securities of the Bank that takes any action in support of an Acquisition Proposal, or (viii) approve, endorse or recommend, agree to or accept, or propose to approve, endorse, recommend, agree to or accept, or execute or enter into, any letter of intent, agreement in principle, merger agreement, investment agreement, acquisition agreement, option agreement or other similar agreement related to any Acquisition Proposal.

 

Section 3.                                       Representations, Warranties and Covenants of the Shareholder.

 

(a)                                  Representations and Warranties. The Shareholder represents and warrants to Purchaser as follows:

 

(i)                                               Capacity. Shareholder is an individual or is duly organized and validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its formation and has all requisite capacity, power and authority to enter into and perform his, her or its obligations under this Agreement. No filing with, and no permit, authorization, consent or approval of, a Governmental Entity is necessary on the part of the Shareholder for the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Shareholder or the consummation by the Shareholder of the transactions contemplated hereby;

 

(ii)                                            Due Authorization. This Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by the Shareholder and the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Shareholder and the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Shareholder.

 

(iii)                                         Binding Agreement. Assuming the due authorization, execution and delivery of this Agreement by Purchaser, this Agreement constitutes the valid and binding agreement of the Shareholder, enforceable against the Shareholder in accordance with its terms (except in all cases as such enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, receivership, conservatorship, moratorium, or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally and except that the availability of the equitable remedy of specific performance or injunctive relief is subject to the discretion of the court before which any proceeding may be brought).

 

(iv)                                        Non-Contravention. The execution and delivery of this Agreement by Shareholder does not, and the performance by Shareholder of his, her or its obligations hereunder and the consummation by Shareholder of the transactions contemplated hereby will not violate or conflict with, or constitute a default under, any agreement, instrument, contract or other obligation or any order, arbitration award, judgment or decree to which the Shareholder is a party or by which the Shareholder is bound, or any statute, rule or regulation to which the Shareholder is subject or, in the event that the Shareholder is a corporation,

 

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partnership, trust or other entity, any charter, bylaw or other organizational document of the Shareholder. Except as contemplated by this Agreement, neither the Shareholder nor any of its affiliates (a) has entered into any voting agreement or voting trust with respect to any Shares or entered into any other contract relating to the voting of the Shares or (b) has appointed or granted a proxy or power of attorney with respect to any Shares, in either case, which is inconsistent with the Shareholder’s obligations pursuant to this Agreement.

 

(v)                                           Ownership of Shares. Except for restrictions in favor of Purchaser pursuant to this Agreement, and except for such transfer restrictions of general applicability as may be provided under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the similar rules and regulations of the OCC, and the “blue sky” laws of the various States of the United States, the Shareholder owns, beneficially and of record, all of the Shareholder’s Shares, as applicable, free and clear of any proxy, voting restriction, adverse claim or other lien and has sole voting power and sole power of disposition with respect to the Shareholder’s Shares with no restrictions on the Shareholder’s rights of voting or disposition pertaining thereto and no person other than the Shareholder has any right to direct or approve the voting or disposition of any of the Shareholder’s Owned Shares. As of the date hereof, the number of Owned Shares include 25,000 shares of Bank Common Stock and 0 shares of Series A Preferred Stock.

 

(vi)                                        Legal Actions. There is no action, suit, investigation, complaint or other proceeding pending against the Shareholder or, to the knowledge of the Shareholder, any other person or, to the knowledge of the Shareholder, threatened against the Shareholder or any other person that restricts or prohibits (or, if successful, would restrict or prohibit) the exercise by Purchaser of its rights under this Agreement or the performance by any party of its obligations under this Agreement.

 

(viii)                                  Reliance. The Shareholder understands and acknowledges that Purchaser is entering into the Merger Agreement in reliance upon the Shareholder’s execution and delivery of this Agreement and the representations and warranties of the Shareholder contained herein.

 

(b)                                 Covenants.  From the date hereof until the Expiration Time:

 

(i)                                               the Shareholder agrees not to take any action that would make any representation or warranty of the Shareholder contained herein untrue or incorrect or have the effect of preventing, impeding, or, in any material respect, interfering with or adversely affecting the performance by the Shareholder of its obligations under this Agreement.

 

(ii)                                            the Shareholder hereby agrees, while this Agreement is in effect, to promptly notify Purchaser of the number of any new Bank Capital Stock acquired by the Shareholder, if any, after the date hereof. Any such shares shall be subject to the terms of this Agreement as though owned by the Shareholder on the date hereof; and

 

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(iii)                               the Shareholder hereby authorizes Purchaser and the Bank to publish and disclose in any announcement or disclosure required by the OCC or the SEC and any proxy statement filed in connection with the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents the Shareholder’s identity and ownership of the Owned Shares and the nature of the Shareholder’s obligation under this Agreement, provided that the Shareholder is provided with a reasonable opportunity to review and comment on such disclosure.

 

Section 4.                                            Further Assurances. From time to time, at the request of Purchaser and without further consideration, the Shareholder shall execute and deliver such additional documents and take all such further action as may be necessary to consummate and make effective the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

 

Section 5.                                            Termination. Other than respect to this Section and Section 8, which shall survive any termination of this Agreement, this Agreement will terminate upon the earliest of (A) the Merger Agreement being ratified and confirmed by the requisite affirmative vote of the shareholders of the Bank, (B) the date of termination of the Merger Agreement in accordance with its terms (the “Expiration Time”); provided that no such termination shall relieve any party hereto from any liability for any breach of this Agreement occurring prior to such termination.

 

Section 6.                                            Appraisal Rights. The Shareholder hereby waives any rights of appraisal or rights to dissent from the Merger that the Shareholder may have under applicable law, including 12 U.S.C. § 215a.

 

Section 7.                                            Further Assurances. From time to time, at the request of Purchaser and without further consideration, Shareholder shall take such further action as may reasonably be necessary or desirable to consummate and make effective the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

 

Section 8.                                            Miscellaneous.

 

(a)                                             Expenses. All expenses incurred in connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated by this Agreement shall be paid by the party incurring such expenses.

 

(b)                                            Notices. Any notice required to be given hereunder shall be sufficient if in writing, and sent by facsimile transmission (provided that any notice received by facsimile transmission or otherwise at the addressee’s location on any business day after 5:00 p.m. (addressee’s local time) shall be deemed to have been received at 9:00 a.m. (addressee’s local time) on the next business day), by reliable overnight delivery service (with proof of service),

 

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hand delivery or certified or registered mail (return receipt requested and first-class postage prepaid), addressed as follows:

 

(i)                                     If to Purchaser, to:

 

BankUnited, Inc.

14817 Oak Lane

Miami Lakes, Florida 33016 

Attn: Rajinder P. Singh 

Facsimile: (866) 559-2306

 

(ii)                                  with a copy (which shall not constitute notice) to:

 

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP 

4 Times Square

New York, New York 10036

Attn: William S. Rubenstein

Facsimile: (917) 777-2697

 

(iii)                               If to the Shareholder, to the address for the Shareholder set forth on the signature pages hereto.

 

(c)                                  Amendments, Waivers, Etc. This Agreement may not be amended, changed, supplemented, waived or otherwise modified or terminated except by an instrument in writing signed by Purchaser and the Shareholder.

 

(d)                                 Successors and Assigns. No party may assign any of its or his rights or delegate any of its or his obligations under this Agreement without the prior written consent of the other parties, except Purchaser may, without the consent of the Shareholder, assign any of its rights and delegate any of its obligations under this Agreement to any affiliate of Purchaser. Subject to the preceding sentence, this Agreement shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of and be enforceable by the parties and their respective successors and assigns, including without limitation any corporate successor by merger or otherwise. Notwithstanding any Transfer of Bank Capital Stock consistent with this Agreement, the transferor shall remain liable for the performance of all obligations of transferor under this Agreement.

 

(e)                                  No Third Party Beneficiaries. Nothing expressed or referred to in this Agreement will be construed to give any person, other than the parties to this Agreement, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or with respect to this Agreement or any

 

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provision of this Agreement except for such rights as may inure to a successor or permitted assignee under Section 8(d).

 

(f)                                         No Partnership, Agency, or Joint Venture. This Agreement is intended to create, and creates, a contractual relationship and is not intended to create, and does not create, any agency, partnership, joint venture or any like relationship between the parties hereto.

 

(g)                                      Entire Agreement. This Agreement embodies the entire agreement and understanding among the parties relating to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior agreements and understandings relating to such subject matter.

 

(h)                                      Severability. If any term or other provision of this Agreement is invalid, illegal or incapable of being enforced by any rule or law, or public policy, all other conditions and provisions of this Agreement shall nevertheless remain in full force and effect so long as the economic or legal substance of the transactions contemplated hereby is not affected in any manner materially adverse to any party. Upon such determination that any term or other provision is invalid, illegal or incapable of being enforced, the parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith to modify this Agreement so as to effect the original intent of the parties as closely as possible in an acceptable manner to the end that the transactions contemplated hereby are fulfilled to the extent possible.

 

(i)                                          Specific Performance; Remedies Cumulative. The parties hereto acknowledge that money damages are not an adequate remedy for violations of this Agreement and that any party, in addition to any other rights and remedies which the parties may have hereunder or at law or in equity, may, in his or its sole discretion, apply to a court of competent jurisdiction for specific performance or injunction or such other relief as such court may deem just and proper in order to enforce this Agreement or prevent any violation hereof and, to the extent permitted by applicable law, each party waives any objection to the imposition of such relief. All rights, powers and remedies provided under this Agreement or otherwise available in respect hereof at law or in equity shall be cumulative and not alternative, and the exercise or beginning of the exercise of any thereof by any party shall not preclude the simultaneous or later exercise of any other such rights, powers or remedies by such party.

 

(j)                                          No Waiver. The failure of any party hereto to exercise any right, power or remedy provided under this Agreement or otherwise available in respect hereof at law or in equity, or to insist upon compliance by any other party hereto with his or its obligations hereunder, and any custom or practice of the parties at variance with the terms hereof, shall not constitute a waiver by such party of his or its right to exercise any such or other right, power or remedy or to demand such compliance.

 

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(k)                                       Governing Law. Regardless of any conflict of law or choice of law principles that might otherwise apply, the parties agree that this Agreement shall be governed by and construed in all respects in accordance with the laws of the State of New York. The parties all expressly agree and acknowledge that the State of New York has a reasonable relationship to the parties and/or this Agreement.

 

(1)                                       Jurisdiction. Each of the parties hereto agrees that irreparable damage would occur in the event that any of the provisions of this Agreement were not performed in accordance with their specific terms or were otherwise breached. It is accordingly agreed that the parties shall be entitled to an injunction or injunctions to prevent breaches of this Agreement and to enforce specifically the terms and provisions of this Agreement in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York or, if that court does not have subject matter jurisdiction, in any state court located in The City and County of New York. In addition, each of the parties hereby irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the State of New York and to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, for the purpose of any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement and each of the parties hereto hereby irrevocably agrees that all claims in respect to such action or proceeding may be heard and determined exclusively in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York or, if that court does not have subject matter jurisdiction, in any state court located in The City and County of New York. Each of the parties agrees that a final judgment in any action or proceeding shall be conclusive and may be enforced in other jurisdictions by suit on the judgment or in any other manner provided by law.

 

(m)                                    Waiver of Jury Trial. EACH OF THE PARTIES HERETO HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES ANY AND ALL RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT OR THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.

 

(n)                                      Drafting and Representation. The parties have participated jointly in the negotiation and drafting of this Agreement. No provision of this Agreement will be interpreted for or against any party because that party or his or its legal representative drafted the provision.

 

(o)                                      Name, Captions, Gender. Section headings of this Agreement are for reference purposes only and are to be given no effect in the construction or interpretation of this Agreement. Whenever the context may require, any pronoun used herein shall include the corresponding masculine, feminine or neuter forms.

 

(p)                                      Capacity. This Agreement shall only apply to actions taken by Shareholder in his or her capacity as a shareholder of the Bank and, if applicable, shall not in any way limit or affect actions the Shareholder or any of its Representatives may take in such Person’s capacity as a director, officer, or employee of the Bank. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be deemed to apply to, or limit in any manner, the obligations of Shareholder or

 

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any of its Representatives to comply with whatever fiduciary duties such Person may have as a director, officer or employee of the Bank and none of the terms of this Agreement shall be deemed to prohibit or prevent any director or executive officer from exercising his or her fiduciary obligations in such capacity.

 

(q)                                 Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed by facsimile and in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all of which together shall constitute one instrument. Each counterpart may consist of a number of copies each signed by less than all, but together signed by all, the parties hereto.

 

(r)                                    Definitions. Capitalized terms used herein and not defined shall have the meanings specified in the Merger Agreement.

 

[SIGNATURE PAGES FOLLOW]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have duly executed and delivered this Agreement as of the date and year first written above.

 

 

	
 
    	
BANKUNITED, INC.
    
	
 
    	
 
    
	
 
    	
By:
    	
/s/ Rajinder Singh
    
	
 
    	
 
    	
Name: 
    	
Rajinder Singh
    
	
 
    	
 
    	
Title: 
    	
Chief Operating Officer
    


 

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have duly executed and delivered this Agreement as of the date and year first written above.

 

 

	
 
    	
[SHAREHOLDER]
    
	
 
    	
 
    
	
 
    	
By:
    	
/s/ Charles N. Aswad
    
	
 
    	
 
    	
Name:
    	
 
    
	
 
    	
 
    	
Address:
    	
116 Riverside Drive

Binghamton, N.Y.

13905
    


 

 

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