Item 8.01 Other Events.
On April 18, 2021, Marlin Business Services Corp., a Pennsylvania corporation (the “Company,” “we,” or “us”), entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “merger agreement”) by and among the Company, Madeira Holdings, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (“Parent”), and Madeira Merger Subsidiary, Inc., a Pennsylvania corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent (“Merger Sub”). Upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the merger agreement, Merger Sub will be merged with and into the Company (the “merger”), with the Company surviving the Merger as a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent.
In connection with the merger, on June 16, 2021, the Company filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) a preliminary proxy statement pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) (the “Preliminary Proxy Statement”). On June 30, 2021, the Company filed with the SEC a definitive proxy statement pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act (the “Definitive Proxy Statement” and, together with the Preliminary Proxy Statement, the “Proxy Statement”). The Company commenced mailing the Definitive Proxy Statement to the Company’s shareholders on or about July 2, 2021.
Following the filing of the Preliminary Proxy Statement, as of the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K, three complaints have been filed by purported holders of Company’s common stock (the “Company common stock”). On June 18, 2021, a purported holder of Company common stock filed a complaint against the Company and the members of the Company’s board of directors (the “Company board”) in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York captioned Stein v. Marlin Business Services Corp. et al, No. 1:21-cv-05384 (the “Stein Complaint”). On June 28, 2021, a purported holder of Company common stock filed a complaint against the Company and the members of the Company board in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York captioned Gibson v. Marlin Business Services Corp. et al, No. 1:21-cv-03626 (the “Gibson Complaint”). On June 28, 2021, a purported holder of Company common stock filed a complaint against the Company and the members of the Company board in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York captioned Ciccotelli v. Marlin Business Services Corp. et al, No. 1:21-cv-05608 (the “Ciccotelli Complaint,” and collectively with the Stein Complaint and the Gibson Complaint, the “Complaints” and the corresponding lawsuits the “Merger Litigation”).
The Complaints assert, among other things, claims under Section 14(a) and Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act, and Rule 14a-9 promulgated thereunder, for allegedly causing a materially incomplete and misleading preliminary proxy statement to be filed with the SEC and disseminated to the Company’s shareholders. Among other remedies, the Complaints seek to enjoin the defendants from proceeding with, consummating or closing the merger unless and until the allegedly materially incomplete and misleading information is disclosed to Company shareholders.
The parties to the Merger Litigation subsequently engaged in arm’s-length negotiations to attempt to resolve the claims asserted in the Merger Litigation, and reached an agreement whereby the Company would file on this Current Report on Form 8-K certain supplemental disclosures regarding the merger. The Company and Company board believe that the allegations and claims asserted in the Merger Litigation lack merit, and that the supplemental disclosures set