Michael W. Emerson

HSBC USA, Inc. provides commercial banking services. Its customers include individuals, including high net worth individuals, small businesses, corporations, institutions and governments. The company operates through the following segments: Retail Banking and Wealth Management (RBWM), Commercial Banking (CB), Global Banking and Markets (GB&M), Private Banking (PB), and Corporate Center (CC). The RBWM segment provides banking and wealth products and services, including personal loans, MasterCard and Visa credit card loans, deposits, branch services and financial planning products and services such as mutual funds, investments and insurance. The CB segment offers domestic and international services and banking, insurance and investment products to companies, government entities and non-profit organizations. The GB&M segment provides tailored financial solutions to major government, corporate and institutional clients as well as private investors worldwide. The PB segment provides private banking and trustee services to individuals and families with local and international needs which include specialist advisory services, including banking, liquidity management, investment services, custody services, tailored lending, wealth planning, trust and fiduciary services, insurance, family wealth and philanthropy advisory services. The CC segment includes BSM and legacy structured credit products, as well as a portfolio of residential mortgage loans, including certain loan servicing activities performed on behalf of HSBC Finance. HSBC USA was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Founded in 1969, HSBC Securities (U.S.A.) Inc. is an SEC-registered brokerage firm and registered futures commission merchant located in New York City. The firm is a wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC North America Holdings, Inc. and their ultimate parent is HSBC Holdings Plc. (NYSE: HBC). HSBC Securities (U.S.A.) is a member of FINRA, the NYSE and the SIPC. Their securities and annuity products are provided by registered representatives and insurance agents of HSBC Securities (U.S.A.). In California, HSBC Securities (U.S.A.) conducts insurance business as HSBC Securities Insurance Services. Insurance products are offered through insurance agents of HSBC Insurance Agency (U.S.A.) Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Bank U.S.A. NA and an indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc. The company also engages in investment banking underwriting, dealing and brokering of debt and equity securities and futures contracts and is a primary dealer in U.S. Government and federal agency securities.

Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC (Credit Suisse Securities USA) is the broker/dealer division of Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, an investment banking company headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1998 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Credit Suisse (USA), Inc., ultimately owned by Credit Suisse Group AG (SWX: CSGN) in Switzerland. Credit Suisse Securities USA offers a suite of equities, solutions and credit products and services which includes global securities sales, trading and execution, prime brokerage and comprehensive investment research. Their clients include financial institutions, corporations, governments, institutional investors, such as pension funds and hedge funds, and private individuals around the world.

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP provides legal services to financial institutions and corporations, government entities, charitable and health care organizations and individual private clients. It was founded in 1792 and is headquartered in New York, NY.