<SEC-DOCUMENT>0001299933-16-002601.txt : 20160607
<SEC-HEADER>0001299933-16-002601.hdr.sgml : 20160607
<ACCEPTANCE-DATETIME>20160607124223
ACCESSION NUMBER:		0001299933-16-002601
CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE:	8-K
PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT:		2
CONFORMED PERIOD OF REPORT:	20160603
ITEM INFORMATION:		Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
ITEM INFORMATION:		Other Events
ITEM INFORMATION:		Financial Statements and Exhibits
FILED AS OF DATE:		20160607
DATE AS OF CHANGE:		20160607

FILER:

	COMPANY DATA:	
		COMPANY CONFORMED NAME:			FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS INC
		CENTRAL INDEX KEY:			0000862831
		STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION:	NATIONAL COMMERCIAL BANKS [6021]
		IRS NUMBER:				160816610
		STATE OF INCORPORATION:			NY
		FISCAL YEAR END:			1231

	FILING VALUES:
		FORM TYPE:		8-K
		SEC ACT:		1934 Act
		SEC FILE NUMBER:	000-26481
		FILM NUMBER:		161700571

	BUSINESS ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		220 LIBERTY STREET
		CITY:			WARSAW
		STATE:			NY
		ZIP:			14569
		BUSINESS PHONE:		5857861100

	MAIL ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		220 LIBERTY STREET
		CITY:			WARSAW
		STATE:			NY
		ZIP:			14569
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<TYPE>8-K
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<TITLE> Financial Institutions, Inc. (Form: 8-K) </TITLE>
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		UNITED STATES<BR>
	SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
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	WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
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	FORM 8-K
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	CURRENT REPORT
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	Pursuant to Section&nbsp;13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
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	Date of Report (Date of Earliest Event Reported):
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	June 3, 2016
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	Financial Institutions, Inc.
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	(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
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	New York
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	0-26481
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	16-0816610
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_____________________<BR>
	(State or other jurisdiction
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_____________<BR>
	(Commission
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	(I.R.S. Employer
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	of incorporation)
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	File Number)
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	Identification No.)
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	220 Liberty Street, Warsaw, New York
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	14569
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_________________________________<BR>
	(Address of principal executive offices)
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___________<BR>
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	Registrant&#146;s telephone number, including area code:
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	585-786-1100
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	Not Applicable
<BR>______________________________________________<BR>
	Former name or former address, if changed since last report
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	&nbsp;
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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:</FONT>
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[&nbsp;&nbsp;]&nbsp;&nbsp;Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)<br>
[&nbsp;&nbsp;]&nbsp;&nbsp;Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)<br>
[&nbsp;&nbsp;]&nbsp;&nbsp;Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))<br>
[&nbsp;&nbsp;]&nbsp;&nbsp;Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))<br>
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	Item 5.07 Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.
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On June 3, 2016, Financial Institutions, Inc. (the "Company" or "FISI") held its 2016 Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the "2016 Annual Meeting") to vote on the following matters, which are described in detail in the Company&#x2019;s definitive proxy statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 19, 2016 (the "Proxy Statement"): (i) to elect four directors, each to serve until FISI&#x2019;s 2019 Annual Meeting of Shareholders and until their respective successors are duly elected and qualified ("Proposal 1"); (ii) to vote on a non-binding, advisory resolution to approve the compensation paid to FISI&#x2019;s named executive officers for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, as described in the "Compensation Discussion and Analysis," executive compensation tables and enclosed narrative disclosures in the Proxy Statement ("Proposal 2"); and (iii) to vote on a proposal to ratify the appointment of KPMG LLP as FISI&#x2019;s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2016 ("Proposal 3"). <br><br>The FISI Board of Directors (the "FISI Board") nominated and recommended Martin K. Birmingham, Samuel M. Gullo, Kim E. VanGelder, and James H. Wyckoff for election as directors. As previously disclosed, Clover Partners, L.P. ("Clover Partners"), an activist hedge fund based in Dallas, Texas, nominated and pursued a proxy contest seeking the election of Johnny Guerry and Terrell T. Philen, Jr. in opposition to FISI&#x2019;s director nominees. Accordingly, there were six nominees standing for election at the 2016 Annual Meeting for four director positions.<br><br>On June 7, 2016, IVS Associates, Inc. ("IVS"), the firm that was appointed by the FISI Board to serve as the independent inspector of elections for the 2016 Annual Meeting, delivered its certified voting results, which reported that all four of the FISI Board&#x2019;s nominees were elected, none of Clover Partners&#x2019; nominees were elected and shareholders had approved Proposal 2 and Proposal 3. IVS also reported that 13,079,581 shares of FISI&#x2019;s common stock entitled to vote at the 2016 Annual Meeting were represented in person or by proxy, constituting a quorum consisting of over 90% of the shares of the common stock entitled to vote at the 2016 Annual Meeting.<br><br>Set forth below are the final certified voting results for the proposals acted upon at the 2016 Annual Meeting as provided by IVS:<br><br>Proposal 1: To elect four directors, each to serve until the Company&#x2019;s 2019 Annual Meeting of Shareholders and until their respective successors are duly elected and qualified<br><br>Martin K. Birmingham<br>FOR: 11,430,933<br>WITHHELD: 1,648,648<br><br>Samuel M. Gullo<br>FOR: 9,505,819<br>WITHHELD: 174,732<br><br>Kim E. VanGelder<br>FOR: 9,621,369<br>WITHHELD: 59,182<br><br>James H. Wyckoff <br>FOR: 11,271,562<br>WITHHELD: 1,808,019<br><br>Johnny Guerry<br>FOR: 3,379,323<br>WITHHELD: 19,707<br><br>Terrell T. Philen, Jr.<br>FOR: 3,379,323<br>WITHHELD: 19,707<br><br>The terms of the following directors continued after the 2016 Annual Meeting: Karl V. Anderson, Jr., John E. Benjamin, Andrew W. Dorn, Jr., Robert M. Glaser, Susan R. Holliday, Erland E. Kailbourne and Robert N. Latella.<br><br>Proposal 2:  To vote on a non-binding, advisory resolution to approve the compensation paid to the Company&#x2019;s named executive officers for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, as described in the "Compensation Discussion and Analysis," executive compensation tables and enclosed narrative disclosures in the Proxy Statement<br><br>FOR: 9,499,941<br>AGAINST: 3,528,752<br>ABSTAIN: 50,888<br><br>Proposal 3:  To vote on a proposal to ratify the appointment of KPMG LLP as the Company&#x2019;s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2016<br><br>FOR: 12,904,661<br>AGAINST: 158,176<br>ABSTAIN: 16,744 <br><br>Brokers did not have discretionary voting authority on any matter before the 2016 Annual Meeting and, as a result, there were zero broker non-votes on Proposal 1, Proposal 2 and Proposal 3.
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	Item 8.01 Other Events.
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On June 3, 2016, FISI issued a press release, a copy of which is furnished as Exhibit 99.1, announcing that, based on a preliminary vote count provided by FISI&#x2019;s proxy solicitor, all four of FISI&#x2019;s highly-qualified and very experienced director nominees - Martin K. Birmingham, Samuel M. Gullo, Kim E. VanGelder and James H. Wyckoff - were elected by extremely wide margins to the FISI Board at the 2016 Annual Meeting.
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	Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
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Exhibit 99.1  Press release issued on June 3, 2016 announcing the preliminary results of FISI&#x2019;s 2016 Annual Meeting held on June 3, 2016.
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	SIGNATURES
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	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 hereunto duly authorized.
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	Financial Institutions, Inc.
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	June 7, 2016
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	By:
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	/s/ Kevin B. Klotzbach
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	Name: Kevin B. Klotzbach
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	Title: Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
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	Exhibit&nbsp;Index
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	Exhibit No.
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	99.1
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Press release issued on June 3, 2016 announcing the preliminary results of FISI&#x2019;s 2016 Annual Meeting held on June 3, 2016.
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<P align="right" style="font-size: 10pt"><FONT style="font-size: 12pt"><U><B>Exhibit&nbsp;99.1 </B></U></FONT>


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    <TD colspan="3" valign="top" align="left"><FONT style="font-size: 20pt"><B>NEWS RELEASE<BR></B></FONT></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD><DIV style="margin-left:10px; text-indent:-10px"><FONT style="font-size: 10pt"><B>220 Liberty Street
Warsaw, NY 14569</B></FONT></DIV></TD>
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<P align="center" style="font-size: 10pt"><FONT style="font-size: 13pt"><B>Financial Institutions, Inc. Announces Preliminary Results of<BR>
2016 Annual Meeting of Shareholders</B></FONT>



<P align="center" style="font-size: 13pt"><FONT style="font-size: 10pt"><I>Financial Institutions Declares Victory in its Proxy Contest Against Clover Partners, L.P.</I></FONT>



<P align="center" style="font-size: 10pt"><I>ALL of Financial Institutions&#146; Director Nominees Elected with Overwhelming Shareholder Support</I>



<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt"><B>WARSAW, N.Y., June&nbsp;3, 2016 &#150; </B>Financial Institutions, Inc. (Nasdaq: FISI), the parent company of
Five Star Bank, Scott Danahy Naylon and Courier Capital, today announced that, based on a
preliminary vote count provided by Financial Institutions&#146; proxy solicitor, all four of Financial
Institutions&#146; highly-qualified and very experienced director nominees &#151; <B>Martin Birmingham, Samuel
Gullo, Kim VanGelder </B>and <B>James Wyckoff </B>- were elected by extremely wide margins to the Board of
Directors at the 2016 Annual Meeting of Shareholders held earlier today.


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt">Robert N. Latella, Chairman of the Board, said, &#147;Our Board and management are thankful for the
strong support of our shareholders. We strongly believe the voting results underscore that a vast
majority of our shareholders fully comprehend our strategy and are confident in our strategic
direction. Creating value for our shareholders remains our top priority. We look forward to
continuing to execute on a strategic plan that has delivered increased growth, increased
profitability, and achieved, as of the three-year period ended December&nbsp;31, 2015, a 66% increase in
total shareholder returns.&#148;


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt">Excluding shares voted by Clover Partners, L.P. or its affiliates, Financial Institutions estimates
that Clover Partners&#146; nominees received votes equating to less than 18% of the outstanding shares.
The final tabulation of results will be completed by the independent tabulation and voting
certification firm IVS Associates, Inc., which served as the Independent Inspector of Elections,
and are expected to be made publicly available next week.


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt">In other business conducted at the 2016 Annual Meeting, shareholders:



<P align="left" style="margin-left:4%; font-size: 10pt">Approved on an advisory basis the compensation of Financial Institutions&#146; named executive
officers; and



<P align="left" style="margin-left:4%; font-size: 10pt">Ratified the appointment of KPMG LLP as Financial Institutions&#146; independent registered
public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December&nbsp;31, 2016.


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt">Further details regarding the results of the 2016 Annual Meeting will be contained in a Current
Report on Form 8-K that Financial Institutions will be filing with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC)&nbsp;next week. This filing will be available at no charge at the SEC&#146;s web site at
www.sec.gov. Copies will also be available at no charge at the Investor Relations section of our
corporate website at <U>www.fiiwarsaw.com</U>.


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt">Credit Suisse served as financial advisor to Financial Institutions in connection with the proxy
contest. Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP and Harter Secrest & Emery LLP served as legal advisors to
Financial Institutions.


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt"><B>About Financial Institutions, Inc.</B>


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt">Financial Institutions, Inc. provides diversified financial services through its subsidiaries, Five
Star Bank, Scott Danahy Naylon and Courier Capital. Five Star Bank provides a wide range of
consumer and commercial banking services to individuals, municipalities and businesses through a
network of over 50 offices and more than 60 ATMs throughout Western and Central New York State.
Scott Danahy Naylon provides a broad range of insurance services to personal and business clients
across 44 states. Courier Capital provides customized investment management, investment consulting
and retirement plan services to individuals, businesses, institutions, foundations and retirement
plans. Financial Institutions, Inc. and its subsidiaries employ approximately 700 individuals. The
Company&#146;s stock is listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol FISI and is a member
of the NASDAQ OMX ABA Community Bank Index. Additional information is available at the Company&#146;s
website: <U>www.fiiwarsaw.com</U><I>.</I>


<P align="left" style="font-size: 10pt"><B>Safe Harbor Statement</B>
<BR>
This press release may contain forward-looking statements as defined by Section&nbsp;21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and is subject to the safe harbors created by such
laws. These forward-looking statements can generally be identified as such by the context of the
statements, including words such as &#147;believe,&#148; &#147;expect,&#148; &#147;anticipate,&#148; &#147;plan,&#148; &#147;may,&#148; &#147;would,&#148;
&#147;intend,&#148; &#147;estimate,&#148; &#147;guidance&#148; and other similar expressions, whether in the negative or
affirmative. Similarly, statements that describe the objectives, plans or goals of Financial
Institutions, Inc. (&#147;FISI&#148;) are forward-looking. Such forward-looking statements include, but are
not limited to, statements regarding FISI&#146;s ability to continue to execute on and implement its
strategic growth plan, FISI&#146;s opportunities for continued growth, FISI&#146;s initiatives to improve its
financial and operational performance and increase its growth and profitability, FISI&#146;s future
stock price and dividend growth, FISI&#146;s future returns to shareholders, FISI&#146;s ability to continue
to strengthen its balance sheet and grow its core business, FISI&#146;s ability to continue to
strengthen its regulatory compliance procedures, FISI&#146;s ability to continue to profitably grow its
commercial lending business, FISI&#146;s ability to enhance its competitive position through diversified
income streams, FISI&#146;s ability to leverage its client base to offer its clients additional
fee-based products, FISI&#146;s future returns from its existing fee-based platforms and the effect of
those platforms on overall shareholder value, FISI&#146;s ability to continue to maintain expense
discipline, FISI&#146;s plans to continue to return cash to its shareholders through cash dividends and
future increases that may be made thereto, FISI&#146;s actions taken or contemplated to enhance its
long-term prospects and create and return value for its shareholders, FISI&#146;s future operational and
financial performance, FISI&#146;s future growth and profitability, and the future effect of FISI&#146;s
strategic growth plan on FISI&#146;s growth, profitability and total shareholder returns. Such
forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future operational or financial performance and
are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections and management&#146;s current
beliefs and assumptions, all of which involve a number of significant risks and uncertainties, any
one or more of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in FISI&#146;s
forward-looking statements. There are a number of important risks and uncertainties that could
cause FISI&#146;s actual events or results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by such
forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: FISI&#146;s ability to implement its
strategic plan, FISI&#146;s ability to redeploy investment assets into loan assets, whether FISI
experiences greater credit losses than expected, whether FISI experiences breaches of its, or third
party, information systems, the attitudes and preferences of FISI&#146;s customers, FISI&#146;s ability to
successfully integrate and profitably operate SDN and Courier Capital, the competitive environment,
fluctuations in the fair value of securities in its investment portfolio, changes in the regulatory
environment and FISI&#146;s compliance with regulatory requirements, changes in interest rates, general
economic and credit market conditions nationally and regionally, and the actions of activist
investors, including the amount of related costs incurred by FISI and the disruption caused to
FISI&#146;s business activities by these actions. Consequently, all forward-looking statements made
herein are qualified by these cautionary statements and the cautionary language in FISI&#146;s Annual
Report on Form 10-K, its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other documents filed with the SEC.
Except as required by law, FISI undertakes no obligation to revise these statements, whether to
reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events or otherwise, following the date
of this press release.


<P align="center" style="font-size: 10pt">*****


<DIV align="center">
<TABLE style="font-size: 10pt" cellspacing="0" border="0" cellpadding="0" width="95%">
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<TR valign="bottom">
    <TD width="65%">&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD width="3%">&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD width="32%">&nbsp;</TD>
</TR>

<!-- End Table Head -->
<!-- Begin Table Body -->
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px"><B>For additional information:</B>
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top"><BR></TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Investors:
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top">News Media:</TD>
</TR>
<TR style="font-size: 1px">
    <TD valign="top" style="border-top: 1px solid #000000"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">&nbsp;
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top" style="border-top: 1px solid #000000">&nbsp;</TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Kevin B. Klotzbach
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top">Brandonne Rankin</TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer &#038; Treasurer
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top">McDougall Communications</TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Phone: 585.786.1130
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top">Phone: 585.313.3683</TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Email: KBKlotzbach@five-starbank.com
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top">Email: brankin@mcdougallpr.com</TD>
</TR>
<TR style="font-size: 1px">
    <TD valign="top" style="border-top: 1px solid #000000"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">&nbsp;
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top" style="border-top: 1px solid #000000">&nbsp;</TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Jordan Darrow
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top"><BR></TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Darrow Associates
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top"><BR></TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Phone: 631.367.1866
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top"><BR></TD>
</TR>
<TR valign="bottom" style="font-size: 10pt">
    <TD valign="top"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">Email: jdarrow@darrowir.com
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top"><BR></TD>
</TR>
<TR style="font-size: 1px">
    <TD valign="top" style="border-top: 1px solid #000000"><DIV style="margin-left:0px; text-indent:-0px">&nbsp;
</DIV></TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD align="left" valign="top"><BR></TD>
</TR>
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